Building a Powerful Advisory Board

When it comes to accel­er­at­ing the growth of a busi­ness, a well-cho­sen advi­so­ry or gov­er­nance board can be a game-chang­er. But not all boards deliv­er the val­ue CEOs and share­hold­ers are look­ing for.

In fact, over the years, I’ve seen boards that have dra­mat­i­cal­ly shaped the tra­jec­to­ry of com­pa­nies — and oth­ers that have, unfor­tu­nate­ly, fall­en flat.

So, what sep­a­rates the impact­ful boards from the rest? It real­ly boils down to two crit­i­cal fac­tors: the peo­ple at the table and the qual­i­ty of the conversations.

Here’s how to ensure your board deliv­ers the insights and account­abil­i­ty your com­pa­ny needs to thrive.

1. Get the Right Peo­ple on Board

The peo­ple you invite onto your board can either ele­vate your com­pa­ny to new heights or hold it back. Expe­ri­ence is the key ingre­di­ent here.

I often say, ​“You don’t want peo­ple learn­ing on your job — you want peo­ple who’ve already been there, done that, and got the T‑shirt.” Ide­al­ly, these indi­vid­u­als have faced sim­i­lar chal­lenges at least a dozen (or 14!) times before.

The best advi­sors bring:

• Bat­tle-test­ed wis­dom: They’ve nav­i­gat­ed suc­cess­es and fail­ures in their careers, giv­ing them a 10-year head start on the chal­lenges you’re fac­ing today.
• Strong net­works: They know the peo­ple you need to know and can make those con­nec­tions when it mat­ters most.
• Scar tis­sue and suc­cess sto­ries: They’ve weath­ered tough deci­sions, from mul­ti-mil­lion-dol­lar mis­takes to high-stakes wins, and are ready to share their lessons learned.

Think of them like a sea­soned Sher­pa guid­ing you up Mount Ever­est — they’ve sum­mit­ed the peak count­less times and know every pit­fall along the way.

1. Focus on the Right Conversations

Even with the most tal­ent­ed board mem­bers, the real val­ue comes from what you talk about. Too often, boards waste time on rou­tine updates or low-stakes deci­sions (like debat­ing car­pet col­ors for a new office).

The mag­ic hap­pens when you tack­le strate­gic dis­cus­sions that impact the future of the busi­ness — deci­sions with a three-year or longer hori­zon. These could include:

• Growth strate­gies
• Poten­tial acqui­si­tions or partnerships
• Fill­ing key lead­er­ship gaps
• Expand­ing into new markets
• Cap­i­tal invest­ment decisions

As one CEO put it, ​“If we’re not leav­ing these meet­ings with clear­er direc­tion and big­ger ideas, we’re doing it wrong.”

Prac­ti­cal Tips for CEOs

Mak­ing these con­ver­sa­tions impact­ful requires preparation:

1. Plan ahead. Out­line the key deci­sions or ques­tions you want to address before the meeting.
2. Share mate­ri­als in advance. Pro­vide board mem­bers with the data, con­text, and your ini­tial rec­om­men­da­tion so they can come ready to contribute.
3. Fos­ter debate. Encour­age your board to chal­lenge your think­ing. The best dis­cus­sions come from rig­or­ous debate, not pas­sive agreement.

One CEO I worked with cre­at­ed a list of their dream board mem­bers — lead­ers they deeply admired. They start­ed mak­ing calls and to their sur­prise, three out of the first four said yes. The les­son? Some­times, all you need to do is ask.

The Ulti­mate For­mu­la for an Effec­tive Board

Build­ing a pow­er­ful board is all about two things: get­ting the right peo­ple in the room and cre­at­ing space for the right con­ver­sa­tions. With these ele­ments in place, a board can become one of your company’s great­est assets. 

The Chal­lenge

• Who could bring 10x val­ue to your board?
• And how can you cre­ate space for the mean­ing­ful, strate­gic dis­cus­sions that will dri­ve your company’s suc­cess? 

Oth­er Blogs

• Strate­gic Account­abil­i­ty and Alignment
• Meet­ing Mas­tery for CEOs

Old­er Podcasts

• Find­ing the Best Advi­sors Will Help You Quadru­ple Your IQ
• How to Struc­ture Pre­sen­ta­tions to Ensure Effec­tive Deci­sion Making