Secretary’s Report July 98

The Spring meeting of SIOP’s Executive Committee and Committee Chairs was held April 26, 1998, immediately following the Society Conference. Some highlights of the topics discussed and the resulting decisions include:

There was considerable discussion regarding the need to more formally evaluate Conference activities. As attendance at the annual business meeting is typically limited, there is the need to develop a feedback mechanism for gathering input from the membership.

The Society remains in financial good health. Jeff McHenry is working on a proposal to change the fiscal year as the timing of the annual conference creates challenges with timely financial reporting.

The Long Range Planning Committee was charged with exploring opportunities and challenges in the Society sponsoring pro bono activities.

Irv Goldstein reported that the Foundation Committee is making significant progress in developing communication strategies to inform members of available opportunities. The Executive Committee voted to donate $100,000 to the SIOP foundation.

The Executive Committee voted to reauthorize the Professional Practice Committee as required by the Society Bylaws.

Discussion continued regarding the strategic planning initiatives that had been developed at the Winter Executive Committee meeting (see Kevin Murphy’s comments on the strategic planning initiatives in the April TIP). Katherine Klein will chair an ad hoc committee commissioned to address public policy initiatives. The Executive Committee discussed at length issues regarding visibility of the profession and the Society.

The Executive Committee voted to make the position of Society Historian permanent pending appropriate approval of the membership of the required change to the Society Bylaws.

As always, if you have a question or comment, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly (847-640-8820; email: wmacey@pra-inc.com).

Proposed Bylaws Amendments

Bill Macey, Secretary

The Executive Committee has recommended that a number of amendments to the Bylaws be enacted to reflect changes in the governance and operations of the Society. Each of these proposed changes is detailed below. For convenience, both old and new language is indicated. Language to be deleted is indicated by strikethrough characters and new language is underlined.

SIOP Bylaws call for an announcement of proposed changes at least two months prior to the actual voting (See Article IX, "Amendments"). Voting on the proposed changes will take place in the Fall of 1998. Mail ballots will be sent to all Society Members. A majority vote of those voting by mail are required to adopt any amendments.

Amendment 1: ARTICLE VI: MEETINGS

1. A business meeting of the Society ~~shall~~ may take place in conjunction with the Society’s annual conference as determined by the Executive Committee.

Rationale: Attendance at business meetings has dwindled to such a degree that it has become impractical to meet the requirements for a quorum to conduct business. Nonetheless, it is necessary to retain the possibility of calling a business meeting should the need arise.

Amendment 2: ARTICLE VII: COMMITTEES

Note: Amendments 2 and 3 both deal with Article VII: Committees. This paragraph contains changes for both amendments.

1. The standing committees of the Society shall consist of the following: Fellowship, Membership, Election, Program, Scientific Affairs, Professional Practice, Education and Training, Newsletter, Continuing Education and Workshop, Committee on Committees, Long Range Planning, State Affairs, Awards, Frontiers Series, Practice Series, ~~and~~ Society Conference, Historian, and Foundation. In addition, ad hoc committees may be established by vote of the Society Members or by the Executive Committee to perform tasks of a brief or temporary nature.

19. The Historian shall be responsible for the maintenance of the Society archives and conducting such activities as are necessary to capture, document and/or preserve the record of Society business transactions, activities, functions and events.

Rationale: The Executive Committee created the ad-hoc the position of Historian two years ago. The Executive Committee voted to continue this position on April 26, 1998. As with other committees, the Historian Committee will be subject to sunset review every 5 years.

Amendment 3: ARTICLE VII: COMMITTEES

20. The Foundation Committee shall be responsible for fund raising activities to support the scientific, professional, and educational activities of SIOP. The membership criteria and terms of office of the chair and members of the committee are specified in the Code of Regulations of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology Foundation.

Rationale: The Foundation was begun as an ad hoc committee in 1996. Given the funds it manages on a continuing basis, it should now become a standing committee.

(The changes establishing the Historian and the Foundation Committees require a re-ordering of paragraph numbers in the Bylaws. Existing Paragraphs VII.19 and 20 will be renumbered as Paragraphs 21 and 22).

Amendment 4: ARTICLE XI: FISCAL YEAR

The fiscal year of the Society shall end on ~~April~~ June 30.

Rationale: February through May are the busiest times of the financial year for the Society. We receive conference and workshop registration fees from January up through the Conference, and incur most of our Conference expenses during the month prior to the Conference and the two weeks immediately following the Conference. Because the Conference is sometimes held in April and sometimes in May, year-to-year financial comparisons are extremely difficult when the fiscal year ends April 30. Shifting the fiscal year end to June 30 will make year-to-year comparisons more straightforward.

TIP

Vol. 36/No. 1 July, 1998

July 98 Table of Contents