Engaging Your New Committee Members
Part of a Committee Chair’s responsibility is to:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Welcome new members
Inform them
Support them
Engage them in discussions
Involve them in activities
Remember: these apply to continuing members, too
Bryan Balazs
Committee on Committees (ConC)
2014 Leadership Institute
Dallas, Texas
American Chemical Society
ACS Committee Service:
New Members Are Volunteers
Actions before, during, and after their first meeting are critical
Welcome & Connect
–
With new members before their first committee meeting
–
Host a pre-meeting, either by telecon or in person at the national meeting if feasible,
to inform and answer questions and to ascertain their interest in the committee
–
Keep in mind that new members may be seasoned ACS committee veterans, or brand
new to the role
Introduce
–
Each new member at the beginning of their first meeting and invite them to share a
few words on their background and interests
–
This is a good idea for continuing members as well
Mentor
–
Partner new members with continuing members
–
Engage new members in conversation at breaks, over meals, etc.
Follow up
–
After their first committee meeting, addressing any questions or concerns
–
Realign assignments or partners as necessary
Hosting a “pre-meeting” for
New Members
•
Host a telecon, or (if feasible) have an informal meal or refreshment
event at some point before the full committee meets
•
Involve Subcommittee Chairs or other committee leadership
•
Review the committee User Manual, including important historical points
•
Go over the ACS & committee Strategic Plans
•
Discuss logistics for the upcoming committee meeting
•
Discuss the agenda book and actions expected at this meeting
•
Discuss differences in Full Members vs. Associate Members
– Expectations with serving on an ACS national committee
– Voting vs. Non-Voting status
– Participation on Subcommittees, Task Forces, and as Liaisons
•
And finally, ask if they have any questions or concerns
A committee User Manual is
very useful for New Members
• A User Manual helps continuing members as well
• Does one exist?
– If yes:
• How up-to-date is it?
• Are modifications needed (updating every 3 to 5 years is a general
goal)?
– If no:
• Should one be prepared?
• Do you want to appoint a task force for the job? Who would lead it?
• When would this work begin?
• What level of involvement would ACS staff have?
• What are your expectations as to the timeframe for completion?
– Think about how you would “socialize” the new version (probably only
necessary for new manuals or updates with significant changes)
Outline for a
Committee User Manual
• Introduction to the committee’s background
– Original driver for committee formation, and evolution from that point
– Historical shifts in focus or responsibilities
• Realignments, new scope, new charters, etc.
– Current Mission and Vision statements
• Include linkages to ACS Strategic Plan
• Review of committee responsibilities
– Subcommittee structure
– Relationships to Technical Divisions and/or Local Sections
– Tracked metrics to allow an assessment of committee effectiveness
• Expectations for committee service
– Commitment level (meeting attendance, work between meetings)
– Travel $$$ (how much burden will the individual have?)
– Liaison relationships to other committees
Committee User Manual:
Roles & Responsibilities
• How the committee fits into the ACS governance structure
• Voting (and differences in this between full committee versus
subcommittee meetings)
– Member
– Associate Member
– Consultant
• Duties & delegations between Committee Chair and
Subcommittee Chairs
• Role of Staff Liaison to the committee
• Role of ConC Liaison to the committee
• Glossary of ACS and committee terms and abbreviations
• Updates to the manual and the distribution list
Communicate to all well in
advance of national meetings
• Work in advance with your Staff Liaison and ConC Liaison
– Your Staff Liaison will likely assist with many items below
• As appropriate, communicate to All Members:
– Welcome letter (email, letter, or telephone as appropriate)
– Provide early notification of:
• National meeting housing information
• Location, time, date of committee meetings (as soon as Meetings &
Expositions sends notices to you and your Staff Liaison)
• Agenda book (recommend electronically, but have a Plan B in case this
doesn’t work for some members)
• Accommodations for unusual travel schedules (within reason)
– Updated committee User Manual
– Plan, if possible, a pre-meeting gathering of New Members
A little Committee psychology
is helpful…
Remember that every individual comes with different perspectives
• Try to understand the background of your new members
– Academic? Industry? Self-employed? Brand new? Seasoned veteran?
