The Minutes module allows users to record data, draft summary content, and produce minutes files. It also provides access to other live meeting tools.
A Minutes Design controls how your meeting minutes look. It defines the layout, formatting, and structure of minutes documents.
Minutes Designs work with other components to build the final document. A Minutes Template combines a Minutes Design (header and footer) with a Discussion Design (the formatting for discussion content like motions, votes, and notes).
Key Features:
Structured Document Layout: Control headers, footers, and how minutes content is displayed.
Discussion Formatting: Use Discussion Designs to format content such as roll call, motions, and votes.
Merge Tags for Dynamic Content: Minutes Designs use merge tags to pull in agenda and item content automatically.
Works with Word Designs: The Word Design provides the base document, while the Minutes Design controls how minutes content is applied.
Append and Replace Options: Choose whether minutes content replaces agenda content or is added below it.
Best Practice:
It is recommended to begin with a standard Minutes Design and adjust it as needed. Use the base Minutes Design, provided below in the Add a Minutes Design and Edit a Minutes Design sections, to start your design. It is recommended that this design be used with the Append styling option.
This article covers how to create, edit, delete, and assign Minutes Designs used to produce minutes files.
Important Notes
To manage these settings, a user must have the "Has Access to Meetings Site Settings" permission in their User Profile.
Updates to Minutes Designs appear the next time a minutes document is generated or previewed.
The system applies one section design and one item design across all minutes. Separate designs for sub-items are not supported.
Add a Minutes Design
Sign in to the system if you have not already
Navigate to the User Menu, then select the Settings option:
Click the Meetings tile:
Click the Minutes Design tile:
Click the New Minutes Design button to start a new design:
Fill in the Minutes Design details:
Name: Enter a unique name that will be used in the Settings to reference this design
Content: Create a design that dictates what your Minutes content will look like on your generated document
Notes:
This field uses Merge Tags to dynamically pull in related item content when generated your documents.
The content of your design will vary depending on your usage of Append or Replace functionality.
Our recommended base template, to be used with Append functionality, can be copied/pasted into the Code View for this field:
<table style="width:100%;"> <tbody><tr><td> [DISCUSSION][IGNORE_INDENT] </td></tr></tbody> </table>
Click Create Minutes Design to save the new Minutes Design and return to the Minutes Designs page, or click Create and Add New to save the new Minutes Design and immediately begin creating a new one:
Note:
Changes to Minutes Designs are effective the next time the document is previewed or created if the design is properly assigned to the Meeting Type.
The minutes design has been added
Edit a Minutes Design
Sign in to the system if you have not already
Navigate to the User Menu, then select the Settings option:
Click the Meetings tile:
Click the Minutes Design tile:
Click the Edit tool (purple pencil icon) to the right of an existing minutes design to modify it:
Edit the Minutes Design details as desired:
Name: Enter a unique name that will be used in the Settings to reference this design
Content: Create a design that dictates what your Minutes content will look like on your generated document.
Notes:
This field uses Merge Tags to dynamically pull in related item content when generated your documents.
The content of your design will vary depending on your usage of Append or Replace functionality.
Our recommended base template, to be used with Append functionality, can be copied/pasted into the Code View for this field:
<table style="width:100%;"> <tbody><tr><td> [DISCUSSION][IGNORE_INDENT] </td></tr></tbody> </table>
Click the Save Changes button to save your changes:
Note:
Changes to Minutes Designs are effective the next time the document is previewed or created, if the design is properly assigned to the Meeting Type.
The minutes design has been edited
Reorder Minutes Designs
Sign in to the system if you have not already
Navigate to the User Menu, then select the Settings option:
Click the Meetings tile:
Click the Minutes Design tile:
Click the Edit Order button:
Click and hold the grid icons to the left of the desired Minutes designs and drag and drop the designs into the preferred order:
Click the Save Changes button:
The Minutes designs have been reordered
Delete a Minutes Design
Sign in to the system if you have not already
Navigate to the User Menu, then select the Settings option:
Click the Meetings tile:
Click the Minutes Design tile:
Click the Delete tool (red trash can icon) to the right of the minutes design you wish to delete:
Click the Delete Minutes Design button on the Delete Minutes Design popup that appears to confirm the deletion:
The minutes design has been deleted
Assign a Minutes Design to a Meeting Type
Sign in to the system if you have not already
Navigate to the User Menu, then select the Settings option:
Click the Meetings tile:
Click the Meeting Types tile:
Click the Edit button (purple pencil icon) next to the desired Meeting Type:
Navigate to the View menu and select the Minutes option from the dropdown list:
Update the Minutes Section and Item Layout Settings as desired:
Minutes Word Design: The Word Design to be used as the base template for the generated document.
Minutes Section Style: Use the toggle to set the style that will be used for Section designs
Replace: This style will take the entire Section Design from your Agenda and replace it with the selected Minutes Section Design
Append: This style will take the entire Section Design from your Agenda and append the selected Minutes Section Design underneath it
Minutes Section Design: The Minutes Design to be used based on the Minutes Section Style
Minutes Item Style: Use the toggle to set the style that will be used for Item designs
Replace: This style will take the entire Item Design from your Agenda and replace it with the selected Minutes Item Design
Append: This style will take the entire Item Design from your Agenda and append the selected Minutes Item Design underneath it
Minutes Item Design: The Minutes Design to be used based on the Minutes Item Style
Click the Save Changes button to save your changes and remain on the Minutes page, or click the Save and Exit button to save your changes and return to the Meetings Types page:
Note:
Changes to Minutes Settings are effective the next time the document is previewed or created if the settings are properly assigned to the Meeting Type.
The meeting type has been assigned a Minutes design