Risk Management Chair
 

The daughter of a friend of mine is considering running for "Risk Management Chair" and is looking for some advice from me. I, of course, am looking for advice from you!
I started by telling her she should read her sorority's risk management policy and talk to her chapter advisor. Then I told her to clarify what is risk management and what is nosy sister (your chapter sisters are sluts is not risk management, as a for instance, but rape brought on in part because guys think they have free reign is).
Her chapter has had some issues with seriously drunk members (like trip to the hospital drunk) and 2, yes 2, rape situations with the fraternity they were paired with for Greek Week. Now I'd be screaming from the mountaintops that you're not going to take that pairing and why, but I believe that ship has sailed.

So what brilliant advice can you give?

And as an aside, is this a common it growing position in chapter management?

I think having some ideas in mind of how she would like to educate her chapter sisters on policies, like creative ideas for workshops or activities, might be a good idea.

There's a lot of overlap in risk management and standards. In the chapter I advise, risk management is primarily responsible for executing contracts for events, making sure that certificates of insurance are provided by any vendors that are hired by the chapter, making sure that event contracts are signed by each member (you must take the bus, you are responsible for your date's actions, etc.), and just making sure everyone is safe. Ideas for facilitating safety and policy compliance at events are a plus. For example, the chapter I advise instituted a card swiper that reads the members student id's instead of having to physically check people off a list.

Also, going thru the proper channels for permission to hold certain events, i.e. advisor and/or mid-level national officer signatures,following the protocol set up by her Nationals. She would probably make a presentation in chapter prior to an event, explaining what behavior is expected and getting signatures from all the members. Often when the members are signing the contract, they also have to list their dates, or guests. She might coordinate with the executive council officers for door duty at the venue, or even at the bus doors (if the chapter has hired buses to take them and their dates to an off campus venue), so that if a date (or sister) shows up in pre-party mode, they are sent home (usually in a taxi, at their own expense), thereby lowering the chapter's and national organization's risk.

I would be shocked if there is no risk management officer (or a position known by another name, whose primary duty is risk management) in NPC sororities.

Thanks for the input. She is concerned about some risky behavior on the sisters' part that have lead to some real risk scenarios so there has to be some behavioral, social training, and she also understands the legal ramifications (or thinks she does) and the potential for things like getting kicked off campus for certain infractions. It also sounds to me like this role may also have to take on a social media police function as well, because girls are posting said risky behaviors on open boards. So 1, stop doing it and 2, if you ARE gonna do it, quit friggin advertising it!

Thankfully I am not under the impression that hazing is any part of the problem, but as the risk management officer, she would probably need to make sure there aren't any little problems lurking under the surface there either.

I think that the social media police function would be determined by her chapter. I have known ZTA chapters where the exec. council would share that responsibility. The risky behavior exhibited in posted photos would fall under the judicial/standards board-at least in the ZTA chapters I advised.

I agree with what FSUZeta said. The chapter council shares responsibility for watching, but standards is responsible for any disciplinary action.