Minutes
Minutes are notes that are taken, usually by the secretary, during a meeting. The final minutes are then drafted and distributed after the meeting.
They record:
key discussions
decisions made
motions proposed or voted on
any actions or follow-ups
They’re used to provide an accurate record of what happened during the meeting and are shared with all participants after the meeting. They're usually approved by the board or committee in the next meeting.
Open the minutes and add notes
Once you’ve published the agenda for a meeting, you can take notes in the minutes document before, during, and after the meeting.
Open the meeting and select Open minutes.
The Minutes page is visible once you’ve published the agenda. If you don’t see the Open Minutes button, publish the agenda and try again.
The meeting minutes page is displayed. You’ll see:
The agenda items panel. Select an agenda item to view the linked documents and any motions. Select a document to view it in the board book.
The editor, which allows you to format your content
The meeting details, attendees, and agenda items are already populated. Any notes you take are automatically saved for you. You can export the minutes to .docx or .pdf formats.
Manage the minutes during the meeting
Once the meeting starts, a timer is displayed. Keep an eye on the timer to ensure that your meeting runs to schedule.
Use the toolbar to format any notes that you take.
At any point before, during, or after the meeting, you can reset your notes. On the more options menu, select Reset meeting notes.
If you reset your meeting notes, this will remove any changes you made to the agenda after you started taking notes. It will also delete any notes you’ve added.
4. To see what the minutes look like before you share them, on the more options menu, select Preview notes as minutes. You can now share the minutes.
Share the meeting minutes
When the meeting minutes are complete, you can share them with the meeting participants.
If you prefer to work on the minutes in Microsoft Word or other software, you can upload them to Ideals Board after the meeting. On the More Options menu select Share minutes from an external file and upload your document.
If you’re working on meeting minutes and your meeting hasn't yet started, or the meeting is in progress, the Share button is not available. Always preview your notes before you share them to check the format and presentation.
Open the meeting, then select Open minutes.
Select Share at the top right.
You can rename the file by typing in the box.
Select Share minutes. A .docx document is generated and shared with all meeting participants. The meeting is updated to include a link to the minutes, which the participants can view.
This is the participant's view. Participants can open the meeting minutes and leave comments.
Documents are converted to PDF automatically for viewing. If a participant downloads the document, it will be in the original format.
If there are any comments you want to include or changes you want to make, you can update the document and generate a new version, replacing the original.
Once the meeting minutes have been shared with all meeting participants, minutes will automatically be linked to the next meeting for the same group for approval. An agenda item is created for you, with meeting minutes from the previous meeting.
Download the minutes
When your meeting is complete and the minutes have been approved, you can download them.
Go to Meetings and select the meeting.
In the Minutes section, select the More Options icon then select Download minutes.
The minutes document is downloaded.
Export minutes to docx or pdf format
Once you’ve added your notes and the minutes are complete, you can export the document as a docx (Microsoft Word) or a PDF.
Next to the Share button, select the More Options icon.
Select Export as docx if you want the document to remain editable, or Export as pdf if you want the document to be viewed only.
The document immediately downloads for you to share as needed.
Delete meeting minutes
You can delete minutes for a meeting once they've been approved.
We recommend that you download the minutes so you have a copy before you delete them. You can upload them to Ideals Board again.
Go to Meetings and select the meeting.
In the Minutes section, select the More Options icon then select Delete minutes.
The minutes document is deleted.