Meetings sit at the very centre of decision-making whether you’re operating a small business or a big company. Yet, as time and efficiency increasingly become a challenge, how we plan and conduct meetings has changed. Enter board agenda software, a cutting-edge answer to an ancient question: how do we facilitate more efficient, effective and productive meetings?
There are many companies who are torn between traditional meeting structures and the adoption of board agenda software. We’ll take a look at both, analyze what they have in common, and help you decide which is best for your boardroom.
Ancient Forms of Gathering: The Traditionalists
Before we discuss software, let’s explore how meetings have always been organised. Almost all businesses still plan and execute meetings by hand. These include paper agendas, printed handouts, email conversations, and meetings.
Pros of Traditional Methods
- Trust: Many people are comfortable with traditional meeting methods because they’ve been around for decades. There’s no learning curve and it feels familiar.
- Easy: Agendas are easily created using paper and email. You don’t need a login, password, or technical knowledge.
- Direct Communication: You communicate better if you’re meeting people in person. You can read body language, understand how people respond, and engage in open-ended conversations that wouldn’t occur in a more formal, online context.
Cons of Traditional Methods
- Time-consuming: Traditional meetings require manual labour. Someone needs to build the agenda, print or email it out to attendees, and document everything.
- Not Flexible: When there are last minute adjustments to the agenda, it can be difficult to communicate with everyone. It’s even trickier if people are located at different venues.
- Problems With Document Tracking: Agendas and documents typically travel a lot in traditional environments — email inboxes, paper copies, and local drives. This largely facilitates confusion, version control and omissions.
- The Environment: Oh, the paper! Printing piles of meeting materials isn’t exactly environmentally sound.
Board Agenda Software: The Next Step
So, now that we’ve been through the venerable method, let’s dive into board agenda software. These apps aim to make the scheduling and follow-up of meetings more automated.
What is Board Agenda Software?
Board agenda software is a computer-based system designed to automate the processes of boards and committees. It makes it possible to create, share and maintain agendas, documents, and meeting minutes in a single place.
Pros of Board Agenda Software
- Efficiency & Cost Saving: One of the biggest benefits of software is saving time during the prepping process. Agendas are easily created and shared in just a few clicks. No more emailing each other and printing material out.
- Agenda Changes / Document Updates In Real-Time: Agenda or documents can be updated on the fly, keeping everyone in the loop. No more dreading someone citing an old file.
- Centralized Document Management: All materials from meetings are stored on a central location, accessible to all participants. This removes the necessity of keeping multiple versions of the same file lying around, making things more clear.
- Collaboration: Many board agenda platforms let you comment, add annotations and work collaboratively on documents in advance, during, and after a meeting. This can facilitate happier conversations and quicker decisions.
- Access from a Distance: Since people increasingly work remotely, the ability to have meeting content available at any location is invaluable. The board agenda software can be used on both desktops and smartphones, meaning that board members can attend no matter where they are.
- Security: Old-school approaches utilize email, which isn’t always secure. Board agenda software generally incorporates built-in security such as encryption and role access so sensitive data doesn’t get hacked.
- Green: It’s all digital, so you don’t have to print agendas or documents. This minimizes paper consumption and helps in maintaining a greener workplace.
Cons of Board Agenda Software
- Achieving This Will Take Time: If you have teams that are accustomed to the old ways, getting started with software may be a little awkward. You’ll have to learn it somewhat, at least for non-techies.
- Pricing: Board agenda software typically includes a subscription fee. This could be a massive expense, depending on how big your company is and what features you require.
Dependence on Technology: Electronic tools are awesome – until they’re not. If the system crashes or if the internet fails, you’re going to be scrambling to get access to important documents.
Comparing Traditional Methods and Board Agenda Software
To make things easier, here’s a side-by-side comparison of the two approaches:
| Feature | Traditional Methods | Board Agenda Software |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of Use | Simple but entirely manual processes. | Easy to use after an initial learning curve. |
| Efficiency | Time-consuming, especially during preparation stages. | Significantly more efficient with automated workflows. |
| Document Management | Scattered across emails, shared drives, and physical copies. | Centralized and well-organized in a single platform. |
| Collaboration | Limited to emails or in-person meetings. | Enables real-time collaboration with commenting features. |
| Security | Minimal, dependent on basic email security. | Advanced security with encryption and controlled access. |
| Environmental Impact | Relies heavily on paper, contributing to waste. | Completely digital and environmentally friendly. |
| Cost | Low initial cost, but highly time-intensive in the long term. | Subscription-based, but reduces time-related costs over time. |
So, Which is Better?
The answer depends on what your organization needs. Even if you have a small board that has few meetings, it may still be fine using the standard procedure. But for larger firms or boards with elaborate agendas, board agenda software is a clear favorite. It offers efficiency, order, and safety that the old fashioned approach simply cannot offer.
Time is precious in our present, fast-paced environment. Agenda software for the board streamlines the entire meeting process so that more time is spent making decisions and less on administrative details.
Final Thoughts and Next Steps
If you’re trying to automate your meetings and reduce waste, it might be worth looking into board agenda software. We can’t resist the convenience of automated preparation, live updates, and central document management.
Ready to make the switch? Dess Digital Meetings provides a full board meeting management platform that makes it easier than ever to create, share, and collaborate with your pre-meeting agenda. Try it out and see how it can revolutionize your board meetings.
