It is important to establish an order that keeps the discussion in order and productive when holding a remote board meeting. This is easier when the participants have a plan that is a guideline for them throughout the meeting. It is also helpful to send the agenda and any other documents related to it to the attendees through a secure board portal in advance so they can make notes, add items and review them before the meeting begins.
Another way to ensure an effective remote board meeting is to avoid distractions as much as possible. It is recommended that participants take the call in a quiet office or home location that doesn’t have many distracting sounds. This will reduce the chance that they’ll tune out and miss important issues that are being discussed during the call.
It’s also an excellent idea to request the participants to muffle their microphones while not speaking to minimize distracting background noise. The person who is designated to take minutes must record every motion verbatim and also include who made the motion as well as who seconded. This is essential to maintaining a complete record of the meeting which can be used for reference or legal purposes years further down the road.
It’s also important to adhere to the time limitations you determine for each item on your agenda to avoid the meeting becoming a drag. You can further encourage efficient meetings by encouraging attendees to use a parking lot for ad-hoc issues so that they don’t disrupt the main discussion.