How to Leverage Your Advisory Board (Because Their Name Isn’t All They Can Offer) - A blog by Olivia Khalili

You have your board.  Now what?

I wrote before about when and how to assemble your advisory board.  If you already have an advisory board though, what can you realistically expect from the people who comprise it and how do you best leverage their skills and commitment?

The first part–what you can realistically expect from your advisors–should be agreed on before they commit. I spoke with one enterprenenur who realized in hindsight the criticality of setting up specific expectations. Focused on the visible, tangible parts of her company, she didn’t think about how to use the advisors she’d spent time recruiting. Lay out as specifically as you can what you need or expect from each advisor:  Can they commit X amount of hours every month or quarter? What are they willing to do (introductions they can make, projects they can spearhead)? What aren’t they willing to do due to potential conflicts of interest or time limitations?  Ask about even the small details like the time of day or day of the week they prefer to be called.

Once your advisors are on board and ready to be of service, communicate regularly with them, follow through on your stated commitments, hold them to what they’ve committed and express appreciation for their time and effort. 

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