– Understand what brought them to this committee
– Beware of “group think”, and be open to new ideas
• Watch for new members who:
– Are unusually quiet?
• Could be just their personality, or it could be that they aren’t up to speed yet
– Are overly talkative?
• Could be just their personality, but don’t let them dominate discussions
– Come with their own “agenda”, or want to run things their way
– Take the conversations in a direction contrary to where you feel the
discussions should go, or that offend others
•
Remember: Any problems with members, new or continuing, should be
raised with the ConC and Staff Liaisons as needed
An effective committee is driven in large part
by thorough prior planning and organizing by
the Chair (that would be you) in conjunction
with the ConC and Staff Liaisons
… and remember…
YOU will be the one reporting to Council and
in C&EN!
Questions?
Attention, young
chemist! The mighty
Papa Moai requires
your assistance with a
perplexing riddle.
Excellent. Then see if
you can unravel this
enigma of Gordian
complexity that baffles
even one such as I.
Oh, that’s an easy
“CMS”
one. The
answer is
the “ACS”.
Go ahead.
Sure, I guess.
I’m not bad at
riddles.
There is no turning back,
now! What organization
is the source of greatest
personal fulfillment?
Astounding--perfect for
the Leadership Institute!
Truly, you are a being to
be reckoned with.
Liaisons
How to get the best out
of the relationships
Janet Bryant
Committee on Committees (ConC)
2014 Leadership Institute
American Chemical Society
Dallas, Texas
What is a Liaison?
• Establishes means of communication between
different groups or committees.
• Improves relationships through specific goals and
action items.
• Helps eliminate undesirable duplication of efforts.
• Provides an efficient means to link efforts for more
productive outcomes.
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Types of Liaisons
• Staff
• ConC
• Committee-to-Committee Liaisons
– Joint Visiting and Information Gathering
– Mutual Interest Area Sharing
– Collaborative Working Groups
– Short-Term
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Staff Liaison
•
Bridge between ACS and committee
• Administrator
• Communicator
• Financial Analyst
• Motivator
• Adhesive
• Finder of common grounds between committees
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ConC Liaison
• Observer
• Recommender
• Other duties
– Conducting 5-year Performance Reviews
– Recommending continuation, creation, disbanding or
merging of committees
– Building pipelines of diverse talent pools
– Recruiting members for governance
– Training Committee Chairs
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ACS National Committees
•
Council Committees (Elected)
–
–
–
•
Council Committees (Standing)
–
–
–
–
–
–
•
CPC
N&E
ConC
C&B
DAC
CEPA
LSAC
MAC
M&E
Council Committees (Other)
–
–
–
–
–
Analytical Reagents
Nomenclature, Terminology &
Symbols
Project SEED
Technician Affairs
Ethics
•
Board & Council Society Committees
–
–
•
B&F
SOCED
Board & Council Committees
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Chemical Abstracts Service
Chemical Safety
Chemistry & Public Affairs
Chemists with Disabilities
Community Activities
Environmental Improvement
International Activities
Minority Affairs
Patents and Related Matters
Professional Training
Publications
Public Relations & Communications
Science
Senior Chemists
Younger Chemists
Women Chemists
Activity - What liaison(s) do you have?
You are a new committee chair and have inherited liaisons to or
from your committee.
Who are these liaisons, which committees they liaise with, and
what role do they play for your committee?
Take a few moments and list these.
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Committee-to-Committee Liaison
Role: To improve communication and relationship
between committees.
• Specific goals and action items needed.
• Mutually agreed.
• Periodically reviewed by both.
Goals:
• Access information, ideas, and expertise.
• Increase synergistic interactions and/or
collaborative activities.
• Decrease overlap of effort.
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C-to-C Liaison
Joint Visiting and Information Gathering
• Traditional liaison where a member of one
committee visits another committee’s meeting
(and may or may not provide reports).
