MINUTE OF MEETING
“Meetings” and “Minutes” are the most important parts of professional
activity.
Meeting
A meeting can be defined in the following way:
“Meeting is a gathering or assembly of two or more persons for the transaction of some lawful business of the human concern.” Meetings have a very
important role in the communication machinery of any profession. Generally, meetings are held for the following aims:
(i)
to get the solution to any problem.
(ii)
to exchange opinions, and experience and make suggestions.
(iii)
to plan and manage
(iv)
to transact official business, take decisions, and make recommendations.
(v)
to acquire knowledge of new fields.
There are two types of formal meetings:
(i)
Public Meeting: It is addressed by the
leader and attended by the public. Normally this meeting takes place in a hall
or park/public place.
(ii)
Professional Meeting: This type of meeting is
organized by the different officers for a special concern related to business.
These meetings have a specific agenda to discuss upon. In such a scenario,
Minutes of the Meeting Minutes are the record of a meeting and are kept in safe custody.
Minutes
The official records of discussions held and decisions taken at a
meeting are known as minutes. During a meeting, the secretary is to write down
and distribute the minutes of meetings. Usually, at each meeting, the minutes
of the previous meeting are read out, if printed copies of the minutes have not
been distributed to the members beforehand. The group then votes to accept the
minutes or to revise and clarify certain items.
Minutes usually contain the main points of a discussion, the
recommendations made by the participants, the tasks assigned to individual
members and groups, and the conclusions reached. They are, however, not a
verbatim record of the proceedings of a meeting. The emotions or feelings
expressed by the members during the course of a discussion are generally not
recorded. An accurate, well-organized, and complete summary of the business
transacted is required in minutes.
Minutes, are in fact, a type of summary of what happens at a meeting. ‘Minutes
writing’ is associated with a formal meeting where important points of the
meeting are noted.
Minutes should be written up as soon as possible just after the
meeting. The minutes should be written in the third person and in the past
tense. The minutes should be clear.
The procedure of writing Minutes
(i)
First of all, give the description of the meeting and mention the name,
date, time, and place of the meeting.
(ii)
Mention the name of the supreme authority may be chairperson,
chairman, and the name of other members, their designation who attended the
meeting.
(iii)
Do not forget to mention the list of absentees.
(iv)
It is very important to confirm the last meeting minutes.
Format of Minutes of Meeting
The following items are
generally included in the minutes of meetings, although
the order may vary from one
organization to another.
(i)
Name of the group or committee that is holding the meeting
(ii)
Date, time, and place of the meeting
(iii)
The kind of meeting being held (a regular meeting/a special meeting)
(iv)
Names of the Chairperson and the Secretary.
(v)
Name of special invitees (if any)
(vi)
Call to order
(vii)
Roll call
a. Names of members present
b. Names of absentees
(viii) A statement that the minutes
of the previous meeting were approved or revised, or a statement that the
reading of the minutes was dispensed with.
(ix)
Record of the proceedings of the meeting. These could include:
a. The main points of the
Chairperson's address.
b. A list of the reports that
were read and approved.
c. All the motions and
suggestions that were made. with statements about whether they were accepted,
defeated, or merely tabled (vote postponed). It is also customary to include the
names of those who proposed the motions. It includes-
i. Issues raised – along with
the names of the speakers.
ii. Suggestions – made along
with the names of the speakers.
iii. Decision – the outcome of
the meeting.
d. Resolutions that were
adopted should be written out in full. If a resolution was rejected, make a
statement to that effect.
e. The final statement of vote
of thanks to the chair.
f. Proposed next meeting- The
time that the meeting ended as well as the date, time, and venue of the next
meeting.
g. The signature of the
Recording Secretary and the Chairperson.
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Name of the company/organization Minutes |
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Date: …………………….. Time: ……………………. Venue: ………………… Types of meetings: Regular/Special/Discussion/Brainstorming Members Present: Members Absent: |
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The following points were discussed in the meeting- 1. Call to order |
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Tips for writing effective Minute
(i)
Keep minutes brief and to the point but complete.
(ii)
Avoid being abstract and too general. Give specific details in the
minutes
(iii)
Minutes must be accurate, complete, and clear. It may be used by
different people in the future.
(iv)
Be consistent in the way you refer to people. Do not call one person Shri S. Sharma and another Meetu Das. This may be unintentional, but a lack of consistency
in titles or names may bring conflicts.
(v)
Minutes should always be objective and impartial. Avoid adjectives or
adverbs that suggest either good or bad qualities.
(vi)
If the member of the committee is to follow up on something and report to
the committee at its next meeting, state clearly the name of the member, and
the responsibility he/she has accepted.
Examples
Imagine that you have been appointed the Reporting Secretary for the seventh meeting of the Executive Committee of the Meerut Fashion Store held on June 16, 1988, Write the minutes of the meeting, assuming the agenda to be as follows:
i) Adoption of the Minutes
of the last meeting.
ii) Appointment of sales
staff
iii) Proposal to buy shelves
for the display of goods
iv) Complaints regarding the
quality of apparel.
You may add any other point
if needed.
The Meerut Fashion Store 10, Shastri Nagar, Meerut, UP Minutes of the 7th Meeting of the Executive Committee -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Jan 15, 2023 Time: 4:00 PM Venue: Committee Room of the Meerut Fashion Store Present: Mr. Rohit Pal, Chairman Mr. Sunil Kashyap, Sales Manager Mr. Nehal Singh, Office Manager Mr. Kamal Kumar, Secretary Absent: Mr. Anuj Chaturvedi, General Manager (apology received. He is in hospital.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Call to order: Chairperson announced the start of the meeting. |
