An advisory board has no legal responsibility for an organization, meaning they have no voting rights and cannot make financial decisions on the organization’s behalf. Instead, they help steer an organization to success with the following responsibilities.
Provide Strategic Oversight and Direction
Advisory boards leverage their experience to help organizations stay on top of industry trends. This helps businesses beat the competition, streamline their customer service based on new customer behaviors, or tailor their products and message to reach a wider audience.
A board of advisors also provides critical thinking and analysis to increase the confidence of decision-makers in the organization and reveal hidden operational inefficiencies.
Support the Organization’s Goals and Objectives
The role of an advisory board is to offer guidance that helps an organization reach its goals. Since they don’t have legal obligations, it’s up to the business whether they act upon advice from the board of advisors.
Provide Mentorship to Board Members
As trusted advisors, the members of an advisory board serve as mentors to directors. While their primary goal is assisting the organization in achieving its mission, they also help board directors develop leadership skills.