New-director cheat sheet (blank worksheet)

The organization in five lines

• Mission / what the company does:
• Who it serves / customers:
• Stage and size (staff, revenue or budget):
• The one strategic bet that matters most this year:
• The biggest risk the board worries about:

The board

• Number of seats, how many independent:
• Chair, committee chairs:
• Meeting cadence and next three dates:
• How the pack arrives and how far ahead:
• Your committee assignment (if any):

The money

• Last year's result vs plan:
• Cash / runway or reserves:
• Debt, covenants, or major commitments:

The people

• CEO / executive director, tenure:
• Leadership team names and roles:
• Who to call with a question between meetings:

Open decisions and recent history

• Decisions pending at the next meeting:
• Three decisions from the last 12 months worth understanding:
• Anything the board revisits often:

Your duties and policies

• Policies to acknowledge (conflicts, confidentiality, code of conduct):
• Conflicts you need to disclose now:
• D&O insurance and indemnification — who to ask:

Questions to ask before the first meeting