The Top 5 Features to Look for in a Virtual Board Portal

The board of directors is responsible for steering the organization toward its goals. This includes managing important company affairs such as making decisions, communicating with investors, and bringing a group of skilled and experienced team members to accomplish the company’s objectives.

Nonetheless, the process of conducting meetings, making decisions, and implementing those decisions involves several interconnected elements that must harmonize for both effectiveness and efficiency.

That’s where the board portal comes into play because these collaborative tools align:

• All stakeholders on the board
• Streamline administrative tasks
• Foster collaboration
• Facilitate more robust discussions while also monitoring actions and holding board members accountable.

However, not all virtual board software available in the market are equal. This guide serves as your resource for understanding the key features that your board portal software should have to navigate today’s fast-paced digital ecosystem.

What is a virtual board portal?

A board portal is a paperless meeting solution that functions like a secure digital platform for corporate governance, intending to optimize collaboration, communication, and information-sharing processes among board members as well as board directors and administrators.

What’s more, such online board meeting solutions not only provide a centralized space for overseeing various board-related activities and documents but also:

• Makes board communication easier
• Enhances the preparation of meetings
• Gathers data on the activity of the board
• Allows for more informed decision-making
• Streamline the process of auditing
• Tracks development on action items

Top 5 key features of virtual board software

The board portal market is saturated with products providing board management solutions, yet their quality varies.

Apart from pricing comparison for board portals, here’s what you need to take into account when evaluating a board portal for financial services, nonprofits, publicly listed companies, or any other governing body.

1. Accountability

• Automated follow-ups. Board portal eliminates the reliance on email management. This paperless meeting solution sends alerts to stakeholders about upcoming action items and offers timely reminders for their assigned tasks.
• Progress tracking. This functionality allows organizations to categorize tasks based on agenda, type, status, due date, and owner. This, in turn, empowers board members to oversee progress and intervene as necessary.
• Dashboard. It is a pivotal feature of the board portal as the tool offers an overview of board activity, action items, task progress, document open rates, and board engagement statistics.

2. Security

• Access control. Make sure to invest in board portal software for nonprofits that allows you to set specific permissions, ensuring the confidentiality of sensitive data.
• Data security. It’s imperative to verify that the board portal complies with international standards and regulations, such as GDPR, FINRA, ISO, etc. These security measures safeguard stakeholders from data theft and compliance risks.
• Wipe data from devices. In the event of a lost or stolen device, the ability to purge confidential data from that device is a pivotal feature of a good board portal.

3. Collaboration

• Document management. Every member of the board should have access to past and current files, with their profiles automatically updating to reflect the latest changes whenever modifications are made.
• Dossiers. A good board portal should simplify the document management process by facilitating efficient review processes and intuitive management of edits and queries.
• File Sharing. The board should possess the ability to securely share various document types, incorporating robust access controls to prevent unauthorized access. Also, features like role-based access ensure that only individuals with a legitimate need can access confidential data.

4. Automation

• Streamlined document distribution. Contemporary board portal solutions facilitate the effortless sharing of meeting packs, encompassing all minutes, reports, and agendas.
• Custom workflows. Make sure to invest in an online board meeting solution that allows you to create custom workflows like directing documents for signatures and aligning with your organization’s internal board processes.
• Efficient minute tracking. The board portal should streamline the process of minute recording, allowing you to generate them directly on the platform with automatic formatting and branding. What’s more, you should have the capability to swiftly distribute minutes to users’ profiles in the portal.

5. Support

• Customer support. Although a user-friendly platform is crucial, having a responsive and dedicated support team that is readily available for assistance is equally important.
• Integration with third-party systems. Integration with your existing software and document management systems streamlines operations and boosts overall efficiency. Thus, invest in a solution that fits the bill.

The takeaway

Virtual board software has revolutionized the way businesses around the globe conduct daily operations and offers numerous benefits to board directors and administrators. From enhanced workflows and optimized collaboration to secure record-keeping, investing in a board portal can yield a substantial return on investment.

Moreover, it provides a more secure and efficient means to:

• Distribute board materials
• Conduct board meetings
• Manage follow-up tasks

The best part? Virtual board software establishes a digital audit trail, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.