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Meetings

How do I schedule a new meeting in Topical?

From the dashboard, click on (1) the green button to create a meeting series, or (2) click the “start meeting now” button to quickly create a meeting without any preparation (empty agenda, no other participants). The latter is useful if you want to quickly make a new recording and add the necessary structure later (such as colleagues, agenda items, attachments) to eventually wrap everything up neatly by sending a PDF report.

Can I set up a recurring meeting?

In Topical, you can currently repeat a meeting up to 52 times. You have choices similar to those in Outlook (weekly, monthly, bi-weekly, or a custom interval). We call this a ‘meeting series’. Click on the ‘dashboard’ in the menu on the left and then on the green button ‘schedule meeting(s)’.

How do I invite participants to a meeting?

You can add participants while planning the meeting or after the meeting has been scheduled. In both cases, you can send participants a calendar request. If you selected ‘send calendar request’ during planning, new participants (added later) will also be automatically added to the event in your calendar.

If you do not send calendar requests during planning, new participants will NOT receive a calendar request when you add them to the Topical meeting. You can still send this group a calendar request later. This option is included in the pop-up that also allows you to send the agenda/attachments via email.

Can I start a meeting without participants?

In Topical, there is always at least 1 participant in a meeting. You can therefore start the meeting yourself and add other participants later (to send them the output and offer them the possibility to look up information independently). As soon as you add a participant to a Topical meeting, the meeting becomes visible in their dashboard. The participant can also use the search function to look up information from this meeting.

Are meetings automatically recorded?

No, you can choose to start an audio recording in the meeting yourself. Open the relevant meeting (on your laptop, tablet, or phone) and then press the ‘start recording’ button. Don’t forget to stop the recording as soon as you are done.

Can I edit meetings after they have been created?

Yes, the chairperson (the person planning the meeting) can always adjust the title, date/time, location, or participants. Other participants can also do this, provided you give them “all rights” to the meeting. Usually, this is not necessary for other participants. You handle the planning and access. Someone else takes the minutes. Other participants can read along and/or provide input on the agenda.

What happens if a participant cancels the meeting?

This adjusts the attendance of the relevant participant, both in the digital calendar (e.g., Outlook) and in the Topical meeting (we synchronize attendance so that you can always see in Topical who is/is not present at a meeting).

If you delete a meeting in your calendar, it remains in Topical. We do this to prevent valuable information (which someone else may have put in the Topical meeting) from disappearing.

Templates

What is a template and why should I use it?

A template is the combination of fixed agenda items, participants, and planning information. It offers a convenient structure for every subsequent meeting. With a template, you can, for example, create 52 weekly meetings, all provided with the correct basic agenda, participants, and other information (video call URL, start time, end time, and much more).

How do I create my template?

Click on ‘Templates’ in the menu on the left in Topical. Then click the green button ‘create template’ if you want to start with an empty template. You can then add the agenda items and participants yourself. If you prefer to use a standard template, view the options on the right side (of this page) to use an example template and adjust it as desired.

Can I edit existing templates?

Yes, provided you have the correct access rights to modify a template. Per template, you can choose which participants are always invited to the meetings but do not have editing rights. This allows you to guard the structure (in the template) yourself without other participants being able to mess it up.

Note: If you edit the standard agenda of a template, these changes will NOT automatically appear in meetings linked to the template. The agenda structure in a template is only active once you create new meetings. This allows you to start with a simple template and improve it after a few meetings. After that, you schedule a new meeting series with the improved template.

Can I use a different template per team or project?

Yes, you use 1 template per team (or meeting type). This allows you to create templates in your Topical environment for all kinds of (recurring) meetings. Think of: the MT, the Supervisory Board, the weekly kick-off, project ABC, client DEF, etc.

Does Topical also support sector-specific templates?

Yes, because you can create your own templates. But there are also standard templates with which you can create your own template even faster. For example: a standard template called ‘Medical Specialists Meeting’ where an agenda item is already on the template for every department/specialty.

Actions

How do I create an action item during a meeting?

You can create actions manually or dictate them during an audio recording.

