Record an overdue board action as outstanding and escalate it through the agreed route. Missing an internal action date does not itself change the board's decision, extend an external deadline or establish that the task has been completed.

Hands signing a document at an office desk
Illustrative photograph by Pavel Danilyuk.

Identify what the decision requires

Link the action to the actual approved decision and any conditions. Record the responsible person, internal target date, required evidence and dependencies. Distinguish a request to obtain information from authority to enter a transaction or make a payment.

Check whether the action also relates to a statutory filing, contract or other external obligation. Ask the responsible secretary or adviser to identify that obligation separately. An internal tracker should not silently substitute its own date for an applicable deadline.

Escalate the actual blockage

For example, the board requested a supplier comparison before approving a purchase. The person gathering quotations has not responded. Mark the comparison as outstanding and explain its effect on the next approval step; do not record the purchase as approved merely because the comparison date passed.

Send the issue to the chair or other designated reviewer using the company's established process. Record the genuine response and any authorised reassignment. Avoid attributing approval to a director who has not supplied it.

Close with evidence

Retain the information received, subsequent instruction and completed work against the original action. If a fresh decision is needed, keep that decision and its actual date distinguishable from the earlier instruction.

The action register should show what happened, who confirmed it and what remains open. Review recurring delays when planning future meetings, without rewriting the historical record to make the earlier target appear met.

Related practical guidance

For the surrounding records and responsibilities, see maintaining statutory records, the company secretary role, company recordkeeping.

Official guidance: ACRA company guidance.

Help with your company records

For corporate secretarial and company administration support, contact Raffles Corporate Services at [email protected] or WhatsApp +65 8501 7133. Tell us which records or process need attention so we can discuss the relevant next steps.