Planning for success: How to master the board agenda

TL;DR:

• Ineffective board meetings waste time and money; rebalancing agenda items boosts strategic value.
• The “jar of life” framework ensures big-picture issues come first; routine items must yield space.
• Use the Six Conversations model to structure focus across strategy, performance, and governance.
• A well-defined, transparent process, regular check-ins, and digital tools like Board Intelligence’s Agenda Planner revitalize board agendas.

The hidden cost of ineffective meetings

Inefficient meetings drain time and budget while adding little value. A 2022 UNC study found that one-third of meetings are unnecessary. In large companies, meetings can cost more than $100 million annually; board meetings generally cost the most.

Our joint research with the Chartered Governance Institute UK & Ireland shows that the average cost of board and committee meetings at large organizations has hovered around £300,000 per year since 2020. Yet few are confident that this investment delivers an appropriate return. Board Intelligence research shows that a third of boards spend more time looking backwards than forwards.

Why board meetings need special attention

Board meetings must serve strategy, not just routine admin. 91% of leaders say boards must spend less time on operational detail and more on strategy. Boards are critical in steering and risk oversight and cannot afford wasted sessions. So, what can you do to ensure the board’s time is used wisely and board meetings deliver the value we expect?

How to plan effective board meeting agendas

Strong agendas don’t just happen; we design them. By prioritising the right conversations, boards can focus time on what matters most.

The “jar of life” approach to agenda planning

We use the “jar of life” approach to agenda planning because board time is limited, like the capacity of a glass jar. Start with strategic items (“rocks”). Then, add routine tasks (“sand”) to fill gaps. Finally, handle ad-hoc items (“pebbles”) without compromising priorities.

Rocks, pebbles, and sand: structuring board time

1. The rocks: Your first priorities are big strategic discussions, significant decisions, and scheduled deep dives. Think of these as “rocks” because they are large, chunky, and inflexible.
2. The sand: Then, there are the regular, routine, and administrative items like performance updates, compliance matters, and minutes. These are like grains of sand: small, but there are lots of them, and they accumulate quickly.
3. The pebbles: Finally, address the ad hoc or urgent items that crop up and are hard to plan for. Think of these as pebbles.

Why starting with strategic priorities matters

If sand fills the jar first, there’s no room for strategic conversation. Placing rocks first ensures governance focuses on what matters most. Low-priority items can be delegated, reduced, or handled offline to preserve time.

Building your agenda this way means your board can spend more of its limited time on the topics that matter, with an agenda led by the organization’s priorities, rather than by an administrative “to-do” list.

Identifying the board’s priority conversations

Following the proper process is only part of the solution; you must also know your rocks, or priorities. That’s easier said than done, considering boards juggle a vast and expanding workload. This is where the second tool, the “Six Conversations” model, comes in.

Using the “Six Conversations” model

Board Intelligence’s Six Conversations model divides board focus into strategy, performance, and governance. It aligns with the board’s two core roles: steering and supervising. This helps boards to identify the mission-critical discussions that will help the organization deliver its big-picture vision and goals.

Balancing steering and supervising roles

Boards often lean too heavily on performance oversight. Only 16% of directors feel over-focused on performance; 44% say strategy gets too little time. The model helps restore balance and ensure both roles are addressed.

The main areas for reporting and discussion can be looked at in two different ways, reflecting the two roles that boards perform at any given time:

• Steering: The board’s role is to shape the organization and help it achieve its long-term aims.
• Supervising: The board’s role is to monitor performance and seek assurance.

Avoiding agenda overcrowding

If you list too many priorities, nothing gets done. This model makes it easy for the board to step back and assess whether it has too many priorities so that it can delegate some to management or committees. It prevents overloaded agendas and poor conversation quality.

Turning theory into practice: implementing an agenda strategy

The first step is to assess where your board has been spending time and identify what needs to change. The second step is a structured process to define a clear mandate and set of priorities for the board; The Six Conversations Model is a helpful framework for this process.

You can also work with an expert team to facilitate a board priorities and agenda-planning exercise that results in a focused board calendar of robust yet flexible meeting agendas. Board Intelligence's advisory team has helped hundreds of clients through this process.

Once the board has a clear set of priorities and a structured approach, the final step is to build an operational process that translates these priorities into action.

Assessing the current state of board discussions

Start by reviewing current agenda content and meeting focus. Ask: where is too much time spent? What content is missing? Then, review patterns to reset priorities.

Defining a clear board mandate and priorities

Host a structured consultation between the chair, company secretary, executives, and board. Define agreed strategic questions and mandates for the year. Align calendar topics around these agreed priorities.

Translating priorities into actionable agendas

Turn priorities into agenda items scheduled with appropriate depth. Be flexible: track changes dynamically, manage timing. Ensure alignment between agendas, committees, and management forums.

Tools to Support Agile and Strategic Agenda Planning

Most boards plan their agendas well in advance, but we all know that things change, and that keeping on top of all the moving parts in spreadsheets and other documents can keep governance professionals awake at night.

Benefits of the Board Intelligence Agenda Planner Tool

Board Intelligence’s Agenda Planner tool is designed to take the complexity out of setting forward agendas. From a single view, you can plan your forward calendar and manage last-minute changes with a simple “drag and drop” feature. You can also track where your board spends its time and proactively course-correct.

Conclusion: Making every board meeting count

Strategic board agendas don’t happen by chance. They require intention, structure, and tools. Use the Jar of Life first, define board priorities through Six Conversations, then execute via a clear process. Digital tools elevate this work into a flexible, governance-centred practice.