EXECUTIVE LIMITATIONS POLICY

1. Purpose

The purpose of this Policy is to develop limits on the actions of the Executive Director so as to ensure compliance with the direction provided by the Board. The Policy is intended to give clear direction so that the Executive Director may conduct the operations of Ringette Canada effectively and efficiently.

2. Application of this Policy

This Policy applies to the Executive Director of Ringette Canada and, indirectly, to the committees, volunteers and staff that report to the Executive Director.

3. Definitions

The following terms apply in this Policy:

1. “Executive Director” – The person occupying the position of Executive Director or in their absence, the individual designated to fill this role.
2. “Board” – Ringette Canada’s Board of Directors.
3. “Employee” – an individual that is employed by Ringette Canada on a full-time, part-time or term basis, and who is not the Executive Director.

4. Limitations

The following are the general limitations on the actions and activities of the Executive Director:

1. The Executive Director must not cause or allow any practice, activity, decision or organizational circumstance that is unlawful, imprudent, unethical, or in violation of industry accepted business standards or sport ethics or that operates outside federal/provincial/territorial laws; and
2. The Executive Director must not significantly alter the organizational direction of Ringette Canada without the express consent of the Board.

5. Financial Conditions & Activities

The Executive Director must not cause, or allow the development of, fiscal jeopardy or a
material deviation of actual expenditures from Board priorities as established by the Board.
Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Expend more funds in the fiscal year than have been received (including accounts receivable), unless authorized by a deficit budget plan approved by the Board;
2. Indebt the organization in an amount greater than can be repaid by certain, unencumbered revenues by the end of the fiscal year, unless such indebtedness is part of a budget or operational plan approved by the Board;
3. Use any long term reserves except as approved by the Board;
4. Allow tax payments or any other government payments or filings to become overdue or be inaccurately filed;
5. Allow credit card payments to become overdue so that credit cards attract interest charges;
6. Operate without the required approvals of all cheques, contracts, documents, or any instruments in writing requiring the signature of Ringette Canada as described more fully in the Financial Policy.
7. Use restricted contributions for any purpose other than that designated by the contributor or jeopardize receipt of committed contributions;
8. Endanger the Registered Canadian Amateur Athletic Association status of Ringette Canada; and/or
9. Operate or execute without Board approval of the following:
  1. National marketing services contracts;
  2. “Title” or “Presenting” sponsors of the Canadian Ringette Championships;
  3. National television broadcast agreements; and/or
  4. Employee hiring or dismissal.

Financial Conditions and Activities must be monitored as follows:

1. Quarterly financial statements must be received and reviewed by the Board within one month of the end of the previous quarter. Quarters are determined with reference to Ringette Canada’s fiscal year.
2. The Executive Director must ensure that the appointed Auditors are aware of Policy prior to the annual review.
3. The Executive Director must ensure that the Board is informed of overspending in regard to the Board approved budget.
4. The annual management letter prepared by Ringette Canada’s public accountant must be provided to the Board and the Audit Committee for review, response and action, as
  appropriate.

6. Business and Financial Planning

1. The Executive Director must not cause or allow budgeting for all or any part of a fiscal year that is not consistent with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:
2. Allow Ringette Canada to operate without an annual budget and operational plan that demonstrates progress towards the strategic plan as referenced to the expected outcomes and objectives enumerated in the strategic plan;
3. Fail to present a budget to the Board at least fourteen days prior to a Board Meeting convened to consider the Budget; and
4. Operate without informing the Board in writing within two weeks of the Executive Director becoming aware of any material change in budget or the Operating Plan that will alter achievement of a strategic objective within the current fiscal year.

7. Asset Protection

The Executive Director must not allow the tangible and intangible assets of Ringette Canada to be unprotected, inadequately maintained, or unnecessarily risked. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Fail to conduct an annual assessment of risk and ensure that the organization has in place property, liability, and cancellation insurance at levels comparable to other similar sized National Sport Organization’s;
2. Operate without maintaining an inventory of all property valued at over $300.00 and Ringette Canada capital property as necessary for insurance purposes;
3. Operate without a minimum of $3 million in Officers’ and Directors’ liability coverage insurance and $5 million in general liability coverage for staff and volunteers, and review annually;
4. Operate without adequate protection of intellectual property, proprietary material or content and files from loss or significant damage;
5. Acquire, encumber or dispose of real estate property (land or building); and,
6. Invest Ringette Canada liquid and operating capital in anything other than Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) insured accounts.

Asset Protection must be monitored as follows:

1. Subsections 7.1 to 7.4 inclusive, by annually providing evidence of current insurance policies and schedules demonstrating adequate levels of coverage. This must be conducted at the first Board meeting after insurance renewal.
2. Subsections 7.5 and 7.6 by exception reporting.

8. Treatment of Staff, Contractors and Volunteers

The Executive Director must not cause or allow conditions, procedures or decisions which are unsafe, unfair, undignified or disrespectful.
Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Operate in the absence of written and Board approved human resources policies and
  procedures; and
2. Discriminate or allow discrimination against a staff member or volunteer for non-disruptive expression of dissent. Treatment of Staff, Contractors and Volunteers must be monitored on an exception basis.

