Meeting Flow

Two flowchart tools have been added to the website (Members area in the menu under Resources and then Governance) – “Motions and Amendments” and “Procedural Motions“. These tools are meant to be simple, user friendly maps for understanding how motions proceed through a formal meeting. They don’t have the detailed explanations found in Citrine and they don’t have all the answers to questions around meeting procedure and they aren’t supposed to.

Have you ever seen the real map of London Underground? It is mind boggling in its scale and complexity and there are some quirky details that the “Standard Tube Map” just cannot replicate. The wiggly lines around Arsenal, Heathrow being miles away and the circle of lines that surround Richmond Park and Wimbledon Common (not the Circle line which incidentally is not a circle by any measure). So if this map is more accurate and reflects reality to a greater extent then why do we bother with the standard one?

We use the “Standard Tube Map” because it simplifies the process to the point where we can effectively interact with it. As commuters we don’t need the detail, complexity or quirks. We need to know our start point, our finish point and the lines we need to follow in order to successfully and efficiently complete our journey. This is the thinking behind the flowcharts. There creation was prompted by this years AGM where some members appeared to be alienated from the decision making process whenever things like amendments or procedural motions were raised. The goal of these simple, brief and visual tools is to make learning about and understanding meeting procedure more accessible and palatable for all members of the ASC.

They are not a replacement for the “ABC of Chairmanship” so Citrine fans… calm down!