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2018 ElectionWhy do only a small minority for Trustees, Council, Boards and Committees

Former Community Member
Former Community Member
Why do only a small minority of the Institution's Membership make time and effort to vote each year in the election for Trustees , Council, Boars and Committee members?

Is it because they consider, even in casting their votes, there is little likelihood of being able to have any influence on the governance and future direction of their Institution?

Might it be, having read the Candidates' statements, they are unimpressed by the Candidates' stated aspirations?

Would it have helped, given this year, Candidates were encouraged to post their election statements on Communities if more than just two have so far done so? Members using Communities would then have had the chance to  develop a dialogue with the Candidates?

As to the 2018 Elections, Trustees, Council, Board and Committee members elected will be making decisions on the future direction of your Institution. Decisions made can have effect all the way down to the level at which Members  participate locally.

In less than 30 minutes it is possible to read online Candidates' statements and this year, view their short video presentations: an interesting progessive innovation. Then you are able to decide which candidates you consider will be represent your particular interests.

Play your part in the affairs of the IET and don't let apathy be the winner for yet another year!


Ron McMurtrie



  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    I used the online system to vote this year. Quick and easy to use. Would recommend.
  • 0
    Whenever there's an election, I get the email to say that voting is open.  I go online and am faced with dozens of candidates for posts that I know little about.  I have never heard of any of the candidates.  I can spend ages reading through all their statements, but I have no way to tell how accurately they represent each candidate, or what they really will do if elected.


    I'm not sure how much use voting is if you don't have an informed electorate.frown
  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    Simon,


    Good point and one I entirely sympathise with.  One purpose of this forum is to allow members to interrogate candidates on precisely what they intend to do, and how.


    Frank.
  • 0
    This goes back 10, 15 years when I was actively volunteering!


    Sadly, most members are not interested in the workings of the IET.  They are happy to pay their dues and not participate at all (local events a case in point).  I've never managed to convince any of those member to become more active and as a "mid-career" member myself - there is very little the IET offers me.


    Of course you get those that resign their membership saying that the IET did nothing for them...


    Personally, I vote each year and find great pleasure in finding the names of some of those I knew or volunteered with listed in the elections.  I guess I have that background of previously being involved which helps to sort the candidates into some sort of order.


    Mark Tickner
  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    At least Mark, by taking time to cast your votes you are one of 13,566 members out of 168,289 who were eligible to vote.


    As to your comment about lack of interest shown by members in the workings of their Institution, could this be due to the lack of any really information about what Trustees, Council and Boards do? I know one can find the Minutes of Trustee meetings, and there are blogs, on the IET website, but do these really say very much about what is actually going on?


    Having been a Council member, I considered there was and still is a lost opportunity for individual Council members to write about their experiences for inclusion in Member New and/or on Communities. Understandable there are constraints on what can be said, but at least it should be possible to give a flavour of what happened as Agenda items were debated.


    I did during my second year on Council have an item on my personal reflections of Council published in Member News, but have no knowledge what impact if any the article.


    Our daily newspapers keep us informed about local, national and international affairs. It would be great if we are similarly kept up to date on what is happening in our Institution.


    Ron McMurtrie
  • 0
    Ron,

    Well said. There are a number of organisations which I have been a member of that I didn't really understand until I was a committee member actually involved in the running of them. Anything that could be done to inform the membership would be good (since we obviously can't have a committee of 168,289 people). The biggest problem is working out the ideal medium, as it may well be that a mixture of different media is what is required.

    Alasdair

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