Board questions that show how well your board governs
Ask board members how the board works, from the papers before a meeting to the risks it faces. Each question below comes with when to ask it and what the answer tells you.
What board self-assessment questions tell you
Board self-assessment survey questions ask your board members how well the board works: whether it has the right skills, gets papers in time, discusses openly and faces risk. Few members raise these points in the meeting itself. A survey gives the chair and the chief executive a candid picture before the annual review.
Ask once a year, a few weeks before the board's review or retreat. A board is small, and members may hold back on a named survey, so share it by link or QR code with anonymous responses on: no user ID, traits or visitor ID is stored. Use most of the questions, since the group is small and each answer counts.
Each written answer is read as it arrives and given a theme and a sentiment, so risks and requests to stop doing things are easy to group. Share the themes with the chair, and give each agreed change an owner in the inbox.
- Questions
- 14
- Best asked
- A few weeks before the annual board review
- Industry
- Nonprofits
- Where to find them
- From library in the Usertick survey editor, on every plan
The 14 the board questions, with when to ask each
Grouped by what they tell you. Use them as they are or change the wording.
How the board works
Start with the grid and the last meeting, then the facts behind them: papers, information and how long meetings run.
- 01Matrix
How much do you agree about the board?
Four statements about the board, from the right skills to facing risks, each rated from strongly disagree to strongly agree. The heat map shows which statement the board agrees with least.
- 02Stars
How would you rate the last board meeting?
A star rating for the last board meeting. Results shows the average and the share who rated 4 or higher. Ask it after the same meeting each year to see the trend.
- 03Multiple choice
How long do board meetings run?
How meeting length feels: too short, about right or too long. Results shows the share of each. Read it with whether members get the information they need before you cut the agenda.
- 05Yes / No
Do you get the information you need to decide?
A plain yes or no on whether members get the information they need to decide. Select No in Results to read what those members said about papers and meeting length.
- 08Number
How many board meetings did you attend this year?
How many board meetings the member attended this year. Results shows the median and the middle half. On a very small board, a low number could identify someone, so weigh that first.
Skills and makeup
These questions show what the board knows and who sits on it, a guide for training and the next round of recruitment.
- 04Big scale
How well do you understand the charity's finances?
How well each member understands the charity's finances, from 1 to 10. Results shows the average and a column per step. A spread of low scores calls for a finance briefing before the budget meeting.
- 06Multiple choice
Which skills are missing from the board?
Lets members pick every skill missing from the board, from finance to lived experience. Results shows bars per skill, a brief for your next board recruitment.
- 13Multiple choice
How is the board's makeup?
How well the board's makeup reflects the people the charity serves. Results shows the share for each of the three answers, a starting point for a conversation on recruitment.
- 10Dropdown
How long have you served on the board?
How long the member has served, from under a year to more than six. Use it to split the other answers, since new and long-serving members see the board differently.
- 09Ruler
How many hours a month does the role take you?
How many hours a month the role takes, on a ruler. Results shows the median and the middle half, an honest figure to give candidates when you recruit.
Challenge and focus
Ask what worries members and where the board's time should go, and set next year's agenda from the answers.
- 11Big scale
How comfortable are you challenging the chief executive?
How comfortable the member feels challenging the chief executive, from 1 to 10. A low average is a governance risk and a topic for the chair to raise with care.
- 07Text
Which risk keeps you awake?
An open question on the risk that worries the member most. Each answer arrives with its theme, and a risk named by several members belongs on the risk register and the next agenda.
- 12Text
What should the board stop doing?
An open question on what the board should stop doing. Filter the answers by theme in Results, and bring the most common ones to the annual review.
- 14Ranking
Rank what the board should spend more time on
Members put five areas in order, from strategy to the people served. Results shows the average place per area, a guide for how to split time across next year's meetings.
Tips for asking about the board
Small choices that get honest, useful answers.
- 01
Ask before the annual review
Send the survey a few weeks before the board's yearly review, so the chair can share the results at the meeting.
- 02
Keep answers unnamed
Share the survey by link with anonymous responses on, and say so in the invitation. Members speak more freely when their name isn't attached.
- 03
Hear from every member
Every answer counts on a small board, so give people two weeks and have the chair ask each member in person.
- 04
Agree changes together
Share the results with the whole board, agree two or three changes and check them in next year's survey.
Add these questions to a survey
From the library to the first answers.
- 1
Open the library
In the Usertick survey editor, choose From library, filter by industry and topic, and add several questions at once.
- 2
Or paste your own list
Paste questions reads up to 10 questions from any text on Free, 100 on Starter and 200 on Pro and above, keeps your wording and picks an answer type for each.
- 3
Choose where it runs
Show the survey on your website, send it by email, share its link and QR code, or switch it to a conversation.
- 4
Read the answers
Results counts every score and choice, and Usertick reads each written answer and files it by topic, on every plan.
Templates and more questions about the board
Full surveys that ask about the same things, and neighboring topics in the library.
Templates
Browse all templatesFrequently asked questions
Once a year, a few weeks before the annual review. Use the same questions each year, so each card in Results compares with the year before.
Yes, on a link or QR code survey with anonymous responses on: no user ID, traits or visitor ID is stored. Surveys sent through Usertick email aren't anonymous, so share the link yourself.
Ten to fourteen. A board is small and engaged, so the full set works, with the grid first and the open questions last.
Send the chief executive a separate version with the questions on papers, information and focus, since some questions ask about the chief executive.
Yes. The question library comes with every plan, the free plan included, and the free plan covers 150 responses a month across your surveys.
Yes. Once a question is in your survey, reword it, change its options or its answer type, and add logic to skip it for some answers.
Yes. The library is translated into Usertick's built-in languages, and in any other language it shows in English for you to translate.
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