Summary
Step-by-step guidelines for Bowdoin committee staff preparing board meeting materials in BoardEffect. Covers setting up a meeting event, creating an agenda and minutes from the resource library templates, and building a meeting book with the correct naming conventions before materials are released to trustees.
Body
Questions
- How do I prepare board meeting materials in BoardEffect?
- How do I set up a meeting event for a committee in BoardEffect?
- Where do I find the agenda and minutes templates in BoardEffect?
- How do I create a meeting book in BoardEffect?
- How should I name a meeting book and its agenda and minutes files?
- When should I make my committee's meeting materials visible to trustees?
Environment
This article applies to Bowdoin staff who prepare board and committee meeting materials in BoardEffect for the College's trustees.
Resolution
Contents
Step 1: Set up an event
- Create a new event in your committee's workroom 3-4 weeks prior to the meeting date. The materials for the meeting do not need to be complete before you create the event.
Note: If you do not know how to create an event, detailed step-by-step instructions are available in the BoardEffect Help Center.
- Use the following guidelines as you fill out fields in the new event. You need to enter information ONLY in the fields that are shown in the figure below. All other fields in the screen should be empty.
Step 2: Create an agenda and minutes
- Download the agenda and minutes templates from the BoardEffect Resource Library.
- Navigate to the Resource Documents folder > Meeting Book Materials Templates.
- Download the agenda and minutes templates.
- Modify the templates to include the appropriate information for your meeting.
- Once the agenda and minutes have been approved, save them as PDF files.
Step 3: Create a meeting book
- Create a new meeting book in your committee's meeting event.
Note: If you do not know how to create a new meeting book, see step-by-step instructions.
- In the Template field, choose Meeting Book Template from the drop-down menu.
- Use the following guidelines as you fill out fields in the new meeting book.
Meeting book naming guidelines: All meeting books should start with "Materials for the..." followed by the date of the meeting spelled out and the full name of the committee. For example, the meeting book for a Governance Committee's meeting on 9/29/17 should be named: Materials for the September 29, 2017 Governance Committee Meeting.
- Click Save & Continue.
Note: You do not need to use the Generate Coverpage or Generate Agenda sections of the meeting book.
- Drag and drop your agenda and minutes into the appropriate sections of the meeting book. All meeting books must have an agenda and minutes in PDF format.
- Once the files have been added to the meeting book, rename them using the following guidelines.
- Add any additional materials in the Additional Materials section. Do not create any other sections in the meeting book. If you have no additional materials, delete this section before building the meeting book.
- When the meeting book is final, you can build the book.
Important: Do not make the meeting book visible to your committee's workroom until you have been notified that the general board meeting materials are available to all trustees. The goal is to make materials for ALL meetings available within a 1-2 day period so that trustees can download everything at once, with the broad message and materials from the Chair of the Board always being posted before individual committee meeting materials.
Additional Help
If you need further assistance, you have several options:
- Bowdoin Bot: Chat with Bowdoin Bot directly from any KB page for instant answers.
- Phone: Call the Bowdoin College Service Desk at (207) 725-3030.
- In person: Visit the Tech Hub in Smith Union during business hours.
- Submit a ticket: Request assistance through the Service Catalog.