Professional Development Committee 

Terms of Reference 

The Professional Development Committee has been established as a standing committee of ARMA, reporting to the ARMA Board. The Committee was created to ensure that all ARMA’s professional development activities – initially focusing on ARMA qualifications, and the Training & Development programme – are strategically aligned with the ARMA professional development framework, and offer value for money, high-quality opportunities for our members.

The Committee will be guided by, and set the direction for, a range of operational working groups.

Committee scope

Core activities of the Committee will include:

• Strategic oversight of the ARMA professional development framework

• Strategic oversight of the ARMA qualifications

• Strategic oversight of the ARMA Training & Development programme

• Strategic oversight of the ARMA Conference

• Evaluate member engagement and satisfaction with the professional development activities

• Stakeholder engagement, in relation to qualifications partners and Training & Development sponsors, and Conference sponsors and exhibitors.

The Committee will act as a bridge between the Board and the Executive Office, providing support to both, facilitating communication and the flow of information, and ensuring accountability to ARMA members in relation to professional development activities.

 

Authority

The Committee will consider items of business within its remit, evaluate opportunities and challenges, and make recommendations to the Board. The Board may delegate areas of business on which the Committee can make decisions.

The Committee may establish both standing and short-life working groups, to develop and evaluate programmes and qualifications pathways under the remit of the Committee.

 

Decision-making

Any decisions made by the Committee must be made by a majority decision of the members of the Committee. In the event of an equality of votes, the Committee Chair shall have a casting vote.

 

Membership

To support these activities, membership of the Committee will consist of:

• Director, Qualifications

• Director, Training & Development

• Director, Conference Planning

• Chief Operating Officer

• 5 x non-Directors, bringing expertise in professional qualifications and professional development events.

The Committee Chair will rotate across the three Director roles (excluding the COO). For 2021/22, the Chair is currently being shared between the Directors of Training & Development and Qualifications.

The Directors (including the COO, ex officio) shall be members of the Committee in accordance with the articles of association of ARMA.

The non-Directors will be appointed on a 3-year basis (with an option for a second term), following an open call to ARMA members and an evaluation of the areas of expertise required. Appointments will be phased to ensure a balance between continuity and change in membership.

The Committee will work closely with the Executive Team. Additional expert advice will be commissioned as needed.

 

Meetings arrangements

The Committee will meet four times per year, approximately one month in advance of each ARMA Board meeting, so that recommendations can be discussed and developed in good time. Regular conference calls will also be scheduled. The total time commitment from Committee members is likely to be in the region of 5 hours per month. When held F2F, meeting venues will rotate, to ensure that they are accessible for all members. At present, all Committee meetings are being held online.

 

Reporting

As well as making recommendations relating to the areas within its remit, there will be a clear requirement for the Committee to report formally to the ARMA Board on a regular basis.

 

Budget

The budget for the Committee shall consist of the monies necessary to support travel and subsistence costs incurred by members in the course of attending Committee meetings and in otherwise pursuing the business of the Committee, together with meeting venue and catering costs (if any). All meetings are currently being held online.

 

Review

Terms of Reference for all ARMA committees, and the effectiveness of each ARMA committee, will be reviewed on an annual basis. The date for the next review of this document and this Committee will be March 2022.