Formats and Ways of Taking Meeting Minutes
First and foremost, you need to decide how formal the meetings are and what level of information is required. Is there a legal requirement? Is it just an informal meeting? The chairperson of the meeting should advise what level of documentation is required.
At the very least, you can follow the meeting agenda and note such things as:
- Date and time of meeting
- Chairperson
- Attendees
- Brief description of points discussed
Note all action points and the person responsible for following up on those actions. There is a tendency now to keep minute-taking to a minimum, as it is not an easy task, nor do people bother reading reams of irrelevant babble that goes on in most meetings. The most important thing is to accurately record the actions that come from the meeting, the people responsible for implementing those actions, and the dates or timelines.
If you are unsure of something, always defer to the Chairperson and ask for clarification or seek advice on exactly what needs to be recorded. By recording action points, the next meeting knows what needs to be discussed and what progress has been made.
If your organization is just having meetings for the sake of having meetings, then that is another issue. Taking minutes of time-wasting meetings is a useless activity, and your time is better spent on more productive tasks.
If anyone wants a more comprehensive report of a meeting, I suggest you take a mini digital recorder to the meeting and record it. Then send the tape to a transcriber for typing into a verbatim report.