Form with which the stockholders of a corporation record the contents of their annual meeting.
Form with which the stockholders of a corporation record the contents of their annual meeting.
Multiple company secretaries have also told us that, as a rule of thumb, they spend four hours writing minutes for every hour of meeting time.
Here are seven steps you can take to write and distribute meeting minutes: Prepare a template before the meeting. Take notes during the meeting. Collect copies of any reports or presentations. Review your notes. Create a final draft. Request approval from leadership. Deliver the meeting minutes.
Legal implications of not keeping minutes The law requires every company to take minutes of all proceedings at board meetings and to keep them for ten years from the date of the meeting. Every director would be committing an offence if the company does not comply with these requirements.
What Should Be Included in Meeting Minutes? Date and time of the meeting. Names of the meeting participants and those unable to attend (e.g., “regrets”) Acceptance or corrections/amendments to previous meeting minutes. Decisions made about each agenda item, for example: Actions taken or agreed to be taken. Next steps.
What to include Meeting date, time and location. Names of the committee or other group holding the meeting, the Chair and Secretary. List of those present, including guests in attendance, and any recorded regrets/absences. A record of formal motions and outcomes.
How much exactly will vary between forums and industries, but early findings from our meeting minutes calculator suggest that governance teams spend an average of 10 hours writing up the minutes of an average board or committee meeting, with those from the largest companies pushing past the 17-hour mark.
Robert's Rules (Section -16) state that “the minutes should contain mainly a record of what was done at the meeting, not what was said by the members.” Minutes are not transcripts of meetings; rather, the document contains a record of actions taken by the body, organized by the meeting's order of business (agenda).
Taking notes, especially if you are actively participating in the meeting, is difficult but something that will improve with practice. Transcripts via zoom and teams can be helpful but really it comes down to being able to identify what's important as the meeting flows.
Meeting minutes should include meeting specifics such as the date and time when the meeting begins, the place, the names and roles of attendees voting members, and important background information, or context. On the other hand, it's crucial to avoid personal opinions and prejudices.