The role of the VPs
During the Review, there was a feeling that - apart from being Chair of the Awards Committee, which is obviously a huge job - the VP role is not clearly defined, and doesn't seem to line up with the title "Vice President". The VPs are not Officers, and rarely stand in for the President.
The Steering Group asked for feedback from current and past VPs and discussed this topic. Their recommendation is at the bottom of this page.
Themes from the feedback
- There was strong feedback that the term "Vice President" did not describe the role - and one person raised a concern that people might be put off applying, because they might feel that the role was only suitable for very senior people.
- There was strong feedback that the Awards Committee involvement was quite enough work for any VP - it would be difficult to load on any significant extra work
- There was also feedback that the two-year term felt slightly odd, compared to other members of Council having three or five.
Recommendation from the Steering Group
The Steering Group noted all this feedback, agreed that the Awards Committee role was very demanding, and also noted that the correct allocation of Awards was vitally important to the Society.
They propose the following amendments to how the VP post works:
- The VP term of office should be changed from two years to three years
- The first year would be, as normal, "understudying" the Chair of the relevant Awards Committee. The second two years would be Chairing the Awards Committee (ie not just one year as Chair and then step down)
- The outgoing VP could stay sitting on the Awards Committee for the middle year of the incoming VP's term (to keep the Awards Committee numbers steady) - but only if they wanted to, of course. If the current VPs don't want to do three years, that's fine - the three-year term could start after they finish
- The VPs could also be asked to contribute to work on External Honours, if they had time.
On the name, the Steering Group agreed that it didn't really line up with the role, especially as VPs aren't Officers. Perhaps they could just be called "Chairs of the Awards Committees" rather than VPs? They would still be Councillors, of course. This is not a hugely important point.
Any feedback?
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