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Dons Trust Elections - Questionnaire 2010
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| Q01 | Are you a member of WISA? If not, why not? |
| I don’t see the relevance of the question. | |
| Q02 | What role do you think WISA has in the future of the Club/Trust? |
| I think its very healthy to have an independent supporters group. WISA gets involved in things like the commemoration at Plough Lane and the return of the patrimony. It can also agitate more militantly than the club, speaking out when the Trust Board has to be more circumspect. | |
| Q03 | What personal qualities (other than professional skills, and a capacity for hard work) do you have that the Dons Trust Board needs? |
| I have an ability to get on with other people but also fight my corner for what I believe in, to break problems down so they can be better understood, a sense of confidentiality and a sense of humour. I am passionate about this club and have an inherent need to do the right thing. I bang on about communication until I bore people. Finally, I’m a fresh face in the boardroom – which is always a good thing. | |
| Q04 | What do you perceive the role of the Dons Trust to be? In particular, what do you see its role to be in relation to the club? What is the role of the members/owners? |
| The operational role of the Trust is to act as the major shareholder of AFC Wimbledon plc (in the same way as the owner of a company). Its primary role (through its Board) is to monitor the performance of the executive of AFCW and to set strategy on behalf of the members.
In terms of setting strategy, there are 14 aims listed on the OS which are/should be the guiding principles, although I admit some of them get more focus than others. There seems to be too narrow a view that the Trust is the club in my opinion. |
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| Q05 | Have you been involved in any projects / organisations / working parties or volunteer groups on behalf of the Club or the Dons Trust? If so, what was your role and what did you achieve? If elected, and bearing in mind the time consuming nature of the Dons Trust Board, will you still carry on this work? |
| As well as sharing the taking of the minutes at Board meetings, I volunteer every year for the Summer clean-up squad - the amount of hard work we do over two weekends has to be seen to be believed. If I am elected I have the capacity to be fully involved. Circumstances at work allow me more time to get involved than I was able to in the past, so I will actually be looking to take on more. |
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| Q06 | How will you get more people to volunteer and help out the club? |
| There are playground tales of people being ‘ignored’ when they put their hand up to volunteer for something (I know – it’s happened to me). There is also the problem that people will tend to be taken for granted the longer they do a particular job, although I know a lot of effort has now gone into this (such as the sponsored volunteers awayday which is a fantastic idea). Volunteers are such a valuable resource within the club. Didn’t Erik work out a while ago that volunteers do over £100,000 of work ? Communication is part of the problem. There is no one place you can go to which shows what roles are available, what skills are needed, what the roles involve, who you can talk to who is already doing the job. Given how much money we avoid having to spend - thanks to volunteers, I want to set the club the task of coming up with more ideas for volunteer recruitment and retention and bring them to the Board for approval. |
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| Q07 | What are the biggest problems facing the Dons Trust? And what three things would you suggest to make it more dynamic? |
| Membership is static (although I think it went up slightly this year). We should be looking at why we have 1500 members and over 2500 Season Ticket holders. Do we put membership flyers in with the season tickets ? I know some of the board went on a recruitment drive at a home game and some of the respondents didn’t even know what the Dons Trust was. There is a Dons Trust table in the back bar but rarely do you see a board member sitting at it. I have already committed in my manifesto to sit at the table once a month. Apathy is a continuing problem – the destiny of the club is in the hands of probably 100 people who turn up and vote. We need to look at ways of getting people more involved. If we can broadcast WDON on a Saturday, why can’t we broadcast the meeting securely online and give members PIN numbers to gain access, join in the debate, ask questions and to vote ? We need to do more of the workshop style meetings where the attendees help to solve a challenge. |
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| Q08 | Why do you believe you can put your views into practice and deliver on any promises you make? How much time do you have to devote to Trust matters? |
