Standing Committees of the Board
The Personnel Committee
The Personnel Committee is responsible for developing employment policies and procedures. Members of the committee do not become involved in the day-to-day implementation of personnel policies, but serve in an advisory capacity and as a liaison between staff members and the Board regarding all employee matters. The management team of Duck Soup works with this committee to formulate standards that govern hiring, periodic review, and disciplinary procedures for employees. Activities of this committee have included drafting job applications, job descriptions, and performance evaluations. This committee reviews the staffing pattern and the salary and benefits of Duck Soup employees, and may recommend changes to the Directors. The General Manager’s annual review is prepared by this committee in consultation with the Directors.
The Membership Committee
The Membership Committee works on cooperative membership policies and procedures. The committee considers issues such as membership fees, membership benefits, and the supervision of working members. Activities of the committee in recent years have included surveying the working members about membership benefits, studying and reporting on the costs of membership benefits, discussing scheduling and supervision of working members with the staff, and communicating with the membership through the Duck Soup Newsletter. The committee may recommend discretionary membership policies to the Board, or may suggest bylaw changes to be proposed by the Directors at a General Membership Meeting.
The Finance Committee
The Finance Committee reviews quarterly financial statements that are prepared by management, considers the implications of large budget expenditures, and makes recommendations to the Board and the general membership about financial matters. This committee works with the General Manager to prepare a yearly budget to be approved by the Directors and by the general membership.
The Outreach Committee
The Outreach Committee works with the Directors and the staff of Duck Soup in planning events and developing procedures to increase public awareness of our cooperative. Members of the Outreach Committee are also involved in community service and education activities. Outreach has been important to Duck Soup from our beginning; many of our members learned about our cooperative through our outreach activities.