June 2020 Governance Update
May, 2020
The Board of Directors met on May 20, 2020 via video conference. In attendance were Clara Chu (President-Elect); Brian Detlor (President-Elect); Elaine Toms (Past President); Ina Fourie (Treasurer); Emily Knox; Agnes Mainka; Soo Young Rieh; Ana Maria Tammaro; Jim Andrews (SIG Cabinet Director); Michael Olsson (Chapter Cabinet Director); Lydia Middleton (Executive Director); and Steve Hardin (Parliamentarian).
Consent Agenda
The consent agenda, which was approved included the following:
- Draft Minutes of 15 April 2020 Board Meeting
- Draft Minutes of 7 May 2020 Exec Com Mtg
- 2020 Financial Statement
- April 2020 Membership Report
- ED Report
- Governance Committee Report
- JASIST Publisher’s Report for 2019
President’s Update
ASIS&T President Clara Chu reported on the following items:
- The iFederation met and has agreed to move forward with a Memorandum of Understanding
- The Annual Meeting planning is moving forward. A keynote speaker should be confirmed soon
- The Board will review the FY21 Budget at the June meeting
SIG Cabinet Update
Jim Andrews reported the following:
- The Cabinet will meet the week of May 25
- Information on the Uncommons will be shared with SIGs in early June
- We are ready to begin the Annual Report/Award nomination process
Chapter Assembly Update
Michael Olsson reported the following:
- There is much action around forming an Africa Chapter led by Abebe Rorissa
- The AP Chapter Conference is coming together and the organizers have finalized a budget
President-Elect and Strategic Plan Update
Brian Detlor reported that Jim Jansen has agreed to serve as Chair of the Annual Meeting Program Committee.
Brian then reviewed the process of arriving at Version 7.0 of the Strategic Plan. He reviewed those changes made in response to feedback from the D&I Task Force as well as incorporating the recommendations from Clara Chu and her advisory committee. He reported that the Strategic Planning Task Force took all input into account and Version 7.0 has been approved by the SPTF. Brian reported that once accepted by the Board, the plan would be shared with the membership with feedback requested in 6 weeks. The plan will also be shared directly with ASIS&T’s component groups (SIGs, Chapters and Committees) requesting their collaborative feedback. A few minor edits were recommended to ensure consistency of language.
Motion: To accept Version 7.0 of the Strategic Plan with the minor edits recommended. The motion passed unanimously.
Revised Bylaws
Lydia Middleton presented the revised bylaws proposed by the Governance Committee. The Board requested that the role of the SIG and Chapter Liaison be specified so that it is clear that these Board members will have these specific roles when elected. Subsequent to the meeting, revised language was shared with the Board and approved for distribution to the membership.
June, 2020
The Board of Directors met on June 17, 2020 via video conference. In attendance were Clara Chu (President-Elect); Brian Detlor (President-Elect); Elaine Toms (Past President); Ina Fourie (Treasurer); Emily Knox; Agnes Mainka; Soo Young Rieh; Ana Maria Tammaro; Jim Andrews (SIG Cabinet Director); Michael Olsson (Chapter Cabinet Director); Lydia Middleton (Executive Director); and Steve Hardin (Parliamentarian).
Consent Agenda
The consent agenda, which was approved included the following:
- Draft Minutes of 20 May 2020 Board Meeting
- May 2020 Financial Statement
- May 2020 Merrill Lynch Investment Report
- May 2020 Membership Report
- ED Report
President’s Update
ASIS&T President Clara Chu reported on the following items:
- She would like to schedule Board meetings for the remainder of the year at 2 hours
- ASIS&T Hour (June 17) will be hosted by the History Committee
- The Keynote Speaker for AM20 will be Manuel Castells
President-Elect Update
Brian Detlor reported that the theme of the 2021 Annual Meeting will be: Information: Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Justice, and Relevance. He further reported that Jim Jansen, Program Committee Chair, intends to put out an open call for volunteers for his Program Committee. This call will include a call for a Communications Chair and Conference Chair Assistants.
SIG Cabinet Update
Jim Andrews reported the following:
- The Cabinet will met the week of May 25
- Uptake on UnCommons sessions has been slow however there appears to be good SIG participation in the Annual Meeting
Chapter Assembly Update
Michael Olsson reported that the proposed Africa Chapter has submitted all required materials. Steve Hardin reported that he has reviewed the Bylaws.
Motion: To approve the application of the Africa Chapter. The motion approved unanimously.
FY21 Budget
Ina Fourie and Lydia Middleton presented the draft FY21 Budget. Lydia noted that this budget was developed as a worst-case scenario but that it is likely that the financial picture will be much clearer by November so we will rebudget in November once the outcome of the Annual Meeting and the state of member retention and recruitment is clearer. She noted that the income from the approved PPP loan and Montgomery County grants would be recognized in FY21 so long as all conditions are met, but that we should treat these funds as a one-time benefit.
Motion: To approve the FY21 Budget as presented. The motion was approved unanimously.
Decision-Making Process and Handling of Proposals
Elaine Toms shared her thoughts on how new ideas should be brought to the Board for action, noting that in the past the President was invited to select an aspect of the Strategic Plan on which to focus, would establish an advisory group, and often worked independently of the Board on those efforts until it was time to act on the work of the group. She informed the Board that governance best practice (as shared at the ASAE meeting that she and Lydia attended) suggests that the entire strategic plan should dictate the priorities of the Board rather than any one individual, and that new ideas should be brought to the Board within the context of the existing plan and, ideally, vetted through the Executive Committee. Elaine and Steve Hardin were asked to develop a policy on the process for consideration of new ideas from the membership or Board for the Board's consideration.
Publications Committee Report
The Board took the following actions:
Motion: To accept the Publications Committee Report. The motion passed unanimously.
Motion: To move forward with distribution of the ARIST RFP to publishers. The motion passed with one abstention.
The Board then discussed the committee’s proposal around Information Matters. There was consensus that this idea was worth pursuing and asked that the Publications Committee establish a task force or subcommittee to further flesh out a proposal and budget.