Writing meeting minutes

Minutes record a meeting’s decisions, recommendations, rationales and actions. Taking them involves preparation, accurate raw notes and clarification during the meeting, followed by drafting, editing, review and distribution.

Purpose

Minutes document the business conducted at a meeting, providing a record that it took place and of its outcomes: decisions, recommendations, rationales and actions. ¹ The writer focuses on decisions and action items that move the business forward rather than recording every word. ¹ Effective minutes provide an accurate record of those decisions and action items. ² Preparation and organisation can make the task less intimidating. ^{1, 2}

Preparation

The schedule should allow a day before the meeting for background reading and one to two days afterwards for writing, depending on the meeting’s length. ³ The writer should read briefing materials and previous minutes to learn the terms and concepts, obtain the agenda, and meet key staff to review it and the meeting’s objectives. ³ A clearer understanding of the proposed content makes the minutes easier to write. ³ The preliminary meeting can identify deliverables, audience, sensitive or confidential topics, motions and decision points. ³ Reviewers can be assigned and a schedule with review deadlines shared so collaborators know when to expect the draft. ³

As much as possible should be written before the meeting, using boilerplate for standard items such as opening statements and approval of the agenda and previous minutes. ⁴ A simple, adaptable template facilitates this and can include: ⁴

• Meeting title and organiser; meeting date, time and location.
• Expected attendees; facilitator; agenda items; other business.
• Next meeting date; adjournment time.

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A style guide can save time and eliminate inconsistency. ⁵ It should cover common abbreviations, numbering conventions and punctuation, and can be updated periodically. ⁵

Raw notes and clarification

Short descriptive or summarised raw notes should be taken in a copy of the template. ⁶ They should identify attendees and those unable to attend, highlight key points in bold or colour, and identify decisions, recommendations and actions. ⁶ Action items should be copied to a list at the end of the notes or into a separate document. ⁶ Reading them aloud or projecting them at the meeting’s end lets attendees clarify them before adjournment and is recommended as best practice. ⁶

The writer should politely interrupt if a motion, decision or recommendation is unclear, asking for clarification before the next topic and reading back the notes if needed. ⁷ Motions should be clarified and restated before voting so everyone understands the exact wording, followed by clarification of actions and next steps from adopted motions. ⁷ Questions about facts or important statements can be put to content experts during breaks or highlighted in the notes for later clarification. ⁷

Raw notes should be saved frequently, with consecutively numbered versions recommended so accidentally erased content can be recovered. ⁷ Afterwards, copies should be emailed to the writer and another person as a backup, and saved to a drive other staff can access if an emergency prevents the writer completing the minutes. ⁸

Drafting and substantive revision

Raw notes should be marked up as a content source rather than edited: printed, read through and annotated with key topics in the margins. ⁹ The recommended first-draft procedure is: ¹⁰

• Write in the template soon after the meeting, while the content is fresh.
• Support every action item, decision and recommendation with its rationale.
• Summarise the discussion.
• Focus on content rather than spelling or grammar.
• Write quickly, then stop.

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Substantive revision should: ^{11, 12}

• Check that the information is relevant to the audience.
• Clarify the focus, meaning and logic of key points.
• Order paragraphs logically to support the actions or decisions.

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Depending on the meeting’s length, a day should be allowed for the first draft and a day for copyediting. ¹²

Copyediting

Copyediting should take several passes: ¹³

• Spelling and grammar: check these, including the spelling of names, acronyms, websites, hyperlinks and book or chapter titles.
• Style: check conformity with the style guide, including formatting, fonts, spacing, indents and bolding.
• Tone: avoid emotional language if the host organisation has a formal style.
• Queries: answer questions where possible and otherwise insert comments for content experts.

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A colleague should proofread the minutes before content review. ¹³

Review and distribution

The draft should go to the designated reviewers with a deadline for edits and, when Word is used, a request for tracked changes. ¹⁴ Late edits call for reminders and follow-up by telephone or in person, while the supervisor should be kept informed throughout. ¹⁴ Finally, the writer should incorporate and copyedit all content edits, obtain necessary approvals, and distribute the draft minutes to attendees with any materials distributed at the meeting. ¹⁵