Passageways Blog

“Since the responsibility of directorship comes with significant personal liability, executive and non-executive Directors should receive relevant development and education to inform them of their duties, responsibilities, powers and potential liabilities in working at board level.“ - (King II Report)

Choosing a board portal solution partner is a decision that requires a number of considerations to ensure a successful implementation of the tool. In today’s economic environment a company’s Board of Directors and senior executive team face increased pressure, scrutiny and expectations. Today’s environment demands a more acute knowledge of company activities. The Corporate Secretary’s office is expected to provide more information, and do so more efficiently and much more quickly. With over 200 Portal solutions implemented here is a list of items to consider when choosing a board portal solution provider.

1. Enhance your governance process. We have discussed the increased pressure, scrutiny and expectations your board faces. A board portal ensures that your Directors receive their board packets on time, anywhere, without the hassle of having to receive a mailed or couriered paper version of the board packet. Read receipts, alerts and notifications are key considerations from a governance process.
2. Increase efficiency in your administrative department. Board portal users have experienced a reduction of at least 60-70% in the time it takes their administrators to create a board packet. A solid board portal solution reduces the unnecessary strain on your administrators and allows them to focus on improved reporting and governance processes.
3. Security.The Board material is sensitive to every organization. Do you have concerns about how paper-based archives and company policies are maintained by your Directors? A board portal eliminates these concerns by offering a secure, online repository of all packets and board materials. Due consideration has to be given when choosing to have a solution, do you want it hosted at a 3^rdparty location or installed in-house on your own infrastructure? A cost-effective board portal solution should provide you the flexibility of either configuration without sacrificing functionality, timelines, or cost for the application.
4. Alerts and Notifications.Addendums are a reality! Can you be sure that your Directors received the most recent update in advance of the board meeting? A board portal ensures you can! Ensure your provider offers good alert and notification tools to ensure your Directors are notified of the latest updates to your board materials.
5. Searchable Archives and Document Repositories.How often do your administrators receive request for old Packets for reference or a request to pull specific information from them? Your Board portal should allow you the choice to share archived packets with Board Members. Your solution should be fully searchable by keyword and key phrase saving members and administrators huge amounts of time.
6. Reduce costs.Notwithstanding the personnel cost savings having reduced the time it takes to prepare the board materials, consider the cost of producing those monthly packets! Compiling, printing, binding, distribution….it goes on and on. Don’t forget the inevitable addendums! Re-compile, re-print, re-bind, re-distribute….cross your fingers that your Directors received the addendums in time. Your Board portal should significantly reduce costs associated with packet compilation and distribution.
7. Go green! Is your organization looking to reduce your environmental impact? A board portal eliminates paper both at the packet and document resource levels. All board portal users are progressing towards a paperless environment. Encourage your board to set the example as your organization looks to reduce its carbon footprint.
8. Intuitiveness, ease-of-use. Have you tried this board portal thing before? Are you concerned if your Directors will embrace this new technology? This is a common objection among users. A board portal should be easy to use! Navigation must be simple. Directors with access to your board portal, should be USING your board portal!
9. Dynamic content.Are you tired of the static portal environments that seem to be the norm amongst board portal providers? Break the mould and offer relevant dynamic content for your users. Live web pages and RSS Feed Readers engage your Directors in a way that other solutions cannot. Consider providing dashboards with a quick analysis of some of the key indicators to your directors. Automated Expense Reports that provide greater visibility into this area are another key component you should look for when considering a board portal.
10. iPad Compatibility.The iPad is both a powerful and convenient tool that Directors would like to utilize. Consider providers that have invested in developing a dedicated iPad applet providing Directors online access to board materials via the iPad. Unlike some solution providers who simply allow users to use the iPad browser to access materials, an applet ensures an easy adoption process by your Directors.

There is no shortage of providers to meet your board portal requirement, you should be looking for a partner, rather than a provider. We encourage you to check the references of any potential partner and ensure that all end-users, administrators and directors, use the solution and are happy with the experience. Your board portal is the last solution you want to have to implement twice.