• The liaison interacts with the committee to
collect information to be used by the liaison’s
committee in committee discussions and
actions.
• Information gathering could be provided or
requested outside of committee meeting.
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C-to-C Liaison
Sharing Areas of Interest
• Relation based on specific goals
and desired outcomes.
• Liaisons provide pertinent
information to committees
tackling issues of mutual interest.
• Liaisons’ oral reports should be
included in relevant sections of
the meeting.
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C-to-C Liaison
Collaborative Working Relationship
• Can be generated from shared common goals with
other committees.
– Joint Sub-committees?
• Assign an interested representative (liaison) to the
working group with clear understanding of the desired
outcome.
• Make sure that liaison reports back to the committee.
• Provide talking points for each meeting to support
discussion.
• Rotate coordination between committees.
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C-to-C Liaison
Short Term Assignment
• May be useful for special project or anniversary
celebration.
• Must define time of interaction and specific
outcome.
• Is often effective in subcommittees.
• Make sure that final report is presented to
committee.
American Chemical Society
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Identifying the Need for Liaisons
• Develop approximately 5 committee goals for the year.
• Make the goals known to committee members, including
liaisons.
• Use ACS staff liaison (and your knowledge and network)
to identify other committees that can contribute to the
goals or share areas of mutual interest.
• Select the type of liaison that best fits the situation.
• Find a suitable person within the committee to serve as the
liaison.
• (Optional: Establish a ‘liaison coordinator’ if you have
many liaisons.)
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C-to-C Liaisons
Reminders
• As new chairs of committees you have the unique
opportunity to evaluate existing liaisons for your
committee.
–
–
–
–
–
Their historic purposes?
Effectiveness?
Can the relationships be improved?
Do you need them all, every year?
Do you have all the liaisons that needed?
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Activity – Do I need new liaisons?
Work with your staff liaison. Make a list of 1-2 goals that you want
to achieve as new committee chair.
Discuss if other committees can help you with these goals.
Discuss if the appointment of liaisons with other committees would
be useful to facilitate the accomplishment of the goals.
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Liaison Duties
(your liaisons to other committees)
•
Specific details of the liaison arrangement need
to be made with the other Chair.
•
Liaisons must know why they are liaisons and
what their assignment entails.
•
Liaisons should present a useful report and
assessment to the parent committee.
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Liaison Duties
(liaisons from other committees)
•
Specific details of the liaison arrangement need
to be made with the other Chair.
•
Liaisons must know to what extent they are
expected to participate in your committee.
•
Liaisons from other committees may report to
your committee in a variety of ways.
•
Liaison reports should be integrated into the
agenda, not an after-thought.
American Chemical Society
Get the Best of the Relationship
• Define expectations/outcomes for each liaison assignment.
• Communicate with liaisons before each meeting to articulate
meeting objectives and issues.
• Include liaisons in relevant discussions between meetings.
• Encourage and incorporate written liaison reports in the
agenda book.
• Include oral liaison reports only when these address issues
being considered. Schedule these with related action items or
reports.
• Do not cluster liaison reports out of context at the end of the
meeting.
• Review existing liaison assignments on an annual basis.
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American Chemical Society
Committee Reports and Reporting Requirements
New Committee Chair Training
January 2014
Committees Reports and
Reporting Requirements
Committees are grouped into three broad
categories when it comes to reporting:
• Committees reporting to the Board of
Directors.
• Committees reporting to the Council.
• Committees reporting to both the Board
of Directors and the Council.
