Robert's Rules, the short version

Wait, do we even use Robert's Rules?

Maybe! Plenty of boards deliberately keep things simple — a motion, a second, a quick discussion, a show of hands — without ever opening a copy of Robert's Rules of Order. That's a completely legitimate way to run a board, and nothing here means you're doing it wrong if that's your board's style.

This page is for the boards whose bylaws do call for Robert's Rules, or whose chair just wants a bit more structure to fall back on. It's a plain- language summary of the handful of pieces that come up most often — not a substitute for your bylaws or parliamentary counsel, and not legal advice. If your bylaws say something different from what's here, your bylaws win.

The basic order of a motion

Most business at a Robert's-Rules meeting moves through the same shape:

1. Motion — a member proposes an action: "I move that the board approve…"
2. Second — another member says "I second it," signaling it's worth the group's time to discuss. No second, no discussion — the motion quietly dies.
3. Discuss — the board talks it over. The chair keeps this on topic and makes sure everyone who wants to speak gets a turn.
4. Amend (optional) — anyone can propose a change to the motion's wording before it's voted on. See below — amendments have their own little vote first.
5. Vote — the chair calls the question and the board votes.

In BoardTools, you can capture this whole flow in one place with Quick motion — see How do I capture a motion quickly during a live meeting? — and record the result with Votes & ballots.

Amendments vote before the main motion

This is the one that trips up first-time chairs: if someone proposes an amendment to a motion, the amendment gets voted on first, on its own, before anyone votes on the (possibly now-changed) main motion.

For example: the motion is "approve a $2,000 budget for the fall event," and a member proposes amending it to "$3,000." The board votes on the $3,000 amendment first. If it passes, the main motion now reads "$3,000" and that's what gets voted on next. If the amendment fails, the board votes on the original "$2,000" motion instead.

Good governance tip: read the motion back in full, with any amendment already folded in, right before you call the vote — it's the fastest way to catch a misunderstanding before it's on the record.

A few motions jump the queue

Robert's Rules gives certain motions precedence — they can interrupt whatever's currently on the floor and get decided first, roughly in this order (highest precedence first):

• Adjourn — end the meeting now. Almost always in order, even mid- discussion.
• Table (or "lay on the table") — set the current motion aside for now, without deciding it, so the board can move on to something else.
• Previous question ("call the question") — stop discussion and vote on the pending motion immediately, skipping the rest of the debate.

A member can raise one of these at nearly any point, and — unlike a regular motion — they're usually not open for their own discussion; the board votes on them right away.

Quorum, in short

Quorum is simply the minimum number of voting members who need to be present before the board can conduct business at all. No quorum, no valid vote — a motion can get every "yes" in the room and still not carry if quorum wasn't met. BoardTools tracks this for you live during a meeting; see How do I mark attendance without leaving Run mode? for where to check it, and Attendance & quorum for the full picture of RSVPs and who's counted.

What the minutes need to capture

Whatever else your minutes include, a motion decided under Robert's Rules should leave a record of:

• The motion's exact wording (as amended, if it was amended).
• Who moved it and who seconded it.
• The vote result — carried or failed, and the count if your board records counts (not just names, unless your bylaws call for that).

You don't need to write down the discussion word for word — a short summary of the key points is normal practice. See How do I record, approve, and publish minutes? for how BoardTools fills most of this in automatically from a recorded motion.

When does a secret ballot make sense?

A secret (or "private") ballot is typically reserved for votes where members might reasonably feel pressure voting in the open — most commonly officer elections, and sometimes a personnel matter. It's the exception rather than the rule: routine business is almost always decided on the record, by a visible roll call, so the minutes can show who voted which way.

Check your bylaws for whether a secret ballot needs to be requested by a member, or is simply how your board runs certain kinds of votes by default. BoardTools supports either — see How do I run a secret ballot? for how to open one.