A summary of the conversation or summing up after business meetings helps participants remember the issues discussed. Moreover, they will know what further actions and tasks are set for them. This is a good solution to improve communication within the team and with customers. We tell you who is responsible for the compilation and how to do it.
About the summary of the conversation
During negotiations, business conferences make up a brief overview of the conversation. This is the summary of the meeting. In addition to the fact that participants can remember what was discussed, the review also indicates all the details. We are talking about updating the project activities, deadlines, and tasks of each.
Most often, such reviews are brief. They are sent as a memo or follow-up email – an email with the results for each item of the meeting, an action plan, and specific tasks. This option is suitable for both employees within the company, as well as partners and customers. This helps to build communication.
What to pay attention to
When compiling, be sure to specify:
- deadlines and their changes;
- all those who will be responsible for the fulfillment of the assigned tasks;
- any changes related to the functionality;
- decisions that have been made;
- distribution of tasks with deadlines.
What is the difference between the summary of the meeting and the same protocol
At meetings, it is usually preferred to keep a record – a complete record of what is happening. This document also contains a list of participants and those who did not come, as well as the agenda of the meeting with a detailed description of each issue. More often, the minutes begin with a request to approve a version of the last meeting.
The summary of the meeting is a summary of the results of a more informal type of conversation. It simply reminds participants of what was discussed at the meeting.
Example
For a better understanding, it would not be superfluous to see an illustrative example:
«Subject», «Date», for example, May 5, 2024
Good afternoon, team!
At the meeting on May 5, we talked about a new project for the client – «Company Name». During the conversation, issues such as:
- «Question 1».
- «Question 2».
- «Question 3».
After discussion, we came to the conclusion that there are three ways to act:
- «Option 1» (May 17, Vladimir answers).
- «Option 2» (May 19, supervised by Sergey).
- «Option 3» (May 13, Natalia is dealing with the issue).
The next meeting will be held on May 25. On it, we will see the progress made, as well as decide what to do next. If there is anything unclear, please contact me.
It is better to present the main information in paragraphs to make it easier for recipients to read quickly. This way they will better understand the content.
Who is responsible for summarizing the results
The responsible person should sum up the results. You can assign:
- A moderator facilitator. He is responsible for structuring communication, timing control, and giving voice.
- The organizer. In the absence of a facilitator, the initiator of the meeting will be responsible for the results.
- An employee. Delegating tasks to colleagues is also possible. The main thing is to entrust it to someone who knows how to compose, to warn him in advance.
The importance of summarizing the results of meetings
Increase employee responsibility
Thanks to a clear goal and deadlines, employees will know what is expected of them, which means they will work more actively.
You’ll be on the same wavelength
A summary of the negotiations will help maintain a common position. This is especially true when working on projects for remote/hybrid teams that cannot specify further actions in the office.
You’ll fix everything
A short report will help you capture all the details and not miss certain nuances of the conversation.
You will be able to track your progress
The discussion reports can be used as a document with all the information about the development of your project. This way, the manager will be able to track progress and achieve the necessary indicators.
Everyone will have more time
To work at an optimal pace, it is not always beneficial to have numerous business conversations, as they take up time. If employees have all the instructions, it will have a positive impact on their activities.
Will you be able to provide legal assistance
Despite the fact that the resume is not an official document, it can be a good legal defense if disputes arise in the company. For example, to confirm the instructions of the client responsible for their execution. This way you will protect yourself from claims.
The structure of the meeting results
The follow-up letter includes 5 blocks:
Greeting.
- Information about the event: date, place, topic;
- Conclusions of all decisions, as well as agreements;
- A long-term action plan or specific tasks with deadlines and responsible persons;
- Contact information for any questions you may have.
How to write
Preparation
Familiarize yourself with the topic of discussion beforehand. It is advisable to look at reviews of past conversations in order to understand what will be discussed.
You can also create a registration sheet to record those present.
Detailed notes
Take notes during the event. It is desirable that they be detailed. At this stage, it is important to focus on the main topic, but do not forget about fixing the decisions made.
Brevity
When you’re done, review everything you’ve recorded. If you get a lot of information, reduce the notes to a few sentences that are easier to digest. The main thing is not to miss anything important. At the same time, the more it is possible to shorten, the easier it will be to read what has been written and return to it if necessary.
Gratitude
It is better to sum up the results from the positive side. Thank everyone who decided to participate in the meeting or made a presentation.
The main issues
A brief overview of the main issues is very important. Most often, they will set the goals of the meeting, and all decisions will give answers to them.
Action points
Briefly outline each action, decision, and those responsible. Do not forget to specify the time interval for execution.
Agreements
Some meetings involve reaching agreements reached through negotiations between employees or between the firm and the client. In this case, it is worth noting the names of the parties and the upcoming actions.
Supporting documents
You can add any documents, for example, contracts, project instructions. You can also attach articles that contain important information or instructions for discussion.
Reminder of further meetings
If you want to meet again on the same topic, specify the date, time and place, as well as the names of those present. This will allow you to understand how long it takes to complete the assigned tasks.
Improving the material and sending it
After compiling your resume, review it again to check spelling and grammar for errors. Also double-check the accuracy of the recorded information. When you finish editing the record, you can proceed to sending it in the form of an email and a memo.
Features of the results for different types of meetings
The recommendations described above are suitable for simple planning meetings and similar meetings. The more complex conversations, which will be discussed later, have their own characteristics.
Brainstorming
It is conducted to generate ideas and choose the best ones. As a result, you get a lot of solutions, each of which is important to write down. More often, it takes more time to prepare a resume in this format – 7-21 days, in some cases even a month. This is due to the selection of ideas, the collection of additional data, and the conduct of research.
Equally important here is the organizer’s feedback. It is imperative to show employees how their ideas were implemented. This will work great for motivation.
A retrospective
In retrospect, they summarize the stage or the entire project activity, discuss the pros, cons, difficulties, and find points of growth. This is necessary to correct errors and improve the workflow in the future.
Based on the results of the retrospective, it is worth highlighting several points at once that you plan to implement in the company. It is better if there are two or three changes – this increases the chances of their implementation. It is also worth appointing a person who will be responsible for monitoring the process.
The results can be collected in a separate folder or on a wiki site. This will allow each employee to open and view them if necessary. The retrospective can also be reflected as a report and presented at a corporate conference.
Strategic session
Such a session implies the formulation of the goals of the company, the project, as well as prescribing ways to achieve them in a practical way.
The session overview can be designed as a roadmap so that everyone can check the plan when doing their work. The results are very important, as there is a risk that no one implements the ideas. Therefore, choose the directions and allocate resources for development.
Session with the team
The purpose of such meetings is to agree on working principles and rules within a team or between several teams. Usually, at such sessions, they develop an idea that will be broadcast to the product’s customers in the future. They also synchronize the developed solutions with business processes and resolve conflict situations.
How will transcription help
The difficulty of creating a meeting overview is only that you need to record and participate in the discussion at the same time.
Transcription comes to the rescue – it simplifies the whole process. Instead of being instructed to record, you can record a conversation with FollowUp, and convert the audio into written text. The transcription accuracy is more than 98%.
Our solution has already proven itself in industries such as:
- sales;
- recruiting;
- consulting;
- management;
- designing;
- marketing;
- education;
- media & podcasting.
Therefore, automatic solutions can be used when preparing a summary of a conversation or meeting. This will allow you to work more productively without being distracted by recording.
