Governance Structure

What roles do we need to get things done? Governance Structure

Proposed Governance Structure = Principal Lines of Communication The “A” Team (5 – 9) “Bobble Heads” (~12) Committees, Teams, Special Interest Groups BurnT Community

Commonly known as the “Board of Directors” (BOD) • 5 – 9 members • Elected by the community • “Trusted servants” • 1 or 2 year-term • Set community policies, bylaws, etc. with Community Managers • Make wide-reaching, persistent decisions • Define financial targets, allocate and manage budget • Final decision-making authority (if necessary) • Legally responsible for the community  also must file taxes; deal with lawyers, insurer, landlord, etc. • Meet periodically to discuss key community matters • Accountable to community • Ensure accountability of Community Managers, committees, etc. The “A” Team

Commonly known as the “Officers” • Typical positions: President, vice-president, secretary, treasurer • For BurnT, no “president” or VP • “Trusted servants” • Develop policies and procedures with BOD • Manage the day-to-day activities of the community • Appointed by BOD or elected by community (TBD) • Accountable to BOD and community • 12 Positions: The “Bobble Heads” • Secretary/ Administrator • Communications Coordinator • Events Coordinator • Quartermaster/Goods Manager Treasurer • Public Relations/Media Coordinator • DON Chief • Community Safety Manager • Archivist/ Librarian • List Moderator • Art Coordinator • Ombudsperson/Referee

Address specific purpose (e.g., an event, website, project) • “Trusted servants” • Could be formed on ad hoc basis • Volunteers just sign up • No specific term • Follow community policies, bylaws, etc. • Overseen by the “Bobble Heads” • Accountable to “Bobble Heads” and community • Request budget from, and manage budget allocated by “Bobble Heads” • Make decisions of for specific event or purpose • Could be of limited temporal duration (e.g., event theme) or longer term (e.g., website functionality) • Depending on the type of decision, must seek “Bobble Heads” and possibly community approval Committees, Teams, Special Interest Groups

Ombudsman/Ombudswoman/“Ombuddy” • addresses issues that require discussion and mediation • an independent advocate • similar to a Ranger • Auditors • As required to vet operations and practices • Expert Service Providers • As required (E.g., EMS, security, accounting, legal) • Members! Other Roles

Seeking systematic ways to achieve agreement Decision-making

By Community  Wide-reaching with significant, persistent impact • E.g., how we will make decisions; legal entity to form; elections • Made by Referendum, elections or similar votes with a significant substantial majority (i.e., with minimum quorum) • By Committee/Team  Purpose/event-specific, limited temporal or reaching impact • E.g., mOOseman/T-Comp theme; venue selection • Made by event organizers with input from the community • By Elected Representative/Agent • E.g., • i) “Bobble Head” appointments • Made by The A Team (Note: could also be voted in by community-wide election) • ii) New events to sanction • Made by The Bobble Heads • iii) Wristband colour • Made by event team lead Decision Types

A minimum number of voting members will be required to vote to form a decision by majority Community-wide Voting Approach Everyone 1/2 2/3 All eligible voters e.g., 100 members “Quorom” of voters 50 members (1/2 of all eligible voters) Majority vote 33 or more members (2/3 of Quorum)

The following is a list of decision categories in the order of priority they need to be dealt with that was identified by the Entity Team: Leadership and Management Funds and Assets/Financial Management Art Grants Principles Code of Conduct Communication Event Types, Themes Official vs. Non-official Status (e.g., for the Burning Man LLC) Usage of Non-BurnT Expert Services (e.g., accounting, sound equipment set up) Schedules Accountability A long list of actual specific decisions that fall under each category was drafted and is available for further discussion. Some of these decisions are listed on the following slides. Decisions and Decision Types

What governance structure, guiding principles, bylaws, codes, etc. to adopt • Which roles, responsibilities and accountabilities to implement • Terms of positions • How to run elections • How to set event objectives, leadership, management, approach, date, format, budget, etc. • mOOseman • T-Comp • Newbie picnic • How to determine which new events to sanction, fund, etc. Sample BurnT-specific Decisions

How to manage BurnT “brand”  logos, symbols, tag lines, protection of brand, representation How to communicate internally and outwardly How to associate with BMHQ and other groups Whether, which and how to engage professional/expert services Which and how to fund community skills development, projects, groups Whether, which and how to acquire assets and how to use them How to allocate art grants Sample BurnT-specific Decisions

Who gets to vote? Membership

What does it mean to be a member? • Opportunity to pARTicipate in community decision-making • Must have pARTicipated in at least one past BurnT activity (e.g., mOOseman, T-Comp, Town Hall) • Must register each year (on a TBD renewal date) • No minimum pARTicipation requirement, but pARTicipation is encouraged • What does one need to do to become a member? • Just sign up! • Provide name and an email • List past BurnT activities • State why do you want to be involved? • No fees or red tape • The initial list as identified by us • Based on past participation, known affiliation  email invites will be sent • Membership Wrangler/Manager will manage the membership list until a Secretary can be identified Are you in?

To incorporate or not to incorporate? Is that the question? What Type of Legal Entity and Why

Looked at other BM communities and other similar local groups • Entity types considered: • Coop • Collective • Society • Corporation • For profit • Non-profit • There are legal requirements that must be met pre- and post-incorporation (details later…) • Let’s lock down the cornerstones of who we are, what we stand for and how we operate before incorporating Options and Recommendation Recommendation due to fit for our type of community and the benefits it will provide us

Where to from here? Next Steps

Review and revise timeline (See next slide) • Flesh out Guiding Principles, Bylaws, etc. • Sign up members • Establish a mechanism(s) for voting • Make Big Decision about making decisions • Agree on governance structure and elect A Team, Bobble Heads • Create “shell” non-profit for mOOseman and TComp??? • Discuss topics on BurnT list, at events, etc. • Send specific feedback or questions to email address: • burntentity@gmail.com Next Steps

May 8 – BurnT BFM • May 8 – Membership registration for voting purposes begins • June 3 & July 8 – Town Hall meetings with Q&A about proposal • July 15–Push for Membership and voter registration to participate in initial vote ends • July 21 – August 4 – Vote on proposed Decision-making Methods • August 5 – Town Hall meeting to reflect on mOOseman and present outcome of Decision-making vote • July and August – Tweak proposed Governance Structure with feedback from the community • October 7 – Town Hall to present final proposed Governance Structure • October 20 – November 3 – Vote on proposed Governance Structure • November 4 – Town Hall meeting to present outcome of Governance Structure vote • December 2 – Town Hall to reflect on T-Comp and present initial candidates • January 6, 2011 – Town Hall to present final list of candidates • Mid-January 2011 -- Elections 2010 Timeline Elections, BurnT Entity Up and Running in early 2011!  May June July August September October November December

So what do you think? Questions and Answers

Governance Structure