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 2000 Chapter of the Year Document |
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A. CHAPTER OFFICERS AND PROCEDURES 1. List all chapter officers, their company affiliation, phone, fax, and e-mail address.President: Robin Malik-Swisher, CPP Vice President: Denice McMahon, CPP Secretary: Nancy Johnson, CPP Treasurer: Rick Seifert, CPP Government Liaison Officer: Jerry Gunderson, CPP Membership Chair: Margaret (Marge) R. Olson, CPP Historian / Newsletter: Ann Johnson, CPP Technology Chair: Denice McMahon, CPP Program Chair: Jeff Goldenberg Conference / Education Chair: Elise Esper, CPP Past President / Board Advisor: Marcia Aamodt
2. How does your chapter keep National informed of your month-to-month activities and changes of chapter officers? The Northstar Chapter connects to National in a number of ways. The monthly newsletter is forwarded to David Crudup, Manager of Chapter Relations through our regular U.S. Postal mailing. The Newsletter provides information on the previous months Chapter meeting, upcoming Chapter events and recognition of members’ efforts. Additionally, we contact National through e-mail and telephone contact to forward information on changes to the Board and to have questions answered or assistance given if questions do arise. Recently our Government Liaison Officer contacted National to assist us in better utilizing that position. This contact enhanced our interpretation of the roles and responsibilities the position is accountable for.
B. CHAPTER MEETINGS 1.List your chapter meetings for 1999: Include, if possible, date and meeting topic.January 1999 No Meeting - Working on those W-2s, Year End Reconciliations, and Tax Reports February 1999 Presentation of the "Northstar Chapter Five Year Plan".
March 1999 Topic - Round Table Discussions
April 1999 Topic - Technology and It’s Lingo May 1999 Topic - Multi-state Unemployment June 1999 Topic - Exempt verses Non-Exempt Employees
July 1999 Introduction of New Board Members and presentation of Thank You plaques for outgoing Board Members.
August 1999 Scholarship Awards
October 1999 Expanded Year End Session (1/2 day)
November 1999 CPP Recognition
December 1999 Volunteer Recognition/Community Gifts -
2.How would a Payroll Professional benefit from attending your chapter meetings? Membership meetings are held each month with the exception of January. Annually we host a conference for payroll professionals throughout Minnesota and surrounding states. Recertification credit hours can be earned and applied towards the Certified Payroll Professional recertification. Recertification hours are not the only benefit members receive while attending Chapter Meetings. The meetings give Payroll Professionals the chance to hear professionals speak on timely topics pertinent to the Payroll Industry, network with other professionals in their same industry or company size, and gives opportunities for members to share their skills and talents with the group. All of these benefits add up to a great place to build a network and community of business professionals.
3.How does your chapter recognize achievers within your membership? Recognition of achievers at the Northstar Chapter is one of the most rewarding responsibilities that the Board of Directors have. Each year members are recognized in such ways as public recognition at meetings, in publications such as the newsletter and Web site, and with small tokens of appreciation. The Northstar chapter views achievement in the areas of continuing education (CPP Certification and Recertification), volunteerism (chapter speakers, volunteering of time or talents, etc.) and excellence in professional endeavors (National recognition or expertise) as benefits that will continue to make our chapter an exciting and dynamic organization.
C. CHAPTER TECHNOLOGY AND NETWORKING 1.Does your chapter have a web site? If so, list the complete web site address.This site includes an audio to let you know you have "cashed in" on a great Payroll Web site with links to National APA Web site www.americanpayroll.org Our friends and partners at the Twin Cities Chapter of IHRIM http://www.ihrim.org/neo_apps/chapter_db/index2.cfm?chapter_id=1061&x=5&y=12 You will find information on the Northstar site such as:
2.Was your chapter involved in an annual statewide chapter meeting this year? If so, how did your chapter contribute to its success? This year our conference promised to be better than ever! And it delivered!!! Not only did we offer outstanding educational opportunities but extended the vendor fair to a whole day on Thursday. This year the Northstar Board was extremely excited to be partnering with the Twin Cities Chapter of The International Association of Human Resource Information Management (IHRIM). You might ask why would we want to partner with IHRIM? Well, there are numerous reasons for this partnership: It is commonplace today to think of Payroll and HR systems as one integrated system versus two. We all know how closely HR, Payroll and Benefits are from a system perspective. More and more we see companies looking to ERP systems for their overall needs not just HR and payroll. We want to leverage the strengths of the two groups. Each has their own high level of skill and knowledge that will compliment the other group many APA members have responsibilities beyond the Payroll into HRIS, Benefits, etc. IHRIM also has extensive experience in coordinating large conferences. Partnership with the IHRIM greatly increases the level participation which allows us to offer more speakers and a greater number of workshops with more variety for everyone to attend. What was expected from this conference?
Opening session on the first day feature Al Walker, a well known national motivational speaker throughout North America. His bio reads, "Al is a big man with a big message." Keynote speaker for the second day featured Lynn Moline who invited us to ". . . think, laugh, and learn when you participate in this presentation." Robert Half sponsored an early evening social event featuring a beach theme to keep the spirit of the conference flowing through the end of the first day. Sessions to included topics on:
When you add all of this up, it equaled the biggest and best Conference and Vendor Fair the Northstar Chapter has ever offered it's members!!
