Chris Sandve's Exit Report

Chris Sandve resigned as Business Rep last month. This is his exit report. I think it has some interesting insights into what is going on with the SFSS Board currently. I'll post more of my thoughts on this later.

On a side note, Kudos for the Instant Blog in getting up and running and having some good content right away.

Exit Report – Chris Sandve

Business Faculty Representative (May 2007 – December 2007)

Simon Fraser Student Society

Review of Portfolio

As Business Representative, it was my job to represent Business Students within the Simon Fraser Student Society and to ensure that the business student organizations and students received the full benefit of all the Society’s services and programs.

This is a broad description and it’s up to each individual faculty representative to determine where to focus their time and effort. I decided to focus my efforts on projects and initiatives that would have a direct benefit to business students and spent time attending meetings and events where I could speak with students that would benefit from the Society’s services and programs.

Whatever you decide to focus on – attending meetings and reaching out to students, planning events, recruiting new volunteers/members for BASS and its clubs, or something else – I strongly recommend that you focus on complementing and supporting the projects that BASS is already working on. BASS is a well-organized group that provides a great service to business students. As Business Representative, you are a great resource - you can use your hours to provide the consistent time and commitment that other students can’t. The more hours you are able to commit to BASS, the better.

Review of Student Society

As a member of the Simon Fraser Student Society’s Board of Directors, you have the chance to take advantage of many exciting opportunities. The SFSS is a $2 million dollar organization that employs close to 20 office staff, runs the only campus pub and provides many important services to students. Through the Society’s committees, you have the opportunity to manage and change various aspects of the Society.

I served on the Labour committee and the Constitution and Policy Review Committee. As a member of the Labour committee, I dealt with many interesting and challenging issues that provided great practical experience in Labour Relations and Human Resources. As a member of the Constitution and Policy Review Committee, I was able to engage in many interesting discussions about the structure and rules of the Society and how to change them to make the Society operate better and represent the interests of students as effectively as possible.

Other Society committees that you may have an opportunity to serve on include:

Finance and Administrative Services Committee – this committee sets the Society’s budget and decides which Club and Department Student Union events and projects receive funding from the Student Society. The budget process is incredibly interesting and a great chance to make changes that can have a tangible benefit for students. For example, I served on this committee during the Spring 2007 semester when the May 2007-May 2008 budget was being prepared. I initated a small increase to the Clubs Days budget which made it possible for more clubs to participate in Clubs Days and provided increased tables, audio/visual equipment and electrical outlets for the event.

Commercial Services Committee – this committee manages the Society’s commercial services such as the Highland Pub, Quad Books and the Ladle. This committee provides a great opportunity to manage real businesses that are very important to the campus life up at SFU.

Advocacy – this committee manages and funds the Society’s campaigns and the campaigns of Clubs and Department Student Unions. In my opinion, this committee has struggled over the past year because no one has a clear idea of the committee’s purpose and what it should be trying to accomplish. This committee needs fresh ideas and guidelines to ensure that its resources are being used effectively – if you’re interested in a challenge and trying something new, I’d encourage you to get involved with this committee and help implement the changes it needs.

The Simon Fraser Student Society is a very large and complex organization with a long history. This can make your work very interesting but it can also distract from the work that really needs to be done.

The Society is full of rules and procedures and Directors often spend more time strugguling with regulations than actually doing the work that these regulations are supposed to facilitate. In my opinion, all Directors need to put forth a proactive effort to streamline the Society and make it more effective at getting things done by focusing on tangible projects and removing the rules and procedures that prevent these projects from being completed within a reasonable time frame. A few examples:

1. Meetings – The SFSS adheres strictly to Robert Rules of Order for all Board and Committee Meetings. Robert Rules of Order are supposed to keep meetings orderly and efficient but often do the exact opposite while preventing members from discussing the ideas and thoughts that will lead to effective solutions. In my opinion, the Society needs to overhaul its approach to meetings and focus on ensuring that meetings are quick, efficient and most of all – focused on the collabaration of the thoughts and ideas of all Directors.

2. Minutes – The Society’s staff spends countless hours recording and editing Minutes. In my opinion, this is a almost a complete waste of time and money. The Society’s minutes attempt to provide almost a word-for-word transcript of everything that is said in a meeting and yet, these minutes are never used for anything except verifying motions and decisions. In my opinion, the Society should limit its Minutes to reflect only motions and decisions – a play-by-play account of everything that was said is not necessary.

