Introductory Program for New ISCA Members

Transcription

1 Introductory Program for New ISCA Members Given USA has the role to take care of and support applicant organizations and new members. Assumption 1. Having expressed a desire to join the ISCA, a potential new member has been working with the USA to understand the process of ISCA application and to prepare for its formal presentation at the upcoming ISCA Annual Conference. 2. The new member has fulfilled the demands to be eligible for some kind of membership. Analysis First and foremost it is very important to take care of new ISCA members in a proper and formal way. There are two different types of ISCA Membership: 1) Associate Membership 2) Full Membership Both types of ISCA Membership are equally important. In this study, they will be treated much the same. Rules for membership are simple and clear in the ISCA Articles of Association. It is not known how new members express an interest to join ISCA. In many cases it should have been done through any of ISCA s member organizations. 1

2 Since 2008 there has been two organizations asking for membership, Somalia and Portugal. There have been discussions about some other organizations, including Belize, but nothing has been determined. Both Somalia and Portugal sent representatives to the conferences in Sweden and in Japan. They told the conference delegates about their organizations ambitions, goals and activities. Afterwards there was a discussion and then voting. Somalia didn t got or give much documentation. But Portugal got spontaneous a lot of documentation in addition to the official ISCA Membership Application. There is nothing in ISCA Articles of Association saying that an applicant organization has to be present during the conference when its membership will voted upon but it is of course desirable. It provides the new member opportunities to learn about the other organizations and it gives the conference the opportunity to make the welcome more proper, formal and ceremonious. As told before, it is important to take care of new members in a respectable manner and make them feel welcomed. But that also means that the Chairman must have collected and distributed a comprehensive documentation as basis for decision during the conference in question. It is not a good idea to invite organizations if it is an obvious risk for a no vote. It is better to send a letter after the voting process with an explanation. An invitation should be addressed to organizations that will receive yes vote for either associate membership or full membership. The Chairman must perform another important task before the conference. He should ask if anyone of the delegates of the full members want to be a mentor to the new organization. The voting for new membership should be one of the first items on the agenda. Thus the new organization, if present, gets the opportunity to follow the conference at once. The following Introductory Program with procedures is proposed if the applicant member is present: 2

3 1) The Chairman gives one person from the host organization the task of caring for the applicant organization as a support person. 2) The applicant organization is given the opportunity to express its organization, its objectives, its missions and its activities during an early agenda item. 3) The conference delegates are given opportunities to ask questions. 4) The support person brings the applicant outside the conference room and offers refreshments. 5) The Chairman leads a discussion and the voting. 6) The new member is brought into the conference room and is given the ISCA Membership Certificate by the Chairman while all delegates are standing. 7) Applause and breakup for joint refreshments and small talks. This part is important as it will serve to make the new member feel welcomed. It wouldn t be wrong to celebrate the event with a glass of champagne or something matching. All other delegates have the possibility during the break to introduce themselves. 8) When back to the conference room, the Chairman hands over a folder containing documents as follows beneath. 9) The Chairman offers the new member organization a mentor for the coming year. It may be suitable to have one specific organization to get support from. 10) At the next common meal, the new member organization should be seen as honorary guest. Documents Most ISCA documents can be found on the website but it is an honorable gesture to hand over them in paper form during the described ceremony. Following documents should be included in the folder: - ISCA Articles of Association. - ISCA Directory. - ISCA Guide for Exchange. - ISCA Minutes from the last two years. It is always good to learn what has happened in the past. - The results from some of the different Work Groups, which have been accepted by the Conference. It gives broad information about our activities. 3

4 If no one from the applicant organization or representative is present during the conference in question, the present Chairman has to ensure that the new member organization receives the documentation via mail. That is normally done by one specially appointed delegate. If the new member isn t present at the actual conference, the following Introductory Program with procedures is proposed when attending its first conference: 1) The new member organization is given the opportunity to express its organization, its objectives, its missions and its activities during an early agenda item. 2) The conference delegates are given opportunities to ask questions. 3) The new member is given the ISCA Membership Certificate by the Chairman while all delegates are standing. 4) Applause and breakup for joint refreshments and small talks. This part is important as it will serve to make the new member feel welcomed. It wouldn t be wrong to celebrate the event with a glass of champagne or something matching. 5) At the next common meal, the new member organization should be seen as honorary guest. It is still important that the new member feel welcomed into the sphere of ISCA countries at the first possible conference. Mentoring The role of the designated mentor delegate(s) is important even though USA has a special role to serve and support applicant organizations and new members. During the first year the mentor has to explain what ISCA expects from the new member in a more informal way. The mentor should be a delegate(s) who usually attends the ISCA conferences. Following steps can serve as guidelines for a mentor delegate: - A quick contact immediately after the actual conference. - Ensure that the new member has received all relevant papers. - Maintain contact at least every three month and answer any questions. - Encourage the new member to attend the next conference. - Increase the frequency of contact when the time of the conference approaches. - Ensure that the new member feel cared for in a good way. 4

5 - Prepare to represent on specific issues if the new member can t attend the next conference. - Point out and support with the statutory annual report. - Support the new member during the first conference. It is, as mentioned before, desirable if the new member is present when being elected. If not, the mentor should try to make an introduction during the first possible welcome party. Another important thing is that mentoring should not exclude other countries from taking or having contact with the new member. 5