Board Meetings
Q. I have recently taken over as president of our condominium association, having served on the board for a couple of years. We are not professionally managed. One of the issues I want to address is the way meetings are held. Our last president, not wanting to spend more time than necessary away from his family, held the meetings at his house in the family room on Wednesday evenings and sometimes served dessert. It was very hospitable, but meetings seemed to drag on for over two hours. What suggestions do you have for the best way to have the most efficient meeting possible and meet all of our legal responsibilities to the members?
A. Your question certainly illustrates some of the “don’ts” in terms of conducting association board meetings. A board meeting is not a social gathering, it is a business meeting. Board meetings conducted in an unbusinesslike manner often frustrate the best board members and sometimes cause them to resign, which then leads to undersized and unproductive boards. Here are some pointers on conducting board meetings:
· Address the venue issue. It is highly desirable, if at all possible, to have meetings held in a business environment. Obviously if you have a clubhouse in your community, that should be used due to its convenience so long as the meeting can be held without interference from other activities. Otherwise, you should seek out an office location of one of the board members or perhaps a meeting room in a nearby church or public library.
· Have a printed agenda. It is important for the president to furnish to the board members an agenda for the meeting so that they can adequately prepare for the meeting. Please note that we did use the word “prepare” because in most cases it is necessary to read materials furnished with the agenda before coming to the board meeting. Everyone is busy these days and may find that they are “time challenged” to be adequately prepared; however, if there is a budget to be approved or a landscaping contract to be considered, it is not possible to read the material while it is being discussed and be able to make the same level of contribution you could make if you read it in advance. Consequently, your board members should be furnished the information with the agenda at least five (5) days in advance in order to have adequate opportunity to be prepared. Preparation reduces the length of discussion which then becomes necessary to adequately inform those who have not properly prepared.
· Manage the length of the meeting. Over the course of time, those who manage communities have determined that one hour is generally enough time to cover all of the materials if there is an agenda and adequate preparation by the board members. If there is an unusual issue on the agenda, then it may require an extra half hour or so to address it, such as the budget containing significant changes or the need for a special assessment for an unanticipated need. If you have one or two board members who typically like to talk at length about virtually every topic, it may be necessary for the president to actually assign proposed time frames to the various agenda items and bring discussions to a close in accordance with these time limits. This is generally not necessary but is a tool that can be used in certain circumstances. Also, be mindful that members may be present. In establishing the time and place of board meetings, one must also remember that in Virginia you must post a notice of the time and place for all members to see since all members are entitled to attend board meetings. We emphasize the word “attend” in that members are not entitled to speak at board meetings except during a period set aside as required by Virginia law for an owners’ forum. Generally owners’ forums are held before the convening of the formal board meeting and generally last in the neighborhood of 15 minutes. Few, if any, members participate in this fashion except when there is a hot issue on the agenda. In those cases, the president is entitled to establish a reasonable time limit for speakers.
· Board meetings should be held at a time that is convenient for most or all of the board members. The president should take a poll in order to make that determination. In some cases late afternoon meetings are convenient, before folks are going home for the evening. Generally, when the board is composed of folks who are not in a position to leave their jobs early and travel to the board meeting location before the end of the work day, early evening meetings on weekdays have been found to be the best time to meet. Since communities and boards come in all shapes and sizes, it is necessary to fashion a time and place for meetings that suits each board in its current configuration.
Parliamentary procedure is vital for a smooth running meeting where there is a large agenda. While many board presidents are not schooled in Robert’s Rules of Order, there are some basic rules of Parliamentary Procedure that can be easily followed by all associations. These include:
(1) follow the agenda;
(2) discuss only one subject at a time;
(3) give each board member a chance to speak on each agenda item;
(4) speak only on the issue being discussed;
(5) speak only when recognized by the Chair;
(6) address questions and comments to the Chair, not other members; and
(7) decide issues through motions, seconds and votes recorded in the minutes.
With adherence to the foregoing principles, you should be able to establish some new and successful policies that will lead to efficient and productive meetings in your association.