Manually: Add text to an agenda item, select the text, and click the ‘action’ button just above your text. This button is processed in the toolbar of the text editor (which you also use to format text).
Automatically: As soon as the recording is running, speak: “Action for [name] to [description] with deadline [date].” Stop the audio recording after the meeting and generate an ‘AI summary’. At the bottom of this summary, you will find proposals from the AI. This allows you to quickly create the correct actions or decisions without having to type along during the meeting.

Can I assign action items automatically based on roles?

This is only possible by creating the action in your template. As soon as you do this, the action is created for every subsequent meeting. This action must then be linked to 1 of the fixed participants of the meeting (i.e., the participants you add in the template). As soon as you schedule the meeting, all standard actions automatically get a deadline for 7 days later. Feel free to adjust it by clicking on the generated action and choosing a different deadline (or responsible person).

Do users get a reminder for open action items?

Yes, by default, all persons registered in Topical receive reminders for their own and shared action items. Daily, Topical checks if there are open tasks for the coming 48 hours whose deadline is approaching. If so, the person receives a maximum of 1 email per day (at 06:00) containing all open tasks for the next 2 working days. If desired, you can adjust this to receive it weekly on Monday at 06:00.

Furthermore, every participant can turn off email reminders themselves (via ‘my profile’, top right). If they do so, the reason is often that they also use the integration with Microsoft To Do to follow up on all actions there. Microsoft To Do can then remind the person of the open tasks.

These settings apply to both email reminders and push notifications (if the person has also installed the mobile app).

Can I set deadlines for action items?

Yes, you can set a deadline per action (optional). When creating or editing the action, you can choose a date yourself or use the buttons ‘next week’ or ‘next meeting’ to quickly fill in the relevant date.

Is it possible to group or filter action items?

Yes, Topical groups the actions of 1 meeting per agenda item. This allows you to see during the meeting (or the next meeting) per agenda item which actions (or decisions) are linked to it.

Furthermore, you can view your own action list on your dashboard per meeting type (per template). So you have a to-do list for every type of meeting.

This grouping also ensures that with 1 push of a button, you can view the actions (and status) of a specific team. Subsequently, you can also place search queries within that team to quickly find the right actions (or other content).

Can you see if an action item has been completed?

Yes, per action you can see if the action is still open or has been completed. Topical also keeps track of when the action was completed.

Can you post comments on an action?

Yes, everyone you invite to a meeting can comment on an action item. This allows you to track how the action develops over time. Those involved share extra details relevant to the executor or they place comments to explain the status of the action.

When do I put something in the minutes and when do I post a comment?

If information is important for all participants, put it on the agenda (or create it as an action or decision) so that it is visible in the PDF report of the meeting. This keeps everyone aligned.

If the information is only important for executors of an action, place it as a comment. This way, not all participants have to absorb the information; they can choose to do so (by opening the action). If you are responsible for the action, you will receive a notification as soon as someone else responds to your action.

Can you create actions for persons who are not invited to the meeting?

Yes, that is possible. You can assign an action to any person registered (with name/email) in Topical. This person gets NO access to the specific meeting but will see the action in his or her dashboard. If you set a deadline, the person also receives the email reminder or push notification as soon as the deadline approaches but the action is still open.

Decisions

How do I record a decision?

You can do this manually or automate it with the AI functions.

Manually: Add text to an agenda item, select the text, and click the ‘decision’ button. The highlighted text remains on the agenda AND a decision is added to the decision list (top right at ‘current meeting’).
Automatically: As soon as you start an audio recording, you can also dictate the decision. Do this as clearly as possible, for example: “We decide to [decision description] because [reason].” Both the recording and any notes you make on the agenda can be converted by the AI into a ‘proposed decision’. After a meeting, you view this list of proposals and make the correct decisions definitive.

Note: Even if you use AI, it is necessary to check the output. The AI can make mistakes, which is why human intervention is currently necessary: the AI prepares it, the human indicates whether it is correct. This way you get your action and decision list in order faster without errors.

Are decisions automatically minuted?

Yes and no. From an audio recording, decisions can be automatically proposed. But a person is always needed to check it and indicate if it is correct. If it is incorrect, you can adjust it as desired and easily add it to the decision list.

Can I link decisions to action items?

A decision is linked to an agenda item. An action is too. You therefore link the actions or decisions to agenda items, so that the context is always preserved per item. If you click on an action or decision after a while, you can go directly to the relevant agenda item. There you see not only the other linked actions/decisions but naturally also the notes, attachments, or any audio recording.