3. Office – As Business Representative, I didn’t spend much time in the Board of Directors Office because the office does not provide much space/resources for faculty representatives and is often not a very productive place to work. When I was in the Society Office, I found it hard to stay focused because I did not have a dedicated work area and was frequently sidetracked by conversations and debates. I strongly recommend that you find another location where you can work – your house, an empty classroom, a study area, etc.. I think you’ll find that you get a lot more accomplished in a lot less time. That being said, I regret not spending more time in the Office to connect with my fellow Directors and engage in group discussions/debates – you should make an effort to drop by the Board office at least once or twice a week just to talk with a few people and get caught up on what’s going on. The Society is full of enthusiastic and hard working people and you can learn a lot from being around them.

4. Communication – During my time with the Student Society, Directors have struggled with internal communication. Directors often feel “out of the loop” and there is a lack of details and clarity in most society communications. Here are a few things that I think would improve the situation. I would recommend that you try to work with your fellow Directors to implement them:

1. Clarity and Detail in Written Communication – Written communications, especially e-mail, are often vague and confusing. Directors need to ensure that they include enough information in their e-mails for all Directors to understand what is being said – from those most involved in the situation to those least involved. Directors also need to ensure that their e-mails are clear and direct so that other Directors can easily understand what they are being told and what they need to do.
   
   
2. The “Why” and “How” Factors – E-mails from Directors usually include most of the basic details such as “who”, “what”, “where” and “when” but usually neglect to mention “why” and “how”. What I mean is, Directors need to spend more time explaining why something is important and how other Directors can participate. For example, if Directors are being asked to volunteer at an event, then the e-mail should not just tell them what the event is, who is going to be there and when/where its taking place but also why its important for Directors to help out at this event and how they can do so. If applicable, Directors should be given the opportunity to take ownership of tasks and projects so that they feel more engaged with what’s going on instead of just being asked to “help out.”
   
   
3. Phone and Informal Meetings – Directors usually communicate in one of two ways: e-mail or formal meetings. In my opinion, neither of these methods are very effective. More communication via phone would make it much easier for Directors to communicate effectively and keep in touch. Informal meetings such as planning retreats and regularly scheduled brainstorming sessions are a great way to generate consensus and ideas to get everyone moving in the same direction, towards the same goal. The Society currently has Orientation Retreats but these retreats spend to much time talking about what the Society is and what its done instead of what it needs to be and how to get it there.

Despite the things I have mentioned above I believe in the Simon Fraser Student Society and I respect and admire its Directors and Staff. The Society has done a lot of good things for students but it should be doing a lot more with the resources it has. In my opinion, if Directors get serious about changing the Society for the better and taking a new approach to its operations and management by implementing changes like the ones I have discussed above, the Society will be much better off and students will receive services and benefits that make full use of the Society’s great resources and potential.

Closing Thoughts

1. Your position is really what you make it. Don’t get bogged down in committee work, office work, e-mail, motions, constitutional jargon and policies – this will get you nowhere! Stay focused on the projects that are important to you and keep moving them forward. Keep your distance from anything that will slow your progress down and make things take longer than they need to.

2. Listen lots and keep talking to a minimum at all meetings of the society (board, committee, forum, etc.) ALL Society meetings are way too long because far too many people talk way too much at every single meeting. If someone has already made your point, take yourself off the speaker’s list and don’t say it over again. If the discussion seems to be going your way, then don’t inject yourself into the discussion – sit back and let it run its course – its going to turn out the way you want anyways, so why waste time? Unless you have something to add that is crucial to the discussion, don’t put yourself on the list. Always ask yourself – what am I accomplishing by saying this?

Meetings of the Society are long and tedious. The more people learn to keep their speaking to a minimum, the better.

Always remember that those who speak too much are tuned out and fail to make an impact even when they have something very important to contribute. Those who speak only when absolutely necessary are listened to, respected and appreciated.

3. During my first term with the Society as Member Services Officer, all Directors were engaged, motivated and driven because they shared and believed in a common goal: cleaning up the mess left by the impeached Directors and giving students their Society back. As my second term began however, this work was completed and I noticed that the engagement, motivation and drive of all Directors noticeably decreased because we did not share a common overall goal and vision that we were all striving for. This year, the Simon Fraser Student Society has had many great accomplishments – the first quorate AGM in a decade, a record turnout in the U-PASS referendum and the successful formation of the Graduate Student Society at SFU. However, the Society does not have a common vision, shared by its Directors and Staff that has tied all of these accomplishments and others together and provided a greater meaning and purpose to the work that is being done. Looking ahead, the Society must invest considerable time and effort in creating an exciting and practical vision for the future that all Directors and Staff can feel part of. Once this vision is established, the Society must set out steps and goals to achieve it and everything that the Society does – from the smallest event to the biggest project must be linked back to this vision – Everyone must see how it fits into the bigger picture and be reminded of its importance to the overall goal.