Agendas and minutes for meetings are crucial for running productive, public meetings where things get done, rather than unstructured, shouting matches between parties. Crafting an agenda, listing all the action items and other topics that need discussion, sets the flow of the meeting, keeping everyone on the same page. Without a specific agenda, the meeting has the potential to bounce around to different topics and get out of control.
Meeting minutes are just as important, as they document what actually transpired at the meeting, who was in attendance, who said what, what decisions were made, etc. It allows all who weren’t in attendance of the meeting to know what happened. Meeting minutes are also a matter of public record, as constituents have a right to know what their elected officials and public employees discuss and decide on.
These two types of documents keep public meetings efficient, but requires some planning as well as consensus before they can be made official. The process of crafting an agenda is usually accomplished by a board member with input from others as well as adding in action items from the previous meeting, as dictated by the minutes. However, it needs to be approved by senior members of the board.
Minutes also need to be approved by the board members so as they are accurate and any revisions are made before putting it into the official record. For whoever’s responsibility it falls on to make sure everyone gets the document for approval, this can be a time consuming process of trying to gather approvals before the next meeting.
Document management affords you the opportunity to automate certain document processes, so you don’t have to waste your day chasing signatures.
Automate Approvals
Rubex by eFileCabinet features an interface for you to create your own automated workflows that performs actions on documents depending on when certain conditions are met.
Approval workflows are one of the simplest and most common types of workflows to set up. After your agenda is created, you can start it on an approval workflow either manually or by dropping it in a certain folder. The workflow will notify all the assigned approvers that the document is ready for review.
You can set up the system to move the document back to you if all the board members approve it. If it’s rejected by a board member, you can require a comment with their rejection so you know what needs to be revised. Once the change is made, you can send it back through the workflow.
A similar workflow can be set up for minutes, however, many city council meetings make it an action item to approve the minutes of the last meeting. A workflow can be created to ensure that each member receives a copy as soon as it’s been made.
Automate Archiving
After the meeting is over and the accompanying documentation is approved, it’s time for it to be archived. Generally, most governmental agencies retain agendas and minutes indefinitely, because they represent some historical significance. However, it doesn’t mean they always have to be retained in house. Most states have an official archive where municipalities and county governments can store their historical records.
Rubex by eFileCabinet allows you to set the governance of documents, which is basically an expiration date you can attach to files. Once the date is reached, the system will perform the action you set which can include deleting the file, notifying you, or moving it to a new location. You can attach a date on files like meeting agendas or minutes according to either your agencies regulations or when you believe the document only has historical value.
The system can either notify you that you’re allowed to transfer the document to the archive or have it automatically send it off to an email set up to receive files for archival.
These processes just scratch the surface of what Rubex can do for public agencies. To see a free, personalized demo of Rubex in action, fill out the form below.