Module 11

Question 1

can be defined as the written record of everything that’s happened during a meeting.

Answer 1

Meeting minutes

Question 2

They’re used to inform people who didn’t attend the meeting about what happened, or to keep track of what was decided during the meeting so that you can revisit it and use it to inform future decisions.

Answer 2

Minutes of the meeting

Question 3

What should you include when writing meeting minutes?

Answer 3

1. Pre-Planning
2. Record taking - at the meeting
3. Minutes writing or transcribing
4. Distributing or sharing of meeting minutes
5. Filing or storage of minutes for future reference

Question 4

important to capture the essence of the meeting, including details such as:

Answer 4

1. decisions made (motions made, votes, etc.)
2. next steps planned
3. identification and
4. tracking of action items

Question 5

What is the purpose of meeting minutes?

Answer 5

1. Minutes are a tangible record of the meeting for its participants
2. a source of information for members who were unable to attend.
3. In some cases, meeting minutes can act as a reference point,

Question 6

Why are they called minutes of a meeting?

Answer 6

• don’t refer to the minute measurement of time, but to the “minute” (my-newt) notes taken during meetings.
• The term “Minutes” first came into vogue in the early 18th century. It is derived from either the Latin “minuta scriptura”, meaning “small notes” or “minuta”, meaning “small”, or possibly goes back even further to the Latin of thr 16th century “minute” definition of “rough draft” from the preceding Latin.

Question 7

A well-planned meeting helps ensure effective meeting minutes. If the Chair and the Secretary or minutes-taker work together to ensure the agenda and meeting are well thought out, it makes minute taking much easier.

Answer 7

Pre-planning meeting minutes

Question 8

use it as a guide or outline for taking notes and preparing the minutes – with the order and numbering of items on the minutes of meeting matching those of the _______.

Answer 8

agenda of a meeting

Question 9

the agenda and/or meeting notice also provides information that will need to be included in the minutes, such as:

Answer 9

1. the names of all the meeting attendees, including guests or speakers
2. documents that are sent out with the agenda or handed out in the meeting

Question 10

What should be included in meeting minutes?

Answer 10

1. Date and time of the meeting
2. Names of the meeting participants and those unable to attend (e.g., “regrets”)
3. Acceptance or corrections/amendments to previous meeting minutes
4. Decisions made about each agenda item, for example:
5. Actions taken or agreed to be taken
6. Next steps
7. Voting outcomes – e.g., (if necessary, details regarding who made motions; who seconded and approved or via show of hands, etc.)
8. Motions taken or rejected
9. Items to be held over
10. New business
11. Next meeting date and time

Question 11

Tips that might help your note taking:

Answer 11

1. Create an outline
2. Check-off attendees as they enter the room
3. Record decisions
4. Ask for clarification if necessary
5. Don’t try to capture it all
6. Record it

Question 12

based on the agenda makes it easy for you to simply jot down notes, decisions, etc. under each item as you go along.

Answer 12

Create an outline

Question 13

time to pull together your notes and write the minutes.

Answer 13

The minutes writing process

Question 14

The Minutes Writing Process

Answer 14

1. Try to write the minutes as soon as the meeting ended while everything is fresh to your mind
2. Review your outline and if necessary, add additional notes or clarification
3. Make sure to include sufficient detail
4. For Board of Director’s minutes in particular, we recommend including a short description of each action taken, as well as the rationale behind the decision
5. write down the major arguments for and against
6. Edit to ensure brevity and clarity, so the minutes are easy to read
7. Format

Question 15

7. In terms of format, here are a few things to keep in mind:

Answer 15

7.1 Be objective
7.2 Write in the same tense
7.3 Avoid using names
7.4 Avoid personal observations

Question 16

To write effective meeting minutes, you should include:

Answer 16

1. The names of the participants
2. Agenda items
3. Calendar or due dates
4. Actions or tasks
5. The main points
6. Decisions made by the participants
7. Record what is the most important points
8. Future decisions
9. Documents: images, attached files

Question 17

Do meeting minutes have to be approved?

Answer 17

Depending on your Board, minutes may also be formally approved at the beginning
of the next meeting.

Question 18

Distributing or Sharing Meeting Minutes

Answer 18

Online sharing
Sharing in the Cloud

Question 19

it’s great if you can use a paperless sharing process.

Answer 19

Online sharing

Question 20

If your organization is using a cloud-based membership management system (like Wild Apricot), you can publish the minutes as a web page and give access only to the committee or Board members,

Answer 20

Sharing in the cloud

Question 21

Tools Specifically for Meeting Minutes:

Answer 21

1. Google Docs:
2. OneNote
3. Lucid Meetings
4. Evernote
5. Agreedo
6. minutes.io

Question 22

Also supports collaborative note taking.

Answer 22

Google docs

Question 23

Very fast and allows for organization of notes.

Answer 23

OneNote

Question 24

Fantastic meeting-tool to automate your meeting processes like notes, attendance, and organization.

Answer 24

Lucid meetings

Question 25

Great note taking tool.

Answer 25

Evernote

Question 26

supports creation of meeting minutes and tracking the results.

Answer 26

Agreedo

Question 27

allows you to quickly take meeting minutes with hotkey shortcuts and the ability to work online or offline

Answer 27

Minutes.io

Question 28

Once you’ve made any required revisions, the minutes will then need to be stored for future reference.

Answer 28

Filing/Storage of Meeting Minutes

Question 29

You need to prepare the different topics to be addressed during the meeting,

Answer 29

Before the meeting

Question 30

You need to build your notes as the meeting progresses: a good way of organizing your note-taking is to differentiate actions from remarks as well as noting the different actions per person with a deadline.

Answer 30

During the meeting

Question 31

Type out your notes in a logical manner and not chronologically. Also, adding a short summary organized per person and per project at the end of the minutes

Answer 31

After the meeting