AGA National Executive Committee Meeting Minutes February 22, 2016, 8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. ET AGA Headquarters, Alexandria, VA

Transcription

1 AGA National Executive Committee Meeting Minutes February 22, 2016, 8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. ET AGA Headquarters, Alexandria, VA NEC MEMBERS PRESENT John E. Homan, CGFM, CPA, National President, Northern Virginia Chapter Douglas A. Glenn, CPA, National President-Elect, Washington D.C. Chapter William D. Miller, CGFM, CIA, Immediate Past National President, Kansas City Chapter Tim Baker, CICA, National Treasurer, Lincoln Chapter Justin W. Poll, CGFM, National Treasurer-Elect, Phoenix Chapter Patricia L. Wensel, CGFM-Retired, CPA, Immediate Past National Treasurer, Washington, D.C. Chapter Kimneye Cox, Senior Vice President Section II, Baton Rouge Chapter Doreen T. Crisostomo, Ph.D., CGFM, Senior Vice President Section III, Guam Chapter Karen B. Hale, CGFM, Senior Vice President Section IV, Nashville Chapter Cecelia Smith, MBA, Senior Vice President At-Large, Virginia Peninsula Chapter John H. Lynskey, CGFM, CPA, Senior Vice President At-Large, Washington, D.C. Chapter Mark A. Reger, Senior Vice President Appointed, Washington, D.C. Andrew C. Lewis, CGFM, CPA, SVP Appointed, Montgomery/P.G. Chapter Daniel J. Murrin, CGFM, CPA, CPAG Chair, Ex Officio Member, Washington, D.C. Chapter Kelly Stefanko, CGFM, CPA, PCB Chair, Ex Officio Member, Virginia Peninsula Chapter Ann Ebberts, MS, PMP, Chief Executive Officer, Ex Officio Member NATIONAL OFFICE STAFF PRESENT Susan Fritzlen, Chief Operating Officer Christy Herz, Executive Assistant/Governance Manager Cristina Barbudo, MS, CPA, Director of Finance & Administration (partial attendance) Louise Burnette, MPA, Chapter Services Manager (partial attendance) Bobby Derrick, MBA, CGFM, Field Representative (partial attendance) Helena Sims, Director of Intergovernmental Relations (partial attendance) OTHER ATTENDEES Eric Berman, Chair, Audit Committee Joseph Sutter, Chair, Young Professionals Task Force, CPA, CGMA Richard Bunce, CGFM, CPA, Member, Governance Committee (partial attendance) Mike Wetklow, CGFM, CPA, Chair, ERM Task Force (partial attendance) Clif Williams, CGFM, CPA, CGMA, Chair, Governance Committee (partial attendance) Welcome National President John Homan convened the meeting. A motion was made and seconded to adopt the February 22, 2016 NEC meeting agenda. The motion was approved unanimously. A motion was made and seconded to approve the December 10, 2015 meeting minutes. The motion was approved unanimously. 1

2 President s Report John Homan reported that with the latest registration numbers, the National Leadership Training is doing better than budget. The ERM Research project is moving forward and is being sponsored by CLA. The Higher Education Task Force is also making good progress, reaching out to other organizations to gain support for the task force s mission and getting a good response. In December, AGA issued a letter to AICPA requesting government content be added to the CPA exam and the CFO Council wrote a separate letter supporting this request. John also reported on his recent and upcoming visit to chapters. Internal Control and Fraud Prevention Conference DM 16-01, proposing three co-chairs for the Fraud Conference Technical Committee, was distributed. Kathy Tighe was listed on the DM as pending. Ann Ebberts reported that Kathy Tighe had just accepted the invitation to participate, so her status was no longer pending. A motion was made and seconded to approve the co-chairs as proposed: Federal Rep: State Rep: Private Sector Rep: Kathy Tighe, Inspector General, Department of Education June W. Jennings, CPA, State Inspector General, Commonwealth of Virginia David M. Zavada, CPA, Partner Kearney & Company The motion was approved unanimously. Governance Committee Report Clif Williams provided the Governance Committee report. He described the committee s process to review the governance structure over the last several months including gathering governance statistics, sending out four governance questionnaires to AGA s sectional, regional and chapter leaders, and evaluating the quantitative and qualitative responses received. Since his last report in December, the committee read and summarized all comments made on the survey and found that they reinforced the quantitative results previously reported. Clif reviewed the written report of the committee provided to the NEC in advance of this meeting, including five proposed recommendations. The first recommendation, to eliminate the RC position was discussed at length. It was said that the RVP role should be made more flexible and that every region has different needs and should be allowed to assemble a team that meets their needs. It was asked if the proposals go far enough to give regions flexibility. It was brought forward that RC s in geographically disbursed regions have different challenges than those with smaller geographic regions. It was suggested that we are not executing our current structure well, and that volunteers don t feel like they are making a difference, and therefore the structure may be having a negative effect. The SVPs reported that many regions don t work with RCs, some do successfully and some do unsuccessfully. It was said that if we re trying to build leaders, we need to give them opportunities. After the discussion, a motion was made to adopt the Governance Committee s five recommendations with changes to the first as follows: A. Eliminate RC position and give RVPs discretion to appoint Regional Advisors for a one-year term to coincide with the RVP s term AND focus on clearly outlining roles of RVP-Es, RVPs, Immediate- Past RVPs and SVPs; provide enhanced training, resources, and communications for them throughout their entire leadership year. Establish a web portal for this group. Bylaws change not 2

