 At
the LTC this year there was a session for the President-Elects about
how to write the President's message for the chapter newsletter. The
session instructor recommended that we look at why we are writing
a column; hopefully because we have important things to say and not
just because the last president did. She also proposed that the column
could be either a Podium for Leadership vs. Blinky the Clown vs. Land
of the Dumb. Obviously she hoped each of us would chose to use our
column as a Podium for Leadership and she gave us some pointers for
how to do that. She suggested that we express opinions, raise challenges,
take a stand, write with personality and attitude and answer tough
questions.
So, in the vein of using this column as a podium for leadership
I wanted to address something that I'm sure all of us have thought
at one time or another. Each year, usually in February or March,
the ballot with the slate of officers and board members for the
next year goes out to the membership for vote. Have you ever opened
yours up and after reading the slate thought to yourself "Who
on earth came up with this list? I know several people much more
qualified and deserving than so-and-so." If you've been active
in the chapter for any length of time you may have even wondered,
"Why didn't I get asked? I've done much more than this person."
Well, now that I am president and all knowing, I can answer that
question, but bear with me because it's slightly complicated. Each
January the nominating committee gets together to come up with the
slate. The nominating committee is composed of the three most recent
Past Presidents, the current President and the current President-elect.
The most recent Past President chairs it. The President-elect and
Program Chairperson automatically move up into the President and
President-elect slots. The President, President-elect and Program
Chairperson must have served on the Board prior to serving as an
officer. The Treasurer and Secretary are not considered part of
the officer rotation; they are elected each year and serve a one-year
term. They are not required to have prior Board experience.
In addition to the Officers, the Board consists of eight members.
One Director is the immediate Past President; one is the President
of the Georgia Hospital Association, and the remaining six serve
two-year terms, with three terms expiring in a given year. The majority
of the Board must be composed of provider-based members. All of
this is in the Chapter Bylaws, which I'm sure each of you are intimately
familiar with.
Now comes the unwritten piece of the decision process that is passed
down to each President-elect, as they become a member of the nominating
committee.
 1. There should
not be two or more members of the Board from the same employer,
2. The Board
should be balanced between male and female,
3. The Board
such be composed primarily of people who are interested in moving
up into the officer rotation,
4. The Board
should be composed of people who have been very active on Teams
and served on and chaired a variety of committees, especially the
education related ones, so they understand how the different committees
fit together,
5. Board members
should have the support of their employer,
6. Nominees
must be interested in serving,
7. Personalities
should be considered so that the Board forms a cohesive Team, and
8. Nominees'
abilities and skills should mesh with the needs of the Board.
That's obviously a lot of different things to consider and when
you look at the size of the pool that we have to draw from, people
are sometimes inadvertently overlooked. Also, wrong assumptions
are sometimes made. I know several years back, when I switched from
Internal Audit to Materials Management, the comment was made to
me "We assumed that you weren't interested because Materials
Management isn't a traditional financial management position."
I immediately thought "Well, why didn't someone ask me?"
In retrospect, I dropped the ball. I should have told everyone on
the nominating committee that I was very interested and exactly
what my qualifications were. Each of us would certainly do that
for a paid position, so why should a volunteer position be that
different? Especially one that can benefit our careers in such a
positive manner.
So, I want to issue a challenge to you. Treat your volunteer career
like your paying career. If you are interested in moving onto the
Board, let the nominating committee members know. Look at the areas
where you have experience and where you are lacking. Do something
to fill those holes. Make sure you are qualified; serve on a different
Team next year. Don't wait for someone to approach you, be the instigator.
If you feel like you have been overlooked, find out why, ask a member
of the Nominating Committee.
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