The 9 biggest mistakes founders make in board meetings (and how to avoid them)

If you're a founder, you’ve probably spent long hours and long nights preparing for your board meetings—finalizing the deck, the metrics, and the narrative. Trust me, I get it: I’ve been there. You never feel like you’ve done enough. Through these experiences, I’ve made plenty of mistakes, including all of the ones I’ll write about below. 

Somewhat reassuringly, now that I’m coaching a16z founders and finance leaders on their own board decks, I continue to see many of these same mistakes. It’s a relief to know that I’m not the only one who has faced these challenges! And I hope these are useful learnings as you craft your own board decks.

1. Making the deck way too long

Almost every founder makes their deck at least twice as long as it needs to be. Founders think more slides = more clarity, which will get the board excited about how you’re reporting on your business. But a long deck just buries the important stuff under layers of detail most members don’t care about—or even understand. I’ve seen founders walk into a meeting with 60 slides, and by slide 20, people are zoning out. You can tell easily—their eyes glaze over, they stop engaging, they start checking their phones, and sometimes they even yawn. A lot.

Why it happens: You start with a perfectly reasonable 15-slide deck. Then a board member asks for more data, so you add a few slides. Another board member asks for different metrics or insights, so you add those too. Before you know it, you’ve got a 60-slide info dump. You’re just trying to show you care about every part of your business, and you also care about their questions. But just because a board member asked for something once doesn’t mean it needs to go in every single update.

The fix:

• Include an opening slide with key discussion items. This will set the stage for your story, keep the meeting on track, and key points you aim to address. 
• Don't use the board meeting as a readout for all the data slides. Send a pre-read a few days before the meeting (more on this below), so your board members know the main takeaways and can send you questions ahead of time. This will give you more time to have the real discussion during the meeting. 
• Limit your core message to 20 slides max. Seriously, that’s more than enough.
• Ruthlessly prioritize the metrics that matter for your stage. At seed, focus on milestones and runway. As you grow, highlight revenue, unit economics, product-market fit and how you think you’ll do this year as actuals come in.
• Put extra data in an appendix. The goal isn’t to show everything—it’s to get the board to focus on what’s important.
• Politely push back when necessary. If the data they’re asking for would take too long to produce (many hours or days), you can say, "We don’t have this yet, but we can aim to include it in the next update" or explain how many hours or weeks or would take to produce, and ask if they still want it.

2. Drowning the board in data

Data makes you feel like you’re being thorough, but too much can actually be bad. Many founders throw a lot of numbers at their board, hoping something will stick for everyone. But often, nothing does, because there's no clear story, or no sign of which numbers matter most and what they mean. Sometimes, there’s so much data that we call it the “eyesore table.” Your board doesn’t want every single data point—they just need to know what’s working, what’s not, and how you measure your business and keep the score.

Why it happens: You don’t yet know how to tell your story. Your finance, sales, and product teams all dump their sections into the deck, and you let it pile up. Or, worse, as more metrics get added over time, you let “slide creep” set in, and now your board meetings are just all about data.

The fix:

• Tell a simple, clear story. Every slide on your deck should answer this question: "Where are we today, where are we going, and why does it matter?” Put it differently and in the words of perhaps the best short storyteller ever, Anton Chekhov: “If in the first act you have hung a pistol on the wall, then in the following one it should be fired. Otherwise don't put it there.” Include only the “must-have” elements in your deck, and omit all the “nice-to-haves” that may confuse your readers.
• Learn from the pros. Look at how investment banks like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley craft their decks, or check out public company earnings reports and annual investor presentations. The best companies know how to tell a crisp, well-crafted story about both their product and their business.
• Stick to the most obvious core metrics for your business. Don't create metrics based on hopes and plans for the future (e.g. "Future ARR") or focus on metrics that don't matter (e.g. bookings and billings). Stick to the ones that matter for your business, and abandon the rest. 
• Ask for examples. If you’re new to this, you can always ask your investors what metrics similar companies report, and how many. Ask for examples of “world-class” board decks (without sensitive data). That’s a quick way to rethink and up-level your reporting.