Can I edit decisions afterwards?

Yes, the chairperson always has the possibility to adjust the meeting (and content). The minute taker (or another participant with these access rights) can do so as well.

Don’t want that? Then wrap up your meeting by sending a PDF report, and after that, remove the rights of other people to adjust the meeting.

If you forget this and someone adjusts information afterwards, we store this information for you so that it can always be traced when which adjustment was made and by whom.

Are decisions stored in a central overview?

Yes, decisions you create become directly visible on the decision list of the relevant meeting. In every subsequent meeting, you also have visibility of decisions from the past. So, one long decision list is created per team through which you can scroll (provided you have access to these old meetings).

Attachments

Can I add documents to a meeting?

Yes, you can upload attachments up to 12 MB each to an agenda item. These files are sent to participants (both in an invitation and a report) provided the total size of attachments is less than 12 MB. Otherwise, it is not accepted by many email providers.

Therefore, we change the files into download links so that participants can easily consult all attachments from the email (an invitation or report).

Tip: Did you know that you can also put links to SharePoint or Google Drive on your agenda? These links are also clickable in the emails you send around. This way you don’t necessarily have to upload a file, but can just paste the live link in Topical.

Where are attachments stored?

In the data center of TransIP Netherlands, on a VPS where a shielded environment has been created for your organization. Only persons registered within your organization can log in to the dashboard at all. Subsequently, only participants of a meeting can view or download the relevant attachments.

Can I download AI-generated minutes as PDF or Word?

Yes, if you generate a PDF report of your meeting in Topical, you can choose which content may be shown in the PDF. The PDF is divided into 3 parts. Part 1 is the AI summary. Part 2 is the agenda/minutes with all notes. Part 3 is an action and decision list.

How long do recordings and files remain available?

We keep this forever, until you delete it yourself or request us to delete something.

Are recordings automatically transcribed?

Yes, as soon as you stop the audio recording, this is processed for you in 2 steps: first, we upload the recording to the server, there it is processed and transcribed. As soon as the server is ready, you see the button “View Transcript”.

You do not have to view the transcript yourself; you can also directly generate an AI summary. Effectively, you ask the AI to interpret and summarize the transcript. The AI can also do this based on your agenda and all notes. By making an agenda and writing along some keywords during the meeting, you help the AI to interpret the transcript better.

Tip: If you only record, the summary is shorter and more abstract. If you have also made an agenda with notes, the AI can generate more valuable information.

Users

How do I add a new user?

From your dashboard, click on the button “add user,” after which you choose the name, email, and user role.

As a Team Manager or Admin, you can also invite people via the user page. Click on ‘settings’ and then on ‘users’. In the top right, you will find the button ‘invite user’ which does the same as on your dashboard.

You can use the user page to adjust roles or names, or to deactivate a person.

Can external participants also join without an account?

Yes, if you also want to send this person calendar requests and/or assign tasks, you will have to register the person with a name and email address. If you choose the role ‘external participant’, you can involve the person in meetings just like normal users.

If you do not want to send someone calendar requests or assign actions, you can also generate a public link per meeting. You can distribute this link so that people can follow the meeting live, download a PDF report, or download other attachments of the meeting.

If you have the rights to ‘manage access’ on a meeting, you can generate the public link under the table with fixed participants. If you want to try this out, open the link below to a test meeting:

demo.topicalmeetings.com/meetings/49349/7964397a-3561-4781-9a50-137c5f643a4c

What is the difference between a user and an external participant?

A user can plan meetings and create templates themselves. An external participant cannot. External participants are taken in tow by a user with a license. Everyone gets a personal dashboard, so that is separate from whether the person has a paid license.

Within that dashboard, a license holder (user) has many more possibilities than an external participant. Effectively, the role of an external participant is that of a ‘guest’ with the possibility to view but limited ability to actually use the system.

Can I set roles and rights per user?

We distinguish between license holders (user, team manager, admin) and other participants (external participants). The license holders can plan meetings and create templates. External participants cannot.

All persons can activate integrations, but for external participants, this is limited to the Microsoft To Do integration and Zapier integration.

