Writing at Workplace

Writing an agenda and minutes

Part 1 - Writing an agenda

Section A: Definition

An agenda is a list of items which will be discussed in a meeting. The items will follow a certain sequence decided by the Chairperson of the meeting and must be clearly numbered.

Section B: Purpose

An agenda enables the members of the meeting to familiarize with what will be discussed in the meeting in order to allow them enough time to consider important issues they would like to raise about those topics during the meeting.

Moreover, the members will know the approximate length of the meeting for their reference. An agenda will also help in keeping the meeting on track. Another purpose is to ensure that essential items will not be missed.

Section C: Format

1. Heading

This part includes the name of the organization and the name of the meeting. Both of these should be written in the middle at the top of the page. Then the date, time and venue are written on the left-hand side. The word ‘Agenda’ should appear after this.

Easy Eating Food Ltd

Second Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX

Date:     3rd March, 20XX (Friday)

Time:    10:30am – 11:30am

Venue:  Conference Room

Agenda:

2. Content

The items to be discussed in the meeting are written here for the reference of the members of the meeting. There are two ways to list the items: a simple one listing all the topics and the one with the estimated duration for each item. No matter which way you choose, the items must be numbered.

A simple one looks as this:

  1. Confirmation of the minutes of the First Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX
  2. Purchase of meat from Da Wan Meat Company in Zhongshan
  3. Issue concerning the supply of eggs
  4. Lack of stationery in various departments
  5. A.O.B.

For the one with the estimated durations, it may be in the form of a table with the durations listed on the right-hand side, or the duration may be written after each item in brackets if not in a table. One example is as follows:

Item to be discussed

Estimated duration (for reference)

1.      Confirmation of the minutes of the First Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX

Approx. 2 mins

2.      Purchase of meat from Da Wan Meat Company in Zhongshan

Approx. 10 mins

3.      Issue concerning the supply of eggs

Approx. 20 mins

4.      Lack of stationery in various departments

Approx. 20 mins

5.      A.O.B.

Approx. 5 mins

“A.O.B.” means “Any Other Business”. This may be any items not listed in the agenda which any of the members wants to raise at the end of the meeting. Usually, this is the last topic in the agenda.

“Approx.” means “approximately”, which is just a guess of the duration of each item.

If there is a person or a team responsible for each topic, the name may be written after each item.

Section D: Points to note

  1. The items are written in phrases and not complete sentences. Therefore, these should not be very long.
  2. The issues to be addressed should be clearly written so that there will not be any misunderstanding. In this aspect, do not use any unfamiliar terms.
  3. Make sure you include all the items to be discussed in the meeting.
  4. The agenda should be sent to members of the meeting one week or more before the meeting so that the members can have enough time to prepare for the discussion and to make suggestions for amending it.
  5. If there are important documents that the members need to read so as to become familiar with one or more items of the agenda, these need to be attached for their perusal.
  6. If it is not the first meeting, the confirmation of the minutes of the meeting before is needed. However, if this is the first meeting, it is not needed.
  7. No signature is required for an agenda.

Section E: Exercise

Tick which of the following are well-written and not well-written for the content of an agenda.

Item to be discussed

Well-written

Not well-written

1.      Recent personnel changes

  

2.      There are new staff working in the company now.

  

3.      The manager is not satisfied with the attitude of the sales staff and wants to talk to them.

  

4.      Issues concerning the attitude of the sales staff

  

5.      Computers

  

6.      New models of computers to be purchased

  

7.      The information in the Staff Handbook is outdated and there should be a new version of the handbook. Let’s discuss this during the meeting.

  

8.      The amendments to the Staff Handbook

  

Answers:

Well-written

Not well-written

(This is a complete sentence and not clear about what issue to be discussed.)

Not well-written

(This shows an opinion of the manager and the action he/she is going to take and it is not clear what should be discussed in the meeting.)

Well-written

Not well-written

(not clear about what to discuss)

Well-written

Not well-written

(This is too long: not suitably written as an item in the agenda.)

Well-written

The following is a sample of an agenda.

Easy Eating Food Ltd

Second Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX

Date: 3rd March, 20XX (Friday)

Time: 10:30am – 11:30am

Venue: Conference Room

Agenda:

Item to be discussed

Estimated duration (for reference)

1. Confirmation of the minutes of the First Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX

Approx. 2 mins

2. Purchase of meat from Da Wan Meat Company in Zhongshan

Approx. 10 mins

3. Issue concerning the supply of eggs

Approx. 20 mins

4. Lack of stationery in various departments

Approx. 20 mins

5. A.O.B.

Approx. 5 mins

 

Part 2 - Writing minutes

Section A: Definition

Minutes are an official written record of what happened and what people said during a meeting. These include the decisions made in the meeting.

Section B: Purpose

There are several purposes of writing minutes:

  1. These are written clearly about what was discussed and what decisions were made in a meeting in case people should forget.
  2. Members of the meeting can follow the minutes for future actions without any misunderstanding.
  3. Those who were absent from the meeting owing to various reasons can refer to the minutes about what happened during the meeting.

Section C: Format

1. Heading

This part includes the name of the organization and the minutes of the particular meeting. Both of these should be written in the middle at the top of the page. 

Then the date, time and venue are written on the left-hand side. 

Following these, the names of the people who were present and absent from the meeting should be written according to the alphabetical order of their surnames, with the name of the Chairperson of the meeting first. 

The word ‘Minutes’ should appear after this.