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Committees Reporting to
the Board (Standing)
• Audits
• Board of Trustees, Group Insurance Plans for
ACS Members (BOT)
• Corporation Associates (CA)
• Executive Compensation (CEC)
• Governing Board for Publishing (GBP)
• Governing Board for ACS Green Chemistry
Institute® (GCI)
• Grants and Awards (G&A)
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Committees Reporting to
the Board (Standing)
• Pensions and Investments (P&I)
• Petroleum Research Fund Advisory Board (PRF)
– to G&A
• Planning
• Professional & Member Relations (P&MR)
• Public Affairs & Public Relations (PA&PR)
– PA&PR Subcommittee on National Historic Chemical
Landmarks (NHCL)
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Committees Reporting to
the Council (Elected)
• Committees on Committees (ConC)
• Council Policy (CPC)
• Nominations and Elections (N&E)
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Committees Reporting
to the Council (Standing)
• Constitution & Bylaws (C&B)
• Divisional Activities (DAC)
• Economic and Professional Affairs (CEPA)
• Local Section Activities (LSAC)
• Membership Affairs (MAC)
• Meetings and Expositions (M&E)
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Committees Reporting to
the Council (Other)
• Analytical Reagents (CAR)
• Ethics (ETHICS)
• Nomenclature, Terminology and Symbols (NTS)
• Project SEED (SEED)
• Technician Affairs (CTA)
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Committees Reporting to the
Board and Council (Society)
• Budget & Finance (B&F)
• Education (SOCED)
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Committees Reporting to the
Board and Council
(Joint Board-Council)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Chemical Abstracts Service (CCAS)
Chemical Safety (CCS)
Chemistry and Public Affairs (CCPA)
Chemists with Disabilities (CWD)
Community Activities (CCA)
Environmental Improvement (CEI)
International Activities (IAC)
Minority Affairs (CMA)
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Committees Reporting to the
Board and Council
(Joint Board-Council)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Patents and Related Matters (CP&RM)
Professional Training (CPT)
Publications (PUBS)
Public Relations and Communications (CPRC)
Science (COMSCI)
Senior Chemists (SCC)
Women Chemists (WCC)
Younger Chemists (YCC)
American Chemical Society
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Drafting Committee
Reports
Five Types of Committee Reporting Documents:
• Committee Written Report for Council Agenda
• Committee Oral Report to Council
• Committee Written Report to the Board of
Directors
• Committee Minutes
• C&EN Short Report
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Preparing Committee
Reports – Written & Oral
to the Council
Key Documents:
• CPC Policy on Reports to Council
• Guidelines for Visual Presentations to
Council
• Committee Reports and Reporting
Checklist
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Committee Report –
Council Meetings
How often do committees report to the Council?
Per ACS Bylaws:
• Elected, Standing, and Society committees
report orally and in writing at each meeting of
the Council.
• Other and Joint Board Council committees are
expected to report at least once a year.
– “Oral reports are presented at meetings of Council by… committees who have
submitted written reports that are included in the Council agenda.”
CPC Policy on Reports to ACS Council
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Preparing Written
Committee Reports for the
Council
Written reports:
• are part of the “printed” or “official” records of the
Council meetings as described in the bylaws
• describe major initiatives and/or accomplishments
since the last report and their impact on the Society
• are no more than two single-spaced pages, with
topic headings where appropriate
• direct Councilors to sources of additional information
such as websites, when appropriate
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Preparing Oral
Committee Reports for
Council Meetings
Oral reports:
• Highlight major accomplishments that
have occurred since the last written
report was prepared. They may describe
future activities when those activities
could significantly impact the membership
and /or Society operations.
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Preparing Oral
Committee Reports for
Council Meetings
Oral reports:
• Must be less than three minutes in duration
and less than 450 words in length unless
specifically approved by CPC.
• Should not convey information that is
available elsewhere or chronicle committee
activities. Personal references and tributes to
individuals are not appropriate.
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Preparing Oral
Committee Reports for
Council Meetings
Oral reports:
• Are presented at meetings of the Council
by committees which have submitted
written reports that are included in the
Council agenda. Additional oral reports
may be authorized by CPC when
appropriate for Council action.
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Preparing Oral
Committee Reports for
Council Meetings
Oral reports:
• Should include visual aids that
summarize the major points of the report
and reduce presentation time.
