For many organisations, the role of Management Committee members is implicitly understood rather than having been written down and agreed. However, your Management Committee members will operate more effectively if there is a clear, written outline of their purpose and role.
Management Committees operate most effectively when their members come with different skills, knowledge, backgrounds and experiences. This variety helps the Committee meet its many responsibilities and contributes to the dynamics and creative energy within the group.
Office Bearers can be recruited using similar methods as are used for Management Committee Members, but specific guidelines will exist for how your organisation elects Officers.
In order to ensure fair and consistent practice that is in line with your governing document, it is important to consider what procedures you will use in recruitment and selection for Management Committee membership.
Your group/organisation’s governing document (e.g. constitution) sets down rules and guidelines that should be followed in the recruitment and selection of your Management Committee members.
In order to plan effectively for your Management Committee recruitment, there are key things you need to know. These are relevant regardless of the size of your organisation.
Organisations enter into various contractual agreements whilst carrying out their business. The Management Committee is responsible for ensuring that any terms and conditions within these contracts are reasonable when the contract is signed and complied with. They also need to be aware of the potential consequences of failing to meet their contractual obligations.
The Management Committee is responsible for ensuring that the group or organisation has adequate insurance cover. If your organisation employs staff or owns property, it is required by law to have insurance.
Management Committee members are expected to ensure that their responsibilities and those of the organisation are carried out with due care. This duty of care may be breached through individual action (or failure to act) by management committee members, staff or volunteers, or through the activities of the wider organisation.
If your organisation processes and retains personal information regarding individuals, then you need to be aware of what you should be doing to protect that information. As the ‘employer’, you are ultimately responsible under the Data Protection Act 1998 and need to ensure that your organisation’s practices, where necessary, are compliant.