Minutes and typos at work

[TheCloisters]

I write minutes at work, a lot are long and time pressured. Particularly HR, they tend to want a fast turnaround so letters can go out. Other department meetings are less so, but can be complex with a lot of acronyms/ names of software/ companies/ people etc spoken fast. It doesn’t help I’m not part of the departments, people forget I’m there half the time as they don’t know me.

Aibu to think a human rarely types long minutes without a single typo? I did a really long meeting yesterday, ran to 12 pages over hours of back and forth. Rapid and emotional meeting.

I’ve made two typos, used the wrong initials in a sentence on page 8 (like replacing GH with GE) and duplicated 3 words on page 10 (something like ‘GH stated they GH stated they’) to start a sentence.

Some people react so strongly to typos, like it’s completely inadequate. I’m interested in how many people on here would. Personally I just cant produce that many pages error free! I may be doing multiple documents a day, it’s time pressured and I don’t have the time for proof-reading over and over. I always state in my emails minutes are a draft, and invite people to offer any amendments they require. Some heads of department in particular are really really not pleasant over error though. It’s not every document, but I do slip like the examples above at times. Occasionally I get grammar corrections that are in correct too, like using ‘xxx and I’ when ‘me’ is appropriate in the sentence.

There are no consequences for me in terms of performance management or my manager, but the constant typo hunting, rather rude comments and repeated conflict has made me refuse to work for some areas anymore. I’ve never been picked up on a substantive error. It’s typos, like the wrong letter in an initial, missing words kind of stuff that can be missed when editing speech to clear sentences.

This post is prompted by an email I’ve woken up to, posting here is distracting me from replying to it with emotion.

Aibu- professional minutes can’t have errors, I’d be annoyed
ainbu- minutes sometimes need amendments, that’s life

This is the type of thing I do full minutes for, HR. Disciplinary, investigation, final absence meetings, complaints at final stages…
It’s not the bulk of my job, but something I pick up as and when.
My day to day stuff are standard minutes. Actions, key questions and agreements summarised.
I think some people have misunderstood/ read into the typos. I’m not getting acronyms wrong etc, it’s just an example of the level of content required.
My typos aren’t even in every document. When they are it’s key strike errors rather than mistakes, like GH instead of GJ or occasionally a repetition of a few words when I’ve re-edited a sentence. They aren’t substantive at all when they crop up. Things that spell check doesn’t see.
Sometimes they find none, sometimes they make errors themselves. Sometimes one edits in a typo in a shared document and another corrects it (I started giving repeat offenders PDFs so they have to type corrections into an email, rather use review mode all over each other). Sometimes it’s an Oxford comma I’ve decided is useful.
Most people are decent, I like my job, it’s interesting. Some pedants think it’s a sport though and are so so rude. They will bounce back multiple emails over an errant apostrophe or do faux outrage that I’ve reassigned their comment to a ‘mystery person’ with near identical initials and ask everyone in a group email if they know who this person was who I thought said xyz.

ln most work situations minutes are a dated way of working.

Action points are clearer and there is less risk of error.

I never do name replace. The meetings are sometimes large, generally there are a few people I’ve never met. The organisation is culturally diverse. I’m far more likely to typo in a long name than initials. It’s too easy for example to type a familiar spelling like Mohammed instead of Muhammad for example. Then find and replace can miss it. Nicknames/ shortened names are a massive risk to leave in.
The typos aren’t even usually one per document, often it’s more disagreement over phrasing like ‘the data cycle was repeated’ to ‘the cycle of data was repeated’ level.

If some of the feedback is 'style and fancy' suggest a style guide be in place to ensure consistency.

Here is the BBCs https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsstyleguide

I'm afraid I'm one of those managers who doesn't tolerate spelling errors that would be picked up by a spell checker in a first draft of any documents produced in my teams.

I also have moved away from minutes. Meetings I am responsible for have a meeting log based on actions and it's recorded on Teams should anyone want a replay (guarantee no one watches it!).

I have to do minutes and papers for a board meeting chaired by a solicitor. He is very very picky and everything, including the layout has to be 100% as he wants it. I have learned to tale his comments as helpful rather than criticism.

As someone said, the point of a draft is to check and amend it as required.

But if you know some of your colleagues are going to be a pain in the proverbial, can you ask another colleague to read them through before you send them out? They might pick up something you've missed.

