The Creative Commons Board of Directors values and seeks the input, judgment and skills of its Affiliate network in connection with its work, including the ongoing process of setting the organization’s strategic direction. To that end, the Board has adopted this process by which members of its Affiliate network may recommend candidates for service as regular members of the Board of Directors. This process may be amended and supplemented from time to time in the discretion of the Board.

General – Some Basics About Board Service

In 2009, the Board of Directors resolved to elect two new directors for service on the Board, to be selected if appropriate from a pool of candidates to be identified by Affiliates. These directors are to serve as regular members of the Board, not as representatives or delegates of any particular Affiliate, region or other constituency. Their duties and responsibilities are identical to the duties and responsibilities of all other Board members. Candidates must possess necessary and appropriate skills, experience and perspective to be considered for service on the Board.

Board terms are three years, although terms of new members may be shortened for purposes of properly staggering the terms of Board members, as is customary. Additionally, the Board may decide to fill these positions at differing times. See the Bylaws, linked below, for more information about the Board of Directors. Finally, consistent with its duties and responsibilities, the Board reserves the right not to select new Board members from the pool if, in its determination, the Board concludes that candidates identified by Affiliates are not suitable for service.

The Board meets between 4-6 times per year. Most Board meetings are held by teleconference. At least one meeting each year is a multi-day, face-to-face meeting, historically held in or about June and/or December in the United States. The Board has also started holding a multi-day face-to-face retreat each year, coinciding with a face-to-face Board meeting when possible. Attendance at Board meetings and retreats is expected.

Process

A call for Affiliate recommendations will be posted to the Affiliate email list. Affiliates with whom Creative Commons has a signed Memorandum of Understanding ^[1] may complete and submit a recommendation form, which will be posted at the time the call for recommendations is made. When the period for submitting recommendations has concluded, the Chairman and CEO will review and evaluate the pool of candidates. This will involve consulting with others as they deem appropriate, and may include interviewing the candidates and talking with candidate references, among other things. At the conclusion of this review and consultation period, the Chairman and CEO will make a preliminary recommendation to the Board of Directors, who will then take the recommendation under advisement and conduct its own further review. Decisions will be announced promptly.

Candidate Criteria

1. Candidates need not be affiliated with a member of the CC Affiliate network.
2. Candidates should be prepared to serve as regular members of the Board of Directors, not as representatives of any Affiliate, region or other constituency.
3. Candidates should be familiar with CC’s charter and bylaws, and be familiar with and willing to undertake all duties and responsibilities associated with Board service. See the links below for basic information about the organization. Additional information will be provided to potential candidates.
4. Ideal candidates will have fundraising and strategic planning experience, deep experience and knowledge of Creative Commons and its mission and work (whether generally or in a particular subject matter area such as science or education, technology or law), prior experience serving on a board of directors, and/or will bring an international perspective to the work of the Board of Directors.

Resources

Organizational Charter – http://ibiblio.org/cccr/docs/articles.pdf

Bylaws (as of 1 February 2011): http://ibiblio.org/cccr/docs/bylaws.pdf

Creative Commons is a Massachusetts corporation organized under Chapter 180 of the Massachusetts General Law as a charitable organization: http://www.malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXXII/Chapter180

[1] Affiliates submitting nominations must have transitioned to a new Memorandum of Understanding as part of the enhancement program (http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Affiliates).

Downloadable Forms

Board Recommendation Form PDF

Board Recommendation Form ODT

Board Recommendation Consent Form PDF

Board Recommendation Consent Form ODT