Who Needs Minutes? Everyone!

Too many boards and committees neglect minutes, treat them as an afterthought, just something to get done because it is required. Typically, minutes are sent a few days before the next board meeting with the agenda. The assumption is that board members will read them in advance and some do, some don’t. And then, at the beginning of the meeting the minutes are approved with little attention, often by many who haven’t even taken the time to read them, just as a matter of pro forma.

Believe it or not, minutes can actually play a significant role in whether an organization is standing still or getting stronger and moving forward. Why is that?

First and foremost, minutes are legal documents required of all corporations and they are a permanent record of what boards have done and plan to do. As such, minutes can help protect board members from individual liability.

Minutes also serve as a reminder to board members and staff regarding the decisions that have been made, usually aligned with specific action steps. Using minutes properly, they keep people on task and hold people accountable as to what they’ve agreed to do. This is why minutes should be written and distributed within days of a meeting, not just before the next one. And they should contain sufficient information recording discussion and decisions made as to provide context and understanding without documenting everything verbatim.

Minutes also serve as a historical record, proving very beneficial to those board members and staff in the future who want to know what decisions were made, why and what the outcomes were.

When serving as secretary or scribe, keep in mind how will this document be helpful to readers – what do they need to know and why? How might they use this information? Are votes properly conducted and counted? And when reading the minutes as a board or staff member, think critically about whether this document accurately reflects what happened in the meeting. Keep in mind your role and responsibility in carrying out the decisions that were made. You might even have questions and/or thoughts that are prompted by the minutes that need to be addressed in the upcoming meeting.

We hope this has encouraged you to think about minutes a little differently next time. Who knows? Maybe we’ve inspired you to step up to the role of secretary of your organization!