The deadline for members' resolutions for this year's AGM is just a week away on 26 June.
See https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/2015_Annual_General_Meeting/planning
It's generally a healthy sign when our AGM contains debate on issues of interest and concern to members - and who better to raise those issues than members themselves?
Proposing or seconding an ordinary resolution is not a difficult process and I'd expect that the office will be helpful if anyone needs help with the formalities.
AGMs can sometimes find themselves devoting sessions to merely fulfilling formalities, and the session reserved for debating members' resolutions has the potential to make the AGM more interesting for many.
Looking forward to seeing lots of you on 25 July.
On 19/06/15 16:12, rexx wrote:
AGMs can sometimes find themselves devoting sessions to merely fulfilling formalities, and the session reserved for debating members' resolutions has the potential to make the AGM more interesting for many.
Looking forward to seeing lots of you on 25 July.
-- Rexx
I thought the draft agenda was already quite heavy!
:-)
Gordo
That's odd. I thought it was remarkably light of any business that couldn't be dealt with by reading.
https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/2015_Annual_General_Meeting
I don't need to travel to London to have somebody read "Report by XYZ" to me. YMMV.
On 19/06/15 20:32, rexx wrote:
That's odd. I thought it was remarkably light of any business that couldn't be dealt with by reading.
https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/2015_Annual_General_Meeting
I don't need to travel to London to have somebody read "Report by XYZ" to me. YMMV.
I had in mind the resolutions.
https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/2015_Annual_General_Meeting/Resolutions
Gordo
The Volunteer Strategy Day is already overdue by several months. I hope that nobody is assuming that having the VSD just before the AGM excuses the AGM from trying to involve volunteers as much as possible?
'Elections to the Board' is indeed an important aspect of the AGM agenda, but postal voting means that members aren't going to turn up just for that item. I'd much rather members turned up for the AGM because they found something of interest per se, rather than just hanging on because they've been to the VSD.
Hi Doug
The AGM necessarily has to report to the members on a number of formal company matters, and we want to keep it reasonably short and focused to allow the maximum time for the volunteer strategy part of the day that precedes it. I certainly hope people will want to stay for the AGM – it’s an important part of being a member. The elections and the discussion of reports later on will provide some time for member feedback, but as a formal company meeting the AGM will always be a less ideal forum for wide-ranging discussion than our primary open channels, namely our wiki and the mailing list.
By the way, it’s also always (or almost always?) been the case that the AGM is held alongside another volunteer-based event, and as I understand it that event has always provided the bulk of the discussion and presentation time. For the VSD the aim is very much to do as little “presenting” as possible, with as much discussion as we can get.
Best
Simon
From: wikimediauk-l-bounces@lists.wikimedia.org [mailto:wikimediauk-l-bounces@lists.wikimedia.org] On Behalf Of rexx Sent: 19 June 2015 22:09 To: UK Wikimedia mailing list Subject: Re: [Wikimediauk-l] Deadline for Members' Resolutions
The Volunteer Strategy Day is already overdue by several months. I hope that nobody is assuming that having the VSD just before the AGM excuses the AGM from trying to involve volunteers as much as possible?
'Elections to the Board' is indeed an important aspect of the AGM agenda, but postal voting means that members aren't going to turn up just for that item. I'd much rather members turned up for the AGM because they found something of interest per se, rather than just hanging on because they've been to the VSD.
On 19 Jun 2015, at 21:48, Chris Keating chriskeatingwiki@gmail.com wrote:
I don't need to travel to London to have somebody read "Report by XYZ" to me. YMMV.
There is of course the volunteer strategy day prior to the AGM.
It's scheduled to take place on the same day as the AGM?
And there will be elections to the Board.
Details to come soon?
Thanks, Mike
On 19/06/2015 22:10, Michael Peel wrote:
And there will be elections to the Board.
Details to come soon?
"1 July - Formal notice of AGM sent to members by email - Include .... call for board candidates. ...."
*shrug*
KTC
On 20 June 2015 at 16:41, Katie Chan ktc@ktchan.info wrote:
"1 July - Formal notice of AGM sent to members by email - Include .... call for board candidates. ...."
The deadline for members' resolutions expires *before* they are formally notified of the event?
