The board plays an important role in CIRA’s mission to build a trusted internet for Canadians, keeping the organization on track on behalf of our stakeholders. Meeting minutes provide a behind-the-scenes journey of the board’s oversight of our work throughout the year.
No doubt reading board minutes is not at the top of your to do list; to keep stakeholders informed on the work of the board, we’ve created this handy recap that highlights their meeting discussions and approvals in the last six months. We hope this summary is informative for even our busiest stakeholders.
Highlights of recent board meeting discussions and approvals
April 2
The board’s spring meeting usually lines up with the governance committee completing their annual work to select members for the election’s nominating committee. The governance committee provided an overview of their evaluations of nominating committee candidates and sought approval of the five selected candidates for a two-year term and a sixth candidate for a one-year term due to a vacancy. All were approved.
June 25
Following an intensive evaluation and selection process by the Community Investment Committee (CIC) (formerly Community Investment Evaluation Panel), the board’s June meeting typically focuses on CIRA’s Net Good Grants program. The CIC presented their final list of grantees and proposed funding envelope. A total of 15 projects and $1.25M in funding was unanimously approved.
An overview of CIRA’s stakeholders was provided, highlighting the way CIRA interacts with each group. The Board was also given a presentation on membership engagement outlining the methods used to engage CIRA’s members, and the success rates of each method. They discussed the relative importance of the various stakeholder groups, membership rates and member engagement.
As part of the management report, the board was advised that CIRA has a well-documented process that supports generational knowledge transfer, including policies and procedures specific to Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) as a result of CIRA’s ISO certification. Staff noted that AI-related policies are currently being prepared by management.
Nearing the end of the CIRA’s five-year strategic plan, several board members were appointed to a Strategic Planning Advisory Group (SPAG) to work with staff to establish CIRA’s next three-year strategic plan.
July 25
With CIRA’s annual general meeting on the horizon, the board reviewed and unanimously approved CIRA’s audited fiscal year 2024 financial statements for presentation to the membership. They also unanimously approved the recommendation to re-appoint CIRA’s current auditor for another year for approval by CIRA members.
September 19
Developed by staff and the SPAG, the draft FY26-28 strategic plan that will guide CIRA through the next three years was presented. This new plan builds on investments in cyber, Net Good and policy and advocacy spaces. It includes a renewed focus on promoting .CA in new market segments and to further strengthen registry services through CIRA’s partnership with SIDN. The plan was approved as presented.
Haven’t gotten your fill of board activities?
Learn more about CIRA’s board, governance and transparency. You can also check out our previous blog that highlights the board’s activities from the last six months of the previous year!
As the Manager of Membership Relations at CIRA, Julie manages the development, planning and delivery of CIRA’s membership and Member-related activities and engagement. She strives to create opportunities for Members and consumers, and partners to share, connect, and learn and get the most out of their relationship with CIRA.
