What is an Advisory Board? And Why do Organizations Need One?

An Advisory Board consists of a group of experts that provide the board of directors and an organization’s top-level management with expert advice on the organization’s direction, products, marketing, roadmap, and more. 

These Advisors are outside experts, not affiliated with the organization, so they provide unbiased advice as they are not “drinking the kool-aide.” Advisory boards are ideal for organizations of all sizes, start-ups, mid-sized organizations, or even the largest organizations in the world. 

Advisory Boards are not part of most organizations’ overall corporate strategy, even though the input from an Advisory Board can offer game-changing insight. In a recent study by BDC*, 86% of businesses with an advisory board saw a significant impact on their business. Organizations with advisory boards saw sales up 24% and a productivity increase of 18%. Organizations should consider creating an Advisory Board with results like these.  

The big question is, why aren’t more organizations implementing Advisory Boards? The answer is complex; a few reasons we hear are lack of resources, lack of connections, lack of time, and so on. That is why we created SSN; we have the connections, the resources, and most importantly, the expertise. Are you ready to take your organization to the next level? We are here to help.

*BDC Study, read the whole study here: https://www.bdc.ca/en/about/analysis-research/advisory-boards