Drafting Minutes of a Meeting and ATR

Meetings are an integral part of any company or organization. Several important topics are discussed in a meeting, and important decisions are taken. Apart from these essential constituents of any meeting, there are two more important aspects.  One of them is the minute of the meeting draft, while the other one is the action taken report. Let us learn the details of Drafting Minutes of a Meeting and ATR.

Meeting minutes are the types of notes which are recorded during a meeting. They generally highlight the issues that are discussed, motions that are proposed, and the activities which are to be done. The minutes are generally taken by a notable person present in the meeting. The main objective of the minutes of the meeting is to keep a record of the main highlights of the meeting.

There are five main steps involved in the recording of the minutes of the meeting.  These five involved steps are: 

• Pre- Planning

• Record taking 

• Writing the minutes of the meeting

• Sharing the minutes of the meeting 

• Store it for use in future

Minutes of Meeting (MoM)

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It is important to record every point that is discussed in the meeting. It contains a vivid description of the meeting. It has information about the list of attendees, the topics discussed in the meeting, the responses of the receivers, and the final decisions made. Drafting of agenda and minutes of the meeting is important for the following reasons.

• Different attendees of the meetings have different degrees of recollection of the meetings when the points are not written down. 

• Different participants can differ in their interpretation of the ideas and action plans discussed in the meeting. It is important to focus on the common conclusion from the meeting discussions.

• Some participants might tend to forget important aspects of the meeting if they are not written down.

• The written document can be used as a reference for task completion or subsequent meetings.

• The minutes of the meeting draft can also be used for legal procedures as well.

Format for Drafting Minutes of Meeting

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To ensure that the MoM in meetings is effective, it is important to know how to draft minutes of meetings. The steps of the same are given below.

• Make a copy of the plans to be discussed in the meeting. Take it to the meeting and use it as a guideline for noting down the drafts.

• Ensure that the number and order of the topics in the MoM minute of the meeting are the same as those listed on the agenda.

• Write down the details of all the participants who are attending the meeting.

• Put all the handouts and documents provided during the meeting in a single file.

• Make sure that you note down clear details in the minutes of the meeting draft.

It is essential to understand the details expected from the minutes. The general points covered in the minutes are given below.

• The meeting date and time.

• Name, affiliation, and contact details of all the participants who are attending the meeting.

• The discussions and decisions on each topic as denoted on the agenda.

• Any corrections or amendments made in the minutes of the previous meetings.

• Plan of action as decided in the meeting.

• The next meeting date and time.

Important Points to Consider While Taking Notes

To ensure that the notes prepared during the meeting are effective, the following suggestions can be taken into account.

• Prepare a structure or format before the meeting.

• Write down all the important topics that will be discussed in the meeting. 

• List down the name of the attendees and the absentees from the meeting.

• If you are confused about any aspect, clarify it with the respective personnel.

• Learn to fish out important points since you cannot write down every word uttered during the meeting.

• You can make recordings of the meeting if you have permission from all the attendees.

Process of the Drafting of Agenda and Minutes

The following tips will help you to write down the minutes.

• Write down the minutes immediately after the meeting. Go through the points thoroughly after writing. You can recheck all the details with the respective participants.

• If the meetings are long-drawn, note down the essential points.

• Make sure that your grammar and sentence sequences are correct.

• Have an objective approach in the minutes. Do not include any personal comments or conflicts.

• Also, add any reference materials as applicable.

Sharing the MoM

After preparing the MoM, the organizations share it with the employees. Before sharing, ensure that the MoM is reviewed by the relevant authorities and has received approval. It is important to prepare the MoM mail draft or it can be prepared as handouts.

Filing the MoM

After the MoM is shared with the relevant employees, it is important to file them in hard drives or files for future references.

Action Taken Report (ATR)

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The action taken report is generally prepared a few days after the meeting. A gap of 5-7 days is considered between the meeting and the action taken report. The general action taken report format considers the various actions that are called for in the meeting. Any action taken report example will depict the actions completed as per the points discussed in the meeting. The gap ensures that there is adequate time for the actions to be completed and filed in the action taken report format.

Significance of Minutes of Meeting 

Meeting minutes are very important because they are generally used to compile the key points which were raised during the meeting. Minutes of the meeting also state the approaches that were passed in the meeting to tackle any particular problem during the meeting and the main reason why members choose one method over the other to overcome the problem.

The minutes of the meeting are generally recorded manually with the help of pen and paper or with the help of any electronic device such as a laptop and I- pad. After the meeting, the recorder reviews the meeting minutes he finds necessary. The meeting minutes are then shared with all of us to keep the data and record safe.