Hi Simon,
Yes, we seem to have tried on occasion to broaden the appeal of an AGM. I remember the 2011 AGM in Bristol where a lot of us informally held a sort of wikimeet afterwards. The 2012 AGM in at the Science Museum had some speakers before the AGM, of course, and the 2013 in Lincoln featured a strong programme of speakers as well as 30 minutes of scheduled debate with the CEO. The quality of speakers in those cases was high, but I'm not sure that an undiluted diet of listening to speakers can be viewed as a good example volunteer-centred activity.
Clearly the 2014 AGM was a different event as it was embedded in Wikimania.
But the point I'm trying to make is that participation is far more rewarding than passive listening.
The reason that member-focussed organisations, like trades unions, political parties, etc. organise their AGM as part of an annual conference is that they provide opportunities for their members to debate previous minutes and each of the reports presented, and for discussion of the actions of their officers over the preceding year. The reason why companies hold AGMs in such a way that shareholders can turn up and speak is that our system values transparency and accountability, and involving shareholders assists that significantly.
Formal company meetings do not have to be dull as dishwater; and treating that as inevitable will, I suggest, lead to few members wishing to turn up. We cannot seriously claim to be re-focussing on volunteers if we can't even claim to be doing our best to put them at the centre of our AGM.
I've yet to see elections that provided a channel for member feedback; perhaps this year will break the mold. Nevertheless don't you agree that turning discussion of the *three reports and the work of the charity* into a single item (out of 11) is likely to give the wrong impression of the value the charity places on member participation in the AGM?
On 20/06/2015 23:20, Andy Mabbett wrote:
On 20 June 2015 at 16:41, Katie Chan ktc@ktchan.info wrote:
"1 July - Formal notice of AGM sent to members by email - Include .... call for board candidates. ...."
The deadline for members' resolutions expires *before* they are formally notified of the event?
Well, you can't give a formal notice of a general meeting containing the resolutions to be considered if you don't know what the resolutions are yet.
Having said that, the planning timeline did contain: "12 June - Warning notice transmitted by email - Include deadline for resolutions", which is apparently {{done}}, except the "include deadline for resolutions" has since disappeared from the table. I am assuming Stuart's email [1] to this list (rather than explicitly to all members) stating "the same day as our AGM" is what Michael had in mind when he marked this item as done.
I also see a number of the dates have moved later than was originally on there, which is fine except the formal notice of AGM containing the proposed resolutions (by board or other members) now won't be legally given until July 3, the same day as members are supposed to proposed any amendments. Deadline for that was originally scheduled to be the same as board nominations, which has move a week to July 10. I don't see why the amendments deadline can't be moved likewise.
KTC
[1]: https://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimediauk-l/2015-June/013124.html
On 21/06/15 01:38, Katie Chan wrote:
Well, you can't give a formal notice of a general meeting containing the resolutions to be considered if you don't know what the resolutions are yet.
A moot point. Or a chicken and an egg issue?
I was not allowed to raise a motion from the floor "that the question be not put" at the 2014 AGM (with regard to a Members' Resolution). In other words, after some discussion, I wanted discussion of the item stopped and no decision being taken.
As I recall, the Chair said that no further resolutions could be taken, even this (procedural) motion.
Gordo
On 21/06/2015 10:41, Gordon Joly wrote:
On 21/06/15 01:38, Katie Chan wrote:
Well, you can't give a formal notice of a general meeting containing the resolutions to be considered if you don't know what the resolutions are yet.
A moot point. Or a chicken and an egg issue?
I was not allowed to raise a motion from the floor "that the question be not put" at the 2014 AGM (with regard to a Members' Resolution). In other words, after some discussion, I wanted discussion of the item stopped and no decision being taken.
The formal legal "notice of a general meeting of a company must state the general nature of the business to be dealt with at the meeting" and "A resolution of the members of a company is validly passed at a general meeting if (a)notice of the meeting and of the resolution is given ....".
Last year, a (non-statutory) email was sent on 27/06/2014 to all members telling them to propose any resolutions by 06/07/2014.
Regarding that resolution last year.... well, I don't think an ultra vires proposal should have ever got to the meeting, but the board wanted differently.
