{"id":633,"date":"2013-11-16T16:53:52","date_gmt":"2013-11-16T21:53:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/?p=633"},"modified":"2013-11-16T16:55:56","modified_gmt":"2013-11-16T21:55:56","slug":"the-impossible-dream-one-page-board-papers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/the-impossible-dream-one-page-board-papers\/","title":{"rendered":"The Impossible Dream: One-Page Board Papers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cImpossible<\/em>.” That was management’s view when the Chair of a major Corporation said they wanted board papers to be one page long with a maximum of 10 supporting “PowerPoint charts.” \u00a0But it has happened.<\/p>\n

This Chair is not alone — other Boards that are sick of being inundated with massive, inconsistent and poorly thought out board papers are also moving toward one-pagers. They see this as a way of reducing the time and risks involved in untangling poorly prepared papers while supporting better discussion and decision making.<\/p>\n

Here are the steps that this Chair took to achieve this “impossible” dream:<\/p>\n

Got buy in<\/b>. The Board needed to want to drive clarity and streamline board papers while ensuring all the corporate governance checks were met.<\/p>\n

Built capability<\/b>.\u00a0 We ran workshops for all the senior team and their direct reports who authored board papers about simple approaches to structuring problem solving (to avoid the rubbish in rubbish out syndrome), synthesizing ideas into a clear and compelling argument and creating a clear board paper and supporting exhibits.\u00a0 One of our clients has had the board members come and talk to the board paper authors about what they are looking for in a board paper and what their hot buttons are.<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> if you would like to see a Clarity Workshop Kit<\/a> that will help you teach your team how to use structured thinking techniques to prepare your next board paper.<\/div>\n

Got the Board aligned<\/b>.\u00a0 We also explained our approach and thinking to the Board so they would know how to “read” the new board papers.<\/p>\n

Agreed ground rules.<\/b>\u00a0 These vary by board, but the basics are the same:<\/p>\n