Meetings in person allow for more natural conversations and nonverbal signals, which aren’t possible in a digital environment. With a little planning and effort nonprofits can continue to maintain a productive meeting dynamic when switching to digital formats.

Virtual board meetings can be as productive as in-person sessions by following best practices. To ensure that your meetings are effective and enjoyable take a look at these suggestions:

Comprehensive Preparation

Virtual meetings require more thorough preparation process than in-person sessions. Before the meeting, directors should receive a detailed agenda with clearly defined topics for discussion as well as the time limit for each. This allows them to look up any information needed and prepare questions or ideas before the meeting.

Start sharing meeting materials early

If you’re able my blog to check your social media or email and forget about the meeting. Make it a priority to provide all essential meeting materials, information and documents at a minimum of one week before the session. This will avoid participants from wasting valuable meeting time and allow more time to participate with discussions and participate in the decision-making process.

Utilize a virtual Board-Management Software platform such as OnBoard to give your board members access to all necessary materials and resources before the meeting. By doing this you will avoid the typical distractions of technical issues and connectivity problems that can delay or disrupt meetings. To avoid these issues make sure you ask your board management software provider to test all equipment and links for every participant prior to the meeting.