How to take your AGM online

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More organisations than ever are taking their AGM online, but good preparation is essential.

Annual General Meetings are essential business for not-for-profits, with most states requiring associations to hold an AGM once a year.

Usually that must happen within several months of the start of the financial year, depending on the organisation’s constitution.

Amid the havoc caused by Covid-19, most states and territories relaxed their approach to regulatory requirements for hosting online and hybrid AGMs, with some changes adopted permanently.

We recommend you check the rules, and exemptions where applicable, that apply to your organisation.

About this help sheet

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With face-to-face gatherings limited, having the tools to meet online will help your organisation to keep governing effectively.

If you’re yet to tackle your first “virtual” AGM, this help sheet will guide you through:

  • what you need to do to meet the requirements of your regulator, your constitution and your mission
  • the technology and logistics involved in holding an AGM online.

Most of the tech advice in this guide refers to the Zoom platform. We’ve chosen Zoom because it’s common, many readers will already be familiar with it, and it’s the most popular choice for smaller organisations. If you’ve already selected a different platform, you’ll still find many useful pointers here.

Good governance: Plan for a good AGM

Getting the tech right for your AGM

Before you launch: Testing, tips and a case study


Compiled by Our Community staff: Matthew Schulz, journalist; Alan Matic, operations manager; and Chris Borthwick, thinker-in-residence

Our Community is grateful to Hepburn Wind for asking the questions that prompted us to produce this resource, and to CraftACT for letting us share its case study.

Please alert service@ourcommunity.com.au to important information or resources we may be missing from this help sheet.

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