The minutes of board meetings are the official record of a board’s decisions and actions. They’re essential for a number of reasons that include legal implications, governance policies, and even just accountability. They should be simple to understand, accurate and clear.
Keep your minutes as short and concise as you can to avoid wasting time with lengthy elaborations and keep the focus on the most important decisions discussions, actions, and discussions. This is particularly helpful for boards with a limited budget and tight deadlines.
The format or structure of your minute books can differ according to your organization’s needs as well as the culture and style of your organization, but a few common elements should be taken into account when drafting notes. Some of these key points include:
Date and time of the aboutboardroom.com meeting: Making clear when the board meeting occurred will help future readers to comprehend what transpired. It’s also an excellent idea to record the nature of the meeting (whether regular or special, as well as annual).
Content: Check the the minutes to ensure they accurately reflect what occurred during the meeting. Examine for any errors or omissions, and be sure to cross-reference with other documents to make sure that the information is accurate and correct. Make sure that all agreed-upon actions and tasks for follow-up are documented in the minute. This includes any action items or follow-up tasks that may have been discussed during executive sessions (private or in-camera segments of the meeting for sensitive subjects like alleged misconduct, personnel matters or financial issues with the auditor). These discussions should not be included in the board meeting minutes, but in the minutes of the closed session.
