Finish Strong: Your Year-End Customer Advisory Board Checklist

The most successful customer advisory boards don't just wind down as the calendar year ends—they harvest their year's work while positioning for an even stronger start to the new year.  Use this checklist to close out your advisory board year with intention. 

✓ Collect & Communicate Impact Stories

• Create a comprehensive "Year in Review" summary showing board discussion themes, decisions influenced, and value delivered to both company and members 

• Complete or update action items and commitments made to the board throughout the year 

• Look for evidence that board insights are influencing and informing strategies and roadmaps, as intended 

• Communicate those board successes across your organization 

✓ Assess Performance & Effectiveness 

• Conduct an honest evaluation using our Expert Guide assessment tools or your own audit 

• Gather comprehensive member feedback through year-end input calls 

• Identify what made your most successful sessions work—and how you can replicate them 

• Identify what you can strengthen or enhance—and start figuring out how 

✓ Secure Your Operational Foundation 

• Lock in next year's meeting calendar now, if you haven’t already—earlier communication drives better attendance 

• Update budget projections and resource requirements for the coming year 

• Clarify and optimize internal team roles and responsibilities, as needed 

✓ Strengthen Your Membership Strategy & Candidate Pipeline 

• Review membership criteria to ensure alignment with Board vision and strategy 

• Evaluate your current roster for anticipated transitions and gaps 

• Collaborate with account teams on Q1 candidate pipeline and priorities  

• Update recruiting materials based on this year’s experiences and feedback 

✓ Align the Board’s Purpose with Next Year's Emerging Priorities  

• Articulate next year's business priorities and strategic initiatives—and affirm that the board’s purpose still aligns 

• Map out discussion areas and agenda themes for next year based on company strategy and member interests 

• Revisit how you'll measure and define success in the new year 

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From the Archives: Resources and reading for your year-end excellence 

Value Documentation & Communication 

• What Value Will a Board Create...and How Soon?

• Customer Advisory Boards: How to Extend the Value

• Delivering a Great Customer Experience: It's About Listening

Strategic Assessment 

• Expert Guide Assessment Tools ("Is Our Advisory Board as Powerful as it Could Be?")

• Mastering Executive Engagement: What’s Holding You Back?

• What if Our Customer Advisory Board Isn’t Working?

Membership & Recruiting Strategy 

• Always Recruiting: The Secret to a Successful Advisory Board

• Keep the Recruiting Rolling

• Pick One Area to Focus on for the Rest of the Year: Recruiting

Strategic Planning & Alignment 

• Should My Organization Launch an Advisory Board?

• 3 Customer Advisory Board Charter Templates

Operational Excellence & Agenda Development 

• Creating a Customer Advisory Board? Your Internal Team Matters

• Agenda Development: It’s a Balancing Act 

• The Critical Art of Balancing Content