How to Prepare for Board Engagement

You're on the Board of a nonprofit organization. And you’ve just hired a new Executive Director. They’re bringing fresh perspective, steady commitment, and a deep sense of purpose. I’ve seen two versions of what happens next. One ED gets a warm welcome, a few quick meetings, and a plate full of expectations. They’re ready to go, yet unsure what success looks like. Within a few months, the excitement gives way to uncertainty. The other ED walks into the same complexity, but with something different from you as the Board. Clear priorities. Shared context. And a Board that shows up consistently and helps shape the work ahead. Twelve months later, that leader is still learning but also leading. The first one? Already burnt out from the overload of figuring everything out solo. What made the difference? 1. 𝗔 𝗳𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿 It’s easy to assume your new ED will figure out what matters from a packet of onboarding materials. But narrowing the focus early is one of the most helpful things you can do as a Board. Give clarity into: • What do we need to stabilize or strengthen? • Where can we build momentum? • What would progress look like one year from now?    You’re not making the job smaller. You’re making it doable. 2. 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝘀 New EDs often spend the first year trying to figure out who holds influence, who needs support, and who they’ve accidentally overlooked. You can shorten that runway. So here, go beyond introductions to the new ED. Coach them with context. Share: • Where trust already exists and how it was built • Where expectations have gone unspoken • Where previous tensions may resurface without context • Why funders and supporters are longtime champions, get specific • Who they need to know before the first public meeting Context helps underpin confidence. 3. 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 The goal here is to reinforce clarity, confidence, and trust. And build a partnership effort, not to micromanage. Set a rhythm for support: • Regular check-ins that focus on learning, not evaluation • A clear point of contact on the board Shared expectations about decisions, communication, and pace While transitions are full of unknowns, you NS your full Board can smooth out a lot of those by using this 3-step approach.

It’s board meeting time. Many companies are holding meetings to review year-end results and refine strategies for 2025. Not every general counsel or chief legal officer is invited into the boardroom. The title alone does not guarantee a seat at the table. What matters is impact. For those stepping into the boardroom for the first time or looking to strengthen their role, here's some advice a director once shared with me: the GC-board relationship takes care and feeding. That lesson was not clear to me when I first sat in the boardroom as an acting general counsel, but experience taught me what it takes. A successful GC-board relationship depends on trust, transparency, and truth. Trust is built by consistently connecting legal issues to business outcomes. Strong GCs anticipate challenges and proactively prepare solutions. They contribute beyond legal matters by collaborating on board agendas, committee calendars, and governance planning. Trust also comes from holding the legal line, offering solutions that move the business forward without compromising legal integrity. Transparency requires a culture of no surprises. Keeping the board informed on risk, compliance, and governance issues is critical. This should happen well before problems arise. Clear, timely updates framed in business terms—not legal jargon—help directors make informed decisions. Being present in both board meetings and informal conversations ensures that legal is fully integrated into discussions on strategy and risk. Truth often means delivering difficult messages. It takes courage to say what people need to hear, not just what they want to hear. A strong GC speaks with confidence and clarity, offering a clear-eyed assessment of risks, obligations, and opportunities. For a GC new to the boardroom, preparation is essential. Reviewing past board materials provides insight into priorities and concerns. Meeting with committee chairs builds relationships and clarifies expectations. Understanding key strategic initiatives allows legal to contribute at a higher level. These steps ensure that legal is positioned as a valued voice in executive and board discussions. It is possible to build this foundation before ever stepping into a board meeting. Credibility starts with contributing beyond legal risk, ensuring that legal guidance is concise and business-focused, and consistently presenting challenges alongside actionable solutions. Boards rely on legal leaders who bring clarity and direction. Go for it, and let us know how it goes, okay?

Ever walked into a board meeting and felt the energy shift because everyone came prepared? That’s the power of intentional preparation. One of the most common challenges I see with boards is lack of preparation before meetings. It’s not about the willingness to contribute—it’s often about not having the right tools, information, or clarity beforehand. But here’s the thing: when board members come prepared, the conversations are sharper, the decisions are smarter, and the outcomes are far more impactful. In my experience, enhancing board preparedness isn’t just about sending a board pack and hoping for the best. It’s about fostering a culture of engagement, leveraging the right tools, and setting clear expectations. Here are a few strategies that I’ve found to work wonders: 📋 Comprehensive Pre-Read Materials: A well-organized board pack with key documents, sent at least a week in advance. 🤝 Pre-Meeting Engagements: One-on-one conversations to align on priorities and address potential concerns. ⏰ Clear Expectations: Providing a detailed agenda with objectives and time allocations for each topic. 💻 Tech Tools: Board management software to centralize materials and enable pre-meeting discussions. 🤔 Encourage Preparation: Advising board members to dedicate time for review and ask questions ahead of time. When you pair these strategies with a culture that values active participation, you unlock the potential for transformative board meetings. What’s one strategy that has helped your board stay prepared and engaged? Share your insights in the comments—I’d love to learn from you! #BoardLeadership #Governance #Preparedness #LeadershipMatters #EffectiveBoards

