CYA Nominating Committee announces final list of candidates

by CYA Media on 1 Oct 2009 The Canadian Yachting Association Nominating Committee has announced the final list of candidates for the Board of Directors to be elected at the CYA AGM in November.

The Board of Directors comprises of the President, six Directors at Large and one Athlete Director.












The current Board of Directors and candidates for election at the 2009 AGM for the position of President and membership of the Board of Directors are as follows:

 

Position	Current (year term expires)	Candidates
President	Gerry Giffin(’09) - NS	Gerry Giffin - NS Paul Henderson - ON
Director at Large	Alan Lombard(’11) - QC Todd Irving(’10) - ON Kevin Stewart(’10) - MB Gillian Thomson(’11) - BC
Director at Large	*Dave Thomas(’09) - BC *John Abel(’09) - BC	Wally Hogan - ON Jeff Lloyd - AB Ron Kobrick - ON James Beatty - ON John Kerr - ON Scott Cooper - ON Tom Babcock - ON Christine Searle - ON
Athlete Director	Ben Remocker – BC

* These Directors at Large are not seeking re-election at the 2009 AGM.

The President is elected in odd years for a two-year term and may not serve more than two (2) two-year terms in succession. Directors at Large are elected for a three-year term and may not serve more than two (2) three-year terms in succession. Two (2) Directors at Large are elected each year.

The 2009 CYA Annual General Meeting will mark the end of the first two year term of the President, the end of the first three year term of a Director at large position and the end of the second three year term of a Director at large position on the Board of Directors.

The positions of the Board of Directors will be decided by means of a vote by the membership at the CYA Annual General Meeting.

The 2009 CYA Annual General Meeting will be held in Toronto, Ontario at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club on Sunday, November 22, 2009.

Any Member entitled to vote at the Annual General Meeting shall be entitled to appoint, in writing, a proxy to attend the meeting on that Member's behalf and to exercise all voting rights. Please see the Bylaws of the Association for detailed membership and voting information.

The CYA Nominating Committee will provide the Membership with a brief biography of all the candidates in advance of the AGM.

The Canadian Yachting Association (CYA) is the national sports organization representing the sport of Sailing in Canada. It represents all participants, including recreational sailors, and high performance athletes at the club, provincial, national and international level.

The mission statement of the CYA is: to make sailing a lifelong activity for Canadians through Excellence in Competition and Training.

Role of the Board of Directors

The Board has the responsibility to oversee the conduct of the business of the Canadian Yachting Association and to supervise the Executive Director, who is delegated responsibility for the day-to-day conduct of business of the CYA. Any responsibility not delegated to the Executive Director or a committee of the Board remains with the Board.

The CYA Board will implement the following tasks of effective stewardship:

Define CYA’s Strategic Framework (mission, vision, values, goals, operating principles, key success measures), approve key deliverables, organizational structure, budgets and financial statements, and monitor performance against plan;

Develop, implement and evaluate governance policies and processes and implement assessment and control systems to ensure compliance to these policies and processes;

Define the roles, responsibilities and authority of the Executive Director. Hire, monitor and annually evaluate the performance of the Executive Director in accordance with the CYA Human Resource Policies;

Establish Board Committees and approve their Terms of Reference;

Communicate to stakeholders and the public and make information available upon request in a transparent and effective way;

Ensure effective orientation of new Directors, ensure they understand their role and are informed of all policies of the Board;

Ensure Board self-evaluation and succession plan and replace any vacancies that may occur.

The following principles will guide the Board in its work:

The Board promotes itself as a unified team and agrees to support and promote each other and the decisions of the Board. The Board has 'one voice' when communicating to its stakeholders and the Executive Director.

Board committees are accountable to the Board.

Operational committees are accountable to the Executive Director. The Executive Director may choose to appoint a senior staff member to the committee and they would report to the Executive Director. Board members may serve on operational committees when requested by the Executive Director/ staff.


The Board of Directors is comprised of the President, six Directors at large, and one Athlete Director.

The President of the CYA is elected for a 2 year term, and each of the Directors is elected for a 3 year term, and we consequently have a staggered term Board. Each year, two Directors complete their term. This year nominations for the President and two Directors are now open.

It is the Board of Directors intention to improve diversity on the Board. This includes gender, Canada’s official languages, and experience with sailors with a disability. We can improve our current Board’s diversity with candidates who are female, Francophone, and have experience with sailors with disability, or are a sailor with disability.

General Characteristics of Nominees

The selection of candidates will be based on desired characteristics, such as:

independence
a sound business and/or professional background
excellent network and contacts
a record of organizational accomplishment
a record of community service
a highly respected reputation with past co-workers and teammates
passionate about sport and its impact on Canadians
an understanding and general acceptance of the CYA’s strategic goals and an ability and willingness to further them
an understanding and appreciation of the CYA’s internal and external audiences.

We are looking for individuals who possess core skills as well as excellent strategic skills, and are capable of seeing the 'Big Picture'. People who have a passion for sailing.


Jim Dike, Chair, Nominating Committee
Canadian Yachting Association
53 Yonge Street
Kingston, ON K7M 6G4
Email: sailcanada@sailing.ca
Fax: 613-545-3045

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