The Consent Agenda

I am a strong proponent of the use of consent agendas in board meetings. They allow boards to have items that do not require discussion or debate to be approved quickly. Consent agendas can help speed up meetings and cut off unnecessary discussion. They allow boards to focus and spend time on the things that require meaningful discussion.

Here are some of the things that should be on consent agendas:

• Approval of minutes
• Uncontested board elections
• Committee appointments
• Items that have already been discussed via email, or have been discussed at previous meetings and do not need any further discussion
• Reports

If your board doesn't use a consent agenda right now, consider giving it a try and see how much time it saves you!