Call for Pan American Regional Office Positions: Regional Working Group 2021-2022
Call for Pan American Regional Office Positions: Regional Working Group 2021-2022 The IPSF Pan American Regional Office (PARO) is calling interested pharmacy students from across IPSF member associations in the Americas to join the International Pharmaceutical Students’ Federation as part of PARO’s team on the Executive Committee, the Regional Working Group. For all the positions, you must be able to work throughout the year and have regular internet access. You must be reachable by your entire term, until October 2022. All the positions are invited to attend the 67th IPSF World Congress and 15th IPSF Pan American Regional Symposium and your committee/subcommittee meeting, if one is scheduled. However, it is not obligatory. If you are interested in a particular position listed here, you shall submit the completed Nomination Form and send it to the PARO Secretary (secretary@paro.ipsf.org) before the deadline for applications. The appointment of the Chairperson of PARO and the election of the Regional Working Group Officers will happen during the 19th PARO Regional Assembly from July 5th to July 19th, 2020. The election of the Chairperson of PARO will happen during the Online 67th IPSF General Assembly 2021. Candidates for both Chairperson and Regional Working Group Officer positions must prepare a prerecorded video with a presentation with maximum duration of 3 minutes to present during the applicable assemblies. All nomination forms must be submitted to secretary@paro.ipsf.org no later than July 6th, 2021, 23:59 (11:59 pm) GMT-6 (San Salvador, El Salvador time).
Eligibility: According to the IPSF Official Documents 10.2.1. Nominees shall be a member of the Federation. Members more than four years postgraduation are not eligible. 10.2.1.a. Nominees for the Regional Working Group must also be a member of the respective region. 10.2.2. Nominees in first-round elections must: 10.2.2.a. Have attended at least one previous General Assembly, have served in a position appointed by the General Assembly or Executive Committee, or have served in a position on the Regional Working Group to be eligible for the Executive Committee; 10.2.2.b. Have actively participated in at least one previous General or Regional Assembly or have served in a position appointed by the General Assembly, Executive Committee or Regional Working Group to be eligible for the Regional Working Group.
Executive Position: Chairperson of the Pan American Regional Office As the Chairperson, you are responsible for: • • • • • •
Representing the Regional Office Coordinating and overseeing the implementation of IPSF projects and activities in the region Ensuring sound financial standing and administration Establishing further relations with student and professional organizations in the region Overseeing the organization of regional events Offering leadership and direction towards strategic goals
As the Chairperson of the Regional Office you are also a member of the IPSF Executive Committee and therefore will have to correspond regularly with Executive Committee Members. You shall promote IPSF and your Regional Office through all means; monitor progress on projects and activities; actively investigate and follow up on opportunities for strategic development and make any public announcements on behalf of the IPSF Regional Office. Confidence and proficiency in oral and written English; presentation and communication skills; effective time management and organizational skills are important for the position. Hence, the ability to lead and work well in a team is vital to be innovative in solving problems, ensuring projects follow timelines and action plans, and to implement new projects and ideas. Previous experience in a leadership role is preferred. To meet these responsibilities, it’s highly recommended for the applicant to travel to attend local, regional and international events, from the Executive Meetings (EM1: September-October; EM2: February-March; EM3: Prior the World Congress), IPSF World Congress (July-August) and the IPSF Pan American Regional Symposium for next year. To apply for this position, please take into consideration the criteria for eligibility stated in the articles 10.2.1. 10.2.1.a. 10.2.2. 10.2.2.a. 10.2.2.b. of the IPSF Standing Orders. For more information on the position refer to the articles 5.5 and 3.7.12 of the IPSF Domestic Rules or please write to chairperson@paro.ipsf.org.
Regional Working Group Positions To apply for any of these positions, please take into consideration the criteria for eligibility stated in the articles 10.2.1.a, 10.2.2.b. of the IPSF Standing Orders. Secretary As the Secretary, you are responsible for ensuring that the Regional Office runs smoothly in close cooperation with the Chairperson. The Secretary needs to be familiar with the Official Documents as it is the responsibility of the Secretary to ensure that the Regional Office complies with the Official Documents. It is also the responsibility of the Secretary to issue notice and to distribute the agendas and minutes of all Regional Working Group meetings. The Secretary should assist other RWG members with PARO projects.
