Your Responsibilities as a Component Group Leader

Know SAA policy…or at least know where to look for it. The very best source of information about component group leader responsibilities is the SAA Governance Manual, available online at: www2.archivists.org/governance. Section VII (Committees and Boards), Section VIII (Task Forces), Section IX (Sections), and Section XIII (Working Groups) provide general information about each of these types of component groups, as well as links to individual component group pages.

Communicate! A critical element of leadership is communicating with your group—it’s one of the important ways in which we can ensure that members feel connected to and a part of SAA. Whether your group makes use of your microsite, your discussion list, a blog, a Twitter account, or some combination of tools, it matters to members that they hear from and are able to communicate with their colleagues with common interests. Our component groups are also an invaluable resource for SAA’s Council, officers, and staff to hear from members about issues, concerns, and ideas for future directions. Your role in facilitating the flow of information in all directions is crucial to supporting and sustaining SAA’s organizational health. So please – talk to your members and talk to the SAA officers, Council members, and staff!

Contribute to SAA’s Strategic Plan. Beyond being responsive to members and understanding and executing the “mechanics” of governance, SAA component group leaders also have an important responsibility to become familiar with the organization’s Strategic Plan and to determine ways in which component groups might supplement SAA’s efforts to achieve its strategic goals. See SAA’s Strategic Plan 2014-2018 at www2.archivists.org/governance/strategic-plan.  

Appointed Group Reporting. As part of understanding the activity going on within SAA, all boards, committees, and working groups are required to submit an annual report in time for review by the Council at its Fall/Winter meeting. (Task Force reporting schedules vary.) A “Council Report Template” is available at http://www2.archivists.org/governance/leaderresources (under Templates and Forms). Note that the form includes a requirement for reporting out on any group activities that may address SAA’s Strategic Plan goals.

Section Reporting. Outgoing Chairs are required to submit election results within 14 days of the Annual Meeting (so that discussion lists may be updated) to fowens@archivists.org.  In addition, section leaders have three annual reporting requirements:

• An annual report, prepared by the outgoing Chair, is due by September 1, and should be submitted via the “Section Annual Report” survey link available on the Leader Resources page (under Templates and Forms).
• Details and logistics for your section’s annual meeting are due by March 1. A survey link will be sent to the Leader List in February to collect this information.
• Information for sections’ annual elections are due by email to Governance Manager Felicia Owens by June 1. A complete section election guide will be prepared and share with leaders prior to the 2019 elections.