The OFFICIAL 2011 Board Election Thread

[Limerick]

I’m still trying to assess the value of Houghton against Carnegie. I accept that Laycock has impressive and relevant credentials and has only recently joined the Board. Houghton’s statement doesn’t provide anything that will encourage me to vote for him but acknowledge that he may have been a strong contributor. My dilemma is how do I assess him? After 300 posts on this thread I’m none the wiser.

Looking at our immediate future we have two main challenges:

To increase our membership
The AFL average increase per year has been around 5%. From 2004 to 2008 we achieved this but were coming from a very low base. If we assume that in 2008 we picked up 4,000 sympathy members then we have stagnated over the 2008 – 11 period hovering around the 30k mark. If the level of sympathy was lower, we have gone backwards.

To achieve the target of 40,000 by 2015, as defined in the 2011 Financial Report, we will need to grow our membership by around 7.5% per year for the 2012 -15 periods and at that point are likely to only be ahead of the Western Bulldogs in Melbourne.

To remove our Debt
The Club is embarking on a debt reduction campaign in 2012. This, together with Tassie and more on field success, should enable us to reduce the debt by up to $2m in 2012 and totally remove it by 2015.

Other issues such as increased attendances, increased sponsorship and increased revenue will, with work, flow from the success in addressing the above two challenges.

I’m not knocking the Board, or Administration, who has performed well but believe that we need to face reality and see that we have major challenges ahead. Therefore I see this election as very important and want to ensure the best outcome.

Thoughts.

 

[Z_K]

I hope it does mate. Honestly do. But my head tells me otherwise. What do you make of the 500k loss? Will getting rid of the debt magically solve all the problems?

I honestly don't spend all that much of my time concerning myself with profit/loss statements of footy clubs. Couldn't tell you which clubs posted a loss this year or last. I also don't spend much time worrying about our off-field future. I haven't for a good while. I'm comfortable with where the club is at.

Or will "community" account for natural growth to 40k plus members?

Who else is going to buy membership if not members of the community?

The reality is the community and loyal members like us may be soul of this club, but the soul also needs a body to live in, as once the body is dead, the soul will turn into a spirit which will live in our memories and history books. And to make sure the "body" doesn't die, we need to continue reinventing ourselves, as we have been doing through out the time of our existence. That requires vision, and people with business acumen, not merely relying on the community. How many more 500k losses can we sustain? Mind you, I am not at all suggestion relocation or any other similar crap - as you would know. We live or die here at North Melbourne. But we need to find revenue streams, and we have to become the best marketed club in this country. We are a long way away from that.

Say a bloke in the suburbs, big North fan, starts a web based something or other company. It takes off. He's swimming in money. Can't spend it all. Buys all the cars, boats etc you can buy. Decides he wants in on the board and will drop a million in for good measure. Debt goes down 25%. Now what? Maybe he has newly found rich mates who want in just for a laugh, so their companies kick in sponsorship money. Great. Another million. Everyone is laughing, debt is falling a bit, club has working capital it didn't before. Great. We would all welcome it.

But if the base isn't built, if the people currently or potentially North Melbourne people are not already there or on their way, it isn't sustainable. If people don't watch the footy on TV, feel part of the footy club enough to watch the footy in person, it just doesn't work and if it did it wouldn't matter anyway because the club would have lost what made it too hard to shift to Queensland. If that was a simple business decision we'd be missing a footy club. The bottom line is important because it can give you a better chance to win flags and grow and sustain a club to win even more. And the really good clubs give back a bit too, which I personally love about this North Melbourne. There is such a thing as community and a society (Ms Rand's opposition to this being proof positive I'm right) and becoming part of it - engaging and supporting it - will have benefits that will sustain the football club commercially. I honestly believe that to be true. It is absolutely more sustainable that one-offs or bit here and there and you have the current need for more work to be done as proof of that.

As for Ayn Rand - do you realise that "Atlas Shrugged" has sold second most copies to the Bible?

There isn't enough space on the internet for me to tackle this. I'm still twitching from all the possibilities one could explore in response.

Back to all matters board elections.

 

[hilly]

Karl Marx played on the left and Ayn Rand played on the right.

 

[LT Smash]

As for Ayn Rand - do you realise that "Atlas Shrugged" has sold second most copies to the Bible?

This is actually an urban myth. Atlas Shrugged has sold about 1% of the sales of Mao's little red book and the Quran just for starters. It's way down the list of most books ever sold.

But just like the Bible, it's fair to say that 98% of people who bought it didn't read it cover to cover. That 100 page speech in the middle is just brutal.

 

[RoyalBlue]

I can't even start on that Atlas Shrugged as second biggest selling book ever stuff.

Are there more copies of Atlas Shrugged in existence than there are the Qur'an?

**** me. Only the most bullshit of bullshit lists could have that at number two.

Vote Laycock FFS.

 

[longlivenmfc]

I think it is simplistic to assess the value of each board member simply against KPI's of, say, debt reduction or increases in membership. It needs to be remembered that although it's a footy club, it's a company that turns over $30m, has 30,000 members, scores of staff, loads of contracts, numerous relationships to manage etc.

So if we take Delina for example, I care very little as to whether he has directly contributed to an increase in membership, but I care very much that he's the partner of a major accounting firm and can provide significant financial acumen to board discussions (and the things that result from board meetings). Likewise, should matters arise that touch on contracts, employment matters, legal issues in the media etc, I care very much that we have a QC sitting at the table.