| I have only promised on things I know I can deliver (such as occupying the Trust Table mentioned in the previous question). The rest of it is my views, opinions, experience and ideas. I will be constantly checking those opinions with the membership and I intend to put them on the agenda. I know the Board welcomes new ideas and I don’t see that as an issue – come and find me at the Dons Trust table in a couple of months and ask me ! | |
| Q09 | Do you have any financial interests in the club, associated companies or Trust? If so, please could you specify? |
| 150 shares. |
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| Q10 | If we are not promoted this season, do you think we should try to get a league place and / or go professional (i.e. take on full-time players) as soon as possible, whatever the cost (financial or otherwise)? Is fan ownership non-negotiable? |
| No – we should continue to grow organically as we are doing – chasing a dream is the road to ruin. Fan ownership is non-negotiable. |
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| Q11 | What schemes should / would you put in place to help reduce the club's debt? |
| Whilst Walks for Wimbledons and Dinners with Terry should continue, I think there is a feeling of fund-raising fatigue amongst the fanbase. We have to look outside of the fanbase for new sources of funds. That means looking at things not associated with AFC Wimbledon, football or even sport ! Having said that I would be interested in Mark and the Fundraising Group’s ideas on how we might capitalise on the World Cup this year and I think we should re-examine the feasibility of a shop in Wimbledon. |
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| Q12 | What action will you take if you feel the Club is committing itself to ventures it cannot afford? |
| Well firstly, this is extremely unlikely as the constitution requires the membership to approve significant expenditure. However, in the unlikely event, I would vote against it and if necessary resign. | |
| Q13 | If the Club makes a profit from FA Cup or Trophy runs, or from the sale of players, should that windfall be used to improve the infrastructure of the Club or be used to improve the playing squad? |
| I’m assuming you are asking what we do with the surplus once we have paid players win bonuses. I think that windfalls should be used to: - Clear down debt - Bring forward PLANNED infrastructure improvements - Saved for a rainy day (or a happy day when they can be spent on re-location) |
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| Q14 | Do you see The Fans Stadium, Kingsmeadow, as a temporary or permanent home for AFC Wimbledon? |
| Temporary – bearing in mind that we may still be here for some time. That means treating it as a permanent home in our decision-making until it isn’t. | |
| Q15 | What is your opinion on the possibility of a move to the Greyhound Stadium what would you do if elected to make it a reality? |
| The Greyhound Stadium is operated by a company that owns a number of greyhound stadiums around the country and does not appear to want to break up the portfolio. Focussing on a single issue like the Greyhound Stadium may mean you miss an opportunity somewhere else. We are and should be looking at all possibilities, not focussing on one. | |
| Q16 | What will you do to improve communication between the Trust members and their board? |
| Here is what I have said in my manifesto: In my view, communication – with our fans, with our Trust members and with the local communities – is an ongoing problem: • The official website, which has served us well, is now creaking at the seams. Many of the Dons Trust pages have not been updated for years. The website publishing system must be replaced and it should be staffed by a volunteer group of editors, with clear agreements to publish items in a timely manner. • If elected I will be guided by the members’ opinions, and so I will hold a regular monthly surgery in the back bar where I will listen to what members have to say and report to the Board on their behalf, and use it to inform my decisions. I strongly believe that communication should be at the heart of everything you do and that it is often tacked on as an afterthought. It is also a two away street and I don’t see enough effort being made to elicit opinions. |
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| Q17 | Do you believe that the Trust should adopt a clear stance on issues such as Milton Keynes’ inclusion in the England 2018 World Cup bid, or do you think that the Trust should maintain a diplomatic silence and leave such issues to WISA? |
| As I answered in Question 2 – I believe this is something that WISA can be vociferous about – it’s a more powerful message when it comes from the fans. | |
| Q18 | Should Trust board members always be bound by ‘collective responsibility’? |
| Absolutely. By standing for election, Board members agree to uphold the published code of conduct. Candidates who cannot commit to this should not stand for election. Board members who cannot uphold it should resign. |