The minute is an official written statement of the motions and resolutions taken in a meeting. It is also defined as the official record of the proceeding of a meeting that should be needed to approve by the participating members of the business meeting.
Types of Minutes
Considering the methods of writing, minutes can be of the following two types:
- Minutes of resolutions and
- Minutes of narrations
The above two types of minutes are discussed below-
Minutes of resolutions: In this type of minute only the resolutions passed in the meeting are recorded without any reference to the discussion preceding the resolutions. Minutes of resolution means on a paper declaration of the decisions that have been taken and approved by the participating members of the meeting. Here no record even the names of movers and seconders of the motions or proposals. Examples of this type of minutes are as follows:
- “Resolved that Mr. Md. Abul Hasnat is hereby appointed as the Chairman of the Board of Director and of the Company.”
- “Resolved that Mr. S. F Ahmed is hereby appointed as the Secretary of the company with a monthly remuneration of Tk. 30,000.00 (Taka thirty thousand) only.”
Only the major conclusions which are reached at the meeting are recorded in minutes of resolution. These are generally used for minutes of AGMs and other constitutional meetings.
Example: Purchase of photocopier- the company secretary submitted a report from the managerial manager containing full details of the trial of the ABC photocopier. It was resolved that the ABC photocopier be purchased at a cost of $200.
Minutes of narrations: In this type of minutes resolutions are recorded including a brief reference of discussions on the motions and the voting pattern on the motions. These minutes will be a concise abstract of all discussions which took place, reports received, actions to be taken and decisions made. It includes:
- Names of the participating members.
- Name of the proposer and supporter.
- Discussion summary.
- Resolutions voting pattern etc.
This type of minute is somewhat similar to a report. But it is important to capture the essence of the meeting, including details such as:
- decisions made (motions made, votes, etc.),
- next steps planned,
- identification and tracking of action items.
Generally, Minutes provide an abstract of the proceedings of meetings. There are two types of minutes:
Formal, traditional minutes are written for large groups and legislative bodies. The following items are generally included in the order shown:
- Name of group, date, time, place, name of the meeting
- Names of people present; names of absentees, if suitable
- The recognition of the minutes of the last meeting
- Old business, new business, announcements, reports
- Name and signature of individual taking minutes.
Informal minutes might be written for little organizations, committees, or sub-committees. These minutes are generally shorter and easier to read than formal minutes. Informal minutes place less emphasis on the conventions of reporting and do not attempt to record the accurate wording of individual statements. As an alternative, informal minutes focus on the following:
- Summaries of significant discussions,
- Decisions reached by the group,
- Items on which accomplishment will be taken, including people dependable and due dates.
