What do you use to track action items in meetings?

I was just called as Ward Clerk, and advised that my bishopric is a little... forgetful. They need help keeping track of things they decided to do. I this is largely personal preference, but I'd like to get some suggestions. What kind of a system (paper, apps, etc.) do you use to track action items from meetings?

Having an agenda helps a lot - specifically, keeping minutes and keeping track of individual assignments that you can all review until tasks are completed.

You as a ward clerk can help by taking good notes of topics, decisions, and assignments at the meetings. I think it's important also to not just take notes, but to send them out so everyone can have a copy to refer to. I take notes directly in an email and send it out as the meeting closes, since it's easier to reference than, for example, a Word document attached to an email – but make sure whatever format you use is consistent, and makes it easy for (especially) the bishop to reference.

Is this a just a local interpretation, but isn't the exec secretary responsible for taking notes etc, at meetings and sending out the relevant information? My understanding is that the Ward Clerk fills in when the exec isn't available.

Biggles wrote:Is this a just a local interpretation, but isn't the exec secretary responsible for taking notes etc, at meetings and sending out the relevant information? My understanding is that the Ward Clerk fills in when the exec isn't available.

According to Handbook 1 section 13.4.2, the ward clerk is responsible for keeping a record of assignments and decisions made in ward leadership meetings and reminding the bishopric of items that need followup or further consideration.

Section 13.4.4 indicates the Executive Secretary prepares agendas for meetings.

When I was ward clerk we always interpreted this to mean that the ES creates the agenda, then I as the ward clerk would take notes and minutes and send them to those who attended and then the ES used the followup items from those minutes to help prepare the agenda for the next meeting.

Personally I just used a Word document (actually Open/Libre Office but in Word format) for the notes. I didn't just use an email so that I could keep a history of all the minutes on my laptop and delete them from my email server. Although I tried to make sure the minutes didn't contain really sensitive information I still didn't like leaving them on my email server (although I know I had no control over how others handled them). If something sensitive were discussed I could keep a password protected version locally only.

When I served as stake executive secretary, I prepared an agenda, and then saved it as a new filename on my laptop. During the stake presidency meeting, I updated the agenda with all decisions and assignments made, so they would appear on the next meeting's agenda. As actions were completed, I removed them from the agenda. That worked really well, since I have pretty much lost the ability to write anything by hand, or read my own handwriting.

Hilohi wrote:Having an agenda helps a lot - specifically, keeping minutes and keeping track of individual assignments that you can all review until tasks are completed.

Sigh. The bishopric doesn't even use an agenda. Apparently, the ES has pushed for that quite a bit in the past but it's not going to happen.

Biggles wrote:Is this a just a local interpretation, but isn't the exec secretary responsible for taking notes etc, at meetings and sending out the relevant information? My understanding is that the Ward Clerk fills in when the exec isn't available.

I was an ES some years ago. I found in talking to other people about that calling that there seems to be variation between wards when it comes to how the ES/Clerk duties are split up.

bedone wrote:

Hilohi wrote:Having an agenda helps a lot - specifically, keeping minutes and keeping track of individual assignments that you can all review until tasks are completed.

Sigh. The bishopric doesn't even use an agenda. Apparently, the ES has pushed for that quite a bit in the past but it's not going to happen.

In my previous stake, the stake president didn't look at the agenda much, but the executive secretary prepared one anyway and used it himself to make sure each topic was brought up during the meeting. If something was forgotten, the executive secretary brought it up.

bedone wrote:

Biggles wrote:Is this a just a local interpretation, but isn't the exec secretary responsible for taking notes etc, at meetings and sending out the relevant information? My understanding is that the Ward Clerk fills in when the exec isn't available.

I was an ES some years ago. I found in talking to other people about that calling that there seems to be variation between wards when it comes to how the ES/Clerk duties are split up.

There is some variation, but there are also some specifics in the Handbook – so it's important to check. Obviously the clerks and executive secretaries have to find a good way to work together in supporting the bishopric.