Thanks, I agree that directors should have "skin in the game" as well, but a simple 12 month membership requirement would probably disqualify some people who'd be great. Martin's suggested modifications could perhaps help address this. But I still think it would need to be addressed in the constitution, and not by board-level decision.
Cheers John On Mon, 14 Sep 2020 at 09:59, Alex Leith <[email protected]> wrote: > Hey John > > I'm not sure about the 12 month qualifying period either, but I do think > that having 'skin in the game' as Adam has said many times is important. If > someone wants to be on the Board, the smallest hurdle is being a member and > having the foresight to be a member, and presumably involved, for at least > 12 months is not really a big deal. > > That said though, you are right that we cannot override the constitution > in our election process... So while we may 'define a process' in clause > 79.1, I don't think we can further constrain eligibility, as per clause 74. > > So I think we need to remove this qualifier from the election process and > refer to the constitution. > > Kind regards, > > On Mon, 14 Sep 2020 at 09:46, Martin Tomko <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Hi John, Adam, all >> >> I agree with your second point, John, that this should be covered by the >> constitution. I awas myself uneasy with the decision that the board decides >> this. >> >> >> >> I am not in agreement with the first point. I believe that we are now >> past the ”storming and forming” stage of the organisation, and our initial >> days. >> >> I believe that to stand as a director, members need to demonstrate that a >> member has been active for a period of time, in good faith. The issues OSM >> had in the last year are a testament. The organisation is now managing >> substantial funds, and carries responsibility. >> >> >> >> This could be addressed in a number of ways, in my eyes: >> >> >> >> - A candidate could have the backing of a number of members that have >> been members for at least 12 months ( I suggest 3), if the candidate >> themself were not a member for that period; >> - A backing of a SIG could be equivalent. >> >> Anyway, I do not see a problem for people to wait for 12 month before >> being nominated for a director. >> >> >> >> Martin >> >> >> >> *From: *Oceania <[email protected]> on behalf of John >> Bryant <[email protected]> >> *Date: *Sunday, 13 September 2020 at 10:38 pm >> *To: *Adam Steer <[email protected]>, "[email protected]" < >> [email protected]> >> *Subject: *Re: [OSGeo Oceania] Call for Feedback Due 23rd Sept - Board >> Election Process & Timeline >> >> >> >> Yes! We want the board to be made up of engaged and motivated people with >> the community's best interests at heart. Our community is full of people >> like this! I reckon our best bet is to articulate that vision, create the >> conditions for those people to step forward and participate, and make sure >> the members who elect the board have enough visibility into it all to make >> informed decisions. >> >> >> >> Cheers >> >> John >> >> >> >> On Sun, 13 Sep 2020, 3:48 pm Adam Steer, <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> Hey John, all >> >> >> >> That clause was aimed at preventing people whos only interest is to get >> on boards getting on the board, and has been a topic of debate. Based on >> your input about the constitution its probably a good idea to just replace >> it with ’nominees shall be nominated in accordance with clause 74 and 19.3 >> of the constitution [link]) >> >> >> >> It is worth remembering we all just kinda nominated ourselves at the >> start. >> >> >> >> Cheers >> >> >> >> Adam >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> On Sun, 13 Sep 2020 at 05:43, John Bryant <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> Hi all, >> >> >> >> Great work, and thanks for the opportunity to discuss the election >> process. I've added a couple of comments to the Google doc, but I have a >> specific concern that may need a little more room for discussion. >> >> >> >> In the proposed process, there is a section called "*Minimum term of >> membership*", which says: >> >> *To be nominated as a Director, you must have been a Member for a minimum >> of 12 months (calculated from closing date of elections). This ensures that >> potential Directors have had the opportunity to participate in OSGeo >> Oceania business, and gives the Board an opportunity to mentor those who >> would like to take up leadership positions in the future.* >> >> >> >> I think there are a couple of issues with this: >> >> >> >> *1) It's not an effective way to assess someone's capability to act as a >> director. * >> >> >> >> For example, I want to nominate Edwin Liava'a to stand in the next >> election. Edwin was a keynote speaker at last year's conference in >> Wellington, and has been a highly engaged leader in the Pacific open >> geospatial community for many years. He's volunteered on a number of >> committees that would count as OSGeo Oceania business. He's done plenty to >> prove his dedication to this community, would be an asset to the >> organisation, and would be an effective voice from the Pacific, which to >> date has been missing from the board. >> >> >> >> But (as far as I can tell) Edwin's not currently a formal member, so by >> this clause he wouldn't be qualified to serve as a director, even if he >> became a member now. >> >> >> >> My point is, there are likely many people in our community who would be >> excellent additions to the board, and the length of their membership >> doesn't seem to be a relevant measure of their potential for contribution. >> If someone has a valuable contribution to make, why would we want to put >> this up as an obstacle? >> >> >> >> *2) It may not be within the board's scope to decide who is qualified to >> serve as a future director.* >> >> >> >> Required qualifications to serve as a director are already defined in the >> constitution >> <https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kZD8pcW2efjLEY7ih3rzcWpe7X0hEG2A> >> (section 74: simply, "*Each Director must be a Member*"). >> >> >> >> Members' rights to nominate are also defined there, subject to this >> qualification (section 79.3: "*Any Member may nominate a person who is >> eligible for appointment under clause 74 to serve as a Director.*"). >> >> >> >> I'm not sure that it's appropriate to use the election process to create >> additional eligibility hurdles, it seems this might be impacting on >> members' rights. >> >> >> >> If a nomination were declared ineligible based on this section in the >> election process, could a constitutional challenge be made? If the election >> process were found to be in conflict with the constitution, could this >> potentially render the election invalid? Obviously it's a hypothetical, >> unlikely scenario, but maybe not impossible. >> >> >> >> My feeling is the election process would be better without this section. >> If there are new director eligibility requirements to add, it seems a lot >> safer to stick to using constitution amendments, which would require formal >> assent by the membership through a statutory process. >> >> >> >> Cheers >> >> John >> >> >> >> >> >> On Wed, 9 Sep 2020 at 17:58, Hamish Campbell <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >> Dear OSGeo Oceania Members, >> >> >> >> Our proposed November 2020 election process and timeline for appointing >> directors to the board requires your review and feedback. >> >> >> >> You can review and comment directly on the Google Doc >> <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1td2oDBssX_33yIFN1h0UgSvkoUa8MckZiix7nsIdmcs/edit?usp=sharing>. >> We also welcome feedback on the OSGeo Oceania mailing list by replying to >> this email. Feedback to the board must be received by midnight on >> Wednesday, September 23rd. >> >> >> >> The board will review the feedback and finalize the election process and >> timeline in early October. >> >> >> >> Thank you for your contribution! >> >> >> >> On behalf of the OSGeo Oceania Election Group >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Oceania mailing list >> [email protected] >> https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Oceania mailing list >> [email protected] >> https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Oceania mailing list >> [email protected] >> https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania >> > > > -- > Alex Leith > m: 0419189050 >
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