Template

Advisory board meeting template

A meeting with advisers who have no vote: share the facts openly, bring two or three hard questions, and use their experience on those.

90 minutesFor Founders and executive directors with an advisory boardAgenda room
Change the agenda first

The agenda, with a time for each part

  1. Welcome and what we want from today5 min
    • What would make this meeting worth your time?
  2. Since we last met15 min
    • What has changed, good and bad?
  3. Hard question one25 min
    • What would you do in our place?
    • What have you seen go wrong in a situation like this?
  4. Hard question two25 min
    • Who should we be talking to that we are not?
  5. Introductions and help15 min
    • Who could each of you introduce us to?
  6. What we will do, and what we will report back5 min
    • What will you hear from us next time?

How the notes read afterwards

A made-up example, so you can see the shape. In a real call each line carries the words that were said and who said them.

Hard question. Raise money now, or wait six months for more revenue? Two advisers said wait; one said raise a small round now.

Introductions. Lena will introduce us to two hospital buyers.

Report back. Whether the pilot with the second hospital starts by March.

Running it well

Ways to change it

One-to-one with an adviserThirty minutes, one question, and one introduction asked for.
Customer advisory boardCustomers instead of experts: what they need next, and what would make them leave.

When to skip it. When you have no hard question. Send the update in writing and save their time for when you need it.

Questions

What is an advisory board?

A group of experienced people who advise a company or charity without legal duties or a vote.

What happens at an advisory board meeting?

The organisation shares an honest update and asks the advisers for help on two or three hard questions.

How often should an advisory board meet?

Two to four times a year, with one-to-one calls in between.

What happens in the room

Everybody joins from the link, with no account. The agenda sits beside the call and each item fills in with what was said about it, under the name of the person who said it.

More templates

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