Current AIS policy states that all members of an AIS Community must maintain an AIS membership in addition to their community membership. Please make sure that anyone engaging with the community is a member of AIS, particularly those that are taking on officer positions. Please feel free to contact the membership office with questions membership@aisnet.org

In the recent past that was some public confusion over a chapter president versus the AIS president. The confusion was purely accidental, but in order to clarify titles, the AIS Council approved the following policy which is now part of the AIS community bylaw template.

Article V, Section 2. Officer Titles

When referring to an officer title or position, AIS Communities will reference their position in one of the following manors:

       i.          Community + Officer Position

a.      Examples: Chapter President, SIG Secretary, College Treasurer

      ii.          Community Name + Community + Officer Position

a.      Examples: SIGABIS President, AIS Egypt Chapter Treasurer, AIS Women in IS College Vice President

AIS encourages all communities to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of its members. In order to lessen confusion with awards we ask that the AIS communities stay away from titles that include any of the following:

• LEO Award
• Fellow
• Leadership Excellence Award
• VISION
• ATLAS
• Challenge

Should an AIS Community already have an award with one of the above names, or if the above names cannot be avoided, the following are examples of how the award and title should be used at all times.

Fellow of the Liechtenstein Chapter of the Association for Information Systems
 OR
 AIS Liechtenstein Chapter Fellow

In order to maintain the integrity of the association and to protect the AIS brand and intellectual property rights of the association, AIS reserves the right to request immediate edits or to make changes to any AIS Community website. The association does not take these requests lightly. AIS believes in scholarly debate and academic freedom. Any request made will be in the best interest of the Association and its members.

Treatment of AIS Members

AIS’s goal is to provide an organizational environment for its members that is free from discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, age, or disability. Harassment can include derogatory statements, conduct or treatment relating to a member’s race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, age, or disability.

If a member believes in good faith that he/she was discriminated against or harassed by an AIS employee or by any AIS individual executing official duties on behalf of AIS, the person should report the incident immediately to the Executive Director, the President of AIS, or the General Counsel. The Executive Director or designee will conduct a thorough investigation and recommend or take appropriate corrective action. AIS will maintain confidentiality of the complaint to the extent possible, commensurate with the need to investigate and resolve reported problems. AIS will not retaliate against a member, who files a good faith report of discrimination or harassment.

Treatment of AIS Employees by members

It is the policy of AIS that all employees be treated with respect and dignity. In particular, employees have the right to work in an environment free from unlawful and improper discrimination and harassment by members of AIS. It is the responsibility of every AIS individual to cooperate in reaching this goal.

As used in this policy, the term “harassment” may include statements, behavior, conduct or treatment, and may include acts and/or failure to act. AIS will not tolerate, and this policy prohibits, harassment based on, or related to, a person’s race, color, sex (with or without sexual conduct), sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, physical or mental disability, marital status, protected activity under the antidiscrimination statutes (i.e., opposition to prohibited discrimination or participation in the statutory complaint process), or other classifications protected by law. Prohibited harassment need not violate the law and may, for example, include generally abusive behavior towards others or behavior that, if it continued, would violate the law.

Statements, behavior, conduct, or treatment may be considered harassment if such statements, behavior, conduct, or treatment substantially interferes with an employee’s job performance or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment. In particular, sexual harassment generally includes statements, behavior, conduct, or treatment based on sex, whether directed towards a person of the opposite or same sex. Sexual harassment may include explicit sexual propositions, sexual innuendo, suggestive comments, sexually oriented “kidding” or “teasing,” “practical jokes,” jokes about obscene printed or visual material, and physical contact such as patting, pinching, or brushing against another person’s body. The statements, behavior, conduct, or treatment need not be designed or intended to promote an intimate relationship. Further, prohibited harassment includes harassment based on sex (e.g., frequent derogatory comments about women) even though the comments are not sexual in nature.

