1. About AmCham
AmCham Panama is the largest bilateral Chamber of Commerce in the country, and is also affiliated to the US Chamber of Commerce, thus being an integral part of the network of more than 180 AmChams in the world. Its missions are to be the platform that facilitates the exchange and commercial development between member companies, organizations and institutions of the United States of America and the AmChams of Latin America and of the world, to promote the interests of the business community in Panama and to contribute to the sustainable growth of the country. All of the aforementioned goals are to be developed under the framework of free trade, transparency and business ethics.
AmCham Panama is a member of AACCLA, the Association of American Chambers of Latin America and the Caribbean. 24 AmChams actively participate in AACCLA, with more than 20,000 member companies present in 21 countries of our region, which in turn represent 80% of the investment of the United States of America in Latin America.
2. About AmCham’s Committees
AmCham has more than 450 member companies, representing all economic sectors of the country. The Work Committes, one of AmCham´s pillars, are made up of top executives from member companies who dedicate their time, unselfishly, to this task.
AmCham´s Committees are spaces for peer-to-peer exchange, where one can share trends, success stories and good business practices with industry colleagues. They are spaces for interaction, synergy and cooperation among our members.
AmCham’s 2017 Committees are:
- Real estate and construction
- Sustainability
- Energy
- Trade and Investment
- Tax and Legislation
- Organizational Development
- Education
- Tourism
- Transportation and Logistics
AmCham Committees meet regularly once a month. In addition, they can organize special activities like field visits, joint presentations with other AmCham Committees, special projects and Forums.
In the case of the Forums, AmCham has an annual calendar of Forums, so all Committee proposals must be previously approved by the Board to ensure: their alignment with AmCham’s mission and strategic objectives; AmCham's yearly priorities, their importance and national relevance; their public-private approach and their plan to ensure their financial sustainability.
Finally, starting this year, Committees are expected to progressively generate studies of specific points of interest that can be shared with our members.
3. About the Committee Leadership
Starting in 2017, members interested in chairing an AmCham Committee should apply in advance, following the description of the post, hereby attached, indicating in a paragraph their professional profile and in a second one, their vision of how they can add value to the Committee's leadership. Those who have previously been Committee Chairs may re-run to lead the Committee, but it is in AmCham's interest to rotate the leadership and provide opportunities for new executives from member companies.
The Board of Directors will review the applications and select the Chair based on the criteria detailed in the previous paragraph. The Chair will take office at the February meeting, and at that meeting, the present members will select, by vote, the Vicechair, who will accompany him during the year. At that first meeting, members will be invited to share their needs, expectations and priorities for the Committee, so that the Committee Chair can organize the work plan for the year, which will be submitted to AmCham’s Board for approval.
The Committee Chair can organize with the Committee members: workgroups; project, forum and / or study coordinators; etc. for which the leadership and assigned roles will be clearly identified in order to comply in a timely and form-like fashion with the yearly Work Plan approved by the Board of Directors.
4. Alignment of Committees with the Board of Directors
In March, a meeting will be held between the President of AmCham and members of his Board of Directors with the Committee Chairs. In it, AmCham´s yearly vision will be presented and the Committee Chairs will present their work plan proposal for the year – in a common format that will be delivered by us in a timely fashion and that must be completed – . The Board of Directors will approve and / or request final adjustments, if necessary, to ensure the strategic alignment of the Committees with the priorities established by the Board.
At that meeting, a Liaison of the Board of Directors will be chosen for each respective Committee, who will follow up on the fulfillment of the objectives and the workplan throughout the year and will keep the Board informed on the development of the Committee.
5. Support of AmCham Administration to Committees
The Committee Chairs will be supported by AmCham’s Committee Coordinator in order to organize each meeting. The monthly calendar of meetings will be established from February onwards and communicated to the members of the Committee.
All letters addressed to sponsors, Committees and / or Forums speakers must be previously validated by the Executive Directorate, and must be signed by the Executive Director and the Chair of the Committee.
Committees are exclusive for AmCham members. However, strategic allies that AmCham’s Board of Directors has elected, from the US Embassy, government, civil society, academia, and international agencies, will be invited as complementary guests, to specific Committees, in order to maintain a close relationship with them and promote greater synergies with AmCham.
Non-AmCham members may only be invited as potential members, and this can only be done through prior notice to the Committee Coordinator, for further prospection as a new member by the Administration.
All internal and external communications, announcements of meetings, forums, studies, projects, etc. will also be coordinated with each Committee Chair, so that they are part of the Committee plan and of AmCham’s yearly strategic communication, guaranteeing their alignment with the key messages that are intended to be transmitted to internal and external audiences, in accordance to the standards and procedures established by AmCham.
6. Management Report of each Committee
Regarding accountability, the Committee Chair will submit quarterly, half-yearly and end-of-term reports to AmCham's Board of Directors following a format that will be delivered to them, by us, in a timely manner.
AmCham’s Board of Directors will carry out evaluations of the management of the Committees and reserve the right to create new ones, eliminate and/or merge Committees based on their performance and on the strategic priorities of the organization.