Communication and collaboration in the boardroom have evolved with the digital age. Board portals are necessary for professional boards today to ensure that meetings and communications proceed simultaneously, smoothly, and securely.
Switching to remote work has also reshaped how board portals are used today. In this hybrid world, board members often work from home, on-site, at hubs, or in offices, so they need to have a solution that allows them to share and access information quickly, on any device at any time regardless of where they are in the world.
Does your company still communicate and share sensitive information through the mail, emails, or other communication channels such as Slack or Teams? Maintaining sensitive company information is essential in the current and future monitored digital environment.
Secure board work is not just a convenience. It’s a legal requirement. According to Gartner, boards considering cybersecurity a business risk have risen from 58% to 88% in the past five years. On most boards of directors, avoiding risk is no longer an option.
To mitigate risk and ensure the safety of sensitive documentation, several layers of security are built into a board portal and its confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
The solution: You ultimately control the distribution process with a board portal. Everything takes place within a secure and encrypted platform, only accessible to the users you grant access. No more accidentally misdirected emails or board documents lost in the mail and everything is kept to the authorised eyes only. Additionally, if someone’s device is lost or stolen, sensitive board documents can be purged remotely, preserving documentation access integrity.
Board meetings are important, but they can be a pain when everyone is participating remotely. Board directors might be based in different parts of the world, which makes distributing documentation like board packs cumbersome. Moreover, collecting signatures for decisions can be a lot of work. Sending paperwork back and forth in an envelope until everyone has signed it is time-consuming and inefficient.
But there's no need to despair! There are now electronic signature solutions that make it easy for board directors to sign documents electronically, from anywhere in the world. So go ahead and consider adopting an electronic signature solution for your next board meeting - it'll save you time, hassle, and paper.
The solution: Electronic signing is a time-saving and security-boosting solution for international companies. Electronic signing allows you to make decisions quickly and, most importantly, implement them on the go – without becoming a bottleneck to the decision-making process.
Once your board of directors receives the board documents, the security concerns shouldn't end. As well as being a secure distribution channel, a board portal is also an effective tool for collaboration and communication between board members and organisational management before, during, and after board meetings, which includes taking, annotating, and sharing notes or communicating via encrypted messaging services.
The solution: Using a board portal gives companies complete control over where their documents are stored, even if their board members are located worldwide
In addition to the distribution of board documents, a board portal ensures better control at every stage of the process thanks to the features such as:
Board members are often not in the same room, having a platform that enables you to share and access information readily is vital. You need a hub for all board-related communication and documentation, where board members can review upcoming and past activities, communicate, make and share notes, and prepare and view historical information—all in the same place.
Board members can use their portal to create and share memos, vote on important issues, and access historical archives, regardless of their location. Minutes can be signed electronically after a meeting and stored in digital format. The documents are always available, online and offline, in a secure, user-friendly design, via a browser or app.
The solution: The benefits of adopting a board portal come before, during and after a board meeting. For example:
In summary, there is no doubt your company will get more efficient by using a dedicated board portal that makes board documentation and communication available anytime, anywhere.
The competitive edge you gain by taking the extra time to implement a board portal is well worth the investment. According to the forecast, the boardroom market may climb to $7.9 billion by 2030. You'll need an effective board portal if your business leverages a paperless working environment.
At the same time, not all board portals are created equally. The best-in-class board portals are intuitive and easy to use, and it helps to take advantage of training opportunities to get the maximum benefit from the platform.