I think I'd be bolshy too, and say "can we just use the meeting time to clear up any substantive issues please, rather than typos - we have lots of things to discuss today".

I confess to having been a minutes pedant when the chair, who was supposed to have approved the minutes before sending, is an arse. And I do send back material corrections, but kindly. It’s usually because the note taker struggled with incomprehensible technical terms, or as you say, mis-typed LMM as LM or something.

However I also take notes (not actual minutes - gone out of fashion thank goodness) and action points for a number of meetings/projects and have been on the receiving end of tiresome nitpicking as well as helpful amendments. Anyone taking issue with my judicious use of Oxford commas can write the notes themselves if they prefer.

It’s absolutely true that you can’t effectively proof your own work, and spell check is limited in its usefulness (and mine keeps reverting to US English every time IT push out an update). A couple of my very excellent colleagues do not have the gift of spelling so ask me to proof read their documents. It’s called team work.

I can be sending out 3/4 sets of minutes a day at times, more for a series of short meetings. I tend to attend meetings back to back then type in bulk the way schedules work. No one wants to read that many for me! It would be a massive job. Some also have very short turn around for HR to read before they send letters out in short time frames.

I think everyone in their bubble tends to think their minutes are the only minutes, but with remote work I can have attended 3 other meetings that day.

It is a bit of a dying thing, but if you are part time with kids it’s a fairly good way of earning in the years they are small. No one wants to write minutes now, particularly younger staff. It’s become better paid as there’s a massive reluctance to do it now, and sometimes it’s still wanted. It’s hardly a dream job, but you meet interesting people, it pays quite well (providing you type fast!) and it’s not taxing.

I’m an EA and I minute Board meetings. I think the issue sounds like peoples behaviour rather than your minute taking skills and I would have an informal chat with management or HR about the process.
Minutes are not the same as dictation - they are a different skill. I always go back to my desk and sit and read over and amend.theres no way I could send my minute notes out straight away!
When I send minutes out for fact checking I always mark it draft. I’m not a machine and sometimes like you I am doing to get things wrong. That’s why other people need to read over and check it.
You must be mentally exhausted with people nitpicking at you - that would make me really cross!

I think it's almost impossible to never make a typo. I've had to take notes in meetings - not part of my main job but when they ask for someone to record discussions - and it's not an easy task at all, especially when there's acronyms and jargon and the discussion is fast paced. If I have to review minutes I correct a typo on someone's initials, or anything substantial (eg wrong person mentioned, incorrect jargon, miscapturing a point) but sometimes I find other typos just reading through and report them as a by the way I spotted but low priority... It's much easier to spot the mistakes in other person's work than your own. I'm full of admiration of people who can take minutes /notes!

They should be correct - but that means you need to have time to proof read them yourself and/or to get someone else to do so.

But I'd also be wondering why meeting minutes run to 12 pages. They shoukd be key points and the outcome of discussions only!!

They sound like pedantic bullies and a toxic culture if it is widespread. For verbatim notes could you use the “dictate”function on Word so it types up what the microphone picks up? Fairly accurate but you would have to check and correct, especially names.

You sound normal!
I welcome, and thank people when they send stuff like ‘Hi Sara, 5.2 GE to GH, and is repeated in 17.2’. Useful and neutral.

Tbh I wasn’t really into this for a career, I was in a more senior position. I had a disabled child and something had to crack and change. I had years out of work and I’m lucky to get back into something at this point. I’ve made a flexible niche that works for me in work, but will probably go after me. I advise in meetings sometimes, support younger managers and take minutes. It was a weakness across a few areas I’ve slot into. It’s quite well paid for what it is, and I have a foot in the door whilst having massive flexibility.

I guess managing a few older pedants is part of the game…
Some remember me and respect me, but others see a minute-taker and it sparks a superior feeling. Tbf most are very polite. It’s just an extreme pocket of behaviour
Helping HR out as a sideways things a while back was probably the root of a fair bit of rot, and the start of the long hand minutes. It’s however available a lot and pays overtime. It’s not of the same level as my usual stuff, where I might be having to trawl up information prior to a meeting. But it pays the same

Some meetings do not allow any kind of recording. The minute taker is alive in some industries so off the record side chats aren’t recorded, sensitive info is referred to but not clearly recorded. Recording is a sackable offence, I think they have visions of transcripts being leaked. The level of IT control is extreme