• Are provided to the Secretary of CPC
with any visual aids in electronic format
no later than the afternoon before CPC
meetings.
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Guidelines for Visual
Presentations to Council
• Visuals are required to be in the form of PowerPoint
presentations using the ACS template in horizontal
landscape.
• Titles should be large (36-40 point); the body copy
should be 24 point or greater. If you cannot read your
presentation on a laptop screen from 10 feet away, it
will not be legible to the audience.
• Use key words to help audience focus; avoid complete
sentences.
• See “Guidelines for Visual Presentations to Council”
for additional information.
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Committee Reports
After the Council Meeting:
• Committee reports are posted on
acs.org/council
• Shortened versions of the reports
are printed in C&EN as information
for the Society membership.
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Committee Reporting –
Board of Directors
How often do committees report to the Board of
Directors?
• Society Committees and some Standing
Committees (G&A, P&MR, PA&PR) report at
each meeting in writing, and orally when there is
a request for Board action.
• Other Standing Committees and Joint BoardCouncil Committees report in writing at least
once per year, and orally when there is a request
for Board action.
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Committee Minutes
• Permanent record of what occurred at the
meeting
• Potential legal significance
• In some states, they are required for boards
and some committees
• Per ACS bylaws the Standing Committees
(MAC, M&E, C&B, LSAC, DAC, CEPA) must
elect a secretary
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Committee Minutes
What Purpose Do Minutes Serve?
• “to transcribe into permanent and official form the
actions at a board [committee]” [“The Law of
Associations”]
• Prove that a meeting was valid
• Admissible in court as evidence of what action
was taken: Burden is on the person attacking
accuracy of minutes in legal proceeding
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Committee Minutes
What is the procedure?
• Standard practice among nonprofits: prepare
minutes after meeting and have approved at
subsequent meeting … but it’s not required.
• Approving minutes isn’t same as approving
actions… it merely says that the minutes were
an appropriate record of the meeting.
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Committee Minutes Types
• Some minutes are very short, reflecting only adopted
motions
– Brief and legal
– Lack of usefulness as record
• Some are almost verbatim transcripts
– Help as historical record
– Certain details are helpful legally (due process)
– Can be mischaracterized in legal action
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Committee Minutes –
Compromise
• Intermediate approach
– summary of issues discussed
– summary of actions taken
– not a record of who said what
– attach (and cite) formal/lengthy documents
– use agenda as basis for headings
– keep the form the same each time
– include self-serving legal statements
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Committee Minutes –
Include
• Date, time and place of meeting
• Whether meeting is special or regular
• Names of attendees
• Whether quorum was present
• Departures and reentries of attendees
• Actions taken
• If requested, who voted “no” or abstained
• Brief summary of reports (or reference attached reports)
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C&EN Short Report Description
• Condensed committee report of key
actions and discussions that occurred at
the meeting
• Key information for the Society
membership
• Generally 250 words in length
• Due ~ 10 days after the national meeting
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Committee Report
Summary
• Remember to report at one of the two Council
meetings per year.
• Avoid repeating information in the oral report that has
already appeared in the written report.
• Refer to the Committee Reports and Reporting
Checklist when preparing the report
• Remember minutes have potential legal significance.
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Committees Reports and
Reporting Requirements
Reminder:
Your staff liaison is trained on how to
prepare committee reports and can either
prepare a draft for you, or aid you or the
secretary of the committee in preparing a
draft.
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Committees Reports and
Reporting Requirements
Discussion/Questions?
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Committee Budgets
Flint H. Lewis
Staff Liaison, ConC
ACS Secretary and General Counsel
January 24, 2014
American Chemical Society
Committee Budgets:
Responsibilities for Budgeting
• Budget & Finance (B&F)
• ACS Treasurer’s Office
• ACS Division Director
• Staff Liaison
• Committee Chairs
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Committee Budgets:
Background
• ACS Board Chair initiated a committee budget
review in 2010.
• B&F Subcommittee on Committee Budgets
established in 2011.
