By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:

Before you are required to take notes, you must ensure that you are fully aware of the organisation's requirements and procedures for note taking and working with texts. You should also be aware of the relevant codes of practice and Workplace Health and Safety (WHS) law.

Note taking is an essential business skill and is used by all levels of staff within organisations. You should check with your manager or the person you are note taking for, on how the notes need to be written/styled, presented and where to store your notes and final transcribed document.

Do not wait until after the notes are taken as it will prove to be more difficult to reshape your notes into the correct format. If you are fully aware of what is needed beforehand, you will be more focused on taking down the correct information and be aware of any important points that need to be noted. If you are able to request an agenda for your proposed note taking prior to the task, this will help you plan ahead on what is needed.


Style

It is important to be aware of the style of note taking that is required.

The notes could be:

If the notes are for informal use, you may only need to summarise the main points or take notes on selective information - check this with your manager/contact person. An example of this style of note taking could be used for circulating general business news to other personnel within the company, as in a memo or email.

Alternatively, your notes may need to be written in a formal style. You may be required to write down comprehensive details, which could include confidential information. It is important that you are professional and maintain the required confidentiality when note taking. An example of this style of note taking could be when you need to report financial information to company directors in a printed document.

Note: your manager/contact will let you know the confidentiality requirements for your note taking. If in any doubt as to who should have access to the information, check with your manager/contact person. Never give out information without first knowing if the person(s) should know.


Presentation

Before taking your notes, check with your manager/contact on the required presentation. This will help you structure your notes appropriately and will make note taking easier. You may be able to prepare section headings/topics to be discussed in advance, which can then be filled out at the time of note taking. Note taking can be performed with pen and paper, or with an electronic device such as a tablet or laptop. Pen and paper may be the more convenient method but check with your manager for your organisation's best practice for note taking.

Note: when transcribing your hand written notes, this additional process will ensure that you check spelling, grammar and content. If typing your notes directly onto an electronic device for direct editing/revising to a finished document, make sure that you take the time to re-read and check your notes again.

Your company may already have templates to use for the style and presentation of the required note taking. Check in advance and familiarise yourself with any appropriate documentation and any electronic template files that may be available to you. This will ensure that you use the correct presentation. If you are initially writing your notes by hand for transcribing later, you can still check the template best used. This will help you formulate the best method for your note taking.

You should also be aware of how the final notes will need to be presented.

You may need to provide the notes as:


Storage of documents

Ensure that you store your notes safely and securely so that you are able to locate these when needed. Be mindful of anyone else that may be able to see these. You will most likely be responsible for storing your own notes, but other personnel may also need access to these at a later date. If your notes include confidential information, it is important that you store your notes away from others by locking them into a file cabinet/drawer and by keeping the key in a secure place. To store confidential electronic versions of your notes, make sure that these are saved into a folder on your computer system that has restricted access. You can check with your manager on where to store your notes if you are unsure on this.

If transcribing your notes from paper to electronic format, check if you still need to keep your original paper copy as well as your electronic version. Organisations have different procedures on the documentation that they need to store, and it may be that you need to keep your original notes in case you or another person will need to refer back to these at a later date.

If/when you no longer need to keep the original written format, ensure that you dispose of these correctly. If the information is confidential, you may need to shred your notes so that other personnel do not read this. Check this with your manager if you are in any doubt.

Confidentiality requirements and privacy laws

The main aspect of confidentiality requirements is The Privacy Act. This is an Australian law that came into force in 1988 and governs how organisations handle personal information about people, whether staff, clients or customers, etc.

The Privacy Act comprises of 13 Privacy Principles that legally must be adhered to and also, as explained by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) website:


Organisational style guide

When preparing to produce a text-based business document, you should identify any organisational requirements that are related to your project. Every organisation will have a set of guidelines in place for producing text-based business documents in order to comply with company image and ensure consistency. Every document that you produce should have the same 'feel' and be professional in portraying your organisation.

Organisational requirements may include:

Templates

Within some organisations, there will be existing templates you can use as a starting point when producing your own text-based business documents.

By using a template, you can ensure that all your documents have the same properties, including:

You should consider using the existing templates within your programs and organisations. If there isn't one or they don't suit your needs, then think about developing one. It will save you time in the future and will make sure that all of your documents are consistent in style.

These organisational and task requirements need to be identified in order to ensure consistency of the style and image of your text-based business documents. Refer to organisational templates and style guides if you are uncertain of how to keep your documents consistent.