In addition to administrative activities, the secretary is expected to keep accounts of all financial transactions of the Regional Office in close contact with the Chairperson of the Regional Office. For this reason, it is important for the Secretary to have some experience or familiarity with budgeting, writing financial reports and bookkeeping. The Secretary is also a co-opted member of the IPSF Constitutional Working Committee to assist with the administrative duties of the Federation, such as writing the minutes of the IPSF General Assembly and suggesting changes to the IPSF Official Documents. Essential abilities of the Secretary include proficiency in written and spoken English. In addition, the Secretary needs to have an eye for details along with great organization skills. Other essential qualities are good written and oral communication, time management and interpersonal skills. The Secretary is expected to maintain contact with all members of the Regional Working Group and will be expected to contact members and IPSF executives For more information on the position refer to the articles 5.5 and 5.6.2 of the IPSF Domestic Rules or please write to secretary@paro.ipsf.org. Regional Media and Publications Officer (RMPO) As the Regional Media and Publications Officer, you will be responsible for developing publication materials as well as updating the website and Facebook page of the Regional Office. The main Regional Office publication is the PARO Newsletter. The RMPO is responsible to ensure completeness and effectiveness of the content and design of ALL publications. It is essential to have the ability to use Photoshop or other related programs but if you do not possess these skills yet, they can be learned. The newsletter is an important publication for PARO, and the RMPO is the leader in preparing this project. There should be an issue that comes out periodically that includes all regional activities promoted by RWG, blog posts from the website and Facebook page, pictures from association projects and anything else that should be shared with the region. The RMPO will have help from his or her subcommittees who will work closely together to improve the PARO website. It is also the RMPO’s responsibility to ensure that the website is maintained and continually up to date. To be able to update the Regional Office website, it is essential to have the basic knowledge on how to manage a website, as well as to be familiar with both technical details and all site content. The website program that is currently used is WordPress. The RMPO is also responsible for working with the Regional Projects Officer to create and design new and creative ways of promoting the Regional Office and its projects in the form of flyers, posters. The RMPO is also responsible for editing any and all materials that are posted on the website and Facebook page for grammar, spelling and completeness (including blog posts). Most importantly, the RMPO needs to motivate the region to share their ideas for member organizations projects and materials in order to promote progression of the region. The RMPO is a co-opted member of the IPSF Design and Creativity Committee and assists in designing projects mandated to the Committee for the Federation. The RMPO is also the Chair of the PARO Media and Publications Subcommittee as well as the PARO Translations & Communications Subcommittee and will need to delegate necessary obligations to these individuals. The RMPO’s responsibility is to ensure that all posts are translated at least in English and Spanish (however, if possible, posts should be translated into Portuguese, and French as well), with the help of the Translations & Communications Subcommittee.
For more information on the position refer to the articles 5.5 and 5.6.3 of the IPSF Domestic Rules or please write to rmpo@paro.ipsf.org. Regional Relations Officer (RRO) The Regional Relations Officer is responsible for maintaining communication with IPSF Regional Member Organizations to ensure they are satisfied with what IPSF and the Regional Office has to offer, and in turn bringing forth recommendations for improvement from members to the Regional Working Group. A significant portion of this portfolio is dedicated to the promotion of IPSF and the Regional Office to Non-Member countries, through meetings, emails and updates, and by travelling and doing promotional tours wherever and whenever possible. The RRO is the Chair of the PARO Regional Relations subcommittee and is co-opted on the IPSF Internal Committee and External Committee. The Regional Relations Officer is also responsible for updating information lists of Contact Persons, Student Exchange Officers, and Individual Members in the Region. It is also important to focus on promoting IPSF and the Regional Office to current members to maintain activity and strength in the Regional Office and ultimately, the Federation. Assets that will be important for successfully meeting the expectations of this position are: excellent communication skills, extensive knowledge of the IPSF and the Regional Office and how it operates, motivation to travel and promote the Federation and its activities, and enthusiasm for IPSF. For more information on the position refer to the articles 5.5 and 5.6.4 of the IPSF Domestic Rules or please write to rro@paro.ipsf.org. Regional Projects Officer (RPO) As the Regional Projects Officer, you are responsible for coordinating the implementation of IPSF projects at the regional level. Thus, you will be required to work closely with the relevant IPSF Committees and Chairpersons as a co-opted member of the IPSF Public Health, Pharmacy Education, and Professional Development committees. For the RPO, this means being involved in each of these committees and helping with tasks whenever possible and/or necessary. The main job of the Regional Projects Officer is to focus on projects in the Region. For PARO, The needs of the region vary due to its diversity, therefore the RPO should be able to assess current public health concerns in the region and spearhead appropriate campaigns that will benefit our members across PARO. The RPO is also responsible for other publications during the year when there are no focus campaigns. These follow the WHO calendar for health days such World Tuberculosis Day and World Immunization Week. The RPO chairs the PARO Regional Projects Subcommittee who will assist the RPO in developing campaigns. In doing so, the Regional Projects Officer will also be responsible for the promotion of the approved projects and will work very closely with the Regional Media and Publications Officer to develop appropriate promotional materials. Having a creative streak would be beneficial for the Regional Projects Officer as the position requires extensive work with publications and promotional materials. The ability to use Photoshop or other related programs is important, but if you do not possess these skills yet, they can be learned.
The RPO will also be required to maintain some degree of communication with member associations in the promotion and implementation of IPSF projects at the national level. Because of the variety of projects that the RPO may be involved with, and the many people that they have to cooperate with, it is important for the Regional Projects Officer to have impeccable communication skills, time management and organization. The process to publish materials requires careful planning to meet all the deadlines, allowing time for translations and review of all material. For more information on the position refer to the articles 5.5 and 5.6.5 of the IPSF Domestic Rules or please write to rpo@paro.ipsf.org.