Chapter Bylaws

Western Massachusetts Chapter 19, Inc. of APICS

Revised: March 31, 2008

I. Name and Affiliation

1. This Society shall be known as the Western Massachusetts Chapter 19, Inc. of APICS, the Association for Operations Management.

2. This Chapter shall be affiliated with the Society Organization known as the American Production and Inventory Control Society, lnc., the Association for Operations Management.

II. Purpose

1. To unite through membership in the Chapter persons interested in operations management.

2. To increase and disseminate knowledge of operations management techniques and methods.

3. To develop through research, discussion, and exchange of information a better understanding of the nature of operations management.

4. To assist members in keeping abreast of the latest techniques and systems in the profession of operations management.

5. To foster acquaintance and fellowship among members and provide opportunities for development of their individual abilities.

III. Membership

1. Membership in the Chapter shall be open to all individuals engaged in operations management functions and to others in related fields engaged in or interested in the development, instruction, and promotion of these activities.

2. The Chapter will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, or for any other reason.

3. The Board of Directors of Chapter 19 shall have jurisdiction in determining and approving all applicants. This jurisdiction will generally be delegated to the local Vice-President of Membership.

4. The classes of Chapter membership will include all categories defined by APICS Society that enjoy Chapter benefits:

A. Professional Member (Individual)
The grade of Professional member shall be assigned to such persons who are engaged in, or were formerly engaged in, work related to operations management and related functions, and who shall meet the membership requirements of the local chapter. Retirees may qualify for full professional membership benefits at a reduced rate.

B. Academic/Student Member
The grade of Academic or Student Member shall be assigned to such persons who provide instruction in, or attend formal classes full-time in, the study of operations management or related subjects. Academic and Student Members have no voting rights, and may not hold Chapter office.

C. Enterprise Membership
This grade is assigned to a company or corporation desiring to assist in furthering the aims and purposes of the American Production and Inventory Control Society. Each company will select at least five employees who will enjoy full membership privileges and receive all chapter and society communications. Cost per member will be on a sliding scale for volume discounts. Each company shall be entitled to send any number of people to any Chapter activity at member rates.

IV. Membership Election Procedure

1. Application for membership in the Chapter shall be made by filling out the Application for Membership form and submitting it to the Vice-President of Membership.

2. The Vice-President of Membership of the Chapter shall review the application for acceptability. Where delegated, approval of the application by the Vice-President of Membership shall constitute election of the member. The approval will be so noted on the Application for Membership form.

3. The approved application and correct dues will be forwarded to the Society office.

4. The Vice-President of Membership shall not have the authority to deny membership to an applicant. The Vice-President must forward the application to the Board of Directors with a recommendation. Final judgment on a denial will rest with the Board of Directors.

V. Transfer of Affiliation Between Chapters

1. Transfer of affiliation from one Chapter to another shall be made by the Society Office upon written request.

2. The Society Office will promptly notify, in writing, both Chapters involved.

3. The transferring member's Chapter dues shall remain with the Chapter to which they were paid, and the member shall be considered a paid-up member of the new Chapter for the remainder of the membership dues period.

VI. Termination of Membership in the Chapter

1. A member may resign from the Chapter at any time by signifying his/her intention, in writing, to the Vice-President of Membership or the Executive Director of the Society.

2. Any member whose dues are unpaid within sixty days after billing will be automatically dropped unless extenuating circumstances exist and the Society Office is so advised by the Chapter. The individual is either excused from paying or granted an extension by the Society Executive Vice-President. Extensions may also be granted by the Society Executive Committee.

3. The Application for Re-instatement of any member whose name has been stricken from the Membership Roll of the Chapter shall be considered in the same manner as the application of a new member.

4. The Chapter Board of Directors, by a two-thirds vote, may suspend or expel any member for cause:

A. This shall not be done until the member has been given an opportunity to explain the offending action.

B. A suspended member shall have inactive status until re-instated by the Board of Directors.

C. The name of an expelled member shall be stricken from the Membership Roll and that member shall not be considered eligible for reselection to membership.

5. There shall be no remittance of dues when a member is expelled from the Chapter.

VII. Dues

1. The Annual Membership Dues will consist of two parts; Society and Chapter Dues.

2. Membership Dues are due and payable with application for membership and thereafter on the anniversary date of membership.

3. The Society Annual Dues shall be set from time to time by the Society Board of Directors and voted on at the Annual Meeting of the Society Organization.
4. The Chapter Dues shall be established by a majority vote of the Chapter Board of Directors.

