Most people who attend meetings every week will complain about the questionable efficiency of these gatherings. Some meetings do not solve problems but produce more of them instead, resulting in wasted time. In addition to a great action item tracker tool, the tips listed below will help make it easier to keep everything under control. There is a universal cure for needlessly complex, inefficient meetings – it goes by the name of “Action Items.” They act as a link that connects decisions approved during the meeting and the work to be done – and, an action item tracker for meetings like the yoyomeeting add-in can help you be organized during and creating an effective meeting summary.
What are action items?
If you like to keep your daily routines structured, you must have tried using to-do lists in the form of planners or apps. In this case, you already know the drill. For those who are still wondering what are action items, we will explain in all details. Every task with clear details set during a meeting is an action item. There can be one or multiple responsible persons assigned to each task. Sometimes the items are put together within meeting minutes. You will know whether your meeting was productive if you end up with a list of decisions and actionable tasks on your hands after it. You can learn more about what action items are in this post.
Actions items play a much more important role in the working environment. For example, to progress with an ongoing project, you have to keep track of the current tasks at hand. Following the road marked by action items will get you to the finish line faster.
While there is no universal method to get to action items in your meetings, using an action item tracker can be helpful. You will have to experiment to determine the techniques that work for you and your organization. Yoyomeeting is a meeting management software that has an action item tracker as one of the many features to help improve meetings. Start your free 2-Week trial.
However, there is one golden rule you should follow – when struggling with a massive project, break it down into several parts with precise mini-goals. This way, you will be taking small steps every day instead of trying to run a marathon in one take.
Here are some general tips to get better with action items:
- Record all action items in one place during the meeting. The yoyomeeting meeting management software add-in will help you structure this process. You will find that it will be much easier to track who is doing what, especially with the integrated action item tracker.
- Let everyone write their actions in one shared template.
- Add Who/What/When paragraphs to each task (“Who” will be doing the job, “What” exactly they will be doing, and “When” the results will come in).
- Make more detailed instructions and ideas for each task. It will help to get the job done more efficiently after the meeting.
- Review every action point together with the team at the end of the meeting, so nothing important gets lost in the process.
Action items template
No matter what you use during a meeting to take notes, there is always space for improvement of your routines. One of the easiest ways to do that is to use a template we made for you. Such templates are common practice for people working in big organizations, but if you are a smaller team, you will still find meeting notes template with action items helpful. Work on your action items, write ideas and review them afterwards. Download our free template now!
This action items list template was designed by professionals for professionals. You would not believe how easy assigning action items could be. In a few clicks, anyone with access to the template can quickly find information about members working on the task, check the latest updates, get a refresher on meeting decisions, and much more. Download action items template by clicking the link. We believe it is capable of solving half of your issues with action items. As for the other half – try yoyomeeting as your action item tracker today!
Why You Should Use an Action Item Tracker
So now you know what action items are and how they can make your life easier. It is time to learn what software can help you with the job. For big organizations, software solutions are a must because they allow teams to track multiple tasks at once. Thus, any difficult process can be streamlined. Action item trackers have a significant advantage over a simple action items template or any other spreadsheet-based solution. They are perfect for specific use cases that you will be facing. You won’t have to download multiple files for each occasion like generic action items template, meeting follow up action items template, etc.
Another significant detail to take into consideration when choosing a task-management software is its compatibility with your current software. Imagine having a few projects with individual action item lists that you need to review at a meeting. Wouldn’t it be great to use just one program to track them? You have plenty of choices in the market, but yoyomeeting may be perfect for you as it seamlessly integrates with your usual Outlook.
The yoyomeeting meeting management software is an ultimate action item tracker for meetings as it can replace multiple programs you have been using before, during, and after meetings. Prepare all the action items on the fly and don’t waste time after the meeting. Here are some additional benefits of this Office 365 add-in:
- Organize notes, assign personal tasks, create action item lists on the run
- Inform meeting attendees about the results of the event by sending updated action items in the optimal format straight from the add-in
- Keep track of individual tasks. Once you assign a task, you can be 100% sure that the responsible employee will receive your notes
- When you need to share specific information only with some of the participants, select people from the team to receive follow up items after the meeting
- Never forget a single update, task, or decision with the automated system that generates meeting documentation according to your preferences
Conclusion
Now you understand how useful action items are. You should embed them into your meeting flow. The earlier you start doing this, the more effective your meetings will be. You won’t be wasting time figuring out what to do and how to do it.
Try adding advanced meeting software to your list of standard tools. We have already described the key benefits you will gain from using yoyomeeting regularly. Start your free trial today!
Improve your meetings with yoyomeeting for Outlook
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