The Minute Taker's Workshop

This course is currently available as E-Learning, or a private instructor-led class scheduled to suit your availabilty. You can click here to inquire further or you ask us for recommendations on similar classes.

Recommended Prerequisites

No prerequisites are required for this course.

Course Overview

No matter who you are or what you do, whether at work or in the community, you are likely involved in meetings. Meetings are costly, whether they are held in a company boardroom or at the local coffee shop. To ensure that meetings are productive and worth the expense involved, three ingredients are necessary: an assurance of closure, a strong chair or leader, and accurate minutes. It has been said that if accurate minutes have not been recorded, then the meeting may just as well not have taken place.

If people can’t remember or agree on what actually occurred at a meeting, how can the group effectively accomplish its objectives? After this course, you will understand your role as a minute-taker and the best techniques for producing minutes that include all the essential information needed.

Learning Objectives

• Recognize the importance of minute-taking
• Develop key minute-taking skills, including listening skills, critical thinking, and organization
• Be able to resolve many of the complaints that affect minute-takers
• Be able to write minutes that are suitable for formal meetings, semiformal meetings, and action minutes
• Be an efficient minute-taker in any type of meeting
• Be able to prepare and maintain a minute book

Course Outline

1. Course Overview
2. The Role of a Minute-Taker
3. What is a Minute-Taker?
4. Problems and Solutions
5. The Skills of a Minute-Taker
6. Key Skills
7. Listening Skills
8. Critical Thinking Skills
9. Organization Skills
10. Meeting Agreements
11. Minute Styles
12. Choosing a Style
13. Informal Minutes
14. Action Minutes
15. Formal Minutes
16. What Do I Record?
17. Recording Motions and Resolutions
18. What to Record
19. Techniques for Preparing Minutes
20. Top Techniques
21. Writing Minutes
22. Preparing Minutes
23. Editing Minutes
24. Pre-Assignment Review
25. Taking Minutes in an Interactive Meeting
26. The Minute Book
27. Personal Action Plan
28. Recommended Reading List
29. Post-Course Assessment