Most Boards of Directors already have a procedure in place and most still operate with paper documents.
Changing an already established method and convincing people to change some habits is not easy. There are a lot of reticence and constraints that can slow down the start of a digital transformation.
If you are in charge of a board of directors and you are reading this article, you know very well that there are mostly benefits to digitizing the entire board process. And you also know that persuading a change can sometimes be a difficult mission.
To guide you, here are 7 strategies to persuade your BOD of a digital transformation:
- Understand the reluctance of digitizing a board of directors
- Know the benefits of the digital transformation of its board of directors.
- Compiling statistics for the benefit of digital transformation
- Choose software that meets your organization’s needs
- Calculate the ROI of your Board management tool
- Introduce the software to your board members
- Promote small changes and be patient
- Need help?
1. Understand the Reluctance of Digitizing a Board of Directors
The first step is to understand the factors that might be holding back this change in your board. That way, you’ll know better how to lead with your arguments.
Resistance to Change
This is a completely normal factor. When you are used to certain methods, it is more difficult to see the benefit of changing the recipe.
Furthermore, reluctance to change is often related to the fear of failure, in this case, it could be the fact of having to learn new software. That’s why it’s important to emphasize the benefits of a new tool, but also to provide a lot of support.
You can prevent reluctance to change by taking these 3 conditions into consideration:
Personal benefits: the tool has one or more significant personal benefits and represents an added value compared to the current state of your board members. For example, the meeting management tool will save you a lot of time in the preparation of the agenda as well as in the preparation of the meeting and the writing of the minutes.
The overall benefits: the change itself respects the values and objectives of the organization. This condition serves to understand the “big picture” and the main purpose for which your board of directors would decide to make a digital transformation. In our case, we could say that the implementation of a new meeting tool allows administrators to keep an organizational memory and to easily document the governance of the organization.
Simplicity: your Board of Directors must be able to see the simplicity of this change in their involvement as well as in the implementation. In addition, a trial period is necessary for the adoption of the change and the experience of the people involved. You could even hold a meeting with all the members to present and try the tool.
The Implementation Seems Complex
This is also a recurring factor when it comes to agreeing that implementing software is a good idea. It is therefore important to have a clear and accessible implementation process plan when proposing a new tool.
Furthermore, implementing a tool is easy when you designate internal people and use the right methods to do it. In short, it is much more convincing when the implementation process seems easy and well prepared.
Worries and Fears
When you don’t know why you would use a new method or you have no picture of the software, it is not encouraging to make this change. It is then important to be clear in what the tool has to bring to your business in all its facets. Be transparent with your project plan and be ready to answer any questions.
The Implementation Constraints
Of course, other factors may come into play in order to convince your board of directors, such as the budget or the time allowed for the project.
“The lack of time (at 54%), the cost of investment (at 49%), the complexity of the implementation (at 39%) or the lack of training (at 36%) are cited and perceived as obvious barriers to implementing a digital strategy within companies.”
– Traduction from France Num : Sondage
If this is your case, is there a solution that would allow you to meet the time or money constraints to meet your needs?
List your constraints more precisely and list the solutions so that they are no longer an issue.
Here are some possible solutions depending on the constraint observed:
The lack of time: Can one person be designated to focus on it? Can the project have a longer deadline with scheduled blocks?
The cost of investment: Can I choose software that is more affordable or a minimal package to start with? Starting with a basic or less expensive package will make it less scary for your board of directors to invest. They will see the benefits of using it and will be more confident to budget for it in the long run.
The implementation complexity: Can a team in your organization be responsible for implementing the tool and using the product? Can I use resources such as the knowledge base and video as well as the technical support team of the meeting management tool? Can any of the features or methods used to be modified and adapted?
The lack of training: Can one person, or better yet two people, be designated as super users in order to successfully retain the knowledge? Can a personalized demo or coaching be a solution?
2. Know the benefits of the digital transformation of its board of directors
As you already know, there are many advantages to digitizing the entire board process. However, the benefits are very important when it comes to persuading a board to adopt a change.
