Construction Meeting Notes: How to Run Better Site Meetings

Meeting notes are one of the most important records on a construction project, but what should actually go into them, who should run the meeting, and how detailed do they really need to be?

In Episode 43 of What the RFI?, we continue our three-part series on construction meetings with a practical walkthrough of how I prepare for, run, document, and follow up on site meetings as part of the Construction Administration process.

We cover construction meeting notes vs. meeting minutes, preparing a site meeting agenda, tracking attendance and action items, reviewing the construction schedule, and working through RFIs, submittals, change orders, pricing items, and consultant coordination.

I also walk through my own meeting notes workflow, from preparing and distributing the agenda before the meeting to taking notes live and assigning clear responsibility for follow-up items.

We talk about how to keep construction meetings to 30 to 60 minutes, when to sidebar discussions that are going nowhere, and why I block time immediately after a meeting to clean up the notes, complete my own action items, and distribute the meeting record while everything is still fresh.

Plus, I show how I use Granola AI as a second set of ears during construction meetings while still actively taking my own notes.

If you’re an architect, contractor, consultant, project manager, or anyone involved in Construction Administration, this episode provides practical tips for running better construction meetings and producing clearer, more useful meeting notes.

This episode includes a screen-share walkthrough of my meeting notes process, so check out the video version on the What the RFI? YouTube channel.

GRANOLA AI

Watch the previous episode on using Granola AI for construction meetings:
https://youtu.be/6d4UR3qOczA?si=ANSVjO4VhbhbX60V

Try Granola AI FREE using my referral link: https://www.granola.ai?via=matt-brennan

CHAPTERS

• 00:00 | Intro: Meeting Minutes & Meeting Notes
• 01:53 | What Are Construction Meeting Notes?
• 03:39 | Who Should Run the Site Meeting?
• 05:53 | In-Person, Online & Hybrid Meetings
• 06:31 | Software for Construction Meeting Notes
• 07:59 | Preparing Your Site Meeting Agenda
• 09:13 | Screen Share: Building the Meeting Notes
• 13:21 | Tracking the Construction Schedule
• 18:13 | Submittals & Shop Drawings
• 19:40 | Changes & Pricing Items
• 23:01 | Tracking RFIs
• 24:40 | Owner, Contractor & Consultant Items
• 27:37 | Wrapping Up & Scheduling the Next Meeting
• 28:00 | Preparing the Next Meeting Agenda
• 33:00 | Tips for Running Better Construction Meetings
• 36:00 | Action Items & Distributing Meeting Notes
• 37:08 | Closing Thoughts

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