3 required. Implementation/Communication plan to be developed this spring. Timeframe: Begin with program year, July B. Develop a recruitment and communications plan for attracting RVPs and SVPs, for example the concept of Be A Leader/Cultivate A Leader Campaign, along with developing procedures for resignations/termination as needed. Develop and distribute materials about the value of AGA volunteer leadership for chapters and regions. Timeframe: Beginning Summer 2016 and ongoing C. Enhance engagement and training of regional and chapter leaders. Timeframe: Spring 2016 Increase/spread impact of SLMs by building on lessons learned with immediate follow-up communications and providing chapter leaders with takeaways they may use at local meetings (i.e., best practices by role in the chapter membership, certification, programs, administration). Increase regional leader training at SLMs Develop Year in the life of RVP, working with effective RVPs, for a month-by month guide to being an effective RVP Explore mid-year touch-point regional meetings D. Develop, distribute, and post on AGA s website and in our newsletters, programs, materials, and communications to increase awareness of AGA s governance structure and opportunities. Timeframe: Beginning Spring 2016 and ongoing E. Leverage national staff expertise for one-on-one contact with chapters to share best practices, and learn why certain chapters are struggling and what can be done to assist them. High-touch, personalized contact is effective, therefore: Build on our field representative program and explore best way to connect with chapters throughout the year Identify national staff that chapters can reach out to who are the experts in the areas of (1) membership, (2) education (3) chapter development and assistance, (4) certification, and (5) accountability (CCR) Encourage staff participation in monthly RVP calls and continue quarterly leader webinars with the CEO Target officer and staff travel to chapters who need help Add newsletter features on subject areas and best practices Timeframe: Begin with program year, July 2016 The motion was adopted unanimously. It was discussed that the geographical size of regions should be looked at to make sure some RVPs aren t unduly burdened. Another motion was made and seconded to expand the charter of the Governance Committee to include looking at geographic boundaries of regions. The motion was adopted unanimously. Service & Support to Chapters Karen Hale provided the SVP report with common themes the RVPs are reporting: Chapters struggle to engage new/younger members; chapters have limited access to high quality speakers/training at a low 3

4 cost and corporate sponsors; chapters have transition challenges since some officers hold more than one position; some chapter leaders are not communicating well with national/regional leadership. She said there seems to be either a lack of an accountability system or enough training about expectations for leaders. Some leaders overcommit or have unforeseen commitments to occur during their term. It appears that some leaders hold a title, not to actively lead, but to hold a title. It was discussed that like regions, chapters need flexibility in their chapter leadership roles. There was a discussion about what makes a healthy chapter. Ann Ebberts presented national officer travel information highlighting chapter visits the past four years and our plan to reach out to those who haven t had visits. Ann reported on the AGA Value to Employer/Value to Member marketing pieces we are producing that will be highlighted at SLMs and other resources developed recently: What s your membership worth, Membership application, CGFM brochure, new web site, tools flyer, research report. Ann and Louise Burnette spoke about our plan for implementing the new chapter website hosting program. Ann and Louise spoke about the planned agenda for our two Sectional Leadership Meetings in April/May, one in Baltimore and one in Salt Lake City. The program will feature back-to-basics and will include chapters sharing best practices. John Homan asked that the SLMs include information in a general session about the Nominating Committee and its process. The purpose of this addition being needed is to allay expressed concerns from members that 1) there is a perception that the nominating process is prejudicial both for and against members from inside the Beltway and 2) that members are not aware of the constitution of the Nominating Committee and the process for applying to positions. Ann described our high touch approach to working with chapters with the goal of strengthening chapters to boost membership. Succession planning for chapter leaders was discussed as well as tasks that the national office can help chapters with such as website hosting, newsletter, and event sign-up process. CEO Report Ann Ebberts reported about new radio advertising AGA is doing on Federal News Radio and WTOP and the advertising in and articles we are writing for Governing and GovExec. She spoke about making AGA materials available for any government accountability position, not just accountants. Ann reported on the free education we are making available to our members including free webinars and FSS. There was discussion about the hundreds of people who come to our events, but don t join AGA, and that the federal government doesn t pay for memberships, but they do pay for training. There was a discussion of rebranding our membership as a training catalogue that can be purchased. Ann Ebberts and Mark Reger will speak with OMB s ethics attorney and provide stats on our FSS, as OMB is about to issue guidance on this subject. 4

