TAKING
EFFECTIVE MINUTES

This one-day course provides techniques for planning meeting agendas and taking effective minutes. Through discussions and, where applicable, the use of their own minutes as samples, participants examine various models for presenting minutes clearly and succinctly. The course stresses the process of taking minutes, including pre-meeting and post-meeting tips to make minute-taking more efficient and more effective.

To ensure a truly hands-on application of the course, we recommend that participants bring examples of their minutes to the session.

Public sessions of this course have been scheduled for both Ottawa and Toronto.

Who Should Attend

Administrative or executive assistants.

Committee members responsible for recording the proceedings of meetings.

Course Topics

This one-day course addresses the following topics:

• the difference between effective and ineffective minutes
• a process for taking effective minutes: before, during, and after the meeting
• what to do before the meeting
  • confirming or writing an effective agenda
  • considerations for writing the agenda
  • gathering information on previous minutes
• what to do during the meeting
  • selecting the best seat in the house!
  • reading the previous minutes
  • what to record and what to leave out
  • sample recording notes
  • recording action items
• what to do after the meeting
  • translating the meeting notes into minutes
  • formats for minutes
  • style guidelines