ADMINISTRATION SUCCESSION PLANNING AND NOMINATION PROCESS
The Board of Directors has the responsibility of assuming the main operating risks to which the Prescott-Russell Community Development Corporation (PRCDC) may be exposed to, including the inevitable departure of administrators. Determining the right candidate cannot be done without careful thought and planning. Therefore, the PRCDC's Board of Directors must develop, regularly review and revise the succession plan for the directors, as well as evaluate and make all recommendations regarding elections and re-elections of candidates.
Succession plan
Defining the composition and desirable skills is the most important step in this planning. An up-to-date skills chart facilitates discussions in this regard.
Basic skills for a member of the Board of Directors are as follows:
- be a recognized person who is familiar with the community and business development sectors or sectors defined in section 3.0 of the PRCDC's Statutes and Regulations;
- hold a position of authority enabling him/her to influence the opinion of decision-makers;
- demonstrate outstanding leadership and communication skills;
- demonstrate a vision to continue to define the direction, policies and programs in business development information;
- bring visibility to the organization and promote its profile.
To perform the supervisory functions inherent in the position, other skills or knowledge may be required in accounting, management, research or economics, in the government, municipal, community, financial and business sectors.
Administrator nomination process
The PRCDC's Board of Directors, with the general management, assess and make recommendations concerning the election and re-election of candidates by the PRCDC'S Board of Directors. The process that the Board of Direction usually follows during selection is as follows:
- Nomination: When a seat becomes vacant, the Board of Directors attempts to attract the right candidates for Board member positions. In accordance with the PRCDC's Statutes and Regulations and best practices, nominations for members of the Board of Directors are made as follows:
- the candidate should be chosen, as much as possible, based on the seat they will occupy;
- the candidate should be chosen, as much as possible, based on the region in which they reside;
- the candidate must have experience, knowledge and interest in or be involved in the sector they represent or a combination of these elements;
- annually, the Board of Directors' Chairperson solicits qualified candidates for the Board of Directors' Chairperson position, according to the current job description, taking into consideration both the current members of the Board of Directors and the candidates nominated.
- Evalutation: Once the list of candidates have been established for the vacant position, the Board of Directors meets to evaluate the candidates. When considering the composition and combination of skills, the committee members take the following points into consideration:
- They need to determine whether the Board is lacking skills that could be essential to understanding and managing the organization's current and futures activities.
- It is preferable that more than one member has the necessary skills for the smooth functionning of the current and future activities of the organization. This ensures that we are able to cope with the departure of members of the Board of Directors.
- Maintaining an adequate level of essential skills is important, but the candidates must also reflect diversity in experience, skills and perspectives.
- It is important to have a very good knowledge of the Prescott-Russell territory, the key players in business and community development, the economic issues and the government progams and services.