We invite you to list the benefits on a small and large scale. Here are some examples:
- Paper reduction: environmental and economic value
- Centralization of documents: no lost documents as with paper and a more efficient search system
- Accessibility for all members: better communication within your board of directors
- Optimized security: no more email errors which can be a major risk
- Structure and simplify the entire process: better governance
- Save time: the preparation of the Board of Directors is simpler and more efficient
- Optimize your meetings: decision-making fully aligned with your organization’s objectives
Feel free to explore in detail some board management software to address very specific issues of your board and your organization.
A board meeting management solution should be secure and have specific features such as a decision register to compile the results of your resolutions. A real-time editable agenda with a secretary mode for private notes is a very beneficial option for a board meeting.
3. Compiling statistics for the benefit of digital transformation
Facts can also help you convince your board to say yes to a more technological transformation. Sometimes, numbers can be even more demonstrative and impactful of what this change can bring.
When your boards of directors are digitized, you save 80% of the time of taking minutes by using a solution like Beenote.
Since 2021, a majority of 71% of associations and nonprofits have implemented new technologies to overcome challenges, achieve their goals and thrive. (See the article on this case)
According to this study, 89% of enterprises are planning to adopt or have already adopted a digital business strategy (IDC, 2018)
Cybersecurity is also an important point to mention. The number of email breaches is staggering. This reinforces the fact that it may even be essential to have a management solution for your business that centralizes and secures all your documents.
4. Choose software that meets your organization’s needs
Of course, the basis for a convincing argument is to choose the right software. Select a product that you have thoroughly researched and chosen based on the organization’s needs. This is obvious, but it is still worth mentioning. If the tool is not up to the task, your energy and strategies will be in vain.
We have just the article for you: how to choose the right meeting management software for your board of directors? This article will help you make an enlightened choice before presenting it to your board.
5. Calculate the ROI of your Board management tool
As we mentioned earlier, one of the constraints that can be faced is the budget for a technology tool. This is a very important factor.
That’s why calculating the return on investment (ROI) can make a difference. If your Board management tool decreases paper, which reduces administrative costs, and increases the productivity of the entire process, the organization will benefit.
It is interesting to know an approximate ROI to recognize its value, but also to follow its performance over time when it is implemented. Do the math now >
6. Introduce the software to your board members
Once you have a picture of your software with all its advantages and your arguments, it is time to put it into practice by presenting the software. You can organize a meeting or make it a discussion point on your next agenda to formally present your project with what we mentioned earlier:
- Have arguments ready that are closely related to the reticence
- Prove that this solution respects the constraints
- Name the advantages and benefits on a small and large scale
- Bring convincing facts with numbers and ROI
- Be transparent with the future implementation process
- Demonstrate the tool in detail without going on too long
To learn more about the introduction part of a new meeting management software, we also have an article to help you with the implementation.
7. Promote small changes and be patient
Keep in mind that a positive approach is a good ingredient in digital transformation. If for some reason your project is too ambitious, start with more affordable software. Or, digitize your team meetings that can serve as a test case for the transformation of your governance.
Meanwhile, you could have regular training and coaching to reassure the team. If this is successful, it is quite compelling to standardize the process across the organization.
The last few years have changed the corporate landscape and accelerated digital transformation. Many organizations have already made the complete change and others are moving forward in small steps. Overall, they are seeing the many benefits and richness they are getting from it.
If this is one of your business goals, be patient. It is just a matter of time!
Need help?
If you are looking for board meeting management software that is easy to implement, easy to use, and affordable, Beeboard is your solution. In addition, you can try it for free for 30 days in order to present the tool to your board of directors.
We offer an online help page and personalized demos so you can see our tool in action and discover in detail what it can do for your board members.
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A passionate web content creator and writer at Beenote, her primary motivation is to create content that can guide organizations looking to optimize their meetings and boards. Giving practical resources to inspire businesses to adopt best practices to become meeting pros. No more wasting time!
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