KTC
On 20/06/15 23:20, Andy Mabbett wrote:
On 20 June 2015 at 16:41, Katie Chan ktc@ktchan.info wrote:
"1 July - Formal notice of AGM sent to members by email - Include .... call for board candidates. ...."
The deadline for members' resolutions expires *before* they are formally notified of the event?
On 19/06/15 16:12, rexx wrote:> The deadline for members' resolutions for this year's AGM is just a week
away on 26 June.
Seems so.
Gordo
Better than I had anticipated. But that was mainly due to meeting new people there, rather than the content, per se. I was very impressed with all of the other trustee candidates and I hope we'll keep in touch with the unsuccessful ones.
What did you think of it?
On 19 Jun 2015, at 16:12, rexx rexx@blueyonder.co.uk wrote:
The deadline for members' resolutions for this year's AGM is just a week away on 26 June.
See https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/2015_Annual_General_Meeting/planning https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/2015_Annual_General_Meeting/planning
So the call for member resolutions from the Board is overdue/imminent?
Thanks, Mike
I haven't seen any notification of who has been selected by the Board to serve as Teller(s) this year - did I miss this? On 19 Jun 2015 18:17, "rexx" rexx@blueyonder.co.uk wrote:
The deadline for members' resolutions for this year's AGM is just a week away on 26 June.
See https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/2015_Annual_General_Meeting/planning
It's generally a healthy sign when our AGM contains debate on issues of interest and concern to members - and who better to raise those issues than members themselves?
Proposing or seconding an ordinary resolution is not a difficult process and I'd expect that the office will be helpful if anyone needs help with the formalities.
AGMs can sometimes find themselves devoting sessions to merely fulfilling formalities, and the session reserved for debating members' resolutions has the potential to make the AGM more interesting for many.
Looking forward to seeing lots of you on 25 July.
-- Rexx
Wikimedia UK mailing list wikimediauk-l@wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediauk-l WMUK: https://wikimedia.org.uk
Catching up on this discussion, but reading through the emails on this community list, nobody has referred to the 12 June members "advance warning" email (marked as "done" on the chapter wiki[1]). This is different to the "notice of AGM" which is due to be emailed to all members on 1 July.
Did the advance warning email happen? Presumably it contains the AGM details and was the advice of the 26 June deadline for member resolutions which Doug flagged in this thread (but not all members of course).
Links: 1. https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/2015_Annual_General_Meeting/planning
Thanks Fae
On 19 June 2015 at 16:12, rexx rexx@blueyonder.co.uk wrote:
The deadline for members' resolutions for this year's AGM is just a week away on 26 June.
See https://wikimedia.org.uk/wiki/2015_Annual_General_Meeting/planning
It's generally a healthy sign when our AGM contains debate on issues of interest and concern to members - and who better to raise those issues than members themselves?
Proposing or seconding an ordinary resolution is not a difficult process and I'd expect that the office will be helpful if anyone needs help with the formalities.
AGMs can sometimes find themselves devoting sessions to merely fulfilling formalities, and the session reserved for debating members' resolutions has the potential to make the AGM more interesting for many.
Looking forward to seeing lots of you on 25 July.
-- Rexx
Wikimedia UK mailing list wikimediauk-l@wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimediauk-l WMUK: https://wikimedia.org.uk
On 23/06/2015 14:38, Fæ wrote:
Catching up on this discussion, but reading through the emails on this community list, nobody has referred to the 12 June members "advance warning" email (marked as "done" on the chapter wiki[1]). This is different to the "notice of AGM" which is due to be emailed to all members on 1 July.
Did the advance warning email happen? Presumably it contains the AGM details and was the advice of the 26 June deadline for member resolutions which Doug flagged in this thread (but not all members of course).
https://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimediauk-l/2015-June/013140.html
"Having said that, the planning timeline did contain: "12 June - Warning notice transmitted by email - Include deadline for resolutions", which is apparently {{done}}, except the "include deadline for resolutions" has since disappeared from the table. I am assuming Stuart's email [1] to this list (rather than explicitly to all members) stating "the same day as our AGM" is what Michael had in mind when he marked this item as done."
KTC
wikimediauk-l@lists.wikimedia.org