Thinking about joining Council? The Institute has produced a brochure entitled Leading your profession which assists Members in understanding the commitment level of a Councillor, the process for election, along with the challenges, expectations and rewards that can be expected in being a Council member.

A call for nominations for Council is advised annually in early August via the Institute’s weekly Information Bulletin and on the Institute’s website.

A Council election will not be required for 2011 as there are no serving Councillors (including the current President) whose term of service ends in 2011.

If you are a Fellow and interested in nominating for Council, please be aware of the following:

Nominations open early August

Each nominee must:

• complete the nomination form which must be signed by three Voting Members;
• complete the nominee details form;
• provide a professional headshot (JPEG format);
• complete a nominee’s statement outlining your reasons for standing for election and objectives if elected (this is optional but highly encouraged); and
• complete a probity declaration.

* Refer to the section below, in early August, to download the froms.

Nominations close mid September

The Company Secretary confirms the nominations and opens the voting approximately one week following the close of nominations.

Voting opens late September

A period of six to eight weeks is provided for all Voting Members to vote in the election.

Voting closes late October

The Company Secretary will announce the successful candidates soon after the close of voting.

Council has a target number of 12 members and elections are held in accordance with the Constitution as required. Only Voting Members (Fellows) are eligible to be members of Council and to vote on the election of members of Council.

Generally, a Council member must retire from office at the conclusion of the fourth calendar year after he or she was elected or deemed to have been elected as a member of Council. Different arrangements may apply for Council members who have been appointed to fill a casual vacancy, depending upon how long they have served.

The President, Senior Vice President and Vice President make up the Presidential Committee. Each position is held for one year on a three-year rotational basis.

At the last Council meeting each year, Council elects one of the Councillors as the new Vice President. The new Vice President will hold the position of Vice President from 1 January in the following year, the position of Senior Vice President the year after and then the position of President in the third year.

From time to time casual vacancies arise following the resignation of a Council member. The appointee, elected by Council, completes the term of the casual vacancy only, however they are eligible for re-election immediately following the end of their casual term if they have served less than two years in that casual vacancy position.

Only Voting Members (Fellows) are eligible to vote on the election of members of Council.

The elections are conducted by secret ballot using proportional representation.

If the number of nominations for election as members of Council is:

• equal to the vacancy pool, the returning officer declares the persons nominated to be elected as Councillors;
• less than the vacancy pool, the returning officer declares the persons nominated to be elected as Councillors and Council may appoint such additional member or members as are necessary to fill the vacancy pool; or
• more than the vacancy pool, the returning officer conducts a ballot and declares the persons elected by the ballot to be elected as members of the Council.

Ballot voting

Should a ballot be required following the close of nominations for Council, the Company Secretary will advise the membership of the expected number of Council positions to be filled and the details of the ballot.

Ballot papers are distributed to Voting Members via each member’s chosen format - either by email for secure electronic voting or hard copy for postal voting. Electronic voting has proven very popular with the membership and is highly encouraged. To check or change your method of voting simply login to your membership profile.

Information regarding each candidate is provided with the ballot papers.

The nomination forms will be available to download in early August each year.

Each nominee must:

• complete the nomination form which must be signed by three Voting Members;
• complete the nominee details form;
• provide a professional headshot (JPEG format);
• complete a nominee’s statement outlining the reasons for standing for election and objectives if elected (this is optional, but highly encouraged); and
• complete a probity declaration.

A Council election will not be required for 2011 as there are no serving Councillors (including the current President) whose term of service ends in 2011.

For further detail please contact the Company Secretary and Returning Officer, Anne Peters.