Ann Macfarlane
As we head into the Fourth of July holiday, I would like to thank all my readers who are involved in local government. Whether you are serving on a city or county council, a school board, a utility district, an arts commission, a library board, or as staff, you are doing quiet work that is…
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Updated July 14, 2021 The different rules for small boards are one of the best-kept secrets of Robert’s Rules of Order. If you serve on a small board (up to about 12 people) you may benefit from the flexibility that the rules for small boards offer. Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, 12th edition says…
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Chairing a meeting requires two skills that are not easy to combine. The presider has to control the meeting, which requires strength. At the same time, he has to remain emotionally connected to the members, which requires warmth. Put too much strength into your voice, and you come across as cold and uncaring. Put too…
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Have you ever wondered whether a fill in the blank approach could be useful to your board or council? Sometimes a board of directors has to make hard choices about selling property, giving the executive director a raise, making an appointment or choosing a date to schedule an event. Robert’s Rules of Order offers an…
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Arnold Palmer passed away in October. I was interested to read in one obituary that he hated his nickname, “King of Golf.” He was quoted as saying, “There is no king of golf. Never has been, never will be. Golf is the most democratic game on earth. It punishes and exalts us all with splendid…
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After a few years in this business, it seems to me that questions of authority are some of the hardest to resolve. Over and over I find city councils, boards of directors, and other governing boards struggling with the question, “Who’s in charge here, anyway?” If a group understands certain fundamental principles, it becomes much…
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Updated May 1, 2023 Several of our clients have been startled recently to learn that they can’t vote by email. Email is so ubiquitous and useful that it seems like a natural way to make decisions. For boards, it is not. The essential nature of a board of directors is to meet, discuss and decide…
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This week a reader called me for advice about whispering and sidebar conversations. He is an officer in a small club dedicated to German shepherd dogs. At the last meeting, when a member was giving a report on research she had done, there were two separate sidebar conversations going on. I was happy to tell…
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Is it all right for you to vote to approve minutes of a meeting if you were absent? Robert’s Rules of Order gives a resounding “yes” as the answer to this question. When you vote to approve the minutes, you are expressing your confidence in the veracity of the secretary, the actions of your colleagues,…
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In the olden days, the standard way to correct meeting minutes was to request the correction at the next meeting, when the meeting minutes were up for approval. Nowadays, since meeting minutes are often circulated in advance, the question becomes a little more complicated. This article explores those complications. According to Robert’s Rules of Order…
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