3.What role has your chapter played in the success of the Payroll Professional Learning Series in your area? The Northstar Chapter has been thrilled to be an active partner with the local college in bringing the Payroll Professional Learning Series to the Minnesota area. The chapter has assisted in communicating the program, it’s schedule, and actively speak to interested individuals on the benefits of the classes. The Northstar chapter has also been fortunate in helping to provide instructors for this series. This continual learning experience has given the participating members the ability to give back to the payroll community their knowledge.
D. NATIONAL PAYROLL WEEK 1999 1. How did your chapter, as a group, celebrate National Payroll Week? The Northstar Chapter celebrated National Payroll Week during our statewide conference and vendor fair. This gave the Payroll Professionals a chance to share our pride and gratitude in the strides Payroll and HRIS has gained recently. To give back to the members of the Northstar Chapter and to offer benefits to our friends at IHRIM, the closing session of the conference was sponsored by the Northstar Chapter’s NPW campaign. Mary Adamski, Investment Investor from Dain Rauscher spoke on the topic of investing. Reminding all participants that they are worth the investment in the future. (See flyer that follows.) As has been a tradition at the statewide conference and National Payroll Week at the Northstar Chapter a drawing was held for prizes ranging from a can hugger all the way up to a 20" Color TV.
2.How did your chapter publicize National Payroll Week? The Northstar Chapter members really took the message and educational opportunity of National Payroll Week to their companies. A number of members had informational booths and meetings, while others prepared flyers and treats to win the attention of their employees. In the end, employees better understood what their payroll check meant and who helped to produce it. In years past the Governor’s office has been very enthusiastic in Proclaiming National Payroll Day or Week in Minnesota. But as with all new and exciting administrations, philosophies have changed. Governor Jesse Venture has taken the position that Proclamations are not something that organizations in the past have truly utilized, therefore has placed a moratorium on issuing them. The Governor’s office did issue a Certificate of Recognition for the week which follows.
3.What type of community activities did your chapter participate in during National Payroll Week? Northstar Chapter participated in the Walk for MS. Although turnout was less than expected, a fun time was had by all. E. SCENARIOS 1. A chapter member stands up at a meeting and asks, "what are the benefits of becoming a CPP, I already have a great payroll job?" What would be your chapter's response?As outlined in the Certification Information Handbook published by the American Payroll Association, the "APA Certification Board’s certification program goals are:
What this means for you as a Payroll Professional is that identification, testing, and standardization of skills and knowledge will position you and the rest of the payroll community to continue to be an important and equal partner in business. Business partners look to professional certifications to understand what skills and knowledge individuals have to contribute with confidence. This proven knowledge and skill level will be an asset that cannot be diminished.
2. Another chapter member asks, "I'm already a chapter member, why should I become a National APA member?" How would your chapter respond? The American Payroll Association (APA) is a national organization of payroll professionals dedicated to increasing the professional skills of its members and to the recognition of the payroll profession as the specialized profession it has become. The APA offers its members a computer based training program, numerous workshops, seminars, symposiums and conferences in order for payroll professionals to develop and maintain a high degree of skill and knowledge. Some of the benefits of belonging to the National organization are annually receiving a directory of members by name and industry, a "hot line" service that helps you get fast and accurate answers to questions that won't wait, a bi-monthly publication called PAYTECH, which contains information about the latest developments of interest to payroll professionals and other publications to keep you current on legislative changes. The APA also sponsors a certification program for payroll professionals. The certification exam is held twice a year and test the skills of payroll professionals in fundamentals and basics of payroll, taxation, systems, accounting, and management. Upon successful completion of this exam, the payroll professional is given the designation of Certified Payroll Professional. These benefits are more extensive than the Northstar Chapter alone could provide. National membership ensures you are receiving the most timely and expert knowledge the National organization has to offer to compliment the benefits the local chapter can provide.
F. CHAPTER FACTS 1. How does your chapter keep track of its membership? The Northstar Chapter’s membership previously was on an old database program the chapter purchased more than 8 years ago. With changes in technology and in the Membership Chair position, the Chapter migrated the information to Microsoft Access database program. This has enabled the Membership Chair to more efficiently run administrative items such as renewal letters, membership certificates, and mailing labels. Expansion of data base fields promises to enable the Board to find new and creative ways to access membership information and identify potential opportunities.
2. Does your chapter charge membership dues? If so, how much? The Northstar membership dues are $25.00 annually. These costs are used to offset the administration costs of meeting notifications, Web site maintenance, and newsletter mailings. To join the Northstar Chapter individuals or companies can send an email to the Membership Chair or download a Northstar Chapter Membership Application Form in Microsoft Word 6.0 (.DOC) format (126KB) or Rich Text Format (128KB). The completed request and payment is then sent to the Membership Chair.
3. How many members does your chapter have and what is your average meeting attendance? Current Northstar membership is 416 including individuals and companies. Average meeting attendance in 1999 was 75 individuals monthly. Variances have been attributed to seasonal and workload shifts, and consistent notifications to members.
G. CHAPTER DOCUMENTATION 1. A sample of the chapter's best newsletter in 1999. See Attachment A 2. A sample of the chapter's best meeting notice or meeting invitation. See Attachment B 3. A copy of the chapter minutes from any meeting in 1999. See Attachment C
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September
1999 Annual Conference /
Food Shelf Drive
