Committee chairs¶

Status: Draft, pre-formation. This is a generic role description for any committee chair under the bylaws. Each committee's domain-specific charter (audit, nominating, ethics, etc.) lives with the committee.

Purpose¶

A committee chair is the working leader of a board committee. The committee is the board's structured way to develop policy, vet decisions, and supervise volunteer effort in a domain. The chair makes that work happen.

Reports to¶

The Board of Directors, with day-to-day coordination through the Board Chair.

Supervises¶

Committee members
Volunteers serving within the committee's domain (per the volunteer program)

Common duties for every committee chair¶

Run the committee¶

Maintain a published charter that describes the committee's scope, deliverables, and decision rights
Set a meeting cadence (typically 6 meetings per year, with at least 4 standing meetings); convene additional meetings as needed
Set agendas and circulate materials at least 72 hours in advance
Run meetings: call to order, follow agenda, capture decisions and action items
Keep written minutes; share with the Secretary for the corporate record
Maintain quorum and document any deviations

Connect to the board¶

Attend board meetings as a non-voting attendee unless the chair is also a director
Bring committee recommendations to the board with a clear ask
Maintain the committee's section of the action register
Report at every board meeting on progress against committee deliverables
Flag to the Board Chair any issue that exceeds committee scope

Develop people¶

Recommend committee members to the Nominating & Governance committee
Onboard new committee members using the recruitment kit standards
Supervise and recognize volunteers serving within the committee's domain per the volunteer program
Identify members in the committee with potential for committee chair, officer, or director roles

Maintain governance hygiene¶

Confirm each January that all committee members have re-signed COI, Ethics, Conduct, and Whistleblower acknowledgements
Recuse appropriately on any matter where the chair has a conflict; document the recusal in the minutes
Refresh the committee's charter every two years or sooner if law or operations change

Authority and limits¶

May	May not
Run the committee within its charter	Expand the charter without board action
Recommend members to the board	Appoint them unilaterally
Supervise volunteers in the committee's domain	Ignore the volunteer program's recordkeeping and supervision requirements
Recommend policy and decisions to the board	Bind the Guild — only the board does that
Speak about committee work in public	Speak for the Guild on board-approved positions — that is the Chair's role

Time commitment¶

Typical chair time commitment is ~6–10 hours per month, heavier in the cycle peaks for that committee (e.g., audit chair around the 990; nominating chair in nomination season; events chair in the 60 days before an event).

Prerequisites¶

Active member of the Guild
Subject-matter familiarity in the committee's domain
Demonstrated governance discretion and good standing under the Code of Ethics
No active complaint pending against the chair under the ethics process

Term¶

2-year term, renewable once
Stagger renewal so no two committee chairs reach end-of-term in the same year where avoidable
Removal by board action; vacancy filled by the board on the Nominating & Governance committee's recommendation

Specific committees and where their charters live¶

The bylaws contemplate the following committees. Each committee maintains its charter at the linked location:

Committee	Charter location
Audit & Finance	(TBD) `governance/committees/audit-and-finance.md`
Nominating & Governance	(TBD) `governance/committees/nominating-and-governance.md`
Membership & Ethics	(TBD) `governance/committees/membership-and-ethics.md`
Education & Certification	(TBD) `governance/committees/education-and-certification.md`
Events	(TBD) `governance/committees/events.md`
Communications	(TBD) `governance/committees/communications.md`
Advocacy	(TBD) `governance/committees/advocacy.md`

These committee charters are on the post-formation work plan; the volunteer role catalog covers the member side of each committee in the meantime.

How chair selection and onboarding work¶

Open seat identified by the board, the outgoing chair, or the Nominating & Governance committee
Nominating & Governance recommends one or more candidates to the board
Board appoints by majority vote
Chair onboarding within 30 days, conducted by the Board Chair or a designee:
Walkthrough of the committee charter, action register, and minute book
Sign COI, Ethics, Conduct, Whistleblower acknowledgements
Introduction to current committee members and any open volunteer roles
Calendar set for the chair's term
Public announcement to members in the next regular communication