– Reviewed current process for budgeting and accountability for
committee budgets.
– Identified ways to increase transparency.
– Encouraged judicious fiscal behavior.
– Discussed enhancements/improvements to the budget
process.
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Committee Budgets:
B&F Subcommittee Review & Observations
• Reviewed three-year financial trend data (2008-2010) for 54
governance budgets.
– Requested additional information on 14 governance budgets.
• Travel and professional services account for more than 75% of
total committee expenses.
• Historically, committee budgets have provided for full capacity,
rather than a most-likely scenario, leading to sizeable favorable
variances.
– Reductions made in the probable projections as actual events unfold.
• Committee Chairs weren’t always included in the budgeting
process.
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Committee Budgets:
B&F Subcommittee Recommendations
• Committee budget discussions include explanations of
budget assumptions.
• Travel and professional services accounts should be
zero-based.
– Use of virtual meetings encouraged to control costs.
• Staff liaisons will consult the Committee Chair during
the budget preparation process.
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Committee Budgets:
B&F Subcommittee Recommendations
• Staff liaisons will include the committee’s final approved
budget in each agenda book.
• A summary, by committee, of Governance Net
Expenses will be included in the B&F and Board of
Directors budget books.
• Finance staff will provide training to new staff liaisons
regarding Committee budgeting procedures and
guidelines.
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Budgetary Needs
• Vary by committee mission, charter
– Travel and professional services.
– Oversight responsibilities.
– Products of committee work.
• Special projects of the committee
• Program Budgets
– Administered by staff unit.
– Budget is not under the purview of the committee.
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Committee Budgets:
Travel Reimbursement
• All costs for travel reimbursement for committee
meetings held at National Meetings will be budgeted by
the Secretary’s Office.
– COUNCILORS TRAVEL EXPENSE PROGRAM
– NON-COUNCILORS TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT
• Committee budgets should include travel
reimbursement only for committee meetings held
outside of National Meetings (zero-based).
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Non-Councilor
Reimbursement Policy
• Partially conforms to the already established Councilor
Travel Expense Program.
• Support non-Councilor attendance at committee
meetings and participation in Society governance
during national meetings.
• Provide financial support for:
– Ordinary and necessary transportation
– Lodging
– Meal expenses
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Non-Councilor
Reimbursement Policy
Committees covered:
Other Committees of Council
• Analytical Reagents
• Ethics
• Project SEED
• Technician Affairs
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Non-Councilor
Reimbursement Policy
Committees covered:
Joint Board-Council
• Chemical Abstracts Service
• Patents & Related Matters
• Chemical Safety
• Publications
• Chemistry and Public Affairs
• Public Relations &
Communications
• Community Activities
• Environmental Improvement
• International Activities
• Minority Affairs
American Chemical Society
• Science
• Senior Chemists
• Women Chemists
70
Non-Councilor
Reimbursement Policy
Committees unaffected (Councilors only):
Council Standing
Council Elected
• Constitution and Bylaws
• Committees
• Divisional Activities
• Council Policy
• Economic and Professional Affairs • Nominations and Elections
• Local Section Activities
• Meetings and Expositions
• Membership Affairs
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Non-Councilor
Reimbursement Policy
Committees currently budgeting for reimbursement of
non-Councilors at levels other than policy:
• Budget and Finance
• Chemists with Disabilities
• Education
• Nomenclature, Terminology and Symbols
• Professional Training
• Younger Chemists
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Non-Councilor
Reimbursement Policy
• Submitting a request for support.
• Filing of the completed ACS travel expense
reimbursement voucher.