9. Compensation and Benefits

The Executive Director must not cause or allow jeopardy to fiscal integrity. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Operate without periodic review by an independent consulting firm, or Board committee, to ensure that compensation program falls within a reasonable range of competitive practices for comparable positions among similarly situated organizations; and,
2. Fail, from time to time, to propose to the Board for approval, a compensation and benefits schedule for all employees except the Executive Director, consistent with the delegation of authority.
3. Hire full-time employees without posting and circulating the position at a minimum with the Members.
4. Fail to establish and ensure current job descriptions are available for all jobs and to evaluate each staff person at least annually based upon pre-established criteria, consistent with the delegation of authority.
5. Fail to provide job training and opportunities for professional development training as
  needed for staff.
6. Fail to establish the principles that give guidance to staff when performing their duties.
7. Fail to inform the Board of all contract staff agreements that are required and are not supported within the existing budget.

Compensation and Benefits must be monitored annually.

10. Treatment of Stakeholders

The Executive Director must not cause or allow conditions, procedures or decisions that are unsafe, unfair, disrespectful, undignified, or unnecessarily intrusive. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Operate in the absence of a standardized consultation process;
2. Restrict access to information appropriate to the requesting stakeholder; and,
3. Allow stakeholders to be uninformed of their responsibilities and Ringette Canada’s expectations of their behaviour when participating in Ringette Canada programs or events, including consequences of violating rules.

11. Communication and Support to the Board

The Executive Director must not allow the Board to operate in the absence of the most current and applicable documentation and information. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Fail to provide, in a timely fashion, deliveries of notable Ringette Canada announcements or communications to the Board prior to the dissemination to the Membership, stakeholders or general public;
2. Fail to provide all items on the Board’s agenda delegated to the Executive Director;
3. Fail to ensure the necessary administrative support for successful Board activities or Board involvement in Ringette Canada events;
4. Fail to communicate to the Board the appointment of an Acting Executive Director when not on active duty for a period of longer than two (2) days (e.g. illness, annual leave);
5. Fail to advise the Board if, in the Executive Director’s opinion, the Board is not in compliance with its own policies and procedures; and/or
6. Fail to provide, in the case of Board decision items, a full and accurate representation of the position of stakeholders, and a complete range of options as well as the consequences of choosing each option.

12. Emergency Executive Director Succession

With respect to the Executive Director and staff succession, the Executive Director must
protect Ringette Canada and the Board from unforeseen or sudden loss of such services. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Operate without a contingency for the Executive Director’s unexpected long-term absence or incapacity.
2. Operate without a designated second-in-command;
3. Allow staff to be uninformed of the issues and processes of the operation of Ringette Canada and its Board;
4. Operate without a short-term and long-term staff successions plan.

Emergency Executive Director Succession will be monitored by the Board President on an ongoing basis.

13. Public Image

The Executive Director must not cause or allow uncontested operational conditions, procedures, opinions or decisions by Staff or volunteers that jeopardize the public image of Ringette Canada. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Operate without communications and public relations operational procedures;
2. Permit the use of Ringette Canada resources to participate in or express an opinion about unrelated political, social or economic issues;
3. Permit any type of presentations that conveys or portrays information that is contrary to policy;
4. Authorize anyone other than the designated Director, as appointed by the Board, to speak “on behalf of the Board” unless the Board designates this responsibility to the Executive Director;
5. Allow any non-standard use of the Ringette Canada marks and/or logo, Canadian Ringette Championships, or competition logos and proprietary marks; and
6. Change Ringette Canada’s name or substantially alter its identity or brand/event image.

Public Image must be monitored on an exception basis.

14. Partnerships and Alliances

The Executive Director must not operate without encouraging corporate and public involvement in Ringette Canada’s initiative, to help maximize efficiencies and effectiveness in the use of resources to better achieve the Board’s strategic plan. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Operate without appropriate input from Members, staff, stakeholders and volunteers when developing means for achieving the strategic plan; and,
2. Allow corporate sponsorship or partnerships with any organization whose principles, practices or products are inconsistent with Ringette Canada’s policies or core values.

Partnerships and Alliances must be monitored on an exception basis.

15. Championships, Competitions and Events

The Executive Director must not cause or allow conditions, procedures, or decisions that jeopardize the successful organization of Ringette Canada operated championships, competitions and events. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Allow championship bid processes to begin in advance of publishing site selection criteria, selection timelines, and the site selection decision process; and,
2. Allow the selection of a championship site outside of the bid process, unless:
  1. All bids received in the original process failed to meet selection criteria;
  2. Bid groups from the original process are notified they failed to meet criteria; and
  3. A subsequent bid process with revised site selection criteria fails to yield any bids;
3. Allow scheduling of a Canadian Ringette Championships or competition more than 30 days outside the most recent timeframe in which it was held prior to consultation with the provincial ringette associations; and,
4. Allow changes to the dates of a previously scheduled Canadian Ringette Championships or competition by more than 7 days prior to consultation with the provincial ringette associations.
5. Fail to review, annually, the policies that provide guidance to those running events.

Championships, Competitions and Events must be monitored on an exception basis.

16. Disputes, Grievances and Appeals

The Executive Director must not cause or allow conditions, procedures or decisions that disallow individuals from filing a complaint or appeal. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Fail to advise the Board of situations operating without a complaint/appeal policy for
  volunteers, staff and contractors.

Disputes, Grievances and Appeals must be monitored on an exception basis.

18. Core Policies Required by Sport Canada

As part of the Sport Funding and Accountability Framework, Sport Canada requires that all funded National Sport Organizations have a set of core policies in place. Accordingly, the Executive Director must not:

1. Fail to provide and review, in the required timeframe, all of the core policies mandated by Sport Canada.

Core Policies Required by Sport Canada must be monitored on an exception basis.

This Policy is subject to review at least once every year

Date of last review: March 2022

The publication of Ringette Canada policies will be in the English and French languages. In the case of conflicting interpretations, the English version will prevail.