Policies & Procedures - 5.3 Online Content Board

- approved 2002, updated 7/08, updated 3/10 -

Purpose

The Online Content Board is responsible for establishing policies and setting strategic directions for the services offered to Society members via electronic/online processes. To the extent that non-member professionals can be viewed as potential Society members, or that their needs should be understood in maintaining current and formulating new society services, they, too, will be considered.

Organizational Structure

• The Director for Online Content (Chair)
• One representative from Technical Activities Council (TAC)
• One representative from Member Relations Council (MRC)
• One representative from Conference Development Board
• One representative from Conference Operations Board
• One representative from Journals Board
• One representative from Magazines Board
• One representative from Education Board
• The CIO of ComSoc
• Up to three members at large.

The representatives from TAC, MRC, and various boards are appointed by the Online Content Board Chair upon recommendation of the Councils and Board respective Chairs. The members-at-large of the Board are appointed to their position by the Chair, drawing upon a field of candidates from the membership at large, with special attention given to individuals who have previously served in related capacities. Members of the Board shall serve a nominal two-year term, renewable for 1 or 2 additional years, based on mutual agreement of the Director of Online Content and the Vice President for Publications. In the event that a position on the Board is vacated before the full two-year or three-year term is completed, the Director of Online Content shall appoint a successor to complete the partial term and to serve an additional traditional (two-year or three-year) term.  A term on the Board concludes either by natural expiration, or by an invitation to resign issued by the Director of Online Content.

Activities

Duties of the Online Content Board include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Focusing on and determining the technological needs of the Society, both present and future.
• Investigating web and database technologies and communications-based systems with a goal toward increasing membership, improving staff support, and facilitating the core Society businesses of publications and meetings and conferences.
• Initiating and offering online content in support of or as enhancements to:
  • Technical Committee activities
  • New online services
  • Existing publications, conference and educational product
• Providing strategies, policies and procedures for online content oversight, including integration across TC activities, new Online services and existing product.

Suggestions can be 'generated' by anyone - from anywhere. To facilitate follow-through, the Director or a member of his/her Board will assume leadership for specific projects. Whenever possible, target dates will be set, and the responsible individual will prepare periodic 'update reports' to the Vice President and Director (if appropriate). As needed, progress will be reported at BoG or OpCom meetings. When necessary, the Vice President shall ask the Director or members of his/her Board to provide informal input to the Management Retreat. To successfully fulfill its goals, the Director and the Board must work with and keep headquarters staff informed of its activities; particularly, the Information Services Manager and Executive Director. Each report prepared by members for Board of Governors meetings will be copied to headquarters staff.

The above items represent the ongoing responsibilities of the Online Content Board defined on the date of this document. In addition to these on-going responsibilities, a number of additional activities are typically identified in the course of day-to-day operations of the Communications Society. These often require the establishment of ad-hoc committees and/or working groups. The Director of Online Content will maintain a close working relationship with the Vice President of Publications to insure that all such requirements are properly handled as they are identified.