[Chapter-delegates] Association Management System (AMS) project - Phase 1

[Sabrina Wilmot]

Dear Colleagues

At its December 2007 meeting, the BoT approved the Business Rules in 
Membership System (BRIMs). Moving forward from BRIMs, we have developed 
a four-phase process for proceeding with the Association Management 
System (AMS) project. For more details please see:

http://www.isoc.org/isoc/general/trustees/docs/mar2008/membershipsystem.pdf

The Association Management System is aimed to provide ISOC with the 
ability to streamline and improve ISOC business processes, to enhance 
the experience of all members and to facilitate Chapter management. The 
project goal is to develop a system that aligns with the needs of *all* 
segments of the the ISOC community (Chapters, individual members, 
organization members, staff, etc.) and is consistent with the business 
rules. The AMS is intended to support the goals of the "Chapter 
Development Plan" and the "Sphere Project". (*)

Currently we are in Phase I of the AMS project which is due to be 
complete by end of June 2008. It includes: Needs assessment, member 
consultations, and the development of an RFP. We are moving as fast as 
we can with this phase of the project as we are aware that the current 
system is under-performing and not meeting the expectations of its 
users. At the same time it is critical to take the time necessary to 
consult and collaborate with all stakeholders to develop a common and 
shared understanding as we proceed through the various stages.

Last year, an initial volunteer group was identified in response to a 
public call on the Chapter Delegates list. This group will be the 
"Chapter Steering Committee". The purpose of the committee will be to 
act as the interface between the AMS Project team and the Chapter 
delegates. The committee will be involved in all stages of the project, 
reviewing requirements, gathering feedback from Chapters, participating 
in on-line meetings, prioritising requirements and giving updates to the 
Chapter Delegates.

The "Chapter Steering Committee" is therefore a critical component in 
the success of the project. As some time has passed since this initial 
list of names was gathered, I will contact these volunteers individually 
to reconfirm their commitment as participants in the Steering Committee. 
Anyone wishing to join this group is welcome to do so, please send me an 
email. More details to the project will be available on the web page 
shortly.

Please don't hesitate to contact me on or off list if you have any 
questions or comments.

Best regards,
Sabrina Wilmot
ISOC

(*)
As a reminder:
The Chapter Developement Plan is a multi-year strategic effort to 
develop the ISOC chapters into strong, effective and robust organisations.
http://wiki.chapters.isoc.org/tiki-index.php?page=Chapter+Development+Plan&bl

The Sphere project is an activity that seeks to develop the 
relationships between ISOC Chapters and ISOC staff.
http://wiki.chapters.isoc.org/tiki-index.php?page=Sphere+Project