APS Elections Thread

Starting a thread for the upcoming APS elections. This month's AP had the ballots included in them. I haven't done my research yet, so I don't have anything to add at this point. Feel free to add any comments about the candidates or the future of the APS in general in here.

I have been underwhelmed by the lack of candidate discussion regarding Information Technology (IT). Obviously APS was a late adopter of IT but I was encouraged by the Strategic Plan which clearly outlines the primary role that it will play moving forward. Given this, it makes little sense to me that APS is currently outsourcing IT instead of growing these resources internally.
If the APS Strategic Plan outlined delivering milk as its future, would it not make sense to be growing internal resources like drivers, mechanics, and garages instead of outsourcing these key resources to it's future?
Don
APS #094826

Don, I agree with you that the IT area has not been a great item. The delivery of a meets minimum web was extremely late.

I think the lack of IT discussion is more due to APS candidate "frame" profile information than it is the candidates' actual knowledge of the problem. I talked to Mick Zais at a regional stamp show, and he is acutely aware of the situation. APS pushes "membership" issues ... not IT.

It's an interesting point raised about IT. What has not been raised and there is no reason it should be in a forum like this is making budget decisions that are driven on demand.

It comes as no surprise that active participants in online forum rightly assume that technology is not only common but relied upon by our members. Unfortunately, that is not the experience. As a result, investment and reliance on it as part of the budget has been limited.

As for the strategic plan is not that we "need to do IT to catch up with the rest of the world for member services" but rather we need to do IT to meet the force of collectors we don't have now. That is a much more speculative position and while I applaud the APS and APRL Boards for buying into that theory and strategy, they will need to see some results.

How much APS revenue comes from memberships vs advertisers? What is the ratio of advertising to articles in the AP?

Scott,
I read and re-read the strategic plan several times. Because it was written years ago it tends to use terms such as 'virtual' but the intent seems clear, APS should be very IT-centric by 2030. In almost every aspect, whether it be education, membership retention, exhibiting, publications, sales circuits, the strategic plan outlines a very large dependency upon IT. This does not seem to be speculative. I do not understand your point, "that active participants in online forum rightly assume that technology is not only common but relied upon by our members". Are you saying that there is a substantial disconnect between the current membership and the published strategic plan?

I do agree that the current membership is not highly technical. Getting 'buy-in' from a membership demographic which might be non-technical is certainly a challenge but this is exactly what I would look for in a person running for a position of leadership. In my opinion a leader has to sell the vision, a vision which sometimes is not understood by all members but serves the organization best for the future. The key word here is strategic, this is not about the tactical aspects of the running of the organization.

Do you know how APS is currently justifying the outsourcing of IT? How much more would it cost to have the same IT resources internal? Do you know if any of the candidates support growing IT resources internally, slowly developing the skills and infrastructure needed to support the strategic plan as it now stands? Or do they plan on continuing outsourcing this key piece to the future? Alternatively, would there be efforts to rewrite the strategic plan to better fit the current candidates visions once they get in office?
Don

Even if APS is outsourcing IT, then it should have some IT savvy people to know what they want.

Society (businesses, government, individuals) is forcing people online more and more every day.

However, one sees businesses in in similar situations as APS. They are struggling with revenue, no quick fixes to improve, and deciding whether to look behind to regain what they had or look forward to the future.

Now, looking back is easier and it is something you know and the future is less certain especially when there is no concrete vision (no just do more better) and obviously concerns about the validity of the vision. In the end, they do what we know to do and try get revenue on what their their past. This is how many companies fail because they are actually doing the same thing but just trying to sell it again while at the same time to cutting costs.

I still do not see that quantum leap in what APS wants to do except raise money to pay off the MF debt and grow traditional membership by more outreach. These are all marginal improvement activities. The lack of a concrete vision is still missing to me.

Let's take NY 2016. How many members actually want to spend a significant amount of money to go? I do not (get a lot of stamps for that) and and the majority of others do not. These that supposedly do not go online also likely do not go to shows. APS is catering to a select active group (exhibitors, buyers, etc). Yes, I realize this is not an APS managed show.

The majority of people buy something because it gives some economic benefit and no a feel good benefit. I see APS focusing on things (like paying of the MF) that is not going to benefit people directly but it is securing the financial burden. It is just keeping the hole they are in not any deeper.

Don -- I would suggest reading the strategic plan that was written and adopted this year, not the 2010 plan: http://stamps.org/userfiles/file/re...Plan2016.pdf

I would also offer that simply by having outsourced IT functions does not represent a lack of interest or capability to provide the services articulated in the strategic plan. I've managed large applications, networks, and IT functions both in house and beyond and it's outcomes, not inputs that should be considered. In time we may need to being some or all functions back in house (we are actually doing that with a Library server now) -but the present construct does not necessitate an IT staff.

As for the candidates, I cannot and will not speak for them. As the Executive Director, I can speak to the operations and the vision of the organization and not individual candidates or members of the Board. They will have to speak for themselves. Either way, the strategic plan has been adopted and will be implemented.

Although I cannot speak to individual candidates running, I can help define my role and purpose. One of which is to speak for the organization in its past, present, and future tense. I accepted as part of taking the job, the responsibility to articulate the vision of the APS to go along with the strategic plan and the operations to support them.

Part of investing means knowing what you want the outcome to be. The outcome that I would like to generate from technology is using it to expose the hobby and the organization to a group of people that are looking, but don't see us. If I'm assessing the priorities - I would not start with an in-house network service department, I need to start with more on the membership promotion and services side.

Scott

I generally do not like stamp society politics very much since I have seen philatelists hurt each other this way. Thus, I am turned off from joining stamp societies.

For someone like myself who does not know the candidates at all, how am I supposed to make an intelligent decision. Honestly, I feel like I would be voting blindly.

cjpalermo1964 shared the Stamp O Rama discussion and some good comments there. Unfortunately, too many people on that thread are still fighting the Match Factory battle. REALLY, it's time to get over that matter.

I always vote in the APS elections and will carefully review the candidate statements so I can send off my ballot on Monday. Jogil: sorry that you're turned off. I think you're missing a lot if you aren't in the APS.

In my 66 years of APS membership, I've always voted when there are contested positions. I'd guess that means I've actually sent in a ballot a half dozen times. I have strong preferences on this years ballot and have already voted.