How can I get involved in Condus’ board?
Would you be interested in organizing events for the entire faculty? Would you like to be able to influence the everyday life and studies of the students of the Faculty of Education?
Apply to become a member of Condus’ board at the faculty organization’s election meeting, which takes place in October-December. You can indicate your willingness to join at the election meeting or send an application in advance by e-mail or via the form announced by the sitting board. In the application, you introduce yourself and why you want to participate in board activities. You don’t need any previous organizational experience! Your application will be read and discussed at the meeting. The term of office of a board member is one calendar year.
The selections from the following year’s board members are made by the association’s member organizations. The association’s member organizations send a representative to the association’s meeting, which exercises the association’s right to vote.
At the annual meeting of the faculty organization organized in the spring, it is also possible to apply to the board, if you have announced your willingness in advance.
Unlike the role of a board member, you can join as an official at any time of the year! You can apply by sending a short open employee application to hallitus[at]condus.fi You don’t need any previous experience in board activities, it’s enough that you introduce yourself and why you want to participate in board activities in the application. As an employee, you do not have the same board responsibility as the actual board members, but for example in voting situations you do not necessarily have the right to vote at board meetings. There is not much difference in practical activities whether you are on Condus’ board or are an employee, you can do organization activities in a great company!
Are you still thinking about what it means to join the government or what the difference between the different actors of the board is? Find out below about the board’s joint tasks and the different tasks of the board’s actors!
The Board’s Duties
- The association’s activities are governed by the Association Act and the association’s own rules.
- According to the Associations Act, the association must have a management body, i.e. a board elected by the association’s membership at the association’s meeting.
- In accordance with the law and rules and the guidelines and decisions of the association’s meetings, the board is responsible for running the association’s operations and implementing the tasks assigned to it.
- The board ensures that the association’s accounting is in accordance with the law and that financial management is organized in a reliable way.
- The board represents the association, i.e. acts on behalf of the association.
- The board acts and is responsible for its decisions as a collective. Each board member therefore has a joint responsibility for the activities and finances of the board and association.
- Because of this, participation in board meetings is mandatory for all actual board members.
- At the same time, however, this guarantees that an individual board member is not responsible for the decisions made or their consequences, but the entire board together.
- Even an individual member may be liable for compensation for intentional or negligence caused by inconvenience.
- It is important that the board members are precise and careful in their tasks and that the association’s activities and the decisions made are well documented.
- Good and accurate protocols and accounting are the best proof of the right procedures.
- Board members must have skills suitable for the position or the opportunity to develop skills.
- Each operator is introduced to the task, i.e. before the start of the season, there is no need to have any previous experience or know-how!
The Associations Act also assigns certain tasks to the board of the association. These include:
- Keeping the association’s membership list
- Acceptance of new members, unless otherwise specified in the rules.
- Convening meetings of the association and preparing meetings
- Acting as a representative of the association, e.g. making contracts
- Implementation of decisions, e.g. implementation of the action plan and budget
- Managing running issues, e.g. handling letters
- Careful management of the association’s assets and the acquisition of funds
- Signing Account Documents
Various roles of government actors
- The chair takes care of the association as a whole, i.e. that the association works as it wants to act according to the decisions of its association’s meetings. Based on this, the chair:
- Lead and supervise the board’s work
- Lead and supervise the implementation of decisions made
- Acts in the main responsibility for the association and the board’s activities (finance, decisions…)
- Takes care of the division of labor and its functionality
- Leads the development of the association’s activities.
- The chair generally acts as the organizer of the board, which is why the chair must
- Convene board meetings
- Prepare meetings and create an agenda
- Leads speech at board meetings
- Ensure that the minutes is made
- Take care of the implementation of the follow-up measures agreed at the meeting
- Delegate tasks and ensure that they are done
- Sign the association’s documents
- Take care of the preparation of important documents of the association
- The vice-chair’s task is to act as the chair’s deputy when they are prevented from performing their duties.
- The vice-chair regularly assists the chair in various tasks.
- They can also be given special responsibility for following and assisting some of the association’s activities.
- The vice-chair regularly participates in board meetings and other activities of the association.
- This guarantees that they have the necessary knowledge and skills to act as chair.
- Manage the association’s finances in accordance with the decisions made
- Responsible for the association’s accounts and funds
- Responsible for managing the association’s accounting
- Responsible for storing and archiving accounting books and voucher material.
- Takes care of preparing the association’s financial statements and presents it to the association’s meeting
- Prepares a budget proposal for a term together with the board
- Takes care of the payment of expenses in accordance with the rules and decisions, monitors the accumulation of income and membership fees paid by members.
- Handle other tasks related to the association’s running finances, such as correspondence related to finances
- Handle the association’s financial correspondence
- Takes care of depositing and keeping the association’s financial documents up-to-date
- Presents financial matters to the board: Proposal on the chart of accounts, reports on the finances
- The secretary’s duties are mainly written practical tasks. The secretary works closely together with the chair. Secretary for example
- Participates in the preparation of the meetings: prepares e.g. meeting invitations together with the chair and handles meeting arrangements
- Takes care of the list of meetings attendees
- Assist the chair at the meeting: records the speech requests, record the proposals and supports made, etc.
- Write minutes of a meeting
- Write the draft action plan and activity report drafts prepared by the government and write them in final form after approval
- Prepares minutes and copies
- Prepares the announcements, petitions and other documents and delivers them to the parties
- Handle the correspondence of the association
- Inform members and outsiders, unless a separate spokesperson has been selected
- Manages the association’s archives, unless a separate archive manager has been selected.
- Each board member is responsible for the realization of the board’s joint tasks and responsibilities.
- In order for them to be able to fulfill these obligations, the board member is obliged by law to regularly participate in board meetings.
- In addition, it is good for them to find out for themself:
- The basic mission of its own association (found in the association’s rules)
- Rules of its own association and the main principles of the Associations Act
- Own responsibilities and duties as a member of the board (tasks that belong to one’s own areas of responsibility)
- the association’s action plan and what activities the association organizes
- The work and time needed to prepare for meetings (the agenda and where to find it, as well as making an addition to it, making a presentation, learning about meeting matters, etc.)
- What does care mean and how can you ensure that you understand what is decided and what it means.
- A member of the board has the right to vote when making decisions at board meetings.
- Different areas of responsibility related to the activities of the board are shared among the members of the board (e.g. communication, events, advocacy…)
- You can decide your own areas of responsibility and their number yourself, and no one is obliged to act in an area of responsibility that does not feel like their own.
- Responsibilities are shared at the boards first meeting of the year.
- Officers are not separately regulated under the Associations Act. They are involved in organization activities at a low threshold.
- The officer’s job therefore does not include the legal obligation to participate in the board meeting, but their task is to handle the agreed tasks, such as the tasks brought by their own area of responsibility.
- Officers do not have official voting rights at board meetings.
- Although officers do not have the right to vote at board meetings, they have the right to speak.
- Officers can work in different areas of responsibility, such as board members.