Basic framework on structure and operation

A general outline of the framework under which faculties will operate is as follows:

Constitution

• The aims and objectives, structure, accountability, etc., of faculties will be set out in broad terms in their constitution.

• Faculties may also develop rules and regulations tailored to their own particular features (e.g., rules on internal management, the setting up of sub-committees, and basic rules of conduct), subject to approval by the Institute.

Faculty Executive Committees - role and composition

• Each faculty will have its own faculty executive committee, the role of which will cover, broadly:

1. Overseeing the faculty’s day-to-day operation and management;
2. Undertaking technical work in the relevant specialized field;
3. Liaising with government agencies, regulators, etc., on technical matters affecting the sector that are within the remit of the faculty;
4. Maintaining contacts with other faculties, committees and panels within the Institute, and relevant outside parties (e.g., other professional bodies), as appropriate, and undertaking joint activities on matters of common interest or concern;
5. Reporting to the Standards & Quality Accountability Board and the Executive Committee on strategic plans, budgets, activities and other relevant matters, at least twice annually, and providing them with copies of minutes, project proposals, etc., on a regular basis, to enable them to fulfil their monitoring role.

• Generally, a faculty executive committee will comprise no more than 16 members, of whom up to 75 percent may be elected from and by the faculty membership. At least two-thirds of the elected members should be members of the Institute.

• Subject to the overall limits, Council may appoint up to two members, who need not be faculty or Council members, and the faculty executive committee may co-opt up to a further three members from amongst the faculty membership, to the faculty executive committee.

• Council will appoint the faculty executive committee chair from among the committee's members. Ordinarily, the chair will be a member of the Institute but, in exceptional cases, he or she may be a non-member of the Institute.

• Faculty executive committee members may elect or nominate either one or two deputy chairs from amongst themselves. In the case that there are two deputy chairs, at least one of whom should be an Institute member.

• The Institute’s governance rules, including rules on the maximum term of office, will apply to faculty executive committees.

Membership

• General membership requirements for faculties will be provided for in the constitution, or in rules, and may differ between faculties. A faculty executive committee may issue additional guidance on membership criteria.

Other matters

• It is not intended that faculties should have substantial regulatory functions. For faculty members that hold other professional memberships, a faculty may refer complaints to the relevant professional body or industry regulator.

• To avoid any uncertainty regarding the Institute’s representation and role in relation to international bodies in a particular sector, the authority to nominate a representative to a particular international specialist body will rest with Council. The process will normally involve consultation with the relevant faculty executive committee chair.