canadianfoot Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Hmmm...... Change nearly here for CSA By Jason de Vos Posted: Sunday, November 27, 2011 | 06:10 PM http://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/opinion/2011/11/change-nearly-here-for-csa.html Over the last few years, members of the Canadian soccer community have become increasingly disillusioned with the state of the game in Canada. They have voiced their concerns, through this forum and many others, that our game has been hijacked. An 'old boys club', as it is commonly referred to, has controlled the balance of power on the CSA's Board of Directors for as long as folks can remember. The result has been a history of ineffective - even incompetent, according to some - leadership. At the CSA's last annual general meeting in May, the membership voted for change. The old system of governance - where provincial presidents sat on the CSA Board of Directors, conflicted by their loyalties to their own provinces - is being replaced by a new structure; one that brings with it balance and diversity. Moving Canada forward These key ingredients are found within the board's composition; it will be comprised of an elected president and vice-president, six elected directors, and six appointed directors. The appointed directors will be recruited to provide experience and capabilities including, but not limited to, law, finance, community fundraising and governance. Given the importance of this new direction, the CSA recently released a request for names of individuals to serve on the CSA's Nominations Committee - the committee responsible for identifying and recruiting the six appointed directors. The request reads, in part: The CSA is looking for individuals to serve on the Nominations Committee who can demonstrate that they have professional, personal or other contacts with the corporate, business, soccer, and/or other relevant communities to deliver a group of Board candidates who have the collective capacity to further the mission and goals of the CSA in the 21st century. The Nominations Committee will be composed of five members, including two Directors of the CSA and three independents. Any member who sits on the Nominations Committee is not eligible to run for office at the 2012 Annual General Meeting. The roles of the Nominations Committee are as follows: To recruit candidates for the Board. To ensure that Board recruitment is driven by the strategic priorities of the CSA. To ensure that Board composition complies with the CSA's by-laws and Governance Policies. To develop effective processes for the recruitment of candidates for the Board. I have previously written of the importance of the Nominations Committee. It is fair to say that this group of five individuals will have a significant influence on the composition of the CSA Board of Directors, and by extension, the ability of that Board to effectively govern the game in Canada. Recruit six strong, intelligent minds to sit on the Board, and the game will continue to grow and thrive in the years ahead. Recruit six weak-minded, self-serving individuals to sit on the Board, and the CSA will be mired in the same muck that has hindered the efforts of so many of its excellent employees for years to come. This is an opportunity that has never before been presented - an opportunity to shape the direction of the game in a positive way by hand-selecting individuals to serve on the CSA Board of Directors. Time to lace up the boots Unfortunately, I am told that so far there has been very little interest shown in the independent positions on the Nominations Committee. It would be a travesty if the three available independent positions failed to be filled. It would only serve to strengthen the position of the individuals who have fought against governance change from the beginning. So this is your chance to get involved. If you or someone you know has the necessary skill-set to enhance the Nominations Committee, send in your resume and references to the CSA before the deadline on the 30th. Now is not the time to stand on the sidelines and complain about the standard of play at the CSA. Now is the time to lace up your boots, take to the field, and get in the game yourselves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpg75 Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 "Unfortunately, I am told that so far there has been very little interest shown in the independent positions on the Nominations Committee." Geez....let's hope some people step up. Anyone know anybody who fits the bill? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 "Unfortunately, I am told that so far there has been very little interest shown in the independent positions on the Nominations Committee." Geez....let's hope some people step up. Anyone know anybody who fits the bill? Miro Kliment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TFCRegina Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Miro Kliment And Robert. Certainly two very independent people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tuscan Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Can we ever have a serious discussion on here any more? Ok truthfully enough I lol'd for those two, but the seriousness of this situation is such that it will affect how the direction of the CSA could be shaped for the next number of years. Do we as a group know anyone with the credentials to at least offer as a suggestion? Surely there must be some of you in the soccer community out in BC or Ontario who knows an individual who is highly connected in the Canadian corporate world and also, but not necessarily, a Canadian soccer fan. Next question is, what type of individual do people on here think should be brought forward? What attributes should they have and what opinion on the game would we want them to have? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 I don't know anyone personally who I'd nominate for this board.. but just to stir the pot and get people thinking a bit... what if we offered spots to Bobby De Guzman and Hoilett Sr. on the board? Now wait... think about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackTheBlizzard Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 ...Recruit six weak-minded, self-serving individuals to sit on the Board, and the CSA will be mired in the same muck that has hindered the efforts of so many of its excellent employees for years to come.... Sadly the more I read about the fine print of the reform the more it looks like it was designed to create this outcome. The Nominations Committee needs to have a majority of appointments made by people outside the existing power structure for this to work properly. Even if suitable people are sending in resumes who is making the ultimate decision on who these three "independents" will be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpg75 Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 After thinking about it, i came up with a couple of names that are high up the corporate ladder and "know" soccer. Brett Wilson, from Dragon's Den - he's part owner of Derby County. Also, Frank Stronach, or in lieu of him his daughter Belinda. Frank was heavily involved in Austrian soccer back in the 90's and his daughter has been involved with Sports charities here in Canada. Both of these individuals are both heavily connected in the corporate world... Another one i just thought of is Nadir Mohammed, the CEO of Rogers. He's more of a cricket guy i think, but likes soccer and has been the driving force in televising all the WC games online etc. Plus he's connected corporately... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