5. The Chapter Board of Directors may excuse any individual member from payment of Society dues, if, in their judgment, there is a good and sufficient reason. Society Dues will then be paid from the Chapter treasury.

VIII. Meetings

1. Meetings of the members of the Chapter shall be held regularly at such frequency, time, and place as the Board of Directors may direct, within the Western Massachusetts region.

2. Meetings of the Board of Directors of the Chapter shall be held regularly at such frequency, time, and place as determined by the President.

3. Special meetings of the members may be called by the President, or by a written petition of one-fourth of all members authorized to vote.

4. Special meetings of the Board of Directors may be called by the President, the Secretary, a majority of the Board or a written petition of any three members of the Board.

5. Announcements of all meetings of the Board of Directors shall be published and the Secretary, or other delegated individuals, shall send notices of the same to each member of the Board of Directors not less than ten days before the time of each meeting.

6. Announcements of all meetings of the Chapter shall be published and the secretary, or delegated individual, shall send notices of same to each member not less than ten days before the time of each meeting.

7. All meetings of the Western Mass Chapter are open to the membership except those dealing with potentially sensitive issues (e.g. Nominating Committee), which will be restricted, or those designated invitation only (e.g. BOD Christmas party). The Board of Directors must agree by a simple majority to designate a meeting Restricted or Invitation only.

IX. Fiscal Year

The Fiscal Year of the Chapter shall be July 1st to June 30th.

X. Government

1. The Control and Management of the affairs, property, and funds of the Chapter shall be vested in the Board of Directors.

2. All questions coming before the Chapter, it's duly authorized governing bodies and committees, shall be decided by a majority of the votes cast unless otherwise specifically provided in these Bylaws.

3. The Board of Directors will authorize all ballots requiring a membership vote by mail. A quorum for a ballot by mail shall consist of the eligible voting members of record who respond within 30 days of the send-out mailing date.

XI. Officers

1. The Officers of the Chapter and their term of office shall be:

PRESIDENT – 1 year
EXECUTIVE VICE-PRESIDENT – 1 Year
TREASURER – 1 Year
SECRETARY – 1 Year

2. All officers of the Chapter are members of the Board of Directors.

3. If an officer shall resign or be unable to perform the duties of the office, as determined by a two-thirds vote of the Board of Directors, the President will appoint a member, subject to board approval, to serve the balance of the unexpired term. The Board shall act in an advise and consent capacity in this matter.

4. In the event an officer asks, or is forced, to vacate the office prior to the normal expiration of the term, the term shall cease on the day the appointed successor takes office.

5. The officers of the Chapter shall serve from July 1st through June 30th of the next year.

6. In the event that any member of the board fails to perform the duties assigned, he or she may be removed from the office by the President provided there is a vote of the Board at a regularly scheduled meeting and 2/3 of those board members in attendance are in favor.

7. In the event that the President fails to perform the duties of the office assigned, he or she may be removed from the office by a vote at a regularly scheduled Board meeting by a 2/3 vote of the Board of Directors.

8. No officer shall succeed themselves more than one term in the same office, unless approval is secured in advanced of the election from the Nominating Committee and a 2/3rd majority of the current Board of Directors

XII. Election of Officers

1. The Officers and Board of Directors of the Chapter shall be elected by secret ballot at the April meeting, by all eligible voting members-of-record present at that meeting, as announced in the newsletter.

2. The President will appoint a nominating committee of not less than three members subject to the approval of the Board of Directors. The President will assume the Chairmanship of the Nominating Committee.

3. The Nominating Committee must be appointed at or before the January Board of Directors meeting.

4. To be eligible for the office of President, Executive Vice-President, Treasurer, and Secretary, a member must have previously served on the Board of Directors. In special circumstances, the Board of Directors may waive this rule, by a 2/3 favorable vote.

5. All nominations will be in the form of a letter to the President and will be signed by the Chairman of the committee. A brief sketch of each candidate should be included stating:

A. Present employer and occupation.
B. Number of years the person has been active in Operations Management.
C. Past APICS activity.
D. APICS membership number.

6. Written notice of the election and a list of the nominations, along with a brief sketch of the candidates, shall be made available to all eligible voting members-of-record in the March newsletter.

7. The elections shall be determined by a plurality of votes cast.

8. Members of the Chapter Board must be registered members of the Society by the beginning of the fiscal year. A candidate must agree to maintain his or her membership in order to continue as a Board Member.

XIII. Duties of Officers

1. The President shall be the executive head of the Chapter.

A. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Chapter and at all meetings of the Board of Directors.

