Getting things done

Understanding the Flow of Ideas.How to ensure that ideas actually happen (and happen well).How to have successful Chapter Meetings.How to use Robert’s Rules to maintain order.How to get stuff done both inside and outside of Chapter Meetings.

•Your Sergeant-at-Arms is sweating...•Roll call takes an hour-and-a-half...•Members stop raising their hands…•Members start getting sassy or start

cursing…•You have so much old business, you

never get to new business...•The president beats themselves into

unconsciousness with their gavel...

You Know Your Meetings Are Out of Control When...

•Learn how to get the most out of your meetings in an efficient manner

•Understand how ideas should flow into (and out of) your meetings

•Get the basics of Robert’s Rules to facilitate the process

•Synchronize EVERY member so that productivity is a second language not an overwhelming source of stress

Today’s Goals

• Introduction

•Purpose of a Chapter Meeting

•Committees: The Fast Way to a Faster Meeting

• Idea Flow: Making an idea actually happen

•How to make Chapter Meetings successful

• Introduction to Robert’s Rules• Types of Motions

• Rank of Motions

• Voting Procedures

• Random Rules

•Closing and Q&A

Agenda

•What isn’t the purpose of a meeting?•Determining who can yell the

loudest...•Quoting the CONSTITUTION and

BYLAWS based on what you sort of remember them saying...

•Catching up with friends you haven’t seen all week…

•To be the only way that members can contribute to the chapter…

Purpose of a Chapter Meeting

•Get the business of the Chapter done:• Make important and already-researched decisions• Indicate support for committee recommendations

(or not)

•Provide a forum for members to discuss:• Concerns• Serious issues

•Handle those decisions which, by our rules, must be made in the Chapter Meeting:• Officer elections• Committee formation/changes• Pledge chat and membership status

Purpose of a Chapter Meeting

•Proper flow of ideas into and out of each meeting

•Structured agenda based on the Constitution and Ritual

•Use of Robert’s Rules to enforce the agenda and order

How Do We Make Our Meetings

Effective?

•Chapter meetings are where decisions are made...

•But chapter meetings are not the place where the majority of the debate and discussion happen.

•How?•One word: Committees.

The Thing Is...

•New ideas (in the form of SMARTER Goal Sheets) should go to the relevant committee

•Allows the committee to review and make recommendations

•Means that an idea brought up for a vote in Chapter is not ‘new’ to most people

•Proper idea flow through minimizes debate in the chapter meetings

The Value of Committees

Idea FlowSend form to appropriate

CommitteeCommittee checks that the idea is consistent with the goals of

the Committee/Fraternity and add/revise anything prudent

Department Chairperson sends to Executive Council for approval

(or sent back one step for revision)

If approved, the idea is proposed during a Chapter Meeting

This means debate

and discussion

will be minimal.

This means debate

and discussion

will be minimal.

By the time the idea reaches

the chapter,20+ people

will have seen it.

By the time the idea reaches

the chapter,20+ people

will have seen it.

A member comes up with an idea for an event or program

They fill out a SMARTER Goals Form

IDEA HAPPENS! Productivity is achieved!

Afterwards: Committee Chairperson evaluates the event and puts all research and materials in Officer Binder so event can

be repeated by their successor

Committee Chairperson brings up during Department Meeting

(or sent back one step for revision)

Once Approved:-Programming adds to Master Schedule and sets deadlines for

preparation-Public Relation sets to-do list items and deadlines for idea

advertisements-Committee Chairperson held accountable by respective

Department Head

Making sure approved ideas

happen

• Department Chairpersons (Executive Council Members) make and update weekly to-do lists for each Committee during regular Department meetings.

• Committees and their Chairpersons are kept accountable

• Department Chairpersons determine and enforce deadlines (for each step in the preparation/planning of the event/program)

• For events/programs that require inter-committee participation (working with Marketing Committee, Treasurer, Design, etc.) Executive Council Members synchronize the to-do lists of all members within a project during weekly Executive Council meetings to ensure successful collaboration.

• Ensure committees share the status of their to-lists during their Officer Reports during Chapter Meetings so that the Chapter also keeps them accountable and so members can be given the opportunity to help if there’s a reported obstacle.

• Executive Council Members are responsible for their Department’s efficiency and accountability and must know the status of every project so that they can prevent it from being stuck or overlooked.

(and happen well)

•How do we get through a Chapter Meeting without it taking forever?

So we have our ideas, but...

•Everyone should be clear that the meeting is for Chapter Business and not social

•Make sure everyone understands and uses Robert’s Rules of Order

• If anyone has a big report, have them communicate that prior to the meeting

•Enforce that everyone is to speak with purpose, civility, and respect for every member. Keep the emotion out of the business.

•Memorize the Chapter Meeting Ritual•Limit the meeting to 1 hour (no more than 1½)•Follow the Agenda from the Constitution/Ritual…•

How to make Chapter Meetings

successful

I. Opening (Ritual)

II. Roll Call

III. Reports of the officers

IV. Reports of standing committees

V. Reports of special committees

VI. Unfinished Business

VII. New Business

VIII.Communications

IX. Proposals for membership

X. Balloting on candidates

XI. Chapter Advisor’s Report

XII. Remarks for the good of the chapter

XIII.Chaplain gives words of inspiration

XIV.Closing (Ritual)

Agenda

•How do we stick to them, and keep the meeting orderly?

