First, you should have a clearly defined agenda that makes a reasonable guess at how long each topic should take. Every topic could take more time, but the board chair and the CEO should carefully weigh the time allotted for the board meeting and balance the time accordingly.
Then, you should honor the allotted time. If you are going over the designated time the board chair should stop whoever is presenting and say, “We’ve only allotted 15 minutes for this discussion. Do trustees feel we should continue the conversation, if so that will mean reducing the time for other items on the agenda?” And then let the full board weigh in on how to proceed.
- Don’t go over the allotted 2-hour window. Train the board to become disciplined in how they use the group’s time. Typically 2 hours should be enough to complete the board’s business.
- Appoint a timekeeper. Sometimes the board chair can be a great facilitator but a lousy timekeeper. If this is the case with your board, ask someone be the timekeeper. You could rotate through all the trustees with a different trustee being the timekeeper each month.
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