Guest Daniel Posted January 15, 2019 at 03:53 PM Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 at 03:53 PM Good Morning I was curious to the thoughts of people regarding the role of Past President in a not for profit organization (pros/cons)? Should the position have a limited term? Can the Board vote to have the position removed from the bylaws? Any insight is greatly appreciated. Thank you Daniel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua Katz Posted January 15, 2019 at 04:11 PM Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 at 04:11 PM In general, you'll find little support here for the position. It allows people to stay, automatically, on the board after being removed from office, resigning during a fight, etc. If the position is in your bylaws, though, you can only remove it by the process for amendment of bylaws, which generally cannot be done by the board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weldon Merritt Posted January 15, 2019 at 04:16 PM Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 at 04:16 PM 18 minutes ago, Guest Daniel said: I was curious to the thoughts of people regarding the role of Past President in a not for profit organization (pros/cons)? I was going to post a more elaborate response, but I think Mr. Katz's response summed up mine as well. In short, there are few, if any, pros that can't be addressed better some other way, and a great many cons. Stick around for a bit, and I suspect Dr. Stackpole will post his list of reasons why it is a bad idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jstackpo Posted January 15, 2019 at 04:39 PM Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 at 04:39 PM Suspicions realized!!... IPP is a Bad Idea: And here's some reasons why the position is a bad idea: In my personal view, setting up an "official" Immediate Past President (IPP) position is not a particularly good idea. The most telling argument is the real possibility of a close and bitter race for the presidency, with the current president running (for a second term) against an "outsider". And the outsider - the "reform candidate", perhaps - wins but is still stuck with the thorn of the IPP on the Board in a position to snipe at the new president. And perhaps attempt to undermine the new president's plans. Not to mention vote against them. If the erstwhile president is a "good guy" the new president can (usually, depending on the bylaws) appoint him to a pre-existing committee - or even have him chair one, which might put him on the Board - as the new president sees fit. That way the IPP's experience and value can be put to good use, when needed, without the danger of setting up an adversarial situation which would require a bylaw amendment to get out of. Here's some more reasons 1) The President resigns and wants nothing to do with the organization. 2) The President simply doesn't run for election again because he's had enough, and never shows up at a board meeting. 3) The President is booted out of office for being incompetent, or for something more nefarious. 4) The President dies. 5) The President resigns and moves (wants to help but isn't around). 6) Even worse is the bylaw assignment of the IPP to chair a committee - such as nominating. Then he dies/quits/leaves town, &c. You are then stuck with an unfillable (by definition) vacancy. Note that except for item 4, the IPP may well be part of the quorum requirement for meetings, even though he never shows up. Our suggestion is to amend your bylaws to eliminate the position. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Daniel Posted January 17, 2019 at 02:33 PM Report Share Posted January 17, 2019 at 02:33 PM Thank you Gentlemen ! Very insightful! Cheers Daniel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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