As soon as you assign the correct roles, you can add these people to templates or meetings. Per template or meeting, you can then also choose which access rights the person gets within that template or meeting.

In short: A (user) role determines which functions are available to you within Topical. Subsequently, the access rights (of a participant on a template or meeting) determine what this person can do within that template or meeting.

What happens if a user leaves the team?

You can deactivate his or her account. That person then no longer has access to the dashboard. The person is also removed from the relevant templates. This ensures no invitations or reports are sent to them. Should you restore the account at a later time, that is possible. The person can then continue working where he or she left off.

You cannot permanently delete a person; we want to keep a record of which matters that person has been involved in. This might be relevant for you in the future as well.

Integrations

Can I connect Topical with my calendar (Google/Outlook)?

Yes, every person with a paid license can connect his or her Google or Outlook calendar. This allows you to send other people calendar requests and choose Google Meet or Teams links.

If you create a Teams link, it is visible: in Outlook, on your Topical dashboard, the Topical meeting AND in the emails you send (invitation or report).

Is there an integration with Microsoft Teams?

Yes, both to place meetings in the calendar and to synchronize action items (via Microsoft To Do, these become visible in Teams or Outlook).

What happens to my data if I use AI in Topical?

When you use the AI functions in Topical, certain information is shared with OpenAI Ireland. This concerns exclusively the agenda, notes, the transcript, and the names of participants (no email addresses). These data are used solely to generate AI-supported output.

Both the input and the output are not stored by OpenAI and return directly to the Netherlands. There they are safely stored within your own secured environment. Additionally, these data are not used to train OpenAI’s AI models.

This way, you can use AI functionality as a Dutch organization, fully in line with GDPR guidelines.

Does Topical support integration with CRM systems (such as Pipedrive)?

There are no direct integrations with CRM systems. However, you can create a connection yourself via Zapier (or Make.com or N8N). Contact us for this.

Furthermore, per recording/meeting you can generate a link to paste into a CRM yourself. This way, other colleagues can also view the relevant meeting via the link.

Can I send emails or other notifications automatically?

Yes, Topical makes it possible to automatically send around the agenda or the report, for example, X days before or after the meeting.

Also, Topical automatically follows up for you. Participants therefore receive a reminder of an action without your intervention. This can be via an email notification, a push notification, or a reminder in Teams/Outlook (via the Microsoft To Do integration).

Privacy & Security

Are my meetings stored safely?

Yes, meetings are stored safely with encryption. Only you and your team members have access to the content.

Who has access to our data?

Only authorized users within your own organization. We, as the provider, cannot view the content of meetings.

Is our data used to train AI?

No, data sent to OpenAI via our software is not used to train models. Everything remains confidential.

Does the Topical software comply with the AVG (GDPR)?

Yes, we fully comply with European privacy legislation. View the page for more information about privacy & security.

Where is our data stored?

Your data resides on strictly secured servers of TransIP Netherlands, on Dutch territory. The data processing and storage are certified (ISO & NEN), ensuring Topical complies with GDPR guidelines. View the page for more information about privacy & security.

Can we delete data if necessary?

Yes, you can delete meetings, notes, or user accounts yourself. That data is then completely erased. Upon request, we can also delete all information of your organization.

Pricing Model

What does using your software cost?

We work with a subscription model per active user. The price depends on the chosen package. The model starts at €24/month for 1 license for a chairperson or minute taker. All other participants can be added free of charge. As you purchase more licenses, the price per license decreases. Contact us for a personalized offer.

Are there extra costs for using AI?

No, provided you choose the Ultimate license. But if you choose the Pro license, you do not have access to the AI functions. If you still wish for the Pro license AND want to use the AI sporadically, please contact us for the possibilities.

Do you offer a free trial period?

Yes, you can try out the software without obligation. No credit card is required for this. After 30 days, nothing happens until you purchase a paid license yourself.

Are there special rates for large teams or non-profits?

Yes, we offer volume discounts and have adjusted rates for educational institutions and social organizations. Contact us for the possibilities.

What if I want to pause or delete users?

You only pay for active users. You can always deactivate users (so you no longer incur costs for them) AND it is possible to transfer a license to a new colleague. In that case, deactivate an account and add a new user. Your total number of active users then remains the same.

Get in touch, we are happy to assist