How to ask the right questions in your credit union’s boardroom
Asking questions is one of the most important responsibilities of any board director. Asking the right questions fosters a culture of curiosity, inclusivity, and accountability—while streamlining decisions and mitigating risks for the board and its stakeholders.
Credit union board directors hold significant responsibility. They’re not only tasked with the role of governing and managing the institution, but also to represent the wishes of their members.
CUs are also often under increased scrutiny in an evolving regulatory environment. From cybersecurity threats to economic changes, they must make several decisions.
Finally, to protect their members’ investments, credit union boards must maintain comprehensive risk management systems. When designing risk management plans, collaboration among board members, executive management, and staff is critical to success.
Asking questions seems simple enough. But it’s often easier said than done. Board members must understand what questions to ask, and how and when to ask them.
“I believe that the art of asking questions is important today, but it’s going to get even more important as we face so much disruption. We need to adapt and be future-fit,” said Lyn McDonell, president of The Accountability Group and author of The Art of Asking Questions as a Director, a must-read chapter in the second and upcoming third editions of “The Handbook for Board Governance.”
How can credit union board members perfect the art of asking questions?
Great board directors have voice and value
In an ideal world, every board member would be active and engaged at every board meeting. But that’s not reality. In OnBoard’s recent Boardroom Insights Survey, respondents identified 16% of board members across finance and insurance industries as ineffective.
“We’ve learned from board evaluations that one-third or half of board members are actively engaged in the agenda, discuss, and ask questions. But there’s another cohort that are bystanders,” said McDonell.
Those bystanders may listen well and follow the business. But they don’t often ask questions and offer their perspectives.
There are certain qualities of engaged board members that make a difference. Great board members have “voice and value.” Voice is speaking with regularity without dominating. It’s choosing appropriate timing, using the appropriate volume, and delivering with confidence.
Value incorporates relevance of comments, preparedness, and strategic application of expertise. “It’s ‘connecting the dots’ between issues and asking the right questions,” said McDonell.
Barriers that stand in the way
It’s important to ask the right questions in the boardroom. But often, directors don’t.
There are many reasons directors don’t ask questions. Top reasons include:
- Fear of asking a “dumb question”
- Not wanting to make others feel uncomfortable
- Everyone else seems fine with what was presented
- Don’t feel sufficiently prepared to engage
- Not enough time on the agenda
- Board culture doesn’t welcome debate
The right questions accomplish a lot
Boards must overcome common barriers—and start asking the right questions at the right time in the right ways. But why?
Because questions accomplish so much. Namely, questions empower the board to:
- Gather essential information
- Clarify what is being said or proposed
- Test assumptions
- Empower ownership and engagement
- Generate change, improvement, solutions, opportunities, and innovation
- Shift focus on the conversation
In addition, effective questioning:
- Makes a meeting come alive
- Sparks unscripted dialogue
- Enhances everyone’s understanding
- Helps avoid groupthink and psychological traps, which leads to better decision-making
- Enables the board to model a constructive learning culture
- Allows management to feel safe to share its challenges
“Questions are a potent tool for boards,” McDonell said. “Questions allow for deeper understanding and transform a board meeting to a genuine dialogue.”
Credit union boards have a critical role to play
Asking sound questions is essential to making good decisions to all the dilemmas credit unions face. “The buck stops with the board,” said McDonell. “Boards can’t be sleepy and complacent. They have to ask great questions about how we are doing things, where we are going, and what is needed to get there.”
Credit union boards are responsible for:
- Establishing identity and direction
- Ensuring capacity and overseeing management
- Overseeing performance and impact
- Overseeing risk
- Ensuring financial stewardship
- Ensuring stakeholder accountability
- Developing good governance
Asking questions is essential to fulfilling all these responsibilities.
Preparation is the foundation
To ask meaningful questions, directors must prepare in advance for the board meeting.
Preparation for a board meeting should include:
- Doing a “flyover” to see what’s in the package
- Reviewing the agenda and noting key discussions
- Using a highlighter to note essential points
- Sourcing knowledge and insight—this involves imagining what needs to go right, who is affected, and what will change
- Writing down any comments or questions
Engaging in the board meeting is essential
It’s important to remain fully engaged during the board meeting. Directors must avoid distractions and focus on the meeting at hand. “It’s important to listen with diligence,” said McDonell.
She shared the following tips for engaging during the board meeting:
- Tune in and be present.
- Listen with a “Beginner’s Mind”.
- Determine whether everything makes sense or if things are fuzzy or left unsaid.
- Show respect for others, the presenters, and the Chair.
What directors can do to ask better questions
The art of asking questions doesn’t come easily to everyone. Instead, it requires conscious effort.
Here are some practical tips for asking questions:
- Be clear as to what you are asking. Don’t start talking until you have your question framed.
- Lead into it and maintain flow.
- Be neutral and conversational.
- Don’t add emotions or opinions.
- Convey encouragement and inquisitive energy—not criticism.
- Use “we” instead of “you.”
- Instead of giving advice, phrase it into a question.
- Ask questions about the future more than the past.
The right framework can fuel better questions
McDonell shared a high-level framework that can help boards ask better questions. “I see it like an X-ray. It takes the stages, and it illuminates questions at every stage,” she explained. “This can be applied overall to a strategy or an initiative.”
McDonell noted that there’s a detailed director’s oversight framework with sample questions in The Handbook of Board Governance, 3rd edition.
As for credit unions—which often have multiple committees across their boards, and several locations—communication is vital. That starts with asking questions that can lead to better decision-making across the board.
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