Please settle a work debate for me.

[saxatablesalt]

Sorry it's not a very interesting one. If you're in a meeting, and you personally have an action that you don't follow up on because you didn't write it down, are you at fault? Or is it not your fault because the person taking minutes did not send them round promptly after the meeting?

TIA

The person who was to carry out the action should have written it down and not waited for the minutes.

You are at fault if it was discussed in the meeting that it was your action

Minute takers should be prompt on sending them round but they aren't responsible if people don't fulfil an action that they have already agreed to do

I'd question the person trying to slope their shoulders ethics of personal responsibility if it was me

Traditionally in this org the minutes are not sent round until the papers are sent before the next meeting.

Sorry OP I didn't mean you ..i meant the person whose action it was

Then definately yes the person should have recorded and completed their own action

The person whose action it was is at fault

If you had something to do then you should remember to do it. Not expect someone else to remember for you.

OK good, I am not BU here.

Being moaned at because an action wasn't done and apparently it's my fault because I should have reminded a colleague (senior level individual) to do said action.

Nope, person who's action it was takes responsibility I'm a PA I know things like this only too well!

A bit of both. Really it's the responsibility of the person tasked with the action, but if I was the minute taker I would feel a bit guilty if I had circulated the minutes too late for people to complete their actions.

If the task owner is trying to load the blame on the minute taker then they're an arse. Hope that's not you OP...

Tokyo I feel you!!!

If the senior colleague was also at the meeting then both of you should have written it down, if you agreed to remind a colleague to do something and didn't then maybe that's also your responsibility.

I'm the minute taker, not the action owner.

if you agreed to remind a colleague to do something and didn't then maybe that's also your responsibility.

I didn't.

oh right, maybe they want to get the minutes out sooner, in my last job we had to do them within 24hrs, in another job they didn't seem to get done at all, what is your works policy. i guess it's good practice for everyone to take notes in a meeting and highlight what they are responsible for.

I didn't know minutes even still existed!

But.. the person who's action it was is at fault, they should have noted it down for themselves at the time.

I think they need to take responsibility for not doing the task, but if I were taking the minutes I’d send them round to everyone ASAP and be all smug about knowing I’d done everything in good time so this kind of nonsense could never occur.

Sherlock I wish they didn't!!!!!

No one reads them anyway, complete waste of my time. Even if I send them out two months before the next meeting when we go down the list of action points it's obvious people are just reading them as they go.

Person who is supposed to do the action should have written it down and actioned it as agreed at the meeting

But minutes are supposed to be helpful, including summarising the agreed actions, so that everyone is clear what is expected to happen before the next meeting. Sending them round shortly before the next meeting doesn't assist the organisation, though I know that it can be a PITA to get them written and cleared in some places.

I've worked in places that send round a summary of actions / owners shortly after the meeting, even if the fuller minutes aren't circulated for a while - could that be an option OP?

It's because the cocking things need to be "approved", so I can do them in 24 hours and they still won't get sent for another six weeks.

Could you type them as you go on a laptop, do you take minutes by hand or on a computer, they could be circulated quickly, why does it take the manager so long to approve them.

Even if they’re not approved for six months or whatever, I’d want to be all relaxed knowing I could do no more and if things didn’t get done nobody could point their silly finger at me.

You are responsible for the actions given to you.

In a previous company I was the designated minute taker so I got into the habit of speaking to each action owner a coupe of days before the next mtg the "get an update".

It seemed to work!!

L