Reductions in debt, increasing membership, increasing sponsorship etc are all vital challenges that we face, but I personally won't assess Houghton's worth based on the extent to which he has directly impacted these issues. But I do believe that a Board like ours needs legal expertise, and I'm glad it's a QC with close ties to the AFL.

 

[Z_K]

Karl Marx played on the left and Ayn Rand played on the right.

She didn't pass the footy much and him too much. Shambolic.

If I ever did a thesis, no matter the field of study or the reception it would be receive it would be many thousands of words dissecting the levels on which 'Atlas Shrugged' is complete rubbish.

 

[MaddAdam]

There’s something deeply unsettling about living in a country where millions of people froth at the mouth at the idea of giving health care to the tens of millions of Americans who don’t have it, or who take pleasure at the thought of privatizing and slashing bedrock social programs like Social Security or Medicare.

It might not be as hard to stomach if other Western countries also had a large, vocal chunk of the population who thought like this, but the US is seemingly the only place where right-wing elites can openly share their distaste for the working poor. Where do they find their philosophical justification for this kind of attitude?

It turns out, you can trace much of this thinking back to Ayn Rand, a popular cult-philosopher who plays Charlie to the American right-wing’s Manson Family. Read on and you’ll see why.

http://exiledonline.com/atlas-shrie...-the-serial-killer-who-stole-ayn-rands-heart/

 

[MaddAdam]

As for Ayn Rand - do you realise that "Atlas Shrugged" has sold second most copies to the Bible?

People like fairy stories.

And anyway, that's bullshit. Atlas Shrugged doesn't figure anywhere here

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_books

 

[The Other Dean]

 

[Event Horizon]

I think it's one of the highest selling books in US, where Kaddafi's green book, Mao's Red book, Karl Marx'a Capital, Hitler's Mayn Kampf and Q'aran weren't best sellers.

Anyway, enough of that shit.
And NB, I never said footy was just a business. I just meant that we need a group of people leading the club to have good business acumen among other things, and sometimes putting their money in would be a good way to start. But obviously that's not the only requirement, hence your quick get rich bloke example isn't really what I was referring to.

 

[RoyalBlue]

Interesting company to put the Qur'an in with there.

 

[Event Horizon]

Interesting company to put the Qur'an in with there.

It was only to compare it with some of the highest selling books. No other similarity intended. Sorry if this may have offended anyone.

By the way, hope everyone realises that i wasn't the one who brought the name Ayn Rand into this thread, just for the record.

 

[LT Smash]

I think it's one of the highest selling books in US, where Kaddafi's green book, Mao's Red book, Karl Marx'a Capital, Hitler's Mayn Kampf and Q'aran weren't best sellers.

I think you'll find The Da Vinci Code kicks Atley Shrugged's ass in the US. Which is reassuring and depressing all at the same time.

 

[Zondor]

I think you'll find The Da Vinci Code kicks Atley Shrugged's ass in the US. Which is reassuring and depressing all at the same time.

And I think you'll find that given a choice, one would prefer to read the Kama Sutra thank you very much. :stern look

 

[MaddAdam]

By the way, hope everyone realises that i wasn't the one who brought the name Ayn Rand into this thread, just for the record.

That was me.

Worth pointing out though the AFL itself has moved to operating under what can only be described as a form of Leninism.

It owns de facto owns the means of production and is moving under Demetriou's own admission to the point where it is the means of production 0 producing all the TV and online content it will then sell on to the networks to retail.

It is then aggresively divides the revenue on a socialist model.

There are still competing power centres in rich clubs like Collingwood and West Coast but the AFL is very close to having complete control of the Kommission via its sympathetic interstate teams and directly owned entities.

The ultimate AFL goal - not going to be realised any time soon but the trend is toward it - is a situation where they own or indirectly control all licenses.

 

[roobear]

Ayn Rand = The Piano

 

[Twinkletoes]

 

[MaddAdam]

Ayn Rand = The Kruger

 

[danj]

Has anyone else voted on line and been concerned that current board members are clearly identified by asterix? I thought after the last elections, where there was a clear endorsement of sitting board members in material from the club, that this new election process would be 'untainted' so to speak. IMO everybody should be listed in formal election correspondence without any reference to whether or not they are on the board currently, that information should be divulged in election material from candidates, I think it will influence some voters to vote for the incumbents.

Thoughts?

BTW save the f*ing philosophy debate for BigGod let them sort out Ayn Rand, Marx, Bible and other religious text (unless of course they are standing for election to the NMFC Board)

 

[RoyalBlue]

Given the candidates are listed alphabetically, I don't mind the incumbents being denoted.

Can't imagine it's going to shift much vote, and from memory of the few corporate board elections I've voted in, is standard practice.

 

[The Other Dean]

Not sure why she wasn't made to keep to 250 words like the other candidates.

 

[The Other Dean]

Given the candidates are listed alphabetically, I don't mind the incumbents being denoted.

I think you're right. I reckon in this particular instance the denotation is offset to some degree by the leg up CC gets with the alphabetical listing of candidate names.

Obviously though, it mightn't pan out that way next time. If given a choice, I'd probably prefer the denotation wasn't there.

(Saying that, I have no idea whether it's "standard practice" or not.)

 

[year of the roo]

Expect Carnegie to enjoy plenty of Donkey votes.

 

[Only Forwards]

Finally got around to putting my bets on last night.

Now the waiting game to see if I backed a winner.