A 10-Point Guide for Improving Your Board Meeting Through Excellent Presentations

Volunteer board members spend their own time and money — and often travel long distances — to participate in board meetings. We owe our trustees rich conversations, a flawless meeting with materials that are current and crisply edited, sessions that start on time, speakers who are compelling, and food that is at least okay.

The Audubon board meets three times a year. Our 36 directors are science, policy, legal, marketing and business experts; they advise us on the work we do with a $123 million annual budget. These busy people expect us to seek their advice and tap their expertise. They don’t come to board meetings to listen to lectures or monologues. At Audubon, we work hard to achieve a balance: presenters only talk a third of the time; board discussion and Q&A fill the remainder of the time. This may be the single most important thing that sets our board meetings apart.

Board members should leave feeling terrific about their commitment to your charity. You want them to know that you respect their time and appreciate their contributions — financial and otherwise. At Audubon, to optimize each presentation, the speaker rehearses at least twice for each session and gets feedback from a handful of senior staff members. Practice and constructive criticism help even seasoned speakers polish their remarks. Even if this approach is too time-consuming for your nonprofit, there’s a right-sized way for every organization to prepare for these occasions.

Here are 10 ways to ensure your next board presentation hits the mark.

1. Most of these folks engage with our organization episodically, so put your remarks in context. Think about a good TV series: the first minute often includes a super-tight reminder of what came before. It’s helpful to ground board members in the conversation: Are we reporting on progress, introducing a new idea or wrapping up a topic we’ve addressed before? Let them know before you dive in.

2. Explain why this topic matters. Elevate. Stay out of the weeds (except when weeds are part of a real-life example of how things are working). When you’re talking about a demonstration project, many board members are asking themselves: Will this scale? Can it really make a difference? Help them understand how your data points connect to a greater goal.

3. Assume the board is impressed with your knowledge, expertise and taste. Don’t use your time to demonstrate your facility with lexicon, policy-speak, or anything too granular. Your goal is to connect, not impress. If your presentation is met with silence rather than eager questions, then you’ve talked past the trustees, conveyed the idea that you don’t need their help or, worse, bored them.

4. Be candid about potential obstacles. Many board members work in the business world and often spend three-quarters of any meeting analyzing ideas to understand how they might fail. Nonprofits tend to do the opposite: we spend all our time talking about why our plan is going to change the world. But when you’re waxing optimistic, the veteran donors and business people on the board are thinking about obstacles and why your great idea might not work. By raising questions and concerns yourself, you become more credible and open up what may be the most important avenue for board queries and advice. It’s worth rereading the previous sentence.

5. Don’t try to cover everything in your presentation. You can keep a side list and make additional points during the Q&A or in a hallway. I know this isn’t easy; you have lots of important work to share. But when you do that at the cost of robust Q&A, you diminish your work and that of your colleagues.

6. Remember: presentations always grow when you’re in front of an audience; they never shrink. If you’re going to depart from your rehearsed talking points, it’s your responsibility to find a way to stick to your allotted time. Nobody ever has been criticized for wrapping up on time or a little early.

7. Show enthusiasm. It can be hard to generate energy and enthusiasm for topics you’ve covered before — but if you’re not excited about your work, why should the board be? Summoning freshness is tough when you present frequently. But just as a Broadway actor will tell you, every night is different; and every audience deserves your best.

8. Ask questions. If you’re asked a question, answer it briefly. And then ask, “Did I answer your question?” And maybe even, “What’s behind your question?” Board members usually have a reason for asking; you will get to a more meaningful exchange if you probe for that.

9. Don’t read your presentation. If you’re going to do that, just put it in the board book; trustees can read, too. Feel free to work from notes or let your slides be your prompts. Be in the room, looking board members in the eye — not reading from a computer or paper notes.

10. Connect with trustees’ work, funding, or history on the board. If they contribute to your work, they appreciate being acknowledged. If they are experts in a field, they like their colleagues on the board to know it. If they have been extremely helpful in developing an approach or solving a problem, they will appreciate a shout-out.

A final thought: Board members enjoy meeting talented staff members. They want to get to know you and your work. Make the most of that opportunity — share your hopes and concerns. And most of all, show them your passion.

David Yarnold (@david_yarnold) is CEO of the National Audubon Society. The group’s board includes major philanthropists, leaders in a variety of fields, and elected chapter leaders.