Meeting recaps : tips and templates

Tired of unclear meetings and struggling to keep everyone on the same page?

Meeting recaps ensure that all team members, clients, and partners understand the main outcomes and next steps after a meeting.

In this article, you'll discover how to create clean and clear meeting recaps with ready-made templates.

What is a Meeting Recap?

A meeting recap is a brief document or email you send to your team, clients, or partners to summarize the main outcomes of a meeting.

A meeting recap helps you in several ways:

• Clarity: It ensures everyone understands what was discussed and agreed upon. This reduces confusion and misunderstandings.
• Accountability: By clearly stating action items and who is responsible, it helps keep team members accountable.
• Progress Tracking: It helps you track progress on tasks and follow up on commitments made during the meeting.
• Inclusion: It keeps team members who couldn’t attend the meeting informed and up-to-date.

Here’s what a meeting recap includes :

1. Meeting Details: Date, time, location (or virtual platform), and the names or titles of attendees.
2. Agenda Items: List of the topics discussed.
3. Discussion Highlights: The main points discussed for each agenda item. Key takeaways, decisions made, and any important discussions.
4. Action Items: Tasks assigned during the meeting. Specify who is responsible for each task, what needs to be done, and the deadline.
5. Supporting Documents: Any relevant documents or resources discussed during the meeting. This could be reports, presentations, or links to external resources.
6. Next Meeting Details: Information about the next meeting, such as date, time, and location.

How to Write a Clean and Clear Meeting Recap

The more clean and clear meeting recap are, the more they keep everyone on the same page.

Here’s how you can create a concise and effective recap:

1. State the Primary Goals

Start by restating the meeting’s objectives. This reminds everyone of the main purpose and sets the context for the recap. Clearly define why the meeting was held and what you aimed to achieve. For example, "The goal of the meeting was to finalize the project timeline and assign responsibilities."

2. Summarize Key Points

Summarize the main discussion points and decisions made. Use bullet points for clarity. Focus on the key takeaways and outcomes. For instance:

• Project Timeline: Agreed on a final timeline with milestones.
• Budget Approval: Approved the budget for the next quarter.
• Task Assignments: Assigned tasks to team members.

Being concise helps ensure that the recap is easily digestible and actionable.

3. Be Specific and Concise

Detail action items with specific instructions. Clearly define who is responsible for each task, what needs to be done, and the deadlines. Use clear language and actionable verbs to avoid any ambiguity. For example:

• Task: Develop marketing plan.
• Responsible: John Doe.
• Deadline: June 10th.

4. Provide Context

Offer background information for any decisions or action items. This helps readers understand the rationale behind each decision. For example, if a decision was made based on previous discussions or data, mention that context briefly.

5. Include Supporting Documents

Attach any relevant documents discussed during the meeting. This could include reports, presentations, or links to external resources. Providing these documents ensures everyone has the necessary information to complete their tasks.

6. Send It Promptly

Send the recap within 24 hours of the meeting. Timely recaps help ensure that the discussion is still fresh in everyone’s mind, and action items are addressed promptly.

Meeting Recap Templates to Copy/Paste

Here are some templates you can copy/paste for different types of meetings. You can also use our built-in automated meeting recap based on your meeting data.

Internal Team Meeting Recap Template

Subject: Team Meeting Recap - [Date]

Hello Team,

Thank you for attending the team meeting on [Date]. Here’s a summary of what we discussed:

Meeting Objective:

• Discuss progress on ongoing projects and address any blockers.

Key Discussion Points:

• Project A Update: Completed phase one, moving to phase two.
• Budget Review: Approved additional funding for Project B.
• Task Assignments: New tasks assigned for next sprint.

Action Items:

• Develop Marketing Strategy
  • Responsible: Jane Doe
  • Deadline: June 15th
• Prepare Financial Report
  • Responsible: John Smith
  • Deadline: June 20th

Supporting Documents:

• [Link to Project A Report]
• [Link to Budget Review Document]

Next Meeting:

• Date: [Next Meeting Date]
• Time: [Next Meeting Time]
• Location: [Meeting Room/Online]

Thank you for your participation.

Best,[Your Name]

Project Update Meeting Recap Template

Subject: Project Update Meeting Recap - [Project Name] - [Date]

Hi Team,

Here’s a recap of our project update meeting held on [Date]:

Meeting Objective:

• Review the progress of [Project Name] and plan the next steps.

Key Discussion Points:

• Timeline Review: On track for milestone one.
• Resource Allocation: Discussed resource needs for next phase.
• Risk Management: Identified potential risks and mitigation plans.

Action Items:

• Complete Design Phase
  • Responsible: Emily Clark
  • Deadline: June 30th
• Schedule User Testing
  • Responsible: Michael Brown
  • Deadline: July 5th

Supporting Documents:

• [Link to Project Timeline]
• [Link to Risk Management Plan]

Next Meeting:

• Date: [Next Meeting Date]
• Time: [Next Meeting Time]
• Location: [Meeting Room/Online]

Thanks,[Your Name]

Client Meeting Recap Template

Subject: Meeting Recap - [Client Name] - [Date]

Hi [Client Name],

Thank you for meeting with us on [Date]. Below is a summary of our discussion:

Meeting Objective:

• Discuss project requirements and next steps.

Key Discussion Points:

• Project Scope: Finalized scope and deliverables.
• Timeline: Agreed on a project timeline.
• Budget: Reviewed and approved the budget.

Action Items:

• Send Project Proposal
  • Responsible: Sarah Lee
  • Deadline: June 10th
• Confirm Timeline
  • Responsible: Mark Johnson
  • Deadline: June 12th

Supporting Documents:

• [Link to Project Proposal]
• [Link to Budget Details]

Next Meeting:

• Date: [Next Meeting Date]
• Time: [Next Meeting Time]
• Location: [Meeting Room/Online]

Looking forward to our continued collaboration.

Best regards,[Your Name]

Automating Your Meeting Recaps: Noota

Sending meeting recaps manually can be tedious and time-consuming. Noota automates your meeting recaps effectively :

• Automated Recording and Transcription : Noota records and transcribes your meetings. These tools capture every word in real-time, eliminating the need for frantic note-taking.
• Customizable Recap Templates : with Noota, you can customize your meeting recap templates to match the type of meeting. Whether it's a project update or a financial review, you can tailor the templates to fit your specific needs. This flexibility ensures that your recaps are relevant and useful.
• AI-Powered Summarization : Noota automatically identities and highlights key points, decisions, and action items. This saves you the time and effort of manually sifting through the entire meeting transcript.
• Effortless Sharing : once your meeting recap is ready, sharing it with your team or clients is just a click away. Automated sharing features can send recaps directly via email or even with customizable video clips extracted from the recording.

You want to follow-up effectively your team and partners ? Try Noota for free.