What Makes a Good Secretary Good secretaries should: Be intelligent and clear-thinking. There is a myth that any idiot can be a secretary, but anyone who has ever had to act as one will confirm that to do the job properly demands intelligence. For one thing, there are so many different tasks to keep in mind; for another, because the Chair as well as the members rely so much on the secretary, he or she has to do a lot of their thinking for them before, during and after the meeting.1 Have a good memory Secretary has to remember what has happened before the meeting, e.g. at a previous meeting, what happens at the meeting itself (aiding their memories by taking notes), and what has to be done after the meeting. They should also remember personal details about the members of the meeting in case the Chair requires them. Their memory of previous hostilities, conflicts and conspiracies can be very helpful, especially to a new Chair.2 Be good at, and enjoy, organizing This is probably the single most important characteristic of the good secretary. Meetings, even informal ones, tend to be organized rather than spontaneous events which means that for secretaries there is much organizing to do, as we shall see when we come to examine their duties. But it is also essential that the secretary carry out these tasks with enthusiasm and nit as chore. Secretaries who regard their organizational duties as necessary evil tend to be resentful and unhelpful.3 Enjoy meetings Similarly, secretaries go to meetings because they have to and not because they want to hinder rather than help the Chair. Everything for them becomes an effort and their inactive attitude can destroy the atmosphere of the meeting.4 Be of the right status That is, neither too junior nor too senior, neither too remote from the Chair nor the people attending, nor too closely involved. If secretaries are too junior they may not have sufficient skills to do the job properly. If they are too senior, they may not take the meeting seriously enough. If they are too closely involved in the subject matter of the meeting, they will find it difficult to remain objective. People who are very ambitious do not necessarily make good secretaries because instead of enjoying what they are doing, they tend to treat meetings as a springboard (跳板) to a more senior appointment. They are therefore less inclined to respect the Chair or to play what they regard as an inferior role.5 Have a calm personality Meetings, as everyone will agree, can be very fraught (满满当当) occasions. Being the Chair can be very lonely, especially when faced by hostility. Secretaries who handle their duties calmly provided good support and make life very much easier for the Chair. On the contrary, those who are easily panicked are worse than no secretary at all.6 Be friendly Meetings are more enjoyable and successful if the secretary has a friendly relationship with all the members. But friendliness should never cross the boundaries into friendship with any individual member, as the secretary would then find it difficult to treat the other members equally and to maintain the necessary objectivity towards them. A secretary should never convey by words or gesture that one member is favored, or disfavored, over the others.7 Have the right skill These include the obvious secretarial skills such as taking notes speedily, whether in shorthand or not, and typing accurately; but they also include the ability to write well so that the minutes drawn from the notes express exactly what happened at the meeting in a way that is literate, readable and to the point.8 Be a good listener As we’’ve seen, this characteristic is shared with the Chair and with the members, but for a different reason. Secretaries are not usually required to make any active contribution to the meeting, so most of their time is, or should be, spent listening to what is going on. They have to be ready to assist the Chair at any moment, to answer a question, to recall something that may have occurred at a previous meeting but was not recorded in the minutes, to explain a point and, in formal meetings when called upon to do so, to provide the Chair with the appropriate rule of the procedure. If they allow their attention to wander, they will not be ready when required.9 Be open-minded and fair It seems odd at first glance that a secretary should have to share this all-important characteristic with the Chair since, in most cases, the secretary is not involved directly in the discussions. Yet, like the Chair, good secretaries need to display a willingness to treat all members equally and without favoritism. Sometimes, unwittingly or deliberately, secretaries allow personal prejudices to interfere with the way they record the proceedings and this can have serious consequences for the members involved.10 Be well informed Secretaries, to be fully effective, need to know something about the subjects under discussion. They should, if possible, have at their fingertips detailed of the history of the committee. In addition, they should feel comfortable with the formalities. For formal meetings they also be expected to know the laws and regulations governing the conduct of meetings.11 Be clairvoyant (有洞察力的) Just a joke! However, secretaries can help the Chair by looking ahead and anticipating the needs of the members, from basic details such as who prefer tea to coffee, to facts and figures that members might decide they need at the meeting. Inevitably some members will fail to bring the documents the secretary sent them, so copies will have to be provided. Secretaries ought to have sufficient experience to know in advance where problems may arise and how to deal with them, because the more they can anticipate and provide for what may be required at the meeting, the more the Chair can give his or her full attention to the running of the meeting. As can be seen, the job of secretary entails (必须具备) a good deal more than organizing, and the ideal secretary is as rare as the ideal Chair. Being only human they both fail. But in the ideal relationship between Chair and secretary, what the one lacks the other provides so that together they make an efficient team.12 The secretary’’s role at meetings The secretary is crucial to the smooth running of a Management Committee meeting. This involves activities before, during and after Committee meetings. In order to be effective, the secretary of the Management Committee should ensure that they carry out the following activities:Before the Meeting: Consult with the Chairperson on the order of business for the meeting, and the way in which it should be dealt with on the agenda. Decide what business requires discussion and what requires a decision by the Management Committee. Ensure that the notice of the meeting is given, that suitable accommodation is arranged and confirmed, and that copies of the agenda are prepared. Circulate to all members (a) any papers to be discussed at the upcoming meeting and (b) a copy of the agenda, minutes of the previous meeting. Make sure that any report or information requested at the previous meeting will be available, or that there is a good reason why not.At the Meeting: Arrive in good time before the meeting with the minutes and with all the relevant correspondence and business matters for that meeting, in good order. Unless there is a Minutes Secretary, take notes of the meeting, recording the key points and making sure that all decisions and proposals are recorded. Make sure action points are clear. Make sure that the Chairperson is supplied with all the necessary information for items on the agenda, and remind the Chairperson if an item has been overlooked.After the Meeting: Prepare a draft of the minutes and consult the Chairperson and Chief Officer for approval. Send a reminder notice of each decision requiring action to the relevant person; this can be done by telephone, or by an ’’action list’’ with the relevant action for each person duly marked. Promptly send all correspondence as decided by the Management Committee. Secretaries should regard their organizational duties as a necessary evil.

A. Y
B. N
C. NG