• Staff liaison
• Secretary’s office
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ACS National Meetings
Transportation
Lodging and Meals
Committee and
Subcommittee
Sessions
Remainder of
National
Meeting
National Meeting
Registration Fee
Council Meeting
Elsewhere
Transportation
Lodging and Meals
Maximum allowable
Reimbursement
American Chemical Society
Members, Associates,
Consultants, and ConC
Liaisons who are
COUNCILORS
Members, Associates,
and Consultants who
are
NON-COUNCILORS
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Spring - $1101.14
Fall- $1101.14
Yearly Total - $2202.28
Yes
Yes
Spring - $550.57
Fall- $550.57
Yearly Total- $1101.14
74
Society Program Portfolio
Management (SPPM)
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Robert's Rules of Order
Flint H. Lewis
ConC Staff Liaison
ACS Secretary
New Chairs Training
January 24-26, 2014
76
American Chemical Society
ACS Committees: The Big Picture
• ACS governed by the Board and Council
• Board’s charge: “shall have, hold, and
administer all the property, funds, and affairs of
the Society” [Const. Art. VIII]
• Council: “the popular deliberative assembly”
[Const. Art. VII] – a forum for member issues –
specific duties re: elections, dues, amending
governing documents
77
American Chemical Society
Why Care About Structure?
• “Committees help boards to be more efficient,
more active, and more knowledgeable and to
distribute work evenly among
members…Organizations with an effective
committee structure are more likely to have
satisfied board members who feel they are
making tangible and meaningful
contributions…” [“Nonprofit Board Committees”
E. Hirzy]
78
American Chemical Society
Committee, Defined
• “…a body of one or more persons, elected or
appointed by an assembly or society, to
consider, investigate, or take action on certain
matters or subjects, or to do all of these things.”
[Roberts Rules]
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American Chemical Society
Role of Committees
• “A board of directors normally conducts its
business through a well-organized committee
structure that partitions the work of the board
and allows directors to make maximum use of
their expertise. It is a matter of time and
efficiency as well as expertise.” [“Corporate
Governance” p.44]
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American Chemical Society
Committee Authority
• Committee authority isn’t unlimited…
• …Be sure your committee has authority to consider/act
upon specific issues
• Limitations on a committee’s ability to act:
– Bylaws
– Duties in Bulletin V
– Resolution creating committee
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American Chemical Society
Why Should I Care About Robert’s
Rules?
• Leadership
• Fairness
• Efficiency
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American Chemical Society
Henry M. Robert (1837–1923)
& His Rules
– What do I do now!?
– Adapted from rules of Congress
– Purpose? Allow majority to effectively work its will …
– …with due respect for rights of strong minorities
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– Universally accepted rules of procedure
American Chemical Society
Know the Basics
– Basics:
• How motions are made
• How votes are taken
• Know the sequence for consideration
– Why the basics?
• ACS operates on consensus……and prefers
informal procedures
• Strict application perceived negatively
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American Chemical Society
Sequence for Consideration
– Motion
– Motion
made
made
– Second
– Second
Mover controls
– State the motion
– State the motion
– Debate
Committee
controls
– Debate
– Vote
– Announce
the vote
– Vote
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American Chemical Society
Amendments
– Amendment = secondary motion
– Follow the sequence for consideration
– Deal with amendment first, then the underlying
motion
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– If you approve an amendment: also vote on the
underlying motion as amended (i.e. 2 votes are
needed to adopt the motion as amended)
American Chemical Society
Special Rules for Committees
• “…motions to close or limit debate are not allowed in
committees.” [p. 483]
• Informal discussion of a subject is permitted while no
motion is pending [p. 470]
• Members are not required to obtain the floor before
making motions or speaking [p. 470]
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American Chemical Society
Chair’s Role in Committees
• Roberts: Chair “not only has the right to make
and debate motions, but he is usually the most
active participant in the discussion and work of
the committee” [p. 483]
• ACS Practice: Chairs vote, but exercise caution
in expressing strong views or speaking too
often.
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American Chemical Society
Mistake? −Motion to Reconsider
• Purpose
– “correction of hasty, illadvised, or erroneous
action”
• Characteristics
– Timing (any time in
committees)
– Who can move?
– Must be seconded
– New info/changed
circumstances
– Debatable (if…)
– Effect of adoption
(back to square one)
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American Chemical Society
Questions?
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American Chemical Society