Resources
Governance resources for the people behind the boardroom
Practical, internationally useful material for board administrators, corporate and board secretaries, governance coordinators, committee support professionals, executive assistants supporting boards and minute takers — in companies, non-profits, charities, public bodies and member associations, in any jurisdiction. Everything here is organised around the five stages of the Boardroom Ready framework — Prepare, Assemble, Record, Track, Maintain.
The stage-by-stage guides below are free to read in full. Further down, the deeper working resources — the Boardroom Ready Handbook, the flagship program and the Canada-specific legal and governance reference guide — are paid learning materials for administrators who want a reference on the desk or the complete method taught end to end.
Start here
New to the role, or inheriting a board with no handover? Work through it in three moves.
- Step 01
Read the free guides
Start with the board meeting preparation checklist, then follow the five stages below in order.
- Step 02
Keep a reference to hand
The Boardroom Ready Handbook sets out the whole meeting cycle as one working reference.
- Step 03
Learn the full method
The flagship program teaches the whole governance cycle as self-paced professional development.
Prepare
Plan the meeting backwards from the date: calendar, agenda, decision requirements and paper deadlines.
Board Meeting Preparation Checklist: A Practitioner's Readiness Guide
A full board meeting readiness checklist, planned backwards from meeting day — from the moment the last meeting ended to the minute the first motion is put.
Free guide · 10 min readBoard Meeting Agenda Template: How to Prepare a Board Agenda
Build a board agenda that earns the board's time — backwards planning, paper commissioning, item types and a readiness checklist.
Assemble
Commission papers, quality-check them and build a board pack directors can actually use.
How to Build a Board Pack (Board Book) That Directors Can Actually Use
Structure, cover sheets, sequencing and distribution timing for board meeting materials directors will actually read.
Free guide · 14 min readBoard Portal Administrator: A Practical Guide to Managing the Digital Boardroom
A practitioner-led, vendor-neutral guide to running the digital boardroom — permissions, publishing, version control, records and support — for the people who already run the meeting cycle.
Record
Capture the meeting accurately and write minutes and resolutions that stand as the record — the principles, the structure, a worked example, and the decision register behind them.
How to Write Board Meeting Minutes: A Practical Guide
What belongs in the record, what does not, and how to word motions so the minutes hold up years later.
Free guide · 13 min readBoard Meeting Minutes Template and Example: A Practical Guide for Board Administrators
The structure of a good set of minutes, field by field, with a realistic illustrative example you can adapt to your own board.
Free guide · 13 min readBoard Resolution Template and Decision Register: A Practical Guide for Board Administrators
Resolution wording, a copyable template, a worked example, numbering conventions and a decision register that makes past board decisions findable years later.
Free guide · 7 min readCommittee Meeting Minutes Template: What to Record and How to Follow Up
A copyable committee minutes structure, a worked example separating a recommendation to the board from a decision within delegated authority, and a post-meeting action log routine.
Track
Carry decisions and actions forward with owners, due dates and disciplined closure.
Maintain
Keep the year, the committees, the records and the role boundaries in order between meetings.
The Annual Governance Calendar: What Board Administrators Should Track
How to build a twelve-month board calendar that catches statutory dates, policy reviews and director terms before they catch you.
Free guide · 14 min readBoard Committee Administration: A Practical Guide for Governance Professionals
Committee workplans, terms of reference, papers, minutes, recommendations to the board and a full committee administrator checklist.
Free guide · 15 min readGovernance Coordinator: Role, Responsibilities, Skills and Board Support Workflow
The full scope of the governance coordinator role, the skills it demands, a copyable annual workflow, and how it differs from board administrator, executive assistant and corporate secretary roles.
Free guide · 17 min readExecutive Assistant Supporting a Board: A Practical Guide to Board Governance Support
Adds a governance layer to executive-assistance expertise: the full board cycle, role boundaries, a first-30-days checklist, a 6-week workflow and what to do when things go wrong.
Free guide · 11 min readBoard Administration: The Complete Guide to Supporting a Board
A practitioner's overview of governance administration — the cycle, the core duties, the records you own and how to grow into the role.
Free guide · 11 min readBoard Administrator vs. Corporate Secretary vs. Governance Coordinator: What's the Difference?
Three titles, one governance cycle. A practical, international comparison of what each role actually does, where authority differs, and how to divide the work so nothing is missed.
Free guide · 15 min readBoard Secretary: Role, Responsibilities and Practical Board Support Workflow
A practitioner-led guide to the operational board secretary role — the meeting cycle, the calendar, the record and the boundaries — written for board support professionals internationally.
Free guide · 15 min readGovernance Records Management: How to Preserve Board Decisions and Institutional Memory
Boards make decisions; records make those decisions durable. This guide covers what belongs in the governance record, how to control versions and access, how retention works, and how good records become institutional memory that survives every handover.
Free guide · 8 min readBoard Administrator vs Corporate Secretary vs Executive Assistant: Who Does What?
Where these roles overlap, where they differ in authority, and how to draw the boundary so nothing falls through.
Paid learning resources
Deeper material for administrators who want a reference on the desk rather than an article on a screen.
Canadian Boardroom Legal & Governance Reference Guide
A Practical Learning Resource for Governance Administrators
A practical, cross-referenced guide to the legal and governance sources behind Canadian boardroom decisions. Learn where to look first, which authority controls, where Robert's Rules fits, and when a governance question should be escalated to legal counsel.
Written for administrators supporting Canadian entities. Educational resource only — not legal advice.
The Board Support Planner
Less last-minute scrambling. A clearer plan for every meeting.
Enter your board, committee and AGM dates, choose your preparation timelines and let the planner work backwards from meeting day.