Once a fortnight our ‘What It’s Like…’ Series will interview a member of one of the governance boards, highlighting their work, their role in the Engineers Ireland community and advice for members interested in becoming involved. This week’s interview is with Amanda-Jane Gainford, a member of the Executive Board 2019-2020.

Engineers Ireland is governed by the provisions of its bye-laws which are implemented by a Council of members and an Executive Board. The latter is appointed by Council to govern Engineers Ireland on its behalf.

Amanda-Jane Gainford graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering and is now a Chartered Engineer based in Co Monaghan. A member of Engineers Ireland since 2006, she was co-opted to the Executive Board for 2019-2020.

Motivating factor

In discussing her interest in joining the board, she highlights her experience with Council as a motivating factor. “I’ve been a member of Council for a number of years now as the North East Region liaison officer.

"Recommendations are made to Council by the Executive Board, so over time it became a point of curiosity for me. I was interested in further understanding how the board fitted into the wider sphere of Engineers Ireland’s activities and the role it plays in this community.

Amanda-Jane Gainford

"However, despite being an active member and Council representative, I had never really considered putting myself forward for election to the Executive Board as it was unclear to me whether my professional experience matched the experience required.”

In 2019 Gainford was co-opted to the Executive Board by the president, Marguerite Sayers. “It was a great honour, but what really struck me was that my contributions and input at Council had been of note and value to the president and my peers. I realised then that I had the level of experience that I had been concerned about not having previously.”

Asked about the most challenging aspect of being on the board, Gainford identifies two areas. The first challenge is quickly getting to know such a widespread and busy group.

Varied projects and topics

She references the varied projects and topics dealt with throughout the year. “Understanding the experiences and perspectives of your colleagues is key, as your collaborative input into the board’s discussions will shape how decisions for the organisation are made.

"You owe it to the members that you are representing to be as informed as possible when making these decisions, and being familiar with your colleagues’ expertise is part of that.

"However, because the board only meets about 10 times a year, there is a limited window of opportunity to get to know your fellow members before the work begins.”

The second challenge is the “large volume of detailed documents to digest for each meeting. These need to be carefully reviewed to ensure you fully understand the issue that you will be asked to vote on”. 

Dealing with the challenges has been very rewarding – Gainford describes it as a unique learning opportunity.

“The Executive Board is different to Council in that it is a much smaller group. The discussions and level of detail debated on each topic on the agenda are much more in-depth.

‘Behind-the-scenes’ work

"There tends to be a bigger split between the for and against on topics, and decisions only come about after long debates. Membership of it expands your knowledge and understanding of the ‘behind-the-scenes’ work of the organisation, with many different committees and groups presenting to the board throughout the course of the year.”

Using the Engineers Ireland Competences as her reference guide, Gainford identifies the other experiences and skills gained from being on the Executive Board.

“It is an opportunity to increase C3 Leadership, C4 Communication Skills, and C5 Ethical Practice. The level of decision-making means that C5 is one of the main competences that you can develop.”

With the 2020 Engineers Ireland AGM approaching and a new Council and Executive Board due to be established, she advises the soon-to-be new members to “carefully read through the guidance documents and bye-laws of Engineers Ireland".

Cornerstone

"These documents form the cornerstone of all the organisation’s roles, responsibilities and activities, so making sure you’re familiar with them is key for confident decision-making,” she says.

Engineers Ireland Executive Board 2019-2020

Under the provision of our Code of Ethics and bye-laws, the Executive Board is responsible for deciding and approving the policies to be implemented by the director general and various committees, and submitting proposals to Council about the annual budget, the financial statements and membership subscriptions. The board meets about 10 times annually and also has joint meetings with Council two to three times a year. The Executive Board is established by Council each year in June. More information on its role and responsibilities can be found in the Engineers Ireland Bye-laws (available here).