thebigword Board

Like many other businesses we hold monthly board meetings.  Prior to those meetings the directors prepare reports covering their areas of responsibility.  The spirit of the meeting can often vary dependent on how a particular division or department is doing.  These days, because communications are so good, we often hold conference calls to discuss a business issue rather than wait for a board meeting to occur.  This tends to give us time at the board meetings to discuss strategy and plans for the future however, our board, like many others, are made up of very different personalities and skills. 

The board at thebigword, I think, is exceptional. But what pleases me more is that 2 years ago we introduced an executive board who are capable of the day to day running of the business.  This is necessary when you have an ambitious expansion plan.  One of the biggest challenges when expanding a business is that whilst you’re busy expanding you must ensure that business as usual is being looked after.  While life continues to be a challenge to us all, as we go through the expansion of thebigword the stress is lessened by having this structure in place.

Over the years I've tried many different techniques and one of the biggest problems I found in the board meeting is that I’m not very good at sitting still and I get very fidgety.  So, I decided that before our most recent board meeting we would have an exercise class using John Rutherford, who is an exceptional physiotherapist who has helped me in the past, to perform a session with our directors using exercise balls.  I have to tell you it was the best board meeting I can ever remember!  I didn't just loosen our joints but introduced a fun element to what is normally a very serious afternoon.  I’m enclosing a short video that will give you some idea of how silly we all looked but what fun we were having!