After the dust settled last night, TAC has new leadership, sort of, because it’s the same leadership we had for the past 4 years. The members have what they voted for, sort of, given that two of the American candidates who appeared to have a large amount of support were nixed from the election before they could do any damage to the status quo by getting, well, elected. At least the Board & the Nominating Committee protected the status quo though, which has gotten us to where we are right now. It would be good to get feedback from the Nominating Committee to hear their reaction to not having one of their American candidates get elected to the Board. You can’t count incumbents, unless you’re desperately seeking validation.
A Curious Choice
The new Representative Governor is a curious choice. He’s clearly had his eyes on the ‘top spot’ for years. Great for people who want to volunteer, have the time to do so & then make the commitment. But the choice is….underwhelming….most likely due to the lack of choice amongst the Board. If there were ever a place for change in Governance at the Club, one would imagine that giving the Representative Governor free reign to choose the Committee Chairs, including the Nominating Committee chair (the group who puts the slate of candidates together) needs to change. Has there necessarily been collusion or something nefarious at work to maintain the ‘wa’ of the Board? Maybe not. But given the events of the past few years around who has headed committees, who has made the slate, who has not headed committees & who has not made the slate (the latter two much more important to focus on) a clear pattern emerges.
Always There For ‘You’…
The good news is that the new Representative Governor is always at the Club. Literally, he is always there. If you ever have a question or issue you have a very high chance of finding him in the Club. Any day of any week of any month of the year. In the past, once others have reached the pinnacle of the TAC volunteer experience, they’ve spent less & less time at the Club (e.g. the last 4 years). It is understandable.
The volunteer position is not one to be taken lightly. The number of complaints, feedback from ‘experts’ & a complete lack of understanding around how the Club works from a small number of members (80-20 rule in full effect) is truly astounding. The only way to head this off is to be as open as possible, give people their 15-20 minutes, & hopefully they’ll get bored & move on. Or, on the odd occasion, have an idea that can be implemented. Many, however, still have not moved on.
As such, perhaps we will see the new Representative Governor act more in accordance with how the Club was designed & not use it as his personal office. TAC used to interview potential members at their offices. It might be time to look at that policy again. Membership dues do not equal using TAC as a serviced office.
A curious choice indeed.
It has not been confirmed but it is quite likely that the successful candidates for the Board are announced in order of the number of votes received. It certainly isn’t (or wasn’t) alphabetical, given that the new Representative Governor was announced last & his last name would put him very early in the list if that were the case. Given that, is it possible that by nixing the two American candidates the powers that be cleared the path for not only the new Representative Governor to make the Board, & alas, become the new Representative Governor? It couldn’t be!
We are a social club, as we are told, when we are being told to behave. But when the elected leadership needs to get something done, electioneering, decorum & following the rules somehow seem to become optional. If you are of the opinion that the propaganda from the GMO (the vote on the loan, the ‘preferred’ candidates for the Board, etc), does not constitute electioneering then we have a bridge we’d like to sell you.
Anyway, onwards & upwards.
At the end of the day there is only one TAC. There is only one place that does what TAC does & let’s people come together the way that we do. At times such as this it is good to remember that the elected leaders are members, just like the rest of us. There is no President, it is not his company, it is not the Board’s company. In fact, there is no company. There is a Club that we all belong to, no one’s opinion is any more valid than anyone else’s. We have somehow clearly lost sight of these facts. Like many of us I had high hopes for the election yesterday. Unfortunately if your new puppy pees in your house, no matter how many times you rub his face in it he will not learn that he’s supposed to pee outside. Did the 4,000 puppies just have their faces rubbed in their own pee? Time will tell.