Board presentations: The stakes are high.

• Author: Kristie, James
• Position: Reprint

From Presenting to Boards by Julie Garland McLellan. Copyright 2011 by the author. Published by Great Governance (www.mclellan.com.au).

PRESENTING TO A BOARD OF DIRECTORS is not an everyday experience. It is quite a novel experience for most people, even senior executives and highly proficient professionals, to be in the boardroom addressing the board. Board presentations are also highly important, not just because anything that is important enough to be presented to the board is obviously very important, but because making a favorable impression in the boardroom can enhance your career prospects.

Boards are not like any other audience. They are usually senior to the presenter (or at least in a position to hire and fire him or her), informed and opinionated, rarely want to sit still and listen, and are often driven by an agenda to which the presenter is not. privy.

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The stakes are high; the...