HUMAN RESOURCES ASSOCIATION – GREATER CONCORD, NH PROGRAM YEAR 2003-2004 BOARD MEETING MINUTES – APRIL 7, 2004 THE CONCORD MONITOR     Board Members Present:   Maria Manus Painchaud, Peg Flint, Doug Chamberlain, Gayle Troy, Anna-Marie Sparks, Deb Laushine, Sandra Platt, Paul Wilson, Jen Iacopino.    Board Members Absent:   Angela Finney, Tracie Wajer, Kim Saucier   Committee Members Present:   Kim Freese and Sue Lang               In the absence of the President, the Vice President of the Association, Sandy Platt, called the meeting to order at 2:35 p.m.   March 3, 2004 Board Meeting Minutes               Upon motion made by Doug and seconded by Maria, the minutes of the March 3, 2004 Board meeting were accepted as submitted.   Treasurer’s Report               Peg Flint delivered the Treasurer’s Report, noting that while during the month of March expenses exceeded revenues, more than $20,000 remains in the Association’s bank account.  Peg noted significant expenditures for program scholarships, and that additional scholarships had already been approved by the Board.  The only item of extraordinary income was $435 from SHRM.  Expenses in connection with the March program totaled $1,860, resulting in a loss of almost $500 due to lower registration than in past years. Peg noted that no non-members had attended the March meeting, which was unusual.  Finally, Peg reported that she had conveyed the Board’s decision to accept Ms. Flanders’ audit proposal, with work to begin after the close of the current program year.  Upon motion duly made by Peg and seconded by Gayle, the Treasurer’s Report was accepted as submitted.       Membership               Jen presented one new candidate for membership: Melissa Milione, the Human Resource Director at JSA Architects, for approval as a professional member.  Upon motion made by Jen and seconded by Gayle, the Board approved this candidate’s application for membership.               Peg raised a question as to the dues that should be charged members who join the Association at mid-year.  The former policy had been to charge the full dues amount and carry over the new membership into the following program year.  Gayle noted that Article II, Section 9 of the Association Bylaws provides that “reduced membership fees are available from March 1 through June 30 of each fiscal year.”  However, it has been the practice of the Association during the current program year to prorate dues for new members after January 1.  [Following the meeting, the Secretary was unable to find any relevant reference to this policy in the Association’s minutes.]  It was suggested that for the remainder of the 2003-2004 program year all new members be charged 50% of the annual dues, noting that at some point, for new members entering the Association very late in the program year it will be preferable for them simply to pay the non-member program fees and join the Association at the start of the 2004-2005 program year.  It was suggested that this policy, as well as dues and program fees for the 2004-2005 program year, be placed on the agenda for discussion at the May Board meeting.  Finally, Jen noted that additional members would be presented for Board consideration via e-mail.       [Subsequent to the meeting, on April 12-13, upon motion duly made by Jen and seconded by Gayle, the Board by e-mail unanimously approved the application of Nancy Bourassa of APTAM Plastics as an associate member for the balance of the 2003-2004 program year.]    Program               Deb Laushine briefly discussed the scheduling problems that have arisen with respect to the April meeting, noting that this would be a breakfast program, and not a luncheon program as previously announced.  Fortunately, the speakers and sponsor were able to adjust to the change.  The May meeting will be a breakfast program with Keith Greene, and the June meeting will feature a luncheon program with Jim Reidy.  It was noted that the Association would need to reimburse Mr. Greene for his airfare, hotel and auto expenses.  It was suggested that the meeting schedule for the 2004-2005 program year be discussed at the May Board meeting, along with program topics for at least the fall of 2004.  In particular, planning must begin for the joint meeting with MAHRA for September 2004, to be hosted by the Association.  Gayle noted that our programs require speakers who are both entertaining and informative, indicating that she had information concerning a number of possible speakers that she would be happy to share with Deb Laushine.  For the May meeting, Anna-Marie will be handling the evaluation forms, and the purchase of gift books by Sue Lang was also arranged.  Finally, Sandy distributed the evaluations for the March meeting, which were generally very positive.             Certification               Gayle posed a question of Maria as to whether a certain course would qualify for HRCI strategic credit.  Maria indicated that she would inquire concerning this matter.   Sponsorship               Paul Wilson reported that the Rowley Agency would be the sponsor for the April meeting, Jobs New Hampshire in May, and Wilson Employment Network in June.  Paul noted that he was happy to report that a recent World at Work graduate had been placed by Wilson Employment Network, and indicated that this accomplishment should be publicized.  Paul also noted that he already received two inquiries concerning sponsorships for the 2004-2005 program year, and another Board member noted that a third inquiry had been received.  Scheduling and costs of sponsorships for the upcoming program year should be discussed at the May Board meeting.                Website   In the absence of Kim Saucier, Sandy reported that the current website maintenance arrangement with the Concord Monitor had been extended through June, and that Dan Troy had offered to maintain the website without charge on a temporary basis.  