Committee Chair Guide
IADC has issued the following guide to assist the Committee Chairs in the tasks of effectively organizing and conducting meetings and other Committee activities. This Guide can also be downloaded in PDF form from the link below.
Introduction
The key role of an IADC Committee Chair is to guide the Committee and work with IADC staff to develop work plans and meeting agendas. In addition to specific roles required by the activities of individual Committees, a Chair should:
- Ensure that meetings are conducted in accordance with IADC’s Antitrust Policy and Guidelines.
- Review and approve minutes of Committee meetings before their distribution to meeting attendees for review, comment and final adoption.
- In consultation with the IADC staff liaison, report to the Committee on decisions of the IADC Board or Executive Committee that may affect the Committee’s work
- Where appropriate, guide the Committee in proposing new activities and service that will further the mission and goals of the association
- Where appropriate, make policy recommendations to IADC staff for the consideration by the IADC President or Executive Committee.
Planning the Meeting
- If a meeting date and location has been determined, a notice can be sent out prior to releasing the agenda. Registrations for the meeting will be tracked by IADC for the purpose of notifying the meeting host of the anticipated attendance and developing the meeting sign-up sheet.
- With the help of the staff liaison, you should develop an agenda with the beginning and ending times for the meeting, meeting location, and the list of topics to be discussed.
- The agenda should be prepared, posted to the IADC web site, and distributed to Committee members at least two weeks prior to the meeting.
- Sequence agenda items thoughtfully. Start the meeting with topics that will unify the Committee, and with topics that will require mental energy, creativity, and clear thinking.
- Avoid putting difficult topics back-to-back. Make the first few topics after lunch quick-action items. Build in breaks at logical places (at least every two hours). Try to end with topics that help unify the Committee.
- Be prepared to provide at least minimal background information for each agenda item.
- Indicate whether the item is for discussion only or if action is expected.
- Identify the person who is presenting each item and note their company affiliation.
- The agenda should be prepared, posted to the IADC web site, and distributed to Committee members at least two to three weeks prior to the meeting.
Conducting the Meeting
- Open the meeting with a review of the agenda and the IADC Antitrust Policy and Guidelines.
- Ask that those present identify themselves and their company and to ensure their attendance is recorded on the meeting sign-in sheet.
- The Chair’s primary role is facilitator. Guide, mediate, and stimulate discussion. Monitor talkative members and draw out silent ones.
- Encourage ideas, but avoid a clash of personalities. If emotions run high over a difficult issue, return the floor to a neutral person, seek a purely factual answer, or take a break.
- Keep discussions on track; periodically re-state the issue and the goal of the discussion.
- In moving toward a decision, make sure all present have an opportunity to express their views. Seek consensus; unanimity is not required and may not be possible.
- Ensure that any Committee-specific balloting or other procedures are observed in the decision-making process.
- Announce the results of actions taken and explain the follow-up to be taken, by whom, and in what time frame.
- Close the meeting by noting achievements and reviewing action items identified for the next meeting.
- Following adjournment, meet briefly with the staff liaison to agree on follow-up actions and focus of responsibility.
Minutes of Committee Meetings
- The Chair should work with the IADC staff liaison or designated meeting scribe to compile written minutes of the meeting.
- Include the date, time, and place of the meeting. Note the name of the chair, members present and other key people (such as special guests) who are in attendance.
- Note all formal motions and report on passage or defeat.
- Note all decisions reached, including motions passed and follow-up actions to be taken, with deadlines for implementation.
- Include a brief summary of discussions. Do not attribute comments to members by name or company affiliation except possibly when formal motions are introduced.
- Ensure that a meeting attendance list is appended to the minutes, without contact information.
- If possible, provide information on the time and place of the next meeting
- Meeting minutes should be prepared as soon as possible (within two weeks) after the meeting and provided to the Chair for review and approval.
- The minutes are then distributed to meeting attendees, who will have two weeks to submit comments and corrections. Suggested changes are reviewed by the staff liaison and the Chair.
- Once the Chair and staff liaison have agreed the minutes are in final form, they are posted to the Committee’s web site.
General Organizational Considerations
- In general, IADC Committee Chairs are representatives of IADC contractor member companies, unless otherwise established in the Committee charter. A Committee or Subcommittee co-chair can be a representative of a contractor, producer or associate member company.
- Subcommittees – A Committee Chair can establish a Subcommittee made up of a small group of Committee members to research, report on, or recommend Committee action on a particular issue or set of issues. A Subcommittee may be established to accomplish a specific project or may operate on a sustained basis. The Subcommittee should identify its Chair, notify Subcommittee members of meetings in advance, maintain meeting minutes, and report regularly to the Committee on its activities.
- Task Groups – A Task Group may be established by the Committee or Subcommittee Chair to perform a specific, short-term activity within a Subcommittee. Task groups operate relatively informally to accomplish its objective and share the results with the Subcommittee for consideration of further action.
- Balloting – Ballot-specific voting procedures can be established by each Committee, if desirable. When present, they should be utilized in cases where Committee actions may affect critical items such as training and accreditation criteria, industry standards, or terminology. Developing such procedures is encouraged for Committees that may focus on such activities, or where a proposed action will only impact a limited segment of the membership (e.g., onshore vs. offshore). When establishing balloting procedures, it is important to set “core values” or common ground rules, e.g., one recognized vote per Member Company. Balloting procedures are subject to review by IADC Management and/or Counsel. Disputes regarding balloted decisions may be appealed to the IADC Executive Committee.
Usage of the IADC Logo
- The policy regarding usage of the IADC logo can be found on the home page of IADC’s web site (iadc.org). The Chair should pose any questions regarding appropriate use of the IADC logo to the IADC staff liaison or the IADC Membership Coordinator.