B. Within 30 days after the election, the President shall appoint such committee Chairman as he deems necessary.

C. At the completion of the term of office, the President will become a voting member of the Board of Directors for a period of two years and will, at the same time, serve as Regional Representative for a term of one year.

2. The Executive Vice-President shall perform the duties of the President in his/her absence or inability to act.

3. The Treasurer shall be the Financial Officer of the Chapter, and as such:

A. Shall keep, or cause to be kept, complete financial records according to good accounting practice.

B. Shall report to the Board of Directors the financial condition of the Chapter when required.

C. Shall be responsible for dues collection, maintenance of member records related to dues, assessments, etc.

D. All instruments for the payment of money by the Chapter shall be drawn in the name of the Chapter.

E. Shall annually submit the records for audit at least once during the term of office.

F. Shall keep an inventory of capital items owned by the Chapter.

4. The Secretary shall act as recording and corresponding secretary of the Chapter and shall keep, or cause to be kept, full and complete records of the Society. The Secretary shall act as Secretary at all meetings of the Chapter and at all meetings of the Board of Directors.

XIV. Board of Directors

1. The Board of Directors shall consist of:

A. The previous two Past-Presidents for a term of two years each.
B. The Officers of the Chapter.
C. At least four other elected members who will serve for a term of one year each as Vice President of one of the Standing Committees.

2. Each member of the Board of Directors shall have one vote only.

3. A quorum of the Board of Directors shall consist of a simple majority of the current Board of Directors.

4. The Board of Directors shall be selected from the membership by the Nominating Committee at the same time the officers are selected.

5. Each Director shall hold office for the period of one year or until a successor is named.

6. Notice of Board Meetings shall be given to each Director by the Secretary. The written notice of the time and place of the meeting shall be sent to each Director at their address of record not less than fourteen days prior to said meeting except in cases of emergency.

XV. Committees

1. The following shall be the Standing Committees for the Chapter:

A. Membership Committee
B. Programs Committee
C. Education and Research Committee
D. Publicity Committee

2. Each of the above standing committees will be chaired by a Vice-President of the particular committee, as elected by the membership, or appointed by the President.

3. The Chapter shall elect the Vice-Presidents of all Standing Committees and all additional Board members by a majority of the votes cast.

4. Other Committees shall be:

A. Nominating Committee
B. Audit Committee
C. Any other special Committee as designated by the President.

5. The President shall appoint the Chairperson of all special committees.

6. The Chair of each committee shall hold office during the term of the President.

7. The Committee Chairperson shall select other committee members subject to the approval of the President.

8. Duties of the Committees shall be as defined by the President.

XVI. Procedures

Roberts Rules of Order, revised, or as amended by the Chapter Board or President, shall determine the conduct of business in all meetings of the chapter and of its' governing bodies and committees, except where these rules would be inconsistent with the Society and these Bylaws.

XVII. Amendments to By-laws

1. The Chapter By-laws shall govern the running of the Chapter, except where in they conflict with Society By-laws. In case of conflict, Society By-laws take precedence.

2. These By-laws may be repealed, altered, or amended or new By-laws adopted by a 2/3's vote of the Board of Directors, by a show of hands. No proxy votes are allowed under any circumstances.

3. All proposed changes to these Bylaws will be sent to the eligible voting members of record, at least 30 days prior to the vote.

4. Any member of the Chapter may request a change to the Bylaws by submitting a written request for change to the Bylaws Chairperson. Upon receipt of this request the Bylaws Chairperson will present the request to the Board of Directors for consideration.

XVIII. Adherence to Bylaws, Policies & Procedures

Policies and Procedures as set forth shall be adhered to except when amended by a simple majority of the quorum of the Board in attendance at the meeting where a change is proposed. The Policies and Procedures shall not conflict with the Society or Chapter bylaws.

XVIX. Dissolution of the Chapter

Upon the liquidation or dissolution of the chapter, after payment of all the liabilities of the chapter or due provision therefore, all of the assets of the chapter shall be disposed of to The Society Education and Research Foundation of APICS or, if not then in existence, to one or more organizations exempt from federal income tax under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Formulated 1980 by: R. Mansur & B. Chartier
Revised 1981 by: T. Lamontagne
Revised 1987 by: T. Lamontagne
Revised 1/1989 by: T. Lamontagne
Revised 8/1989 by: T. Lamontagne
Revised 3/1990 by: T. Lamontagne
Revised 3/1994 by: T. Lamontagne
Revised 2/1996 by: T. Lamontagne
Revised 3/2008 by: B. Chartier, R. Gagnon, E. Kantor