Some examples of what may be considered harassment, depending on the facts and circumstances, include the following:

• Verbal harassment (e.g., derogatory comments; improper gestures; threats of physical harm; distribution of written or graphic material having such effects)

• Physical harassment (e.g., hitting, pushing or other aggressive physical contact; touching or threats to take such action; gestures or the display of signs or pictures)

Harassment of an employee by an AIS member is considered a serious act of misconduct. When AIS concludes that prohibited harassment has occurred, it will take prompt and effective corrective action against the individual to ensure that the harassment does not occur again and to remedy the effects of prior harassment.

Relationships between AIS members Employees or Contractors

Because of potential conflicts of interest, security issues, and other concerns, AIS prohibits romantic or sexual relations between AIS members and employees to the extent permitted by law. 

Cash
Communities are encouraged to maintain sufficient funds in reserve to cover twelve months of their communities operating expenses. Communities are also encouraged to avoid the buildup of excess cash. The general rule-of-thumb is to keep no more than 12 months of annual operating expenses in reserve.

Chapter Insurance
The national office’s insurance policy also includes coverage for communities. This coverage includes general liability, automobile liability, catastrophe liability and association professional liability. Contact the AIS Office Manager (office@aisnet.org) for more information or to request certificates of insurance.
Communities hosting education classes and other events at outside locations may be required to provide a Certificate of Insurance to the hotel or facility. Certificates of Insurance may be obtained by contacting the AIS Officer Manager.

Chapter Internal Control Policy
All chapters must establish and comply with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). In particular, the chapter should establish, in writing, control policies that outline who has access to various accounts and the mechanism by which expenses and withdrawls are approved. 

Dues, Fees, and Expenses
All members of a community shall pay annual chapter dues in an amount set by the communities Executive Board or another amount established by the AIS Council. The amount set for dues or fees may not exceed the annual national dues or fees set by the AIS Council.

AIS Bylaws Section 8.8. Finances. "Subdivision bylaws may provide for dues. Funds so obtained may be used for any purpose consistent with the organizing document and bylaws of the subdivision, the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws of AIS and AIS’ tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3) of the Code."

Contracts
AIS Bylaws Section 8.9. Liabilities. A subdivision shall not enter into any contract or agreement or undertake any action which could result in any obligation or liability for AIS without the express written consent of the [AIS Council] Executive Committee.

Restricted funds
In accordance with generally accepted accounting procedures for not-for-profits, funds that are restricted for specific purposes must be tracked separately on the community’s balance sheet. The most common examples include contributions for scholarship activities. Scholarship funds are to be presented as a temporarily restricted net asset whereas other funds are to be presented as a liability. Contact the Finance Director at the AIS International office with any questions (finance@aisnet.org).

Annual Chapter Financial Reports
Each year AIS chapters are required to submit a financial report with their annual report. SIGs and Colleges do not have this requirement because their finances are housed with the AIS international office. Chapter requirements for financial reporting are described in the AIS Bylaws, Bylaw 8, Section 8.7. The due dates for filing chapter financial information are included in the Calendar section.

Investments
The community treasurer shall receive all monies collected by the community or by any officer or other party on behalf of the community, and shall deposit such monies in a bank or other financial institution specified by the community board of directors. Monies received by SIGs and Colleges shall be deposited with the AIS Office. Communities must follow the AIS investment policy.

IRS Interactions
Should the IRS contact your community for any reason, you must contact the AIS Finance Director immediately. All interactions with the IRS must be coordinated by AIS. This includes all IRS audits of communities. This coordination will ensure uniformity of response.

Procedures: AIS Administrative Bulletin- SIG and College Financial Information and Processes

AIS encourages all Communities to participate in research and publishing. 

Code of Conduct

All AIS Communities must follow the Code of Research Conduct. Additional policies and guidelines can be found here.

AIS Bylaws require all communities to submit annual report. To see the bylaw language, click here- Bylaw 8.