Standard Operating Procedure: Distributed Minute Taking & Task Ownership 251208

Effective Date: Immediate Scope: All Project Teams and Task Owners

1. Problem Statement & Objective

Currently, minute-taking is centralized (e.g., performed solely by the Lead/Justin), creating a single point of failure and a bottleneck. Furthermore, this centralization prevents the wider team from developing essential organizational and detailed reporting skills required for seniority.
The Objective of this SOP is to:

1. Decentralize Documentation: Shift responsibility to Task Owners.
2. Build Skill: Train staff in organizational discipline, problem-solving, and leadership.
3. Ensure Integrity: Align with ISO 9001 principles where documentation is the core of organization, verification, and knowledge retention.

2. Core Principles

• Documentation is Core Organization: Minutes are not just a memory aid; they are the starting point for checking actions, goals, and objectives. They are the official record of facts, hypotheses, actions, and results.
• "Document As We Go": There will be no rewriting of minutes after the meeting. What is written and agreed upon during the session stands as the record.
• Immutable Entries: Do not edit another person's entry. Differences in opinion or corrections must be added as a new entry.
• Problems Trigger Actions: Every problem identified must have an associated action (to isolate, replicate, or find the root cause).

3. Roles and Responsibilities

3.1 Task Owner (The Scribe for their Topic)

• Coordination: The Task Owner coordinates the discussion regarding their specific responsibilities.
• Live Documentation: The Task Owner is responsible for typing the minutes, actions, and timelines during the discussion.
• Personal Logs: Task Owners may use their own personal project logs as the minutes, provided they are accessible (copy-pasteable) to the team.

3.2 Management / Leadership

• Conflict Resolution: Management is responsible for resolving conflicts regarding resources and priorities.
• Blocker Removal: If a Task Owner flags a resource shortage, Management decides priority.

3.3 All Attendees

• Immediate Verification: Everyone must read the minutes live on the screen.
• Instant Correction: Factual errors must be corrected immediately during the meeting.
• Disagreement Handling: If a team member disagrees with a record, they do not delete it. They add a new problem statement or conflicting view record.

4. The Process

4.1 During the Meeting

1. Live Capture: The meeting is projected or shared on screen. The document is edited in real-time.
2. Formatting Entries: To ensure accountability, every entry must follow the Log Format:
   • Syntax: YYMMDD Name: [Content]
   • Example: 231205 Sarah: Reported API latency issue. Hypothesizing database lock.
3. Handling Delays:
   • If a task is delayed, the Task Owner must document the Cause.
   • If the cause is a competing priority, it must be noted explicitly (e.g., "Delayed due to urgent client request X, authorized by [Manager]").
4. Handling Problems:
   • A problem statement is written.
   • An Immediate Action is assigned (e.g., "Investigate root cause," "Replicate error").
   • Note: We do not just admire the problem; we schedule the action to solve it.

4.2 Post-Meeting

• No summaries are sent.
• The document generated during the meeting is the final artifact.
• Staff review their assigned actions immediately.

5. Skill Development & Career Growth

Adhering to this process is a requirement for career advancement.

• Junior Staff: Must learn to document facts accurately to build organizational habits.
• Senior Staff: Must demonstrate the ability to document complex problem-solving workflows (Problem -> Hypothesis -> Action -> Result) to set an example for their subordinates.

6. Appendix: The Log Protocol (How to Write)

The Golden Rule: Never delete or change history. Append new information.

• Correct: * 231001 Justin: Client requested Blue Button.
  • 231002 Mark: Client called to change request to Red Button.
• Incorrect: * (Deleting Justin's entry and just writing "Client wants Red Button") - This destroys the history of the change.

The "Conflict" Protocol: If you disagree with a statement in the minutes:

1. Do not argue indefinitely.
2. Write it down as a Problem Statement.
   • 231005 Team: Disagreement on marketing strategy.
   • ACTION: Run A/B test to determine best path.