The short answer is…it depends.  As someone who works with business owners and CEOs to form their advisory boards and very often stays on to serve as facilitator I remind them that their advisory board should be managed in a manner that works best for them.

The recommended frequency is quarterly.  However if you serve on an advisory board of an educational institution you may find you meet only twice a year.  I have a client who prefers to meet three times a year.

Preparing for the actual meeting has a lot to do with how frequently your advisory board will meet.  I suggest in the Advisory Board Kit that the CEO start planning a month in advance what the agenda will be for the meeting and the materials the advisors will need to review.  If the company has a lean management team, too frequent meetings puts additional pressure on the CEO.

If you are trying to determine what the best frequency is for you and your company, I suggest starting with quarterly for the first year.  If something comes up between meetings you can either call a special meeting or arrange a conference call.

If you have an advisory board, how frequently do you meet?

Want to learn how to establish an advisory board?  Check out the Advisory Board Kit:  A Comprehensive Guide to Establishing an Advisory Board.

It depends.  Advisors are selected and serve at the pleasure of the CEO as an advisory board is a non-legal board.  As someone who has served as an advisory board facilitator for many years and participant, I have observed situations where the advisors have served as long as the advisory board has been in existence and others for a one-year term.

The term will be determined by the CEO knowing what they need to get from their advisory board.  For instance:

• If the purpose of the advisory board is to provide guidance on the launch of a major new product line and the advisors are all marketing types, some of them will not continue to serve past the product launch.
• In the case where the advisors have more diverse backgrounds, they may serve a longer term as long as they remain relevant to what the company and CEO need.

Continued clarity around vision and mission of the organization will aid the CEO in determining if the right people are serving as advisors.  Conducting an annual evaluation where both the CEO and advisors review the work of the advisory board will also aid the CEO in making a determination about any or all of the advisors.

Lastly, I advise the CEOs I work with to conduct an annual one-on-one meeting with each advisor.  This will further assist both parties in evaluating just how long an advisor should serve.

If you have served on an advisory board, how long has your term been?

Want to learn how to establish an advisory board?  Check out the Advisory Board Kit:  A Comprehensive Guide to Establishing an Advisory Board.