Greg Coticchia, CEO at Sopheon - "Board Member Relations" | Riderflex

Name: Greg Coticchia, CEO at Sopheon - "Board Member Relations" | Riderflex
Uploaded: 2021-09-02T11:45:05+00:00
Duration: 2 min 13 s
Channel: Greg Coticchia
Description: In this interview, Greg Coticchia and the host discuss the demanding nature of quarterly board meetings and the importance of thorough preparation…

2 Sept 2021 · 2 min

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2:13

In this interview, Greg Coticchia and the host discuss the demanding nature of quarterly board meetings and the importance of thorough preparation. Coticchia describes how board meetings can be mentally draining, prompting him to block off the rest of the day afterward. Both speakers emphasize the value of assembling a comprehensive board book in advance and proactively reaching out to challenging board members before the meeting. By sending them the materials early and offering one‑on‑one pre‑meeting calls, executives can address tough questions ahead of time, turning potentially hostile interactions into productive dialogue. The conversation also highlights that the most valuable board members are often those who challenge assumptions and push the business forward, provided their motives are aligned with the company’s success rather than personal ego. The key takeaway is to “have the meeting before the meeting” with difficult directors, turning friction into constructive input and reducing surprise during the actual board session.

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I know your favorite thing is to prepare for those quarterly board meetings.
Is there such thing as a fun board meeting?
You know, yeah, I remember I never had to do it for a public company, but I remember coming out of those quarterly board meetings and I would just purposely, whatever the afternoon or the evening was after board meeting, I would make sure it was totally blocked out because 'cause I would just be completely drained. I mean, I would come out of those going, okay, I can't do anything else the rest of the day except for maybe open up a glass of wine and sit here and veg out for 2 hours.
And that's pretty much what I do. It is stressful. You know what though? The older I get, the more I look at that process though, as purposeful. Oh yeah. You know, that journey of getting prepared And, you know, it just makes you think what you're supposed to be doing. But it is stressful, and you want to make sure that you don't get, you know, caught in the gotcha questions that always seem to pop up in a board meeting or an investor meeting. The best you can do is be prepared.
Be prepared. I also suggest, if you can, you get the quarterly board book ready. For the listeners, I used to send the information to the challenging board members a day or two in advance where I'd be like, okay, this, this guy right here I know is gonna shoot holes and stuff, so I'm gonna drop this over here and be like, Fred, listen, hey, you wanna— here's the stuff. I thought maybe you might want to call me one-on-one before the meeting. Let's just— you can beat me up like ahead of time, and then when we get to the meeting, it's all, you know, we'll have a lot more fun.
By the way, that is maybe one of the greatest pieces of advice I didn't learn until later on, is— and I always tell people have the meeting before the meeting.
Yes, especially with the challenging ones. Now, the other tip there for the listeners is the challenging board members who at the time you're thinking, "God, this guy's an asshole." But really, like a lot of times, those are really the ones that provide the most value, the ones that push you a little bit. The board members that just sit there and shake their head yes and don't really contribute, man, that doesn't do anything. That's a waste of time. So, you know, anyway.
No, and I agree with you. I think it's those that challenge you, but you always know that they're also on your side. And they're also on the side of the business, right? They are the ones that are gonna push you to think through your assumptions, your hypotheses, and they wanna make the business better. So as long as it's not a personal ego trip, you end up with a few people in your life, as long as they're pushing you because they care about their investment, they care about their position, they care about the company, those are great board members to have.
Yep, totally agree.