5 Finance & Budget Committee Report Justin Poll reported on the intensive budget work the FBC has been doing over the last several weeks on behalf of the NEC for FY17. A document with responses to NEC input on the budget was provided. He reviewed budget highlights in the areas of staff salaries, PDT (including a PDT 2016 breakeven analysis), NLT, Membership, CGFM, CPAG, CEAR, Webinars, Advertising, Intergovernmental, and Governance. A discussion was held about the number of in-person vs virtual NEC meetings. For the year ahead, three in-person meetings are included in the proposed budget (September, February and July) and two virtual meetings (December and May if needed). It was said that if we have to hold virtual meetings, that we should improve how we do it and invest in tools for this purpose. A motion was made and seconded to approve the FY17 budget as presented. The motion was approved unanimously. Justin reviewed an analysis of costs of national officer travel to chapters. Tim Baker presented financial statements and projections for FY16, reporting that we will do more than $100,000 better than budgeted for the year. Board, Committee, and Staff Reports Nominating Committee Chair Bill Miller acknowledged the Nominating Committee and SVPs for their great work in developing the slate of national and regional officers. He presented the slate as follows with two changes since the slate was voted on in December: National President-Elect Designate - James R. Arnette, Jr. CGFM, Nashville Chapter National Treasurer-Elect Designate - Christina R. Beck, CGFM, Washington, DC Chapter Senior Vice President At-Large - Melinda M. Miguel, CIG, CFSA, CBM, CICA, PM, Tallahassee Chapter Senior Vice President Section II - Mark Runyan, Mid-Missouri Chapter Regional Vice Presidents-Elect: Gulf Amanda Richardson, Jackson Chapter North Central Arturo Caraballo, CGFM, Indianapolis Chapter North Atlantic Douglas A. Scantlebury, New York Chapter Great Lakes Louis M. Ockunzzi, CGFM, Cleveland Chapter Southeast Glenda D. Ostrander, CGFM, Atlanta Chapter South Central Chelly Hilmes, CGFM, CPA, Oklahoma City Chapter Capital Eric W. Rasmussen, CGFM, CPA, Montgomery/P.G. Chapter Midwest Teresa Allen, CGFM, Ozarks Chapter Northwest Sandra J. Starnes, CGFM, CPA, Seattle Chapter South Atlantic Corrine A. Louden, CIDA, CRMA, Richmond Chapter Pacific Rim Jose B. Guevara, III, CGFM, Guam Chapter West Coast Charles W. Hester, Sr., CGFM, CPA, CFE, San Francisco Chapter Southwest Donna M. Sandoval, CGFM, New Mexico Chapter Northeast James C. Cox, CGFM-Retired, New York Capital Chapter A motion was made and seconded to accept the slate. A vote was taken and the motion was approved unanimously. 5

6 Eric Berman introduced himself as the new chair of AGA s Audit Committee. He reported on the role and focus areas of AGA s audit committee. The Committee s role: oversight of financial reporting, risk management, internal controls sounding board, compliance/ethics, interface with external auditors with regard to risk and review of financial information (reporting and tax). Focus for 2016: accountability, timely review of the financial statements and tax return, review internal controls assertions letters, open doors, electronic documents repository. Andrew Lewis provided the Higher Education Task Force report, reporting that progress has been made on the task force s objective to develop an external communications outreach program to include other organizations like the American Accounting Association (AAA), GASB, FASAB, NASACT, etc. The task force has reached out to other professional organizations and are getting positive reaction. They are planning to meet as a group at PDT to talk about how we re addressing critical gaps in government financial management education in higher education. He reported that Doug Glenn will represent AGA at AAA s Government and Nonprofit Section meeting at the Westin Crystal City March Also, we are equipping our members with talking points to go to local universities. Mike Wetklow provided an ERM Task Force update, reporting that the task force is developing a set of ERM webinars. The first was held successfully in January. Next one is planned for March 17, followed by two others. He also reported on an ERM research paper that is underway and will be sponsored by CliftonLarsonAllen. There will be an ERM session at PDT in July. Mike also reported on an April 25 th A- 123 event that AGA is hosting. Joseph Sutter provided a Young Professionals Focus Group update, reporting on the PDT scholarship program, the NLT collegiate leadership program, and Beta Alpha Psi outreach. He led a discussion about what it would look like if we were successfully connecting with young professionals. He proposed 4 solutions to building our young professionals program: 1) creating awareness among students or young professionals in the industry about what federal government accounting looks like 2) get buy-in among companies, higher education institutions, newly elected/appointed leaders governors, auditors, controllers 3) push collaboration and create synergies 4) hold a millennial conference to enhance community, focusing on leadership and technical skills. Helena Sims reported on Intergovernmental programs: 1) The new CAROI course she developed about reducing improper payments and improving programs. Typically, the courses AGA offers are owned by the instructor; this material AGA owns and it will generate revenue for the organization. We are ready to start offering it in April. 2) Guide on Internal Controls for managers at the state and local level 3) DATA Act Pilots Test. Dan Murrin provided a CPAG update, reporting on a successful FSS, the upcoming A-123 event, providing added value/touch points for sponsors, and AGA being a well-balanced organization, supported by member dues and corporate sponsorships. Meeting Closing/Executive Session John Homan adjourned the meeting. All but NEC members were excused and an Executive Session was held. 6