First of all, in order to avoid inaccuracies, it is worth saying that board management and board room software are one and the same software that does not have significant differences in functionality and features.
The primary goal of board management software is to create an environment in which all members of the board of directors can interact with each other. Such an environment should be able to share files and documents, be secure (to avoid leakage of corporate information), and be simple enough for all users to master.
This is only a small part of the main characteristics and a more complete list of features will be given below in the corresponding section.
Thus, the board portal software helps users to optimize all stages of the meeting from the moment of planning to the stage when the results of the meeting are analyzed. With its help, you can achieve maximum optimization of processes, save time, achieve eliminate errors through best practices.
Given the wide range of such software on the market, different providers offer different sets of features, so you should carefully consider choosing a board portal according to the specifics of your company and financial capabilities.
To do this, you need to understand what mandatory options the tool should contain. You can learn about this and much more in this article. Scroll down to find out more about the main reasons why you should pay attention to this software (especially if you run a non-profit organization). Also, you can read the Azeus Convene review as well as the description of other top representatives of board portal providers.
Features of Board Software
Below, you can see a list of features, which are common for most of the board of directors’ software.
- management tools;
- virtual rooms;
- mobile compatibility;
- security tools
- feedback options;
- document management.
The set of features may vary depending on the pricing plan or specific board portal provider.
Reasons to Use Board Software
If you are running a non-profit organization, then board meeting software is a tool you should take into account during building your strategy of development. Scroll down to find out key reasons for that.
Return on investment (ROI)
If you use the board portal tools, you will not only significantly improve the immediate management mechanism but also reduce financial costs.
So, for example, digital document management excludes the cost of paper, courier services, consumables for copiers, office supplies, and much more.
Ease of use
Most modern board portals are simple and intuitive. Thanks to an optimized and simplified interface, users do not need much time to master all the functions of the resource and customize the tool for themselves. This significantly increases the efficiency and productivity of each user of the program.
Reliability and security
The issue of cybersecurity is relevant for any organization, including non-profit ones since the functioning of any project depends on it.
Nonprofit boards often deal with financial issues, third-party confidential information, and more. In the event of a data breach at the board level, catastrophic processes can occur that will affect the company’s reputation and its viability in such a competitive environment.
For example, it can affect fundraising opportunities, lower the rating of the company, affect its initiatives, and make it difficult to achieve the mission and task. To solve this problem, board portals use advanced encryption technologies using 128 or 256-bit keys, two-factor authentication, SSL and TLS protocols, and so on.
Also, most modern resources comply with the international information security standard (ISO27001).
Popular Virtual Boardroom Software
The current market of board portal tools is vast and offers a lot of solutions. They may vary, depending on the set of features of pricing plans. Below, you can see 3 top-notch solutions you should pay attention to.
Azeus-Convene
Azeus-Convene is a popular solution that has won the trust of hundreds of corporations around the world. With its help, you can increase the efficiency of meetings at all stages: from the preliminary stage of preparation and ending with the direct exchange of data and analysis of the results after the end of the meeting.
The resource has a simple and quickly customizable interface that can be quickly mastered and customized specifically for your needs. Because of this, Azeus-Convene is the choice for many non-profit organizations, banks, governments, associations, and more. Currently, the resource is available in more than 200 countries of the world.
The tool offers advanced security technologies that are provided by certified data centers around the world.
The service can be hosted both in the cloud and locally and is also compatible with any (including mobile) device.
BoardMaps
BoardMaps is another virtual boardroom solution that allows you to manage board processes before, during, and after meetings. As with the previous resource, BoardMaps allows you to achieve maximum ease of use and effective data protection thanks to AES encryption. It can help you quickly change the agenda and form meetings in just a matter of minutes. All decisions are documented, monitored, and controlled during their implementation to ensure the desired result. Thanks to advanced settings, assigning actions is simple: all you need to do is create agenda items, put them into actions, and track their progress.
iDeals
Unlike previous solutions for online board meetings, iDeals is a more sophisticated tool but guarantees maximum data security and confidentiality. The resource contains advanced technologies for protecting and encrypting data at all stages of use. Also, the software is characterized by flexibility of settings, the ability to access the meeting from any device and anywhere in the world.
Thanks to advanced analytics and reporting features, all users can study the history of documentation and meetings in detail, fix bugs and increase the efficiency of processes.