IPA Board of Directors
Nomination Procedures for 2003 Elections

General information

IPA’s Board of Directors (BOD) is comprised of 25 members. All Directors are elected to 4-year terms, extending from the end of the second regular meeting in one year to the end of the second regular meeting four years hence. According to the IPA Bylaws, Directors may be elected to a maximum of 2 terms. To ensure geographic balance, no more than two IPA members from the same country may serve as Directors at the same time.

IPA Officers are considered Directors-at-Large rather than representatives of their respective countries. Officers are appointed by the BOD to 2-year terms, which extend from the conclusion of one Congress through the conclusion of the next.

Nine positions on the Board of Directors will be filled in the 2003 election. Directors completing 4-year terms in 2003 who are eligible to seek reelection and may choose to do so include: Michael Davidson, Israel and Carlos Mangone, Argentina. In accordance with the IPA Bylaws no more than two people from one country may sit on the BOD at one time. For the 2003 IPA BOD election, there are no countries with more than one BOD member, so all qualified candidates can submit their nominations.

Responsibilities of Board Membership

Election to IPA’s Board of Directors entails the following responsibilities:

• BOD Members participate in and contribute to meetings of the BOD in person, and are expected to attend at least one IPA meeting per year (4 to 8 meetings over the course of a 4-year term). If unable to attend a meeting, they are expected to contribute to the deliberations by other means. (Note that travel and other expenses are NOT funded by IPA.)

• BOD Members contribute to policy development and decision making throughout their term.

• BOD members participate in appropriate committees, thereby actively contributing to their work for IPA.

• BOD Members represent IPA in their country and region, and work to advance the mission, vision and goals of the organization.

• BOD Members encourage colleagues to become members of IPA.

• BOD Members advise the BOD on matters of importance within their country and region.

• BOD Members liaise with similar organizations in their country and region, working to develop mutually beneficial relationships and encourage affiliation to IPA.

• BOD members are available for advice on matters relating to advancement of IPA’s mission in their country and region.

Nomination and Voting

Nominees must be IPA members in good standing for at least six months prior to the deadline for nominations. Nominations may come from the membership at large or from the BOD of Directors. Any member meeting eligibility requirements may propose his/her own candidacy or may be nominated by other members in good standing, with support of two letters of recommendation. 

BOD members completing their first term and wishing to serve a second 4-year term are required to submit their candidacy for re-election. The extent of a BOD member’s IPA involvement and attendance at IPA meetings will be given serious consideration by the Nominating Committee in evaluating candidates for re-nomination.

Credentials of prospective nominees will be reviewed and evaluated by the Nominating Committee, which is responsible for ensuring that a sufficient number of qualified candidates are available to stand for election. It shall be the sole responsibility of the Nominating Committee to recommend a proposed list of nominees to the Board of Directors for its approval. Following approval of the nominees by the Board of Directors, members will be sent an Election Packet containing information about all candidates, as well as voting instructions and a ballot. Voting will be conducted by mail and fax, and ballots will be tabulated by an objective third party, outside of the IPA Secretariat.

Application Process

Prospective nominees should send the following information to the IPA Secretariat:

• Name, address, telephone, fax, e-mail;

• Professional affiliations;

• Curriculum Vitae (short form, maximum 3 pages);

• A 1 page Statement of Intent including the following components:
  (a) a brief biographical sketch outlining professional career highlights
  (b) reasons for wishing to become an IPA BOD member
  (c) a description of his/her professional goals and contributions to IPA
  (d) acknowledgement that BOD membership presumes an active role in IPA activities and attendance at a minimum of one BOD meeting per year.

• A list of other professional organizations to which he/she belongs; and
• Two letters of recommendation from recognized leaders of local and/or regional professional organizations and/or individuals in IPA leadership positions, supporting the applicant’s candidacy for IPA’s Board of Directors. One of these letters should be from a colleague within the prospective nominee’s country, and the other, from a colleague in another country. 

Please note

All nominees’ Statements of Intent will be included in the Election Packet sent to members.

Letters of recommendation should be sent by post, fax, and/or email directly to the Secretariat by the persons writing them. Deadline for receipt of these letters by the Secretariat is 1 April 2003.

Candidates may include with their material the names of individuals from whom the Nominating Committee can expect letters of recommendation. The Secretariat will advise candidates one week prior to the deadline if these letters have not been received. It is the sole responsibility of the prospective nominee to see that letters reach the Secretariat before the deadline.

Prospective nominees should send all material to the Secretariat in one packet. Material must be received by the Secretariat no later than 1 April 2003. It is preferred that all materials be submitted as an attached file via email, to ipa@ipa-online.org.