For example:

Easy Eating Food Ltd

Minutes of the Second Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX

Date:     3rd March, 20XX (Friday)

Time:    10:30am – 11:30am

Venue:  Conference Room

Present:

Mr Wong Chung Wai Peter (Chairperson)

Mr Chan Tong Yiu Harry

Ms Cheung Mei Suet Brenda

Ms Fu Yee Man Lily

Ms Lee Yam Fan Olivia

Mr Tsang Wai Yan Michael

Ms Wong Lai Kuen Amy

Mr Wong Tsz Ching Henry

Ms Yau Shuk Lin Mary

Absent:

Ms Chan Wai Shuen Margaret

Mr Yu Siu Long Edwin

Minutes:

2. Content

The issues which were discussed in the meeting are written here. Normally, these will follow the same order listed in the agenda. For example, according to the agenda on p.2, the first item is “Confirmation of the minutes of the First Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX”:

1. Confirmation of the minutes of the First Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX

Mr Harry Chan suggested the minutes of the First Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX be confirmed, which was seconded by Ms Lily Fu.

2. Purchase of meat from Da Wan Meat Company in Zhongshan.

  •    
  •    
  •    

If there are several issues addressed within one item in the agenda, you may use the numbering sequence such as 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, etc. to write the issues.

For the last item “A.O.B.”, if there are issues raised by the members of the meeting, follow the same numbering sequence of 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, etc. 

After the last issue, write “There being no other business, the meeting was adjourned at 11:30am.”

At the end of the minutes, the name of the person taking the minutes and the Chairperson of the meeting should be written:

Minutes submitted by:   (name)

Minutes approved by:    (name)

Section D: Points to note

  1. Usually, the secretary of the Chairperson will take the minutes. In some cases, the Chairperson may appoint one member who is present in the meeting to take minutes.
  2. The items should be written in the order discussed in the meeting.
  3. The past tense should be used, as this is a record of a meeting which was finished on a certain day in the past.
  4. The use of the passive voice is quite common.
  5. The first name and the family name of the people (e.g. Mr Tomas Brown) can be used instead of their full names (e.g. Mr Tomas Alexander Brown) to save time and space so long as it is understood which person is referred to.
  6. The minutes should be a true account of what happened and what was really mentioned and discussed in the meeting. Therefore, there should not be any imaginary or fictional elements in the minutes.
  7. The personal opinions of the minutes taker should not be written unless these were actually stated during the meeting.
  8. You do not need to note every word a person said in the meeting. Just write the important message the person wanted to get across since it is a waste of time to make the minutes long-winding.
  9. Minutes must be written in clear and concise words which are easy to understand. Avoid technical terms and jargon unless these were mentioned in the meeting.
  10. It is better to write the minutes at the earliest convenience for fear that the members of the meeting may forget what was being addressed.
  11. Once the minutes have been drafted, these should be given to the Chairperson for his/her perusal first. After that, the minutes should be passed to the other members who were present in the meeting for any amendments they wish to make.
  12. Sometimes, the minutes may need to be amended several times. After the final amendments in which all the members of the meeting have no questions, the minutes should be sent to all of them including those who were absent for their reference.

Exercise

Watch a YouTube video and note down the 6 tips for writing meeting minutes.

Title: How to Write Meeting Minutes

Channel: Hugo

Click here for the video
  1. Take minutes in real time.
  2. Be concise.
  3. Make notes easy to understand.
  4. Stick to the facts.
  5. Note who is unable to attend.
  6. Use a meeting minutes template.

The following is a sample of the minutes of a meeting.

Easy Eating Food Ltd

Minutes of the Second Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX

Date: 3rd March, 20XX (Friday)
Time: 10:30am – 11:30am
Venue: Conference Room

Present:

Mr Wong Chung Wai Peter (Chairperson)
Mr Chan Tong Yiu Harry
Ms Cheung Mei Suet Brenda
Ms Fu Yee Man Lily
Ms Lee Yam Fan Olivia
Mr Tsang Wai Yan Michael
Ms Wong Lai Kuen Amy
Mr Wong Tsz Ching Henry
Ms Yau Shuk Lin Mary

Absent:

Ms Chan Wai Shuen Margaret
Mr Yu Siu Long Edwin

Minutes:

1. Confirmation of the minutes of the First Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX
Mr Harry Chan suggested the minutes of the First Supply and Purchase Department Meeting 20XX be confirmed, which was seconded by Ms Lily Fu.

2. Purchase of meat from Da Wan Meat Company in Zhongshan
It was suggested purchasing meat from Da Wan Meat Company in Zhongshan starting from April 20XX rather than from the current supplier Global Market Company owing to the lower prices of different types of meat from Da Wan Meat Company. All of the present members agreed that it was a good idea.

3. Issue concerning the supply of eggs
It was pointed out that the supply of eggs was not enough in these few months. Ms Olivia Lee would seek suppliers from different sources, and report the progress to the Chairperson.

4. Lack of desktop computers
It was reported that there was a problem of the lack of computers for newly recruited staff. The three new staff had to take turns to use one computer, and this would greatly affect work efficiency. It was suggested purchasing two desktop computers. Ms Mary Yau would follow up the purchase.

5. A.O.B.
There being no other business, the meeting was adjourned at 11:30am.

Further References

1. How to write an agenda

This webpage gives information on what an agenda is, what should be included and the dos and don’ts of writing an agenda.

https://www.examples.com/business/how-to-write-an-agenda.html

2. Tips to write an effective meeting agenda (with template)

In this website, there are tips to create an effective meeting agenda, an example of a meeting agenda and notes on why meeting agendas are important.

https://asana.com/resources/meeting-agenda

3. How to Write Meeting Minutes EXPLAINED

This video gives information on how to take notes during the meeting and how much detail should be included. There are also tips for note taking.

https://www.vedantu.com/english/notice-writing

4. How to Write Effective Meeting Minutes (with Templates and Samples)

This webpage introduces what meeting minutes are, what should be included, the purpose of writing minutes together with useful templates.

https://www.wildapricot.com/blog/how-to-write-meeting-minutes

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