The Board expressed gratitude for Mr. Troy’s offer but the consensus was that he should be compensated for his efforts.  It was suggested that the May Board agenda include discussion of the future of the website, as it was noted that Kim would in all likelihood be leaving the Board after the June meeting.  Doug suggested that the website should become the responsibility of the newly-established Marketing/Public Relations Committee.   Recognition               Anna-Marie noted that at the April meeting she would be distributing some recognition certificates and possibly welcoming one to three new members who may be in attendance.  Gayle suggested that this would be a good opportunity to ask the new members to tell the group something about themselves.  In more general terms it was suggested that the May Board meeting included discussion of ways in which the recognition process could be used to encourage members to connect more with each other and with the Association as a whole, perhaps in the context of a more formalized mentor or “buddy” program.   Student Liaison               In the absence of Lori Shackford, no report was submitted on this subject.   By-Laws               Gayle noted that some changes to the Bylaws will be needed in order to implement certain recommendations of the Leadership Development Task Force.  She noted that amending the Bylaws was a relatively difficult process, but that a complete revision of the Bylaws, such as was undertaken a few years ago, should not be required.              Supervisor Training Program               In the absence of Laurie Methven a brief outline of the first program module, dealing with employee performance and discipline issues, was distributed and briefly discussed.  This is intended as a three to four hour program.  It was the sense of the Board that before a decision could be taken to move forward it would be necessary to review outlines of the remaining modules and reach some preliminary conclusions as to when, how and by whom each module would be taught.  It was agreed that a special Board meeting may be required to review and approve the implementation of this program.  Sandy indicated that she would e-mail Laurie concerning the Board’s decision.        Brochure               It was noted that there had been little progress on this project of late.  Gayle suggested that the brochure should become a priority so that it can be distributed prior to the 2004-2005 program year, i.e., within the next two months.  This topic will be discussed at the May Board meeting.   Leadership Development Committee               Maria asked if there were any changes to the proposed job descriptions previously distributed.  Some minor changes were noted.  Maria indicated the next task would be to develop job descriptions for the various committees and to confer with Sandy as incoming President concerning the nomination process.  It was noted that the preferable procedure would be to solicit nominations for officers and Board members at the April program and to announce the nominations by e-mail and at the May meeting, with the annual election to take place at the June meeting.  The membership should be asked to provide nominations within one week following the April meeting.  In addition, an e-mail message soliciting nominations will be sent to the membership and a handout will be placed on each table at the April meeting.  Maria will send an e-mail soliciting nominations to Deb for distribution to the membership, Jen will e-mail Deb updated membership information for this purpose.  The proposed communication plan for the Association prepared by Maria’s students at SNHU will also be distributed by e-mail by Sandy in advance of the May Board meeting.    Upon motion made by Gayle and seconded by Doug, the Board voted that for purposes of the Association elections for the 2004-2005 program year, the Leadership Development Committee created by the Board at its March 3, 2004 meeting shall constitute the Nominating Committee, pursuant to Article IV, Section 3 of the Bylaws.               There followed a discussion of the May Board meeting, which will begin with a working lunch at noon on Wednesday, May 12 at the Concord Monitor and continue throughout the afternoon as needed.  Routine Association business (minutes, Treasurer’s Report, etc.) will be confined to fifteen minutes, and Board members were asked to e-mail routine business matters to Doug for possible disposition via e-mail prior to the meeting.  Maria and the Leadership Development Committee will produce the agenda for the bulk of the meeting, which is intended to deal with strategies for the 2004-2005 program year, including committee and Board structure, establishing program fees and membership dues, membership development strategy, recognition policies and the nurturing of members, communications, and public relations, and possible Bylaws changes, with a view to setting priorities and establishing action steps for the upcoming program year.  It was also suggested that the Board might begin to assemble an annual master calendar for planning purposes.  Maria and Sandy will consult on the agenda for the May Board meeting and e-mail copies to all Board members in advance of the meeting.               There being further business to come before the meeting, upon motion duly made and seconded the meeting was adjourned at 3:58 p.m.              THE NEXT BOARD MEETING WILL BE HELD AT NOON ON WEDNESDAY, MAY 12, 2004 AT THE CONCORD MONITOR.   Respectfully submitted,       Douglas R. Chamberlain, Secretary   DRC/sy                                                                                                                           K:\FILES\Human Resources Assoc -GC\Board Minutes\Board Minutes 4-7-04.doc