01 /
State the purpose and boundaries
Name the decisions the group will advise on and the people receiving its recommendations. Describe matters outside its remit, including day-to-day instructions where those belong to management. State who retains formal decision authority.
If the arrangement itself is still being considered, begin with what an advisory board does. Legal advice may be needed on roles and duties; a charter's label does not determine every consequence of how the group acts.
02 /
Set membership and information expectations
Record the capabilities sought, appointment arrangements and expectations for preparation and attendance. Explain how interests and potential conflicts are disclosed and handled. Consider confidentiality and access to sensitive business information with your advisers.
A skills matrix helps connect appointments to the business's needs. Keep the charter focused on the working arrangement rather than turning it into a collection of personal biographies.
03 /
Design meetings around useful advice
Agree who sets the agenda, what information is circulated and how recommendations are recorded. Define how the owner or decision-maker responds and how unresolved matters return to the group.
Keep minutes or decision records proportionate to the role. The aim is to understand what was considered, what advice was given and what happened next, without creating a second operating hierarchy.
04 /
Build in a review and an ending
Set a review date and the questions for assessing usefulness. Consider whether the purpose remains relevant, the skills still fit and the information supports meaningful discussion. Record how appointments and the arrangement can end or change.
Our family business governance guide can help where family, ownership and management conversations need separate forums.
Use this in your business
Charter drafting prompts
| Clause | Drafting question |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Which recurring choices will the group help with? |
| Authority | Who decides and how are recommendations used? |
| Membership | Which capabilities, appointment terms and expectations? |
| Information | What is shared, when and subject to what confidentiality? |
| Meetings | Agenda, preparation, records and follow-up. |
| Interests | How are potential conflicts identified and addressed? |
| Review and exit | When will usefulness be reviewed and how can roles end? |
A practical example
A recommendation needs a destination
An advisory group may recommend testing a new market, but someone must decide whether to fund the test. The charter should identify that decision-maker and how the response returns to the group. Otherwise the same recommendation may recur without a clear action or explanation.
Your next move
Clarify how your advisory group should work
Bring your draft purpose and the decisions you want the group to help with. We can help turn them into practical governance arrangements.
Clarify how your advisory group should work