Members quizzed on proposed structure, board and membership changes

Steve White, Biba

Biba has launched a member consultation on proposed changes to its governance structures, board make-up and member segmentation.

The consultation follows the conclusion of Biba’s strategic review, which concluded earlier this year.

Biba chief executive Steve White (pictured) said: “The proposed changes are fundamental to the way Biba is run, and how we interact with members. Therefore it is vital that members respond to this consultation and I encourage them to tell us what they think of our plans.

“We think that the proposals put forward will enable us to listen to and communicate with our members more effectively by segmenting the membership by both size and location, as well as having a clear link between the different segments and our board.

“During my speech at the Biba conference, I asked members to join in – responding to the consultation is one of the ways that they can do this and help to shape the future of the association.”

Proposed changes

Biba is proposing to segment its members as follows:

  • Small firms in the North with a commission and fee income of less than £1m;
  • Small firms in the South with a commission and fee income of less than £1m;
  • Larger firms with a commission and fee income of greater than £1m;
  • Networks, aggregators, MGAs and other distributors; and
  • UK nationals, London market and international members.

The proposed new board structure is:

  • A board size of between 10 and 12 members in total;
  • The Biba executive to have three reserved places on the board – the chief executive plus two executive directors and a minimum of two serving;
  • One independent non-executive director to be elected by the board and re-elected every three years, who can serve for a maximum of two terms;
  • Each of the five segments to form an advisory board. Each advisory board would elect a chair and each of the five chairs would have a seat on the Biba board.

Following these changes, the board would comprise:

  • A chairman;
  • A deputy chairman;
  • An independent non-executive director;
  • Biba’s chief executive
  • Up to two others from the Biba executive;
  • A ‘chair of chairs’ from a regional chairman’s committee; and
  • The balance of the board made up of member representatives whose selection is based upon the proposed five segments mentioned in the new membership model.

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