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In the 1870s, Henry Martyn Robert — an American soldier and engineer — created Robert's Rules of Order. Initially intended as a way to run church meetings, Robert’s Rules were, at first, inspired by the senate procedure at the time. Now, it’s the most widely-used rulebook for the parliamentary procedure in the United States. But many organisations around the world also use it for their committee meetings and board meetings. What are Robert’s Rules? Robert’s Rules of Order are a set of rules to effectively run a meeting with the following democratic principles in mind: Things have changed a lot...

“The greatest lesson for democracies to learn is for the majority to give to the minority a full, free opportunity to present their side of the case, and then for the minority, having failed to win a majority to their views, gracefully to submit and to recognise the action as that of the entire organisation, and cheerfully to assist in carrying it out until they can secure its repeal.”  — Henry Martyn Robert Henry Martyn Robert was the person who, in the 1870s, created Robert’s Rules of Order as a set of parliamentary guidelines that are still used for US...

Initially published in 1876 by US army officer and engineer Henry Martyn Robert, Robert’s Rules were created to help organisations to manage their meetings fairly. Originally based on the proceedings of the US Congress, Robert’s Rules are now widely-used around the world in various types of organisations.  With their first publication almost 150 years ago, there have been a range of revisions, amendments and updates made to reflect changes in culture and technology. The 12th edition of Robert’s Rules was published in September 2020 — Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised  (RONR) — and still adhere to the fundamentals of...

In order to hold productive meetings, particularly business-critical events such as annual meetings and board meetings, you need a solid and familiar structure. This keeps everyone focused on the common goals and aids the momentum that ensures you get through all the necessary business in the allotted time. One of the ways to ensure this is to use Robert’s Rules of Order — a set of golden rules for running a successful and effective meeting. It is also known as ‘parliamentary procedure’ and, in fact, was originally based on the way the US Congress ran its legislative process. Henry Martyn...

Robert’s Rules of Order (also known as RONR or Robert’s Rules) are a set of guidelines from Henry Martyn Robert’s book. Originally published in 1876, it has since faced 12 editions with revisions based on feedback and cultural changes over the decades. The latest edition was published in September 2020: Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised.  “When there is no law, but every man does what is right in his own eyes, there is the least of real liberty.”  — Henry M. Robert If you’re new to the rules and ready to implement them in your first meeting, we’ve put...

Robert’s Rules of Order (also known as RONR or Robert’s Rules) were initially created in the 1870s as a set of parliamentary guidelines. The author, Henry Martyn Robert, was an American soldier who wrote the book as a result of a poorly-ran church meeting. His rules were originally based on the proceedings of the US Senate. Today, Robert’s Rules are widely used for US parliamentary procedure as well as by various types of organisations to help meetings run smoothly. After its original publication in 1876, Robert himself published the second, third and fourth revisions before his death in 1923. With...