Committee Member Volunteering Process Update; Application Date Extended Beyond Tax Season to May 1.

• Position: Brief Article

A committee restructuring effort initiated during the summer of 1999 resulted in dramatic changes to the committee environment. The most notable change was a new emphasis on short-term, well-focused task forces in place of some of the standing committees that existed. As a result, 120 committees were reduced to 71.

The reduction in standing committees, however, did not result in a corresponding reduction in the number of volunteers needed since many new task forces and panels were created. Currently, volunteers participate across more than 70 committees, 83 task forces and 17 panels. This shift toward a faster-paced model in which a volunteer group forms quickly, completes a focused task and then disbands has worked well and serves a need to address, in part, the rapid changes and new services the profession is facing.

A second important change relates to the timing of applications. In the past. some members have raised concern that the application deadline for committee service was during the peak of tax season. To avoid any conflict this year, the final date for members applying to committees has been extended to May 1, 2001.

Yet another change to the prior committee environment was the introduction of individual member "skills" into the process through which a member would be appointed to a committee. Previously, a member would select one or more committees for which to apply; however, the particular skill set that a member would have and whether those skills were a good match for the committee was a somewhat...