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What Is a Corporate Meeting Minutes?
A corporate meeting minutes is a written document or an official summary sheet of the discussions at a board meeting. The document includes the actions taken and decisions made by the attendees. The board secretary usually notes corporate minutes during the formal session. According to an article, corporate meeting minutes help fulfill the obligation to inform shareholders and other corporate activities and decisions. Business meetings must be formally organized and occur during a weekly, monthly, or annual basis.
Keeping a meeting minutes sheet is vital because salient details tackled during board meetings must be written to ratify the company's critical decisions, status, liability protections, financial reports, tax benefits, among other topics. A corporate meeting minutes must include the following details, such as the meeting schedule, location, attendees, session speakers, overall agenda, and action plans or proposals.
How to Write a Corporate Meeting Minutes
A corporate meeting minutes must be formally constructed and genuinely detailed. To make effective meeting minutes, here are the following steps to guide you.
1. Prepare for the Meeting
Before heading into the meeting location, you can start taking down notes of the required details of the meeting. You can start noting down the full name of your company, the date and time of the meeting, and the specific location of the meeting. If you are writing the minutes on a piece of paper, make sure to prepare extra papers, pens, and pencils for you to use. If you are using a laptop computer, make sure to prepare the laptop charger and plug it before the meeting starts to avoid battery problems.
2. Write Down Attendees
Make a checklist of those members who will be attending the group meeting, such as guests, speakers, officers, shareholders, teams, or consultants. Write down the members who will be conducting the meeting and whether a quorum was present. As the meeting starts, list down those members who are absent, those who arrived late, or those who left the meeting early.
3. Record the Meeting Agenda
According to a trusted source, corporate meeting minutes must contain a summary of the discussion on each agenda item. Choose your words carefully as you write down what the members said in the meeting. It is important to take the notes accurately. As much as possible, try to listen carefully throughout the conference to precisely summarize the agenda. Take note of the documents that are being part of the meeting and make sure to attach copies of these documents in the meeting minutes.
4. Record Votes and Agreements
Some of the corporation meetings hold votes and agreements while some do not. If the meeting involves voting agendas, the minutes must reflect the results of the votes. Take note of those members who are dissenters, conformers, and those who did not participate with the votes.
5. Seek Approval of the Minutes
Distribute the meeting minutes to everyone for clarification. If a member objects the minutes, a discussion may take place. Make sure that you will only be the one to make some revisions of the minutes and take note of the changes. If everything is all set, remind yourself of the corporation policies, and who must sign the meeting minutes.
6. Adjourn the Meeting
As the meeting is about to end, wait for the member who conducted the meeting session to adjourn. Take note of the date and the time the meeting had ended. If the members discuss the next meeting schedule, make sure to note it as well.