3. Not setting the right expectations

Founders often forget to set clear expectations with the board because they are deeply focused on day-to-day challenges, and assume board members already understand their company's trajectory. You might also worry about setting expectations too high or low, or feel uncertain about hitting targets.

The fix:

• Regular communication cadence. Establish a consistent schedule for sharing updates with the board outside of meetings. This could include monthly progress emails or calls that outline key milestones and challenges. Regular touchpoints keep expectations aligned and help you avoid last-minute surprises.
• Engage in two-way dialogue. Actively engage board members in discussions about expectations. This allows them to provide feedback, align on priorities, and helps ensure that everyone shares a common understanding of the goals and challenges that lie ahead.
• Set realistic and flexible goals. When presenting milestones or targets, you can clearly outline best-case and worst-case scenarios. This not only sets realistic expectations, but also shows your board you've thought through various outcomes, and have contingency plans in place.

4. Hiding or sugarcoating bad news

Many founders think they're protecting themselves by waiting to share bad news. But bad news doesn’t get better with time—it gets worse. Some founders also sugarcoat bad news by saying things like, “We didn't achieve X, but Y went really well.”

Others treat the board deck as a marketing tool. But remember, you’re not marketing to the board—you’re communicating the reality of your business. 

Why it happens: You’re scared. Scared of looking incompetent. Scared of getting fired. Scared of what might happen if the board finds out. Clinging to the hope that things will turn around, even if there’s only a 1% chance.

The fix:

• Remember: your board isn't the enemy. They genuinely want to help, but they can’t do that if they don’t know what’s going on.
• Share bad news early. If there’s even a 25% chance things will go wrong, tell your board members. They’re not going to fire you for bad news—but they might get unhappy if you hide it. The other reason to share problems with the board is that doing so protects you as a fiduciary. If you’re facing any difficulty, it should be covered at a board meeting 100% of the time.
• Frame problems as open questions. Say: "Here's the issue we're facing. What do you see as the options?" Even better, propose a solution or several potential paths you’re exploring that you’d like their feedback on!

5. Focusing only on tactics and reporting

Founders love to talk tactics and share detailed aspects of their business. It feels like a productive thing to do. But your board isn’t there to micromanage. They’re there to help you think and dream bigger. Founders also often have a tendency to use board meetings as reporting sessions instead of strategic discussions. 

Why it happens: Tactics and short-term results are easier to talk about than strategy. It’s easier to focus on day-to-day operations than confront big, challenging questions about the future.

The fix:

• Propose 3 “meaty discussion” topics. It's important to have deep discussions with your board to help address the biggest challenges you’re facing and shape key decisions. This is the area where we most often see board meetings used in an ineffective way. The worst meetings talk about reporting and tactical things. The best meetings are anchored in strategic topics. 
• Don’t hesitate to ask. You can say, "Here are the three biggest strategic decisions we're facing, and where we’re leaning. What's your take?"
• Think of the “people, progress, problems” framework. It's important to talk about your team in every board meeting. Your company is run by the people you hire, yet this is often overlooked. 

6. Ignoring the board’s input

This one’s tricky. Not all board advice is actionable or correct, but a lot of it is. Founders often ignore valuable input, especially on strategy. It’s fine to make your own calls on your company’s culture because you know it best. But when it comes to business decisions, you shouldn’t ignore experienced board members—they’ve seen patterns you haven’t.

Why it happens: Founders don’t always know when to trust advice and when to follow their instincts. Instinct sharpens with time and experience, but in the early days, pay close attention to your board's advice—it usually comes from decades of experience, and insights from other companies' successes and failures (often both).

