Meeting Minutes Format

There are many different formats that can be used for meeting minutes. These can be broadly categorized into two groups, informal and formal. The informal meeting minutes are significantly less detailed and not much different from a basic set of notes from the meeting. On the other hand, formal minutes can be quite detailed and lengthy. Each organization will have its own way of taking minutes for meetings. However, there are some examples listed below to help you get started if you don’t have a format already in place.

Informal Meeting Minutes

Most sales meetings and startups can get by very well with informal meeting minutes. The basic idea here is to capture the content of the meeting in the most efficient way possible. These minutes are not very different from a set of notes from the meeting and they are often referred to as notes rather than minutes. If your goal is to run an efficient meeting, then informal meeting minutes may be all you need. You can learn more about sales meetings and the minutes they require from a course like, How to run an effective sales meeting. You can also learn more about meeting minutes at startups from a course like, High Payback Meetings for Startups – Managers – Team Leaders. These classes focus more on the meeting and only briefly mention taking minutes. This is because informal meeting minutes, or notes, is all you will need in these scenarios.

Informal meeting minutes only need to capture the most basic information. This includes the name of the organization, date, time, location, meeting organizer, minute taker, persons in attendance, absent members, and notes from the meeting. The notes make up the majority of the information in this type of meeting minutes. This makes note taking software like Microsoft OneNote a convenient option for taking informal minutes. You can learn more about OneNote from a class like Smart and effective notes using Microsoft OneNote 2010. An example for this meeting minutes format is provided below.

Sample Informal Meeting Minutes

Organization:

Date:

Time:

Location:

Meeting Organizer:

Minute Taker:

In Attendance:

Absent:

Notes:

Formal Meeting Minutes

When you need to use formal meeting minutes, it’s a good idea to take a class specifically tailored to Minute Taking at Meetings. Individual organizations will have their own format for these meetings, but you can find a good starting place in the sample formal meeting minutes below. The biggest difference between informal and formal meeting minutes is the level of detail. Informal meeting minutes focus on the notes from the meeting while formal meeting minutes must record much more. This includes the organization, date, time, location, meeting organizer, minute taker, persons in attendance, and absent members. However, formal meeting minutes go on to capture information about reports, specific agenda items, motions, votes, confidentiality, the call to order, adjournment, and much more.

Sample Formal Meeting Minutes

Organization:

Date:

Time:

Location:

Confidentiality:

Head of Meeting:

Minute Taker:

In Attendance:

Absent:

Call to Order:

Secretary’s Report:

Treasurer’s Report:

Event Report:

Old Business:

New Business:

Agenda Item 1:

Motion to Accept:

Second:

Vote: Yay ________ Nay ________ Pass / Fail

Agenda Item 2:

Motion to Accept:

Second:

Vote: Yay ________ Nay ________ Pass / Fail

Agenda Item 3:

Motion to Accept:

Second:

Vote: Yay ________ Nay ________ Pass / Fail

Motion to Adjourn:

Second:

Meeting Adjourned at: