Governance

It is always a good idea to know ahead of time the way that the minutes have been taken in the past and what the best format is for your church. Often, minute-takers believe that they should record conversations and thorough discussions. These conversations and lengthy discussions usually come to a conclusion or a decision – and it is the conclusion or decision that needs to be recorded. If there are cases where details of conversation will be required later in order to see how a decision was reached, perhaps a draft longer set of minutes could be in rough for that purpose.

Keep it simple. Make sure that the following items are organized and included:

•  A basic outline based on the agenda prepared ahead of time, and leave plenty of white space for notes. By having the topics already written down, you can jump right on to a new topic without pause.
•  A list of expected attendees and check off the names as people enter the room. Or, you can pass around an attendance sheet for everyone to sign as the meeting starts.
•  Type of meeting, name of the organization, date and time, venue, the full name of the presiding officer, secretary and any others who may be attending for an official reason
•  Approval of previous minutes, and all resolutions.
•  Inclusion of other documents and reports that are referred to in the meeting as appendices
•  The full names of those who move and second motions and whether the motions are carried, defeated, tabled, amended, etc.
•  If you are unsure of all the names of participants, make a map of the seating arrangement, and make sure to ask for introductions of unfamiliar people.
•  Don’t make the mistake of recording every single comment. Concentrate on getting the gist of the discussion and taking enough notes to summarize it later. Think in terms of issues discussed, major points raised and decisions taken.
• Use whatever recording method is comfortable for you, a notepad, a laptop computer, or a digital recorder. It might be a good idea to make sound recordings of important meetings as a backup to your notes.
• If you are an active participant in the meeting, be prepared! Study the issues to be discussed and have your questions ready ahead of time. If you have to concentrate on grasping the issues while you are making your notes, they won’t make any sense to you later.
• Don’t wait too long to type up the minutes, especially while your memory is fresh. Be sure to have the minutes approved by the chair or facilitator before distributing them to the attendees.
• Don’t be intimidated by the prospect of taking minutes. Concise and coherent minutes are the mark of a professional. The very process of recording minutes can give you a deeper understanding of the issues faced by your organization along with ability to focus on what’s important.