Hi, I’m John F., chair of the Fiduciary Committee of the International Service Organization. We run the “back office” side of SCA internationally. If you’re the kind of detail-oriented person who likes working on projects, you’ll find a home here.
Most of our service opportunities are tied to specific geography. So, for example, if you want to take the mail from our Post Office box and forward it to the right person, you need to be able to get to Old Chelsea Station in New York City on a regular basis. That’s where the box is located.
Other positions can be filled from anywhere, in our “virtual office”. For instance, we need someone to maintain the electronic “masters” of all our literature. These are stored as editable files, then converted to PDFs for printing. This work can be hectic at times, in case new literature is being published for the first time, but for the most part, our literature doesn’t change much (if at all) from year to year, so this is more a job of stewardship.
According to the bylaws:
The Fiduciary Committee is responsible for the daily business of ISO. It maintains ISO’s financial records and is responsible for its budget and for its bank accounts, whose signatories are designated by ISO. It publishes and distributes ISO-approved SCA literature in a timely manner. It manages literature sales and inventory. It handles legal records, including copyrights of ISO literature. It maintains the ISO Archives. It produces minutes of ISO and Executive Committee meetings. One year’s membership in SCA is suggested for joining the Fiduciary Committee.
Here’s a list of what kinds of service we do. One of the advantages of our committee system is that you don’t need to make a long-term commitment. And if only a small part of a task interests you, sign up for that.
- Fiduciary chair. This is a two-year commitment, and it’s expected that you have previous service at the international level. My term ends in 2018, so if you’re interested, start now!
- Treasurer. The requirement for this job is that you must be a U.S. citizen (or green card holder) and reside in the United States. Our current treasurer, Russell P., has been doing an excellent job for some time now, but he can always use help, and because of the tradition of rotation of service, it would be good to have a backup in training.
- Literature Distribution. This is currently a one-person operation based out of Los Angeles. The tasks include shipment of orders in a timely manner, making sure we have enough stock on hand, contacting a printer for more copies if we run low, and preparing a report on all this on a regular (quarterly) basis. If you’re in the L.A. area and want to help, let us know.
- Electronic masters. As mentioned above, this task can be done from anywhere. It involves proofreading our existing literature and preparing masters when new literature is approved by the International Service Organization’s annual conference. Those masters are sent to the chosen printer when the Literature Distribution operation determines that we have run low.
- Ebook sales. The electronic masters are also posted to the three bookstores we use as electronic sales channels: Amazon, Google Books and Apple iTunes. Each bookstore has its own peculiarities that require occasional attention. For the most part, this is purely financial, and that aspect is handled by the treasurer. But if new literature needs to be posted or something goes wrong, we need someone to step in.
- Website maintenance. We rarely make changes in our site except for making changes to the International Meeting List. This task can be done from anywhere and involves perhaps an hour a month.
- Website redesign. We are in the midst of a long-term project to redesign our website from the ground up. Marty S. is handling that aspect but could always use a hand.
- Email address maintenance. We have addresses at sca-recovery.org (like mine, “fiduciary”) that forward to personal addresses. Those change when the list of officers changes, normally once a year. This is a low-work task that can be done anywhere.
- Copyright. When we publish new literature, we register it with the U.S. Copyright Office. We also use one of our ISBN numbers for each new work, and that has to be tracked.
- Incorporation. There are several tasks currently being carried out to protect the International Service Organization through incorporation in Delaware. Just ask.
- Privacy. We have drafted a privacy policy and could use legal advice on how best to proceed.
- Archive. We have a small archive based in New York City and would love to have a volunteer to be its steward.
- Recording Secretary. This is a one-off position for the annual conference of the International Service Organization, which will be held next year in Los Angeles. It involves attending the conference, taking notes in real time, and typing up the Minutes of the conference in a timely manner.
- Phone Moderator. Another one-off position for the annual conference. Like the Recording Secretary, the Phone Moderator is usually appointed by the host committee — in this case, Los Angeles Intergroup. It involves monitoring those who call in to the annual meeting (because they cannot physically attend). It’s important to control the volume levels, make sure the chair knows if someone wants to speak, and keep track of who is present virtually for voting purposes.
If you’re interested in any of these positions, contact me or Tony D., chair of the Inreach Committee, which is responsible for recruiting.
John F., fiduciary chair, ISO