•Options:1. Use of extreme levels of physical

force2. Hold meetings while people are

sleeping (quorum issues)3. Use Robert’s Rules

Agendas are great, but...

•First thing’s first: Who the heck is Robert?

• Henry Robert, an engineer, crafted a small book of rules to bring simplified parliamentary procedure to non-legislative organizations in 1876

• Essentially unchanged ever since

•Designed to help, not hinder, decision making

•According to Robert, “The assembly meets to transact business, not to have members exploit their knowledge of parliamentary law.”

Robert’s Rules

•The rights of the organization supersede

the rights of individual members

•All members and their rights are equal

•A quorum must be present to do

business

•The majority rules

•Silence is consent

•Two-thirds vote rule

The Basic Rules

•Debatable motions must receive full

debate

•Once a question has been decided, it

is out of order to bring it up again

during that same meeting

•Personal remarks in a debate are

always out of order

•The presiding officer’s role should

always be respected

The Basic Rules

•Be on time and start on time

•Be organized and prepared

•Take control of the floor

•Be impartial

•Be precise

•Be focused

The Presiding Officer

•Use “vote by acclamation”

•Refer to a committee or entertain a motion to do so

•Assist in phrasing of a motion

•Restate the motion periodically

•Allow motions to be withdrawn

•Stop dilatory tactics

Expediting Business

•Main

•Secondary•Subsidiary

•Privileged

•Incidental

Types of Motions

1. A member requests the floor (Raises hand)

2. The floor is assigned (Chair calls on them)3. The motion is made and seconded (“I

move that”, “Second”)4. The Chair states the motion5. Debate is held (member that made

motion speaks first)6. The Chair puts the motion to a vote (or

some calls for the question)7. The Chair announces the results

Making and Acting on a Motion

•Main Motions...

• Require a second (except for committees)

• Must be debated.

• Can be amended

• Require a majority vote (in most cases)

•Other Points...

• The chair can require long motions be submitted in writing

• The maker of a motion has the first right to speak on it during a debate

• A member can vote against his or her own motion but cannot speak against it

Important Points

Important Points• Other points continued…

• A member can vote against his or her own motion but cannot speak against it.

• A member can modify his or her own motion before it is stated by the Chair. He or she can also offer an amendment after their motion has been stated by the Chair.

• A member can withdrawal his or her motion up to the time it has been stated by the Chair, and after that he or she must have permission of the group.

•Always rule as “out of order” motions that...

•conflict with the law, the Constitution, the Bylaws, University/College policies

•repeat of the same question on the same day

•conflict with an already adopted motion

•appear dilatory, rude, or frivolous

Out of Order

Call the Question(call for the vote)

Subsidiary Motions and “Rank”

Limit Debate

Postponeto a specific time

Commitor Refer

Amend

A Main Motion

Subsidiary MotionsTwo other motions

•Postpone indefinitely – Lowest ranking

•Can kill a motion, but is used to test the strength of the motion.

•Lay on the table – Highest ranking

•Should be used as a courtesy to set aside a question for a period of time.

• If it’s used kill or avoid a motion, it is out of order.

• Amendments can:• Add words or phrases (or delete them)• Replace words or phrases

• Amendments must relate to the motion

• Process:• Amendment is made and seconded• Debate is held• Question is put to a vote

• Remember: • Multiple motions may be on the floor but only

one question.• Passage of an amendment does not pass the

underlying motion

Amending a Motion

•It is possible to amend an amendment

•Same process for approving the amendment

•Approval of the amendment to the amendment changes the amendment but does not pass the amendment or the underlying motion

•Confused yet?

•Can you amend an amendment to an amendment?

Amending an Amendment

NO

•Question of privilege

•Recess

•Adjourn

Privileged Motions

•Point of Order

•Appeal

•Point of Inquiry

•Division

Incidental Motions

Restorative MotionAllow a group to change its mind

• Rescind

• Out of order if an action has happened due to a vote.

• Needs to be seconded.

• 2/3 to pass unless communicated in the previous meeting.

• Reconsider

• Only a person who voted in the majority can make the motion.

• It has a time limit of the same day

Voting

Types of voting

•Majority

•Super majority

•Plurality

Voting Methods of Voting

•Rising Vote – Eyes closed, show of hands

•Vote by acclamation – voice vote “aye” or “nay”

•Ballot vote

•General Consent

•Proxy vote

•Mail vote

•Electronic Vote

What if there’s a tie? What should the chair do?

Electronic Meetings

•Not based on Robert’s Rules.

•Your Bylaws must state electronic meetings/voting can occur.

•Nobody may speak twice until all have been given a chance to debate.

Email Voting

•Virtually every state has ruled that email meetings are not valid.

•Robert’s Rules of Order states that simultaneous deliberation is essential to holding an effective meeting.

•A lot of experts do not suggest using email for meetings or voting.

•Effective chapter meetings are short, efficient, and get things done without debate or controversy.

•The use of committees, a detailed agenda, and Robert’s Rules can help make your meetings more effective.

•No meeting will ever run completely by the book, but the closer you get, the better off you’ll be...

Conclusions

Thanks for your attention!

Q & A