By Melanie Jagneaux, JD, MBA, CO-OP®, IOA President

IOA begins the new year strong. Steadily growing over the past two years, IOA has surpassed its 1,000 member milestone! Even as the impacts of the COVID pandemic continued, we ended 2021 in a prosperous financial position, closing the year with an approximate net surplus of more than $35,000.

We, the members of IOA, accomplished a great deal in 2021! I think it is important to pause and celebrate our successes because our efforts in 2021 will bring even more value to our membership and the ombuds profession in the years to come. If you volunteered your time and talent on an IOA Committee or Task Force, IOA has greatly benefited from your investment. If you provided valuable feedback on proposals in surveys, you helped IOA leaders make better decisions. If you shared viewpoints in town halls or member meetings you contributed to our collaborative culture. We stayed well focused on our goals, engaged openly, collaborated well, met challenges with confidence and persistence, and made important changes to ready the organization for the future.

The IOA Board of Directors Call for Nominations Is Open

The nominations window will close on 16 December 2021.

We are pleased to invite you to submit nominations for the IOA Board of Directors. This is the first step in kicking off the elections process for the next set of directors. All eligible candidates directors will begin their service following the 2022 IOA Annual Business Meeting in March 2022.

Your Questions Answered

How Is this Nominations Cycle Different from Others in the Past?

After the November 2021 Special Member Meeting, several changes were made to the IOA Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation. Due to these changes, IOA will be following a modified process to catch up after the postponed 2021 election.

16 November 2021 Member Vote Results

All proposals were passed by a clear majority.

On 16 November 2021 at 8:30 AM Pacific Time, voting at the IOA Special Member Meeting concluded. After a quorum of 322 members was declared achieved, a live vote was conducted for each proposal and tallied along with the proxy votes that were previously submitted. Below are the final results of each vote. All proposals were passed by a clear majority.

Based on these results, the new IOA Bylaws are now in effect. The IOA Articles of Incorporation will be revised and filed as required by IOA's attorney, and then shared with members once available. 

In alignment with these new changes, we will soon be opening the 2021 & 2022 Call for Board Nominations. Please be on the lookout for an announcement email soon. Additionally, we will roll out a new name and logo in early 2022 and implement other necessary changes to our elections process as a result of the revised Bylaws.

Find out what you missed and what you need to do next.

Have you been following all of the latest updates on the IOA Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation? Are you feeling a little overwhelmed and lost in the sea of documents and links?

Here is a timeline to help you make sense of it all and help inform you about the next two steps of this process, including participating in one of the October Town Halls taking place on 26 October and placing your vote by proxy or at the next Special Member Meeting taking place on 16 November.

Fall 2021 Bylaw's & Articles of Incorporation Update

IOA's Board of Directors has announced a new process to amend the IOA Bylaws & Articles of Incorporation. Members received an email on 1 October 2021 summarizing past events, meetings, and conclusions regarding the IOA Bylaws & Articles of Incorporation. This email also included information about the next steps the Board will be taking to finalize the proposed changes. These steps will include hosting two more town hall-style meetings and opening a new vote.

Below is a shortened version of the information members received. Members can log into their IOA profile to review the information in its entirety.  

Summary of Events & Updates on Our Progress

Members Are Invited to Share Their Thoughts & Questions

All IOA members are invited to participate in one of two Member Dialogues focused on the proposed amendments to the IOA Bylaws & Articles of Incorporation.

These dialogues will provide a space for members to discuss the proposed Bylaws changes, provide input, and ask questions of the IOA Board of Directors. The meetings will include small group discussions to encourage meaningful conversation. 

The Member Dialogues are identical in format and purpose and will follow the same agenda. We will begin in a large group with the same opening remarks, then move into the small breakout groups for 40 minutes. Each breakout group will be facilitated by a board member, who will capture the notes of the discussions and share highlights with the large group when it comes back together. 

Updates from the Special Meeting

Thank you to all members who voted by proxy or participated in today’s special meeting of the membership to discuss the proposed revisions to our organization’s Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation.

During the meeting, members raised procedural issues, which delayed the discussion of the motion to approve the changes to IOA's Bylaws. By the time the procedural issues were resolved, the time that had been dedicated for discussion had expired and the motion to vote was withdrawn. In the remaining few minutes, several members expressed views and asked questions. The Board will meet next Monday, 19 July 2021 to discuss how best to move forward.

Special Member Meeting for Bylaws Revisions Announced

In our roles as ombuds professionals and association members, it has never been more important to continue our advancement of standards and practices that strengthen IOA’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB).

As the world continues to grapple with some of its most complex and painful challenges, our pursuit of justice continues. This includes ensuring that we maintain fair and equitable processes for qualification, nomination, and election to the IOA Board of Directors.

In March of 2021, IOA's DEIB Task Force reported concerns regarding IOA elections.  IOA leadership took immediate action and approved an outside review of the nomination and selection process as it pertains to Board service. That independent review, conducted by the law firm of Ahmad Zaffarese LLC, recently concluded. The firm's report offers valuable, actionable insight and makes several recommendations the Board has been considering as proposed changes to IOA's Bylaws. These newly proposed changes are to be submitted to a vote of IOA members at a special member meeting to be held this July. Among the review’s findings are the following:

By Heidi Stensby & Melissa Watson
DEIB Task Force Communications Liaisons

In July of 2020, the IOA Board unanimously approved the establishment of a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Task Force. The group was tasked with helping IOA internally evaluate itself on anti-racism practices and racial justice—and with defining parameters for a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment that supports membership belonging and connection within the organization. 

Under the leadership of co-chairs Brett Harris and Jai Calloway—selected by task force members – the DEIB group dedicated early discussion to the meanings of the words “diversity,” “equity,” “inclusion,” and “belonging”—recognizing that individual perspectives and experiences inform each person’s understanding and practice. To ensure fidelity to the project and IOA’s broad purpose, the task force drafted the following mission and values statements: