Board action items that survive to the next meeting
Board action items get done when each has one owner, a date, and someone who follows up between meetings. How to write them and a follow-up rhythm.
Board action items get done when each one has a single owner, a due date, and someone whose job it is to follow up before the next meeting. When one stalls, it is usually missing at least one of those. They were recorded as "the board will look into it," or they were written down properly and then nobody looked at the list until the next meeting.
Write them so they can be finished
Compare two versions of the same item.
The board will look into options for the lease.
Priya will get two written quotes for the lease renewal and send them to the finance committee by March 3.
The second one has a name, a first step, something to hand over, and a date. Before the meeting ends, have the secretary read the action items back. It takes two minutes, and each owner hears their own name next to their own item.
For the list itself:
- One owner per item. If two people own it, pick one and list the other as helping.
- A date on the calendar. "By the next meeting" works. "Ongoing" doesn't.
- Keep it short. If the list runs long, ask whether the board is doing staff work.
Keep one list
Every meeting's minutes should list the action items. That is the record. The working list should be a single running one that carries over from meeting to meeting, so an item from June is still visible in October if nobody has closed it.
One executive director told us that tracking every action item after the meeting is a pain. Unless someone is named to do it, it lands on the executive director or their assistant.
A follow-up rhythm
- Within two days of the meeting: send each owner their own items, on their own. A list of everyone's items gets skimmed.
- A week before each due date: a short reminder.
- Two weeks before the next meeting: ask each owner for one line on where things stand.
- At the meeting: five minutes at the start for open items. Done ones are closed. Stuck ones get a new date or a new owner, or the board agrees to drop them.
Dropping an item on purpose is fine. Leaving dead items on the list is worse, because people stop reading it.
When the same item keeps coming back
If an item shows up unfinished at three meetings in a row, more reminders won't fix it. Ask the owner directly. You will often hear that it is bigger than it looked, that they are the wrong person for it, or that they don't think it matters. Each has a different fix: split it, reassign it, or drop it.
Ask without blame. Directors are volunteers with other jobs.
How Karma Compass helps
Karma Compass keeps one list of action items across meetings, each with an owner and a due date. Anything still open is carried forward when you prepare the next meeting.
On the Pro plan you can turn on reminders, so owners get an email before an item is due and again if it goes overdue. An owner can reply to that email to say it's done, and the reply is saved with the item. They don't have to log in to anything.
Questions this post answers
Who should follow up on board action items?
Name one person. It is usually the board secretary, the executive director's assistant, or the chair. If nobody is named, it will fall to the executive director by default.
Should action items be recorded in the board minutes?
Yes. List each one with its owner and due date. Keep a separate running list as well, so open items from earlier meetings stay visible.
How many action items should come out of a board meeting?
There is no rule, but a short list gets done. If a meeting produces a long one, check whether the board is taking on work that belongs to staff or a committee.
What do you do when a board member doesn't complete their action items?
Ask them privately what is in the way before the next meeting. Then give the item a new date, a new owner, or drop it.
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