of ceremonies who announced the performances and was responsible for controlling any rowdy elements in the audience. The role was popularised on British TV in the 1960s and 1970s by Leonard Sachs, the chairman on the variety show The Good Old Days. "Chairman" as a quasi-title gained particular resonance when socialist states from 1917 onward shunned more traditional leadership labels and stressed the collective control of Soviets (councils or committees) by beginning to refer to executive figureheads as "Chairman of the X Committee". Vladimir Lenin, for example, officially functioned as the head of Soviet Russian government not as prime minister or as president but as "Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the Russian SFSR". At the same time, the "Chairman of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee" was the head of the state, an office held by Kalinin between 1919 and 1938, when it was replaced by the "Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR". Later, Mao Zedong was commonly called "Chairman Mao", as he was officially Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party and Chairman of the Central Military Commission. Roles and responsibilities Duties at meetings In addition to the administrative or executive duties in organizations, the chairperson presides over meetings. Such duties at meetings include: Calling the meeting to order Determining if a quorum is present Announcing the items on the order of business or agenda as they come up Recognition of members to have the floor Enforcing the rules of the group Putting questions (motions) to a vote, which is the usual way of resolving disagreements following discussion of the issues Adjourning the meeting While presiding, the chairperson should remain impartial and not interrupt a speaker if the speaker has the floor and is following the rules of the group. In committees or small boards, the chairperson votes along with the other members; in assemblies or larger boards, the chairperson should vote only when it can affect the result. At a meeting, the chairperson only has one vote (i.e. the chairperson cannot vote twice and cannot override the decision of the group unless the organization has specifically given the chairperson such authority). Powers and authority The powers of the chairperson vary widely across organizations. In some organizations they have the authority to hire staff and make financial decisions. In others they only make recommendations to a board of directors, and or may