SOA Section Council Roles and Responsibilities
Section Officers
Chairperson: Elected by the council, the chair serves as the main contact to the wider SOA, develops meeting agendas, vets and fills council openings, manages performance and attends the SOA Council of Section Chairs meeting twice each year.
Vice Chair: Elected by the council, attends the SOA Council of Section Chairs meeting twice a year and is typically elected as the next chair. This individual may be asked to lead the call if the chairperson is unavailable.
Secretary/Treasurer: Elected by the council, the person in this position takes council notes during calls and meetings, finds volunteer replacements in case of absence, reviews financial statements as prepared by SOA staff, reports financials to council and develops the annual section budget.
All Council Members: Elected by the section members (unless appointed to fill a vacancy), council members are responsible for an annual plan of work. They must prepare and participate in most council calls and face-to-face meetings; have a fiscal responsibility for using section resources wisely; and comply with the SOA conflict of interest policy.
Other Council Activities You May Be Asked to Help With
Section Publications and Communications
Newsletter Editor/Co-Editor: A section member is chosen to solicit article submissions, write and edit articles, create metadata and work with SOA staff on final editing and production.
Blasts/Bulletins:The chair or designee writes the content, which is then sent to section members by SOA staff.
Surveys: Section councils may poll their section members about member satisfaction every two to three years. Interim surveys may be conducted on hot topics or professional development issues.
Content Creation
SOA Meetings Representative: Section representatives help to plan the sessions for the various SOA meetings throughout the year. Identify the current and interesting topics and coordinate the creation of these sessions.
Webcast Coordinator: Most sections sponsor webcasts throughout the year on areas of interest for their section members. The coordinator makes sure things keep to the time schedule, recruit speakers, and provide the information for marketing the webcast.
Podcast Coordinator: Many of the sections record podcasts which are 10- to 20-minute audio recordings. Often podcasts are an interview with one or more topic experts.
Section Webpage Coordinator: The section pages on the SOA website are constantly being updated to highlight the most current and up to the minute topics for their section members.
Social Networking
LinkedIn Coordinator:Some section may have LinkedIn groups, where members post relevant discussions. The coordinator monitors this page and posts topics on a regular basis.
Miscellaneous Activities
Practice Research: Some sections have liaisons who participate on SOA research committees and report back to their councils. Some section council members become Project Oversight Group (POG) representatives.
Intellectual Capital: Many sections host calls for papers, contests, and other competitions within the section, which all require coordination.
Volunteer Liaison: The SOA has a volunteer database which includes volunteer positions for the entire organization. Sections have liaisons who input the information when the section has a volunteer position opening. They will also be responsible for communicating with anyone who volunteers for one of these positions.
Subgroup Leadership: Some sections have subgroups and a council member may become the leader of one of these groups.