In 20 years as a VC-backed CEO, I’ve led 80+ board meetings. If you’re running sales and want to be taken seriously in the boardroom, here are the 3 things you need to do in your next board meeting: BACKGROUND: Sales results are always a top item on any board agenda. Sharing your numbers and recent wins is par for the course. Hopefully, they impress. But boards want to know more. Numbers and a few anecdotes don’t dazzle. Here’s what does: 1. Know WHY you are winning Board members have a few hours to understand your last 3 months of work. Your job is to interpret the facts that help them understand the business quickly. Consider a simple example: You won more sales this Q3 than Q3 last year. Fact is, they know that already. They saw the numbers before the meeting. The real question is: Why? Did close rates or ASP go up? That would tell the board you are getting better / more efficient at GTM. Or is it because you have more reps? Which might mean you are scaling well (if efficiency is the same per-rep) or not, if per-rep performance is dropping. A good board update doesn’t neglect your victories, but it shows the board you're in command of the drivers of performance now and into the future. 2. Be upfront about what you need to fix Boards want results (duh). But they also want to know that the management team understands the key levers to improve the business going forward. That’s why I expect my sales leadership in the boardroom to present more than just the positive picture of our sales success. They also need to share what needs work. Hiding bad news only costs you credibility. That doesn’t mean it’s a venting session. Or a good time to throw another exec under the bus. Make it clear you know where the good is AND the bad in the business. Focus on your own function and ask: What do I need/want to fix to improve our results (and why!)? A great sales leader will identify the issues and have a plan... Before the board asks. 3. Share credit, but avoid commercials In a board meeting, you are sharing the achievements of your function, not yourself. You should mention the work your team did to make the magic happen. Recognize the contributions of other functions (say, CS) to your results. It’s good leadership to share credit where credit is due. But keep it genuine. And stick to essentials. Too much, and it feels like pandering. TAKEAWAY: A good sales leader delivers results. A great sales leader, one who gets noticed by the board… One who the board can’t wait to hear from every meeting… One who gets the best opportunities in this company and the next… They share what’s working - and why. They share what’s not working - and what they plan to do about it. They are generous with credit - but they don’t oversell their team. Those are the sales leaders who can be a next great CEO.

My first boardroom presentation? I was so over-prepared… and still so overwhelmed. What no one told me: You can know your slides and still lose the room. I was so in my head. Here’s the checklist I wish someone gave me: ✅ Know the power players—not just their titles, but their triggers ✅ Speak in 3s or digestible bites - boards listen in frameworks ✅ Lead with insight, not information. Do not overwhelm. With a word or data salad. ✅ Leave room for silence. That’s where influence lands and discussion begins. I use this same prep strategy with leaders today. It’s not just about presenting. It’s about positioning. Save this for your next high-stakes room.

Before every big meeting  I read every document. Twice.  I research every attendee.  I think through every possible dynamic before walking into the room. People call it "over-preparing." I call it strategic advantage. I have learned over the years that I have to do this. This approach saved me countless times: • In White House briefings where one wrong answer could make headlines • In boardrooms where millions were on the line • In client meetings where credibility was everything The secret? It's not just about knowing the facts.  It's about understanding the people and the politics. Before every important meeting, I ask: ⇾ Who are the key decision-makers? ⇾ What are their primary concerns? ⇾ Where might resistance come from? ⇾ How can I make their job easier? Preparation isn't about perfection—it's about positioning. When you're the most prepared person in the room, you're not just participating. You're leading. #StrategicPreparation #LeadershipTips #PowerPivot

THE BOARD STRATEGY THAT CHANGES EVERYTHING: WHAT GREAT CEOS DO DIFFERENTLY Do you live in perpetual dread of board meetings? You spend days preparing detailed progress reports, praying you’ve hit your numbers, hoping no one is going to ask the hard questions you don't have answers to. The error is in thinking your board is there to evaluate you when, in fact, they’re not. They’re there to AMPLIFY YOU. I think you’ll find that this reframe could change everything about how you experience your board relationships. YOUR THINKING BEFORE: The Report Card Approach 👎 Focus on proving you have everything under control 👎 Present problems only after you'd solved them 👎 Ask for money and approval 👎 Defensive when challenged 👎 Information flows one way: down to them AFTER THIS REFRAME: The Strategic Partnership Approach 👍 Focus on getting help with what you don't have under control 👍 Bring problems while you are still solving them 👍 Ask for insights and connections 👍 Curious when challenged 👍 Information flows both ways Here are some simple tactical changes that will help you transition from the first kind of relationship to the new and improved one: Send the board deck 48 hours early. Don't make them absorb information during the meeting. Use meeting time for discussion, not presentation. Lead with your biggest challenges first. Save the good news for the end. Board members want to earn their equity by helping you solve hard problems. Ask specific questions, not generic ones. Instead of "Any thoughts on our go-to-market strategy?" try "Sarah, given your experience scaling B2B companies, what would you prioritize: investing in outbound sales or product-led growth?" Hold post-meeting calls with individual board members. Some of the best advice comes in one-on-one conversations, not group settings. Share customer feedback, both positive and negative. Board members make better decisions when they understand your customers' real experience. Be vulnerable about what you don't know. The phrase "I don't know, but here's how I'm planning to figure it out" builds more confidence than pretending to have all the answers. Don’t forget: Your board members didn't invest in your company to sit in quarterly meetings and nod approvingly. They invested because they want to be part of building something significant. Stop treating them like parents who need to sign your report card and more like strategic partners. What's one challenge you're facing where your board's collective experience could actually help you move faster? *** I’m Jennifer Kamara, founder of Kamara Life Design. Enjoy this? Repost to share with your network, and follow me for actionable strategies to design businesses and lives with meaning. Want to go from good to world-class? Join our community of subscribers today: https://lnkd.in/d6TT6fX5