Transforming board meetings: The power of a flipped agenda

Many teachers use a popular and innovate education practice called the flipped classroom model. In the model, students watch short videos and do online work at home. Teachers use classroom time to engage students in discussions, collaboration and project-based learning.

Boards are also turning to this model to increase board meeting effectiveness and improve board member engagement. Find out how a flipped agenda could help the board of your mission-driven organization be even more effective:

What is a flipped meeting agenda?

Flipped meeting agendas require board members watch prerecorded presentations and read materials before the meeting.

Meetings are shorter and more efficient, with the board spending their valuable time together asking questions, discussing and deliberating, not watching staff presentations.

The advantages of flipping the agenda

During traditional board meetings, board members listen to numerous presentations from staff members and the CEO. Staff must pack a lot of information into board meetings, including:

• Financial and budget updates
• Progress reports on initiatives and goals
• Donor and vendor status
• Operational data

…and many other topics.

The flipped agenda model allows the board to dive into their governance work right away, instead of wading through information that they may or may not absorb. Staff prerecord their presentations, which are linked in the online board agenda. Board members must do their homework by watching all the presentations before the board meeting.

With the presentations available before the board meetings, members can watch them in small batches, taking as long as they need to understand, study, and evaluate the information. They can replay or pause to take notes and jot down questions to ask at the board meeting. They may request more information based on the presentations.

This format can be more inclusive for board members who may have different learning styles or need accommodations.

It also allows members who can’t attend the meeting to stay informed and contribute asynchronously.

The flipped agenda model allows board members more time to engage in richer and more meaningful conversations at their meetings. With more time for discussion, decisions are more considered and more robust.

Board members will also build stronger bonds with one another and with executive leaders. Members of cohesive boards are more trusting of their board colleagues, which makes them more willing to express their opinions and bring their authentic selves to their board roles.

In summary, there are a myriad of benefits:

• Board members come better prepared
• More inclusive for board members who may have different learning styles
• Members who can’t attend the meeting stay informed
• Allows the board to dive into their governance work right away
• More time to engage in richer and more meaningful conversations at meetings
• Decisions are more considered and more robust
• A more cohesive board.

Flipping encourages engagement, transparency and accountability

Using the flipped model can convince board members of the importance of preparation before the board meeting. With the traditional agenda model, board members expect that information will be presented at the meeting. With the flipped model, discussion and deliberation are the focus of meeting. Board members may also come to realize that they won’t be as effective at meetings unless they prepare ahead of time.

By having the presentations prerecorded and stored, board members can refer to previous specific information when they are working on creating organizational goals and strategies. This would not have been possible with verbal presentations during meetings. With the flipped agenda, everyone has access to the same information, and they have the ability to retrieve it when required.

Flipped agendas can help increase transparency and accountability for nonprofit boards and leadership. If members are failing to prepare for meetings, it will be apparent by their lack of contribution to the governance conversations. Board administrators can use their board management software to track which board members are viewing the presentations.

The organization can also enhance its transparency by making some or all the presentations available to potential or current volunteers, donors, business partners and employees. Allowing others outside the organization see the information that the board and CEO use in their decision-making process builds trust and understanding with the public. Transparency and trust, in turn, enhances the reputation of the organization.

Changes in culture and mindset

Spending more time at meetings in discussion and debate will sound appealing to most board members. However, switching to a flipped meeting agenda model requires a big change in culture and mindset. The board president and organization CEO must be willing to try running meetings differently. They also need to be willing to help board members work through any bumps or difficulties during the changeover without abandoning it.

Board administrators who are responsible for the board agenda will have an extra layer of responsibility to schedule the production of presentations. They must ensure they post the presentations on a strict deadline, so board members have ample time to watch before meetings. They also will need to support board members as they transition to the flipped agenda model.

Staff, too, will need training on how to best present in a virtual environment, as well as on using the technology to record their presentations. This will require them to understand audio and video recording best practices.

As Patrick Lencioni points out, “The good news is that there is nothing inherent about meetings that makes them bad, and so it is entirely possible to transform them into compelling, productive and fun activities. The bad news is that in order to do this, we have to fundamentally rethink much of the way we perceive and manage meetings.”

“The good news is that there is nothing inherent about meetings that makes them bad, and so it is entirely possible to transform them into compelling, productive, and fun activities. The bad news is that in order to do this, we have to fundamentally rethink much of the way we perceive and manage meetings.” – Patrick Lencioni, author of Death by Meeting

Technology can help you flip your agenda

Flipped meeting agenda models depend on reliable, robust and accessible technology. Board management software, such as BoardEffect, is an essential part of this model. Board administrators who are changing to this new meeting format can use the software to support implementation, for example, by using the centralized repository to give board members easy access to videos with supporting information and resources linked to agenda items.

BoardEffect’s Resource Library is available to both board members and administrators. The library is configurable with no limit or charge for data stored. It’s possible to easily create folders to store role and responsibilities documents, handbooks, policies, articles of association, mission statements and videos, while files and documents can be shared across every workroom.

Recordings of presentations can be added and shared in advance of meetings, and board and committee members can easily access important files on any device with keyword search to find things easily.

BoardEffect is designed with the unique needs of volunteer boards in mind. Our nonprofit board management software streamlines board processes, enhances communication and promotes accountability. It provides board management needs of directors, executives, and administrators with the tools to enable better communication and collaboration while fueling efficiency at every turn. Request a demo today.