Professional Advisor & Business Card Policy

1. General

   The Corporation retains the services of professional advisors such as lawyers, accountants, auditors and others from time to time. Such advisors charge by the hour for their advice to the corporation and so use of professional time needs to be regulated in such a fashion that the corporation does not incur professional time unnecessarily. Restrictions as to who may contact a professional advisor and do not exist to curtail free speech but to protect the organization from unnecessary expense.

   Board members and staff of the corporation need to be able to identify themselves to third parties as being associated with the corporation by having business cards. It is, however, recognized that due to the transitory nature of some positions and the expense of printing individualized business cards, coupled with the risk of cloaking persons in apparent authority, that issue of business cards should be carefully handled and that a policy needs to exist.

2. Professional Advisors

   1. Day to day communication with professional advisors shall be handled by the Executive Director and may be delegated by them on a situational basis to other staff.
   2. The Board President may also speak directly with any professional advisor
   3. The Secretary may also speak directly with the attorneys but shall advise the Board President and/or Executive Director if they intend to do so and clear this in advance.
   4. The Treasurer may also speak directly with the auditors but shall advise the Board President and/or Executive Director if they intend to do so and clear this in advance.
   5. Except as provided for above, no individual Board member may speak with nor instruct a professional advisor in any manner without the prior authorization of the Board President, Executive Director, Executive Committee or Board.

3. Business Cards

   1. Business cards bearing the corporation’s name and/or logo shall only be issued to the Board Members, Executive Director and full time staff of the corporation.
   2. All other persons including; independent contractors, part-time staff, staff contracted on a temporary basis, volunteers, general members and committee co-chairs, shall not be issued with business cards.
   3. Business cards marked “Board Member” may be issued to Board members generally.
   4. Executive Committee members, the Executive Director and full time staff members may have business cards which bear their name.
   5. All business cards shall give the corporation’s office address, telephone number, fax number, email address and website. No personal telephone numbers, email addresses or other personal contact information shall be printed on any business cards.
   6. All business cards shall be ordered and distributed via the Executive Director’s office.
   7. Upon ceasing to hold a staff or other position in which business cards have been issued, the holder shall return any unused business cards to the Executive Director (or in the case of the Executive Director, to the Executive Committee) as soon as possible.

4. Breach

   Any member, volunteer or board member found to be in breach of this policy may be subject to disciplinary action under the corporation’s Disciplinary Action & Grievance Policy. Any staff member found to be in breach of this policy shall be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the corporation’s employment policies.

Approved: at Board Meeting 08.01.00