In response to requests from various intergroups in GreySheeters Anonymous, the Structure Committee has drafted this guidance on the roles of the typical positions in the typical GreySheeters Anonymous intergroup. Each intergroup has different needs so will have its own governance structure, i.e., its own roles and reporting relationships. In addition, each intergroup will adapt these descriptions of the roles and responsibilities to suit their own priorities.
Tradition Four “Each Group should be Autonomous”
GreySheeters Anonymous considers this tradition to apply to intergroups as well as groups. Each intergroup is an autonomous service entity except in matters affecting other GSA entities or GSA as a whole. Therefore, this document is intended as guidance only. It is a response to requests from those interested in doing service at the intergroup level for information about the expectations of the various roles.
Intergroups may have different service positions than those outlined here. They may have different expectations for these positions. This document describes the accepted responsibilities of the intergroup chair, treasurer, secretary. It does not include the Intergroup Service Representative (ISR) or the Board of Trustees (BOT) Liaison, which are both described elsewhere (Role of the ISR 2023 and Role of the Liaison 2023). It does not include such positions as Zoom Coordinator, Publications Coordinator, and Event Coordinator which only some intergroups have.
Chair
Some GreySheeters Anonymous intergroups combine the role of ISR and Chair (in 2024, WSIG, SCIG, NYMIG, CTIG, NEIG, and LCHIG). If the role is combined, refer to the document Role of the ISR (2023).
Other intergroups have two separate positions: ISR and Chair (in 2024, EIG, ICEIG, ISLIG, and PBIG). This description applies only to the role of Chair when the roles are separated.
Duties
Intergroup Meetings
- Establish a regular meeting day and time that meets the needs of the intergroup officers, GSRs, and the Board of Trustees Liaison. Work with the appropriate intergroup officer (usually the Zoom Coordinator) to schedule the meeting on the intergroup Zoom account. Update GSA World Services about the meeting day, time, and Zoom link for the GSA World Services Google Calendar.
- Ensure that the intergroup has described the current duties and responsibilities, terms, abstinence requirements, etc. for each intergroup officer’s position if they differ from these guidelines. Officers may include ISR, Board of Trustees liaison, secretary, treasurer, and various coordinators.
- Conduct regular meetings to ensure an efficient use of the members’ time. Ensure that all members have an opportunity to contribute to the discussion. Ensure that the intergroup makes decisions by substantial unanimity. Ensure that decisions are clearly documented in the minutes. Invite GSRs for all groups in the intergroup to attend each meeting. For those groups without a GSR, invite the group contact or other elected trusted servant.
- Draft an agenda (or review the secretary’s draft) that includes major topics of discussion and decisions to be made and circulate to members in advance of meetings.
- Typical intergroup meeting agenda includes:
- Declare quorum , accept the agenda, accept the minutes, accept the Treasurer’s Report including amounts donated to GSA World Services compared to intergroup area population. Reports from any other officers such as ISR, Board of Trustees Liaison, Events, Zoom, Website, Facebook, etc. Ensure that all service positions are filled. Ensure that the intergroup elects a new ISR six months before the end of the two-year term. Ensure that the ISR updates the intergroup registration with GSA World Services.
- Facilitate discussion of any new proposals from WSC committees or board and ensure that GSRs are prepared to discuss with their groups. Ensure that the ISR records their input on proposals for the originating committee or board. Discuss any old proposals on which GSRs have input.
- Address any group issues raised by GSRs or other members. Provide logistical support to groups especially those without a GSR, e.g., registering as a group with GSA World Services, updating registration or meeting listing, registering GSR as a delegate, etc.
- The intergroup secretary typically records the minutes. Ensure that tasks are clearly assigned to a specific person and the assignment is in the minutes. Ensure that the minutes are complete and accurate. Ensure that the minutes and any other intergroup documents are filed in the intergroup folder in the GSAWS cloud storage such as Google Drive. This is typically the responsibility of the intergroup secretary.
Facilitate Intergroup Services
- Communication
- Jointly with the ISR, receive email for the intergroup through the intergroup address YourIntergroup-ISR@greysheet.org
- Access Services of GSA World Services
- Collaborate with the Board of Trustees Liaison and the ISR to inform the Board of Trustees of any issues or needs to request support or information from GSA World Services if needed.
- Facilitate Group Participation in Intergroup
- Talk to interested GreySheeters in the intergroup area about the intergroup, encourage them to participate in the intergroup meetings, and orient any new GSRs.
