As students learning about the various good practices and regulations of the Medical Device Industry, we encounter the importance of proper documentation again and again. Strong documentation is not only incredibly important, but is a cornerstone of this industry. Minutes, of course, is an important component of this focus on documentation.

Perhaps the most essential reason for minutes is that they help ensure that a meeting had a purpose. Any group of people can come together and talk and share great ideas, but the meeting will be useless if it is never followed up on. Without the accountability that comes from a record that includes the tasks assigned to people, meetings may end up losing almost all utility. Aside from this, minutes help people reference ideas that may have been forgotten, help determine progress, and provide potential legal protection if need be. This last point has been previously mentioned and becomes especially essential when a team is accountable to shareholders or government agencies, particularly if votes are regularly held in meetings.