Running Effective Meetings and Facilitating Groups - SABES

TIMEKEEPER
The role of the timekeeper is to keep track of the time during the meeting. Usually a group
has a lot of items of the agenda to cover during the meeting. Very often, it takes longer than
expected to discuss/decide about those items. The timekeeper helps keep the group “on track” by
telling them if they have run over the allotted time for an item (if a specific time has been set) and
/or how the group is progressing on time overall. For example, suppose there are ten items to
discuss on the agenda in a two-hour meeting. After one hour only two items have been addressed.
The timekeeper would then bring the group’s attention to this fact so the group could decide
whether to defer items, speed up discussion or take another tack. Sometimes the chairperson
functions as a timekeeper but often there is a separate timekeeper at meetings.
NOTE-TAKER
The note-taker records the important comments and decisions that the group makes
during the meeting. These notes are called the “minutes” of the meeting.
Notes may be handwritten discretely while the meeting is conducted. However, many
groups, business, and organizations (Northeast SABES included) take notes on large newsprint
with colored markers so that the notes will be visible to everyone throughout the meeting.
The visibility of the notes allows an agreed-upon collective perception to be recorded.
Members of the group can repeat or reword statements for the note-taker so that they are sure
what they have said is written in the manner they wish. This helps to avoid misunderstandings
later. Large newsprint notes also provide a handy reference to what was said and can be useful
in planning processes.
Note-takers often have the notes typed after the meeting for duplication. However, if the
notes are taken in neat, legible handwriting, they can be duplicated as is. Increasingly, note-takers
are using a laptop computer in order to save time. Laptop notes are easily sent via e-mail or
printed out directly, without the additional step of typing handwritten notes into the computer.
Any way that works best for the group is fine.
Finally, it is important for the minutes (the meeting notes) to be distributed to the
members of the group. This can be done at the next meeting. However, if possible, it is better to
distribute the minutes with the upcoming agenda before the next meeting.
Running Effective Meetings and Facilitating Groups, Northeast SABES, July 2002
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