Found at: http://www.competitiveness.org/article/articleprint/861/-1/1/
It has become increasingly apparent that the Governance of TCI has shown a number of weaknesses in terms of renewal and continuity.
In order to address this situation the Board of Director (BoD) proposes changes to the structure and conditions for the Governance of TCI. Some of these changes would affect the TCI bylaws and will therefore require approval by the General Assembly at Portland on October 12.
Therefore we would like to inform you already before the General Assembly about the proposed changes that will be voted in the meeting.
The following is the part in the bylaws concerning the BoD:
"[The role of].. the Board of Directors (BoD) is to govern, administer and represent the association. Following the bylaws the BoD consists of the President, two Vice-presidents, the Secretary, the Treasurer and an unlimited number of Directors. No member of the Board can hold more than one position, and no more than one third of the Board members can be nationals from the same country. They are elected by the General Assembly.
The BoD members are elected for a period of 6 years. The President will remain in charge for 2 years while future and former President will be appointed as Vice-Chairman for a two-year period each."
You can download the full bylaws here.
The proposed structure would be very similar to the current one, but offer more continuity and flexibility.
With the proposed changes, the BoD would consist of a President, a Treasurer, a Secretary, an Immediate Past President and Directors. The position of Vice-Presidents will be eliminated. All members of the Board will be eligible for Presidency, voted for by the General Assembly for a two year period. After serving for two years, the President would remain on the Board as Immediate Past President.
All members of the Board would be elected by the General Assembly for a period of three years (instead of six) with possibilities to renew. Each Member of the Board would be required to have a minimum of two years of uninterrupted TCI membership immediately prior to election.
The main difference with the proposed system compared to the existing one is that the position of Vice President is removed, and there will be the possibility for all Board members to become President. This would eliminate the necessity of deciding on future Presidents several years in advance. It would also accelerate rotation and offer more flexibility.
TCI is currently organized in three regions: Asia Pacific; Europe, Middle East & Africa; and the Americas. It is now proposed to break this down further into six regions: Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America, North America and Oceania. Each of these regions will have a TCI Commissioner; the focus for these TCI Commissioners will be the development of activities within their region. Other TCI Commissioners may be appointed by the Board, again with specific responsibilities. This proposal has no implications for the current bylaws.
Changes necessary in the bylaws:
Implementing this proposal will require the following changes to the TCI bylaws.
Article 14
Current version
1. The Board of Directors (BoD) shall govern, administer and represent the association and shall consist of the President, two Vice-presidents, the Secretary, the Treasurer and the Members of the Committee. These positions must be held by different people, and no more than one third of the Board members can be nationals from the same country.
2. The BoD members are elected for a period of 6 years. The President will remain in charge for 2 years while future and former President will be appointed as Vice-Chairman for a two-year period each.
Proposed new version
1. The Board of Directors shall govern, administer and represent the association and shall consist of the President, the Secretary, the Treasurer, the Immediate Past President and the Directors. These positions must be held by different people, and no more than one third of the Board members can be nationals from the same country.
2. The election of the members of the Board of Directors, who must have held TCI associate membership for a minimum of two years immediately prior to nomination, shall be carried out by vote at the General Assembly. Those elected shall take up their position after accepting the responsibility.
Article 15
Current version
The Board of Directors will be organised on a rotating system in which the Chairman and the other members of the Board will remain in charge for 6 years. The Chairman will remain in charge for 2 years and, and future and former Chairman of the Board will be automatically appointed as Vice-Chairman for a two year period each.
Proposed new version
The members of the Board of Directors will be elected for a period of 3 years with the possibility of extension to this term. (With the exception of a transition period in 2007*,) The President will be elected from amongst those members of the Board of Directors, who have been on the Board for at least one year. The President will remain in position for a period of 2 years and will continue afterwards for one year on the Board as Immediate Past President.
Elimination of the Vice Chairmen
Article 11
Current version
3. The meetings of the General Assembly shall be presided over by the Chairman of the association. In his/her absence, the chair shall be taken successively by the Vice-Chairman or the senior member of the Board. The Secretary shall be that person with the same position in the Board of
Directors.
Proposed new version
3. The meetings of the General Assembly shall be presided over by the Chairman of the association. In his/her absence, the chair shall be taken successively the senior member of the Board. The Secretary shall be that person with the same position in the Board of Directors.
Article 21
Current version
2. The Chairman is replaced in cases of absence or illness by the Vice-Chairman or the most senior member of the Board, in this order.
Proposed new version
2. The Chairman is replaced in cases of absence or illness by the most senior member of the Board.
*Transition period until next year.