- Maintain communication with each group in the intergroup to ensure they have all the information they need. If the group has a GSR, this communication may occur at intergroup meetings. If the group does not have a GSR, this may mean attending the group’s meetings to provide information and solicit input.
- Encourage groups without a GSR to elect one. Encourage qualified members to serve as an elected GSR. Encourage rotation by GSRs.
- Ensure Connection to World Service Conference
- Should an intergroup not have an ISR who represents the intergroup at the monthly Chairs and ISRs meeting, at the monthly Committees Connecting meeting, or at the quarterly Town Halls, the Intergroup Chair will represent the intergroup.
- Should the intergroup not have an ISR who registers as a delegate to the World Service Conference and serves on a World Service Conference committee, the chair will represent the intergroup if they meet the same requirements as the ISR.
- Financial Oversight
- As the elected leader of the intergroup organization, especially if the intergroup is incorporated in the United States as a not-for-profit, the chair is typically responsible for ensuring that the intergroup manages its finances in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, Twelve Step traditions, and intergroup decisions.
- The chair typically reviews and approves expenditures, such as literature purchases, event venue fees, Zoom or other online account subscriptions, travel expenses, delegate registration fees, etc.
- The chair works with the Treasurer to implement the decisions of the intergroup with regards to expenditure.
Abstinence, Election, Rotation, and Alternate
Abstinence
The abstinence expectation for a chair is typically three years because the chair typically serves as alternate for the ISR in GSA World Services and the requirement for GSA World Services-alternates is that they meet the same qualifications as the office holder.
Should an intergroup not have a qualified member available, the intergroup may elect one or more members with less abstinence to perform the functions of the chair. A chair with less than three years of back-to-back abstinence would not be able to serve as ISR-alternate in GSA World Services. Typically, intergroups only elect chairs with at least one year of back-to-back GreySheet abstinence.
The position of chair is not a GSA World Services position; it is an intergroup position. The position is not GSA World Services delegate-eligible. The chair may also serve in a delegate-eligible position such as GSR or Specialist. In that case, they would also not be able to serve as ISR-alternate because one person may not hold two delegate-eligible positions at once.
Term
Chairs in GSA intergroups typically serve a two-year term beginning immediately after the WSC meeting (usually in October). Should a vacancy occur during the term, the intergroup elects a chair to complete the current term. This person may be re-elected after the WSC meeting for a complete two-year term.
Ideally the Chair rotates out of service in the opposite year to the ISR, i.e., their terms overlap by one year for continuity and mentorship of the incoming trusted servant. For example, if the ISR rotates out in even years, 2024 or 2026, the Chair would rotate out in odd years, 2025 or 2027.
Rotation
In the spirit of Twelve Step rotation of service positions, the suggested maximum is two full consecutive terms.
Requirements
- Ability to send and receive email with attachments, use word processing and spreadsheet software, use cloud storage such as Google Drive, Google Calendar, Zoom, and navigate the GSA website.
- Ability to plan and facilitate decision-making meetings of GSRs and intergroup officers.
- Elected by the voting members of the intergroup. Voting members of intergroups are the GSRs for each member group and such officers as the intergroup decides are voting members. Some intergroups make all intergroup trusted servants (including BOT Liaison) voting members; others do not.
Vice-Chair
The ISR may serve as the alternate chair in the chair’s absence or the intergroups may elect a vice-chair who substitutes for, and supports, the chair and is mentored to rotate into the position of chair.
Intergroup Secretary
Duties
The Intergroup Secretary is responsible for record-keeping for the intergroup. Primarily this means creating and filing meeting agendas and minutes. These may be stored in the intergroup folder in the GSA World Services cloud storage such as Google Drive. Other records may include treasurer’s reports; budgets; incorporation certificates if the intergroup incorporates as a not-for-profit organization; state and federal tax records; invoices and receipts for services such as printing, Zoom account, event venue reservations, literature from GSA World Services or Alcoholics Anonymous; and correspondence with GSA World Services and other entities.
Abstinence, Election, Rotation, and Alternate
The secretary is an officer of the intergroup and, as such, is elected by the voting members of the intergroup, i.e., the GSRs and the officers.
The typical abstinence for intergroup officers is one year of back-to-back GreySheet abstinence.
