executive sessions

Closed legislative deliberations

Executive sessions are closed meetings from which the public and sometimes regular staff are excluded.

Legislative committees hold executive sessions to discuss sensitive matters—personnel issues, legal strategy, or classified information.

Corporate boards use the term for portions of meetings where only directors convene, without management present: The board went into executive session to discuss the CEO's compensation.

The phrase implies confidentiality and deliberation away from ordinary scrutiny.

Opposites
access and transparency

executive sessionsopen hearings

Sessions accessible to all

public hearings · public meetings · open meetings · town halls · public forums

participant scope

executive sessionscommunity forums

Online discussion spaces for groups

stakeholder meetings · joint sessions

Family

executive, session, execute, execution, executor, executioner, executing, executed, executes

Familiarity
Top 500,000
Profile
Timeless · Rated G