The fix:

• Leverage each board member’s expertise. Each member will have a specific set of work and life experiences and bring a unique perspective. Ask for stories of similar companies facing similar situations. And, just as you do with your own executive team, you need to be the one to integrate the different points of view to make the right decisions for your company.
• Ask for their opinion, but frame the issue. It's always a good idea to say, "Here are the options we're considering. What patterns have you seen that worked or failed?" versus saying “We don’t know why we’re not growing as fast. Any ideas?”
• Remember the board is there to advise you. You know a lot more about your business, customers and where you’re headed, so hear their advice, gather other feedback from your leadership team and your customers, and then make what you think is the best decision for your business. 
• Set boundaries with your board. Be upfront about areas where their advice won’t apply. This will prevent them from assuming you didn't hear them or ignored their advice. For example, boards are very rarely experts on your product—you know it much better than they do, and have the best view on the specific features, so never take product ideas from your board, unless it comes from someone with relevant experience. 

Also: some boards will have closed sessions where just the board members are meeting without any of the management team present. This gives the board the opportunity to reflect and discuss how to best support the company.

7. Not following up on action items

Too many founders leave board meetings with a long and overwhelming to-do list, and then nothing seems to happen after. No follow-up. No communication. Action items get lost and execution never happens. This can happen on both sides. Often, board members don't follow up on their commitments, and it's a missed opportunity for the founders. 

Why it happens: Founders either don’t record the decisions, or forget to communicate them to the right teams for execution. Sometimes, unexpected priorities and fires take over for both the founders and the board members, and before you know it, another quarter passes without action.

The fix:

• Send a summary after each meeting. Share key decisions and action items with the board and your leadership team.
• Follow up between meetings. It doesn’t need to be a full report. Just show you’re making progress, or if you don’t, tell them why. Boards care about momentum and clear lines of communication more than you think.
• Hold your board accountable too. Assign and follow up on concrete actionable tasks. Follow up with board members who are likely to be more forgetful to deliver introductions, data, action items etc.

8. Not being well-organized 

A surprising number of meetings have no agenda, no pre-read, no clear outcomes and, at times, too many attendees. Some founders even share important information only the night before.

Why it happens: You haven't yet learned how to run an effective meeting. It happens! You are busy building your company, hiring, managing your team, talking to customers—and time flies by quickly in between board meetings. However, when the right amount of work goes into preparing for an effective meeting, and time is used well, it can impact the trajectory of your company more than anything else you do between board meetings.

The fix:

• Schedule board meetings (at least quarterly) well in advance. Most of your board members sit on other boards and their schedules fill up quickly. A good practice is to work with their team to schedule quarterly meetings before the year even begins.
• Keep your deck professional and accessible. It doesn't need to look like a Goldman Sachs presentation, but it shouldn't be so sloppy that it's hard to follow.
• Start with a concise CEO update. Take 10-15 minutes to set the tone, then dive into strategic discussions.

9. Not sending materials well in advance

We get it—you’re building your business, working hard every day, and at times you look at your calendar, and realize another quarter just ended. Your next meeting is now just two weeks away, and you haven’t even started on the deck yet. If the deck even goes out, that happens in the last few hours before the meeting. Not sharing the materials in advance, and not requiring your board members to read a summary, makes for much less effective board meetings. 

Why it happens: You’re prioritizing day-to-day operations over preparing for the meeting. You might also be gathering up-to-date information, metrics or key decisions that need to be included in the deck, leaving little time to finalize the deck and send it out early. 

The fix: 

• Set an internal deadline to send a pre-read 72 hours before the meeting. Have the team prepare the board deck at least 10 days before the meeting, allowing time for review and adjustments without last-minute stress. This helps you finalize the deck in time and  gives your board at least a few days to read the deck and prepare thoughtful questions or feedback.
• Delegate deck preparation. Assign a trusted team member, like a finance or operations lead, to handle the  board deck so you can focus on critical business tasks.
• Create a reusable template. Developing a standardized board deck template saves time. This way, you only need to update key metrics and sections, reducing the workload before each meeting.

Final thoughts

Board meetings aren’t about pleasing your investors or spinning a positive narrative. They’re about building trust, having the right conversations, and getting the help you need to grow your company. You don’t need a perfect deck. You don’t even need to have all the answers. What you need is clarity—about where your company is, and where you think it’s going. Just tell the whole truth, and don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.

The more transparent and open you are with your board, the more they can help you.