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ACE By-Laws
::Purpose PurposeThe purpose of ACE is to further reinforce and facilitate individual professionalism and success by affiliation and networking within the organization. As a group, Members will strive to do business with each other whenever possible, given reasonable options. However, no Member will be asked to change or interfere with existing business relationships or providers. The governing body of ACE shall be the Leadership Council, consisting of the Charter Members, Executive Officers and Chairpersons and shall be chaired by the immediate President. Officers (Executive Committee) The Executive Officers shall be the President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer. Officers shall be nominated by the general membership at the July business meeting with the election to take place at the August business meeting. Officers will assume their responsibilities on September 1. Nominated members must be a member of ACE for at least one year. Standing Committees shall consist of Attendance, Social, Presentation, Performance, Membership/Classification, Newsletter, and Business Expo. Additional committees shall be established as necessary by the Leadership Council. Committee chairpersons shall be nominated and voted on by the General Membership at the August business meeting following the election of officers. All new members will be assigned to a committee by the Executive Committee. All members shall serve on at least one committee or an Officer position once every 2 years. There shall be a Business meeting the first Tuesday of each month, starting at 11:30 am. Business meetings shall be open to members only. All other meetings are General meetings. Members are welcome to bring guests to General meetings. Members are strongly encouraged to be punctual in their attendance. Meeting Content Meetings shall consist of each Member introducing themselves, the service they offer, and then thanking any fellow member for referrals they have received; the minutes from the previous meeting are approved via a motion from the floor; Old Business is discussed; New Business is discussed; Chair Reports are given from Committee Chairpersons; and a presentation by a member for 10-15 minutes profiling their business. One presentation shall be done at each meeting, except the Business Meeting. The President may elect to cover the agenda in any order they wish. Criteria Members may, in writing, nominate potential new members at each meeting. Such recommendations should be of individuals on the basis of achievement of a level of success in their respective fields. Such individuals should demonstrate knowledge, a desire for growth in their field, professionalism and above all, a high degree of integrity. Additionally, potential members must have worked in their field or profession a minimum of one year and been with their new employer at least six months; or if a new business owner, the business must have been in existence for at least one year. The potential members must also be an Executive, Business Owner, Partner or Account Manager and employed full-time by their company. At the time of application for membership, the applicant will specify if the membership belongs to the Individual or the Company. The membership application must be completed in its entirety. Incomplete applications will be returned to the sponsoring member for completion by the applicant, which will delay the application process. Members are encouraged to research potential overlaps in categories prior to making a nomination. After a nomination, but prior to a vote, a Member may request a nomination be tabled for one month in order to meet with the potential member to determine whether there is an overlap of category. Any Member may state their objection to the membership category chair about the potential new member on the basis of overlap of job category. If reasonable, such category objection will be respected and may only be overridden by a majority vote of the Leadership Council. The Member, whose objection on the basis of job category has been overridden, shall abstain from voting on whether the individual shall be invited to join. Changing & Sharing Any Member whose category is changed due to a change in employment must go through the member selection process in their new category. The minimum length of time in a field or business will be waived for these existing Members should their new category be available. The Newsletter Chair will run the prospective members name, company and category in the Newsletter for a minimum of two weeks to give other members a chance to contact the President or Vice President with objections. The sponsoring member is responsible for letting the Membership know about the new members qualification (this should be done during the meetings). The prospective member will be voted on during the next business meeting. If the prospective members application has not run two weeks in the newsletter, they will not be voted on until the following business meeting. If an objection is received due to conflict in category, the prospective member will not be voted on and the membership application is voided. If an objection is received due to any conflict other than category, the prospective member will be voted on in the next business meeting, but the issues will be addressed prior to the vote. An anonymous vote on each potential member shall be taken by the membership. Any individual who received one "No" vote shall not be considered for membership unless accepted pursuant to an Appeal. Any individual who receives two or more "No" votes shall not be invited to join. The sponsoring individual must wait one year before putting forth the potential members name again for membership. If the prospective member is voted in, it is the responsibility of the Sponsoring Member to contact them and help them through the first few meetings. Should the new member fail to attend at least one of the four meetings following their selection, their membership shall lapse and their category shall be reopened. Any sponsoring Member who wishes to challenge a one "No" vote
may state his or her notice of appeal
at the time of the vote. Thereafter, the Member voting "No" must
present the Executive Council with "just cause" as to his or her "No" vote within seven days of the business meeting (the anonymity of the objecting Member will be respected and maintained.) Such "just cause" shall be forwarded to each member of the Leadership Council. A "No" vote by a Member may be overridden only by unanimous consent of the Leadership Council. In the event that "just cause" is not presented for consideration, the individual shall be invited to membership. A potential member is required to attend at least two, but not more than three General meetings. If they are interested in applying for membership, their sponsoring member gives them a copy of the By-Laws and an application. The sponsoring member is responsible for reviewing the By-Laws with the prospective Member. When the application is completed, it is forwarded to the Membership Chair, and copied to the President and Secretary. After the Membership Chair approves that the applicant is not in conflict with another members category, the application is sent to the Newsletter Chair & Treasurer. Meeting
attendance is extremely important for this organization to function
successfully for all it's members. However, when members cannot attend scheduled meetings or sponsored events, the following applies: A referral consists of providing the Referred Member with the name, address, phone number and background information on an individual needing services provided by the Referred member. The Referring Member shall also provide said individual with the Referred Members name and credentials so that no member is placed in the position of making a cold contact. When appropriate, a written recommendation to the individual with a blind copy to the Referred Member is suggested. Each Member is responsible for furnishing the other ACE Members with his or her resume, brochure or business cards for use in making referrals. Each Member is encouraged to respond to or acknowledge referrals received. Referral Policy Members shall attempt to give as many referrals as possible on a yearly basis. However, it is acknowledged that it may be more difficult to refer to some Members than others. Additionally, no Referring Member guarantees that a referral shall generate business for the Referred Member Referral Recognition Quarterly, the Attendance Chair shall acknowledge the Member or Members making the most referrals. At the December general meeting, the Membership Chair shall recognize the Member or Members making the largest number of referrals for the year. Dues shall be assessed of each Member per category per calendar year. The amount of the dues shall be determined by the Leadership Council and shall be adjusted as needed. The membership dues will be invoiced to each member per category by the Treasurer after January 1st. The amount will be due within 30 days. At the end of 60 days, any unpaid dues are increased by $10. At the end of 90 days, any unpaid dues are increased by another $10. If the membership dues are not paid after 90 days, the membership will be terminated and the category re-opened. The Quorum of ACE is fifty percent (50%) of the Active members. If a Quorum is not met, those present may elect to suspend the by-law to achieve quorum, with approval of 50% of those members present. Amendments of the By-Laws of ACE shall be approved by the Leadership Council. If approved by the Leadership Council, the amendment will be listed in detail in the newsletter for two weeks, then voted on in the next business meeting. Any amendment changes require two-thirds majority vote of the Quorum. Absentee votes should be sent to the President prior to the voting day. The Quorum of ACE is fifty percent (50%) of the Active members (this excludes inactive and honorary members). For question regarding membership, send us an email. |