In a good structure everyone knows what each person must do and everyone knows what is happening in the organisation, who to ask for what information, and who must do specific tasks. Good structures make it more difficult for a few people to take advantage of the organisation, for example, to control the money.

In organisations such as an advice centre, the management committee consists of office bearers who are responsible for the day-to-day management. This includes the chairperson, vice-chairperson, secretary, treasurer and ad hoc members. To decide what office bearers your committee needs, start by listing the work the committee must do. Then you can decide what office bearers you need to do each part of the work.

Before electing office bearers, it is a good idea to discuss what job each office bearer will do and what kind of person will be good for that job. For example, a treasurer must be able to do basic bookkeeping – understanding bank accounts, writing receipts and so on. Office bearers are responsible for the following tasks:

• The Chairperson helps to organise meetings and usually runs meetings.
• The Secretary lets people know when and where meetings will be held and takes minutes. (See: Taking Minutes)
• The Treasurer keeps a record of all the money that comes into the organisation and all the money that the organisation spends. The treasurer must ensure that income and expenses are in line with budgets. He or she must keep committee members informed about the organisation’s finances and is also responsible for fund-raising.