Board meeting preparation involves a lot of reading, taking notes, thinking/contemplating, and seeking out and asking for additional information. This improves the efficiency of the board and allows them to focus more on strategy and less on procedural issues. This helps to reduce the frustration many directors feel when they attend meetings which are too long or contain a lot of information, and do not produce specific action steps.
The best way to prepare for a meeting of the board of directors is to review the agenda well ahead of time, and pay special focus on the most important issues. Go through the agenda and rank every item according to its importance, urgency and alignment with your company’s strategic goals. Request input from the chair of the board or CEO to refine and decide on the top priorities. Design the agenda of the meeting to ensure that key issues are discussed first and in depth. This will enable the board to leave the meeting with an knowledge of the critical decisions to be taken.
Also, make sure to include any updates on the tasks assigned to you at previous board meetings and verify that all relevant information was provided by the presenters. It is also important to confirm that all participants will have access to the meeting via phone, video or any other online platform. The board pack and agenda to all participants once they are finalized. This should be done at a minimum of a week before the meeting to allow participants time to read it and make any changes that are required.
http://boardroomsystems.net/how-to-take-notes-at-a-board-meeting