Aspects of minute-taking

what, why, and how?

 WHAT IS A MEETING?

A meeting takes place when people come together for a

purpose (whether for work, clubs, sports, school, volunteer
organizations, etc.)
 WHAT ARE MEETING MINUTES?
• Minutes of Meeting describe specifying what was
discussed and decided in a meeting.

• A permanent record of the meeting for future

reference.

• Include an overview of the structure of the meeting.

• Note down in a concise way the matters that are

being dealt with and decided on during a meeting
and to produce the minutes of the meeting to every
one.
 WHY ARE THEY CALLED “MEETING
MINUTES”?

• It comes from the Latin term “minutia” (which

means trifles or details).

• The term “meeting minutes” first appeared in the

18th century, directly from the Latin “minuta
scriptura,” meaning “small notes.”
WHAT TASKS ARE INVOLVED IN
TAKING MINUTES?

• Make A Short Summary About The Meetings

Agenda

• Make A List Of All The Details Beforehand

• Recording The Body Of The Minutes

• Concluding The Minutes

• Distributing The Minutes Among The Attendees

HOW ARE THE MINUTES TAKEN?

• ordinary handwriting (longhand)

• notebook
• pen shorthand
• sound recording
THE BODY OF THE MINUTES
• Name of the organization

• Date and time the meeting

• Those present and those who could not attend

• A list of the agenda items/topics Summary of discussion for

each agenda item

• The actions people committed to

• Summary of any decisions made

DIFFERENT TYPES OF MINUTES

• There are three forms of standard minutes:

• Action minutes

• Summary minutes

• Verbatim minutes
ACTION MINUTES
• Action minutes are also called decision-only minutes.

• They include only the decisions made and none of the discussions that
went into making them. In other words, they capture only the conclusion
of discussions and the actions that need to be taken.

• Action minutes provide a broad overview of the decisions made in a

meeting.

• They are often required at:

Board meetings
Hearing meetings
Council meetings
SUMMARY MINUTES:

• Short and free from the Complexities

• Most commonly used in the office

• Normally written in full sentences rather than bullet

points.
VERBATIM MINUTES

• Verbatim minutes are a word for word written

transcript of who stated what during meetings.

• Verbatim minutes are often very lengthy and

difficult to overview.

• They are rarely used unless required by law, in

public hearings or congress.
STANDARDS FOR PROFESSIONAL
MINUTES
• Professional minutes must be:

• truthful

• concise but basically complete

• neutral, well-balanced and objective

• ready in time before the next meeting

• clearly structured

• orthographically and grammatically faultless

• readable
 STANDARDS FOR PROFESSIONAL
MINUTE-TAKERS
• an adequate educational background

• adequate mastery of the spoken and written language

• being able to take notes rapidly

• being able to distinguish matters of first importance

• knowledge of the sphere of action of the meeting

• knowledge of the relevant meeting procedures

• being able to make the draft-minutes within a fairly short time

• trustworthy and ready to serve in the interest of the meeting

• an objective attitude towards participants and their opinions

THANK YOU