Minutes can be referred to as the notes or written records of a meeting. Minutes contain the names of the attendees, issues discussed in the meeting, views expressed by the participants, and decisions made. Minutes are normally recorded by a secretary or typist using shorthand notations. After recording all the details and structuring the notes, it is distributed to the participants. The person who writes the minutes is also called as “minute taker”. Almost 60% of all the managers’ time is spent on meetings. It can even go up to 90% in the near future. Some meetings are energizing, inspiring, and fun while some meetings are dull, ineffective, and unproductive.
The team members of a particular team meet frequently to discuss various issues. When this becomes a routine, the members lose interest. Normally, a team leader conducts team meetings that are more active, interesting, and successful. Team briefing is very important because it helps the employees to understand what they are doing in an organization and why they are doing it. Various issues related to their team and work are discussed. The team leader’s brief is the “core” brief supplied by the senior management.
Preparation is essential when you meet a client. During your meeting with a client, if you are not able to provide your client with what he exactly wants, the meeting might fail. Part of your job is to analyze and find out what the client exactly wants. Negotiation is done by every manager in a firm. For achieving certain objectives, negotiation plays an important role. A negotiation is considered successful if all the participants in a meeting are satisfied. When the meeting creates genuine agreement, the negotiator is very happy.
Most of the participants hate long meetings. A meeting should be long enough to allow the business to be discussed completely. After preparing the agenda, the minute taker has to calculate the time required for each item. If the meeting lasts for more than a couple of hours, the concentration slips. The room chosen for the meeting should be comfortable. Only if it is comfortable, it will be easier for the person to chair and minute, and it will also be productive. The room where the meeting is going to be held should be airy and bright with less disturbance.
