It's Possible to have Startup Board Meetings that aren't a Waste of Everyone's Time!
But, like most things, it takes a little work
As a startup founder and CEO, you’ve probably led at least one board meeting that was a waste of everyone’s time. It’s likely you’ve also had a board meeting that turned into an intimidating inquisition by disgruntled and demanding investors. But, you survived, you checked the box, and (with crossed fingers) you didn’t have to deal with the board for a few weeks or, if you were lucky, months until the next meeting.
Board meetings don’t have to be like that. Done right, they can align management and leadership, surface opportunities and threats, allow space for creativity and dissent, ensure legal compliance, and build the trust that startups need to weather the very-real challenges they all face. They can be engines of strategic insight.
If you treat board meetings like a report card, that’s all you’ll get out of them. But if you treat them like a brain trust, they’ll become one of your startup’s most powerful tools.
Here’s how to ensure your board meetings don’t suck:
Hold Board Meetings Often (But Not Too Often)
Determining how often to hold board meetings may take a little trial and error. The right cadence allows board members to stay informed and provide input, but keeps meetings from becoming overly burdensome for the directors or a distraction for management from the day-to-day operations of the company.
Most companies, including startups, find that quarterly board meetings are generally sufficient. During critical times for the company (fundraising, product pivots, growth spurts, management upheaval), the board may need to meet monthly. There may even be periods where weekly or daily calls are in order. At a minimum, the corporate law in most states requires at least one formal board meeting annually in order for the company to remain in good standing and maintain limited liability protections.
The CEO and /or the Board Chair generally determine the schedule for regular board meetings. If an issue arises in between regularly-scheduled board meetings, the CEO or the Board Chair are typically empowered to call special meetings of the board with at least some amount of notice to the board members (look at your bylaws—they generally tell you what sort of notice is required).
💡 Tip: Board actions can also be taken by unanimous written consent—ideal for routine decisions when a formal meeting is impractical.
Prepare for Board Meetings in Advance
The Agenda and Board Packet: Make it Interesting and Create an Expectation that Board Members Read the Materials
The company’s CEO and Board Chair should collaborate on the agenda. Company management will typically prepare or compile materials for the board that support, and will accompany, the agenda. Together, the agenda and supplemental materials are commonly referred to as the “board packet.” Either the CEO or the Board Chair should be responsible for sending the board packet to the board members at least 5 - 7 days prior to the board meeting.
As the CEO, you should make it clear that the directors (and anyone else attending the board meeting as an advisor or invitee of the board members) are expected to know what is in the board packet. Be explicit that this is a minimum requirement for the opportunity to be on your board. This means that they have not only read the packet, but they understand it as well.
The board members are likely to be busy people with limited bandwidth. They will have a much easier time meeting this expectation if the board packet is, in addition to being comprehensive, actually interesting. This means that you should probably avoid the slide deck. Instead, focus on creating a narrative around the topics the board will be addressing. Curate the information in the board packet so that it provides everything—but not more than—the directors need in order to have a fruitful discussion and make informed decisions about the important issues facing the company.
Keep the Board Focused on the Most Important Issues and Information
“Focus on two deep topics per meeting—not a laundry list of updates.”
— Mark Suster, VC and author of Both Sides of the Table
The board packet should be short; no more than five pages total. Sticking to a page limit is a good disciplining tool: it helps management focus the board meeting on only the most important topics and on only the most important information related to those topics.
As you prepare the agenda, keep in mind that directors are not responsible for the day-to-day management or operations of the company. They are elected by the shareholders to act as agents management (essentially to fire and hire the CEO) and to provide leadership on strategic issues. A board meeting is not the right place for operational or tactical discussions. Keep the board out of the weeds even if that’s where they like to be.
Mike Maples, from the early-stage VC firm Floodgate, is quoted as saying that there are only four topics that a board should address in a board meeting:
Has the market changed since we last met? If so, did it affect us negatively or positively?
Has the team changed? For better or for worse?
Has our position in the market changed?
Did we do what we said we would?
Your company’s list of key questions may be different than the ones above, but the questions should be at a similar level: strategic rather than tactical or operational.
The agenda for a typical board meeting may include time for brief reports on, and a discussion of (but only if warranted), some of the following items:
the status of action items assigned to board members at the last board meeting;
the company’s progress on key metrics;
the company’s growth forecast;
the company’s product strategy (product-market fit);
the company’s hiring plan and equity pool size (talent and succession, culture and morale);
the company’s fundraising plans (burn rate and runway);
one or two key strategic issues or questions to which the CEO would like the board’s input and support;
any corporate actions or other resolutions that require board approval, which may include:
issuing or repurchasing stock;
amending the charter or bylaws;
mergers, acquisitions, or large asset sales;
appointing or removing executives;
equity incentive plans; and
material contracts or leases.
“A Board’s role is oversight, not day‑to‑day management. There is nothing worse than a Board which meddles.”
— Fred Wilson, Union Square Ventures
The CEO Should Go One-On-One With Each Board Member Before the Meeting
As the CEO of the company, you do not want to be surprised by anything that happens at a board meeting. After the board packets have been distributed, but at least a few days before the actual board meeting, you should plan on talking individually with each board member. In this meeting, you should surface the director’s positions, issues, or questions relating to all items that the board will address in the board meeting. You should know how the director will vote on any proposed resolutions. If you do your job right, you will be able to use this information to run an effective board meeting without any surprises.
🎯 Running the Meeting
A great board meeting is crisp, strategic, and participatory. Here’s a flow that works:
Kick off with an executive summary and review of last meeting’s action items.
Stay high-level—don’t walk through the deck line-by-line.
Encourage debate. Ask for opposing views. A board that never disagrees isn’t doing its job.
Document decisions and make clear who’s responsible for what.
End on time. Respect everyone’s schedule—including yours.
🎙️ Pro Tip: Consider an annual executive session (without management present) so directors can speak candidly.
📝 The Unsung Hero: Board Minutes
“Minutes aren’t just admin—they’re a legal shield.”
— Diligent Insights
Board minutes are the official record of what happened. They should show that directors exercised reasonable business judgment in overseeing the company and that they acted in good faith. But, minutes that are overly detailed can become problematic if surfaced during discovery in litigation or in investor disputes or during future financings or transactions. There is no need to provide details on every piece of information the board considered and every point they raised in considering a course of action.
Best Practices:
Stick to decisions and actions; there is no need to create a transcript.
Use a standard format—who attended, what was discussed, what was decided.
Avoid personal opinions and emotional language.
Note when supporting materials were reviewed—but store them separately.
Get minutes approved at the next meeting, then signed and securely stored.
💡 DO NOT attach full board decks to the minutes. Instead, include a description like the following in the minutes: “The board reviewed the Q3 financials and fundraising projections presented by the CEO.”
💡 Generally, board members should NOT keep personal notes of what happens in board meetings. These notes can be discoverable in litigation and may not reflect the board’s official positions and decisions—they can confuse the narrative and lead to misunderstandings. Encourage directors to defer to the final, approved minutes as the authoritative record rather than maintaining their own.
✅ Startup Board Meeting Checklist
Meeting Frequency: Quarterly (or monthly or more often during key phases)
Agenda Prep: CEO and Chair set it; send 5-7 days prior to meeting
Meeting Flow: Executive summary → strategic issues → decisions
Participation: Invite debate; build trust and transparency
Minutes: Succinct, factual, legal-ready
Records: Approved minutes should be signed by the secretary and stored securely (in a physical or digital minute book)
“Good board meetings aren’t just about compliance—they’re where strategy gets sharpened.”
— Nicole Glaros, startup advisor and investor