The secretary’s term of office is typically two years. In the spirit of Twelve Step service rotation, the maximum number of consecutive full terms may be set at two.
Intergroups may elect an assistant secretary to substitute for the secretary when they are unavailable, to support the secretary in their duties, and, potentially, to rotate into the position when the secretary’s term is over.
Secretaries may consider reviewing the GSA World Services resolution, Retention of Records and Recordings, which includes a template for the minutes.
In many intergroups, the chair or ISR creates the agenda for the monthly intergroup meeting and the secretary is only responsible for filing these in the intergroup folder cloud in GSA World Services storage such as Google Drive.
Treasurer
Duties
The Intergroup Treasurer is responsible for accepting donations from groups and individuals and receiving payments for literature, event registration, etc. The treasurer banks these funds and pays invoices approved by the chair on time. The treasurer makes donations to GSA World Services as approved by the intergroup. The treasurer keeps accurate and up to date records of these transactions in the intergroup folder in GSA World Services cloud storage such as Google Drive. The treasurer reports to the intergroup at each intergroup meeting.
Abstinence, Election, Rotation, and Alternate
The treasurer is an officer of the intergroup and as such is elected by the voting members of the intergroup, i.e., the GSRs and the officers.
The typical abstinence for intergroup officers is one year of back-to-back GreySheet abstinence.
The treasurer’s term of office is typically two years. In the spirit of Twelve Step service rotation, the maximum number of consecutive full terms may be set at two.
Intergroups may elect an assistant treasurer to substitute for the treasurer when they are unavailable, to support the treasurer in their duties, and to rotate into the position when the treasurer’s term is over.
Treasurers may consider reviewing the GSA World Services brochure, The Group Treasurer, which has useful information about topics including reporting and maintaining a prudent reserve.
Treasurers may store financial records in the intergroup folder in the GSA World Services cloud storage such as Google Drive so that other intergroup officers may access them, and incoming treasurers have easy access.
Distributing Electronic and Printed GreySheets
The ISR is officially responsible for ensuring that the intergroup follows the World Service Conference-adopted policy on distribution of the GreySheet. In many intergroups, the day-to-day receiving of requests and mailing of electronic or printed GreySheets is delegated to the Intergroup Secretary or to the Intergroup Treasurer. In this case, those officers should be familiar with the policy which is available on greysheet.org.
Essentially, GreySheets are distributed by intergroups to elected GSRs or to qualified sponsors. Intergroup officers are more likely to know whether someone requesting copies of the GreySheet in their intergroup area is a qualified sponsor than GSA World Services officers would be. This is why GSA World Services distributed GreySheets through intergroups.
For those intergroups who have been granted permission by GSA World Services to print and distribute GreySheets in their own language or region (Iceland, Israel, Europe), the intergroup officers responsible for arranging printing should be familiar with the World Service Conference-adopted policy.
Publishing Online
GreySheeters Anonymous intergroups often have websites, social media channels, and social media groups. According to the World Service Conference-adopted policy on online publications, ISRs and intergroup officers are responsible for ensuring that anything published online by the intergroup meets the same criteria as items published by World Service. That is, events are only affiliated with GreySheeters Anonymous, do not mention specific foods by name, and do not distribute the GreySheet without a sponsor. Events that are announced on intergroup online media also follow the guidelines for events published online by GSA World Services, i.e., organized by a committee of at least two qualified GreySheets, only qualified GreySheet members lead meetings, only GreySheeters Anonymous Conference Approved Literature is used, etc. These criteria are published on the GreySheeters Anonymous website.
Changes to this Document
The originating committee will review this policy or procedure annually and make necessary updates. The originating committee and the Board of Trustees may make spelling, grammar, or formatting corrections to this document. The originating committee may make minor content changes to this document for clarity and to ensure it aligns with other GreySheeters Anonymous World Services decisions. The originating committee will follow the World Service Conference approval process for any substantive changes to the content.
Approval Dates
Structure Committee: 2/11/2024
Changes to clarify abstinence requirement, duties, and financial responsibilities: 4/14/2024
Committee Chairs & Intergroup Service Representatives: 6/15/2024
Board of Trustees
World Service Conference
More information: Structure@greysheet.org
Download Guidance on Intergroup Service Positions
[1] Quorum for intergroups is 51% of voting members. Voting members include all officers and all group representatives. Therefore a quorum typically requires the presence of elected representatives of at least some of the member groups.