+ Don't think about a value-added board, think about value added people.
+ Don’t give them reason to discuss you without you. Get them to discuss you with you. And do it one on one. You must have a personal relationship with each of your board members, not a group relationship.
+ Do not surprise your board members. This sounds obvious, but founders do it all the time. You probably have too. If you use the board meeting as a time to convey new and important information then you are surprising your board.
+ Do not make your board members think in the board meeting Board members show up at meetings to monitor their investment and decide if they still want you to be CEO. Present them with the information they need to know: that the company is doing the things that will make it quickly increase in value. If the company is not correctly doing these things, present them with the bad news but couple it with the actions you are taking to fix the problem.
+ In your first several board meetings ask early investors they need to see. What KPIs do we need to present? What information can you omit. What other management team members do you think should be in these meetings and for how long? Have we surprised you in any way in the meeting, good or bad? Have the early investors train you in what a board meeting should look and sound like.
+ Don't think about a value-added board, think about value added people.
+ Don’t give them reason to discuss you without you. Get them to discuss you with you. And do it one on one. You must have a personal relationship with each of your board members, not a group relationship.
+ Do not surprise your board members. This sounds obvious, but founders do it all the time. You probably have too. If you use the board meeting as a time to convey new and important information then you are surprising your board.
+ Do not make your board members think in the board meeting Board members show up at meetings to monitor their investment and decide if they still want you to be CEO. Present them with the information they need to know: that the company is doing the things that will make it quickly increase in value. If the company is not correctly doing these things, present them with the bad news but couple it with the actions you are taking to fix the problem.
+ In your first several board meetings ask early investors they need to see. What KPIs do we need to present? What information can you omit. What other management team members do you think should be in these meetings and for how long? Have we surprised you in any way in the meeting, good or bad? Have the early investors train you in what a board meeting should look and sound like.