argh1 Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Personally I don'T get it. If you look at our 2 most successfull sports in Canada the strength is in provincial representation. Number 1 is hockey that could sell tickets to a game on a frozen puddle. Number 2 is curling which claims to have over a million members in over 1,000 clubs across Canada and regularly sells more than a quarter million tix for national championships. Provincial rep has grown these............why has it not for soccer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Spiers Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Remember that right now the CSA is looking for individuals to serve on the Nominations Committee - not the Board of Directors. The Nominations Committee will be comprised of two existing Board members and three independents - none of whom will be eligible to serve on the CSA Board (as far as I understand). It will then be the task of the Nominations Committee to seek out individuals to be appointed to the Board immediately after the AGM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadianfoot Posted November 28, 2011 Author Share Posted November 28, 2011 Has anyone actually noticed the dates? Posted by De Vos Sunday 27th Nov during Grey Cup...............DEADLINE is Nov 30th?!?!? Or were the oppenings actually posted somewhere(newpapers with National coverage) for a prolonged period of time but No One has Applied yet and Jason is making a last minute plea? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 After thinking about it, i came up with a couple of names that are high up the corporate ladder and "know" soccer. Brett Wilson, from Dragon's Den - he's part owner of Derby County. Also, Frank Stronach, or in lieu of him his daughter Belinda. Frank was heavily involved in Austrian soccer back in the 90's and his daughter has been involved with Sports charities here in Canada. Both of these individuals are both heavily connected in the corporate world... Another one i just thought of is Nadir Mohammed, the CEO of Rogers. He's more of a cricket guy i think, but likes soccer and has been the driving force in televising all the WC games online etc. Plus he's connected corporately... An absolute NO to Frank Stronach. He was a disaster for Austria Vienna and was a disaster as the President of the Austrian Bundesliga. He left both positions after significant opposition to the way he was running them by both the fans and people trying to work with him. He ran both like a tin pot dictator who wants to dominate everything despite having little competence in what he is dealing with. There were also many ethical issues with what he did. Whatever skill set he has that allowed him to be a successful business man certainly did not transfer at all to the soccer world. One could hardly propose a worse choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Remember that right now the CSA is looking for individuals to serve on the Nominations Committee - not the Board of Directors. The Nominations Committee will be comprised of two existing Board members and three independents - none of whom will be eligible to serve on the CSA Board (as far as I understand). It will then be the task of the Nominations Committee to seek out individuals to be appointed to the Board immediately after the AGM. That is an important clarification Bill. Thank you. I for one initially thought it was the independent board members being talked about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 What about WIlliam Shenkman, Ottawa property developer, millionaire/billionaire, part owner of Millwall FC, and the future owner of an Ottawa soccer team (with the Fury, I suppose) when they build Lansdowne. He would definitely have the experience at this sort of thing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpg75 Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 An absolute NO to Frank Stronach. He was a disaster for Austria Vienna and was a disaster as the President of the Austrian Bundesliga. He left both positions after significant opposition to the way he was running them by both the fans and people trying to work with him. He ran both like a tin pot dictator who wants to dominate everything despite having little competence in what he is dealing with. There were also many ethical issues with what he did. Whatever skill set he has that allowed him to be a successful business man certainly did not transfer at all to the soccer world. One could hardly propose a worse choice. I'm not proposing he run anything Grizz. I am proposing he (or his daughter) and the others i named be on the nominations committee because they may actually care enough to be a part of this and be able to suggest candidates with various corporate skills such as law, finance etc. who may also be soccer fans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 I'm not proposing he run anything Grizz. I am proposing he (or his daughter) and the others i named be on the nominations committee because they may actually care enough to be a part of this and be able to suggest candidates with various corporate skills such as law, finance etc. who may also be soccer fans. If Frank Stronach is on the nomination committee he will be in favour of nominating people he can influence. If you get him involved in any way he will want to run things. We do not want this guy involved in Canadian soccer unless it is to invest his money in a new team. You can ask any Austrian soccer fan about Stronach and he will tell you, "Keep him the fu-ck away from Austrian soccer!" You can find years of complaining about him on Austrian fan forums if you understand German that make the complaints about Kevin Pipe in the old days seems mild. There is no way that Stronach should be involved in the CSA, nominating committee or otherwise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tuscan Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Brett Wilson, from Dragon's Den - he's part owner of Derby County. I also thought of Brett Wilson, and am very torn on the idea. On one hand, we have to remember that he possesses the key factor the Constitution Committee is looking for for people to populate the Nominations Committee - Corporate Connections in all facets (leadership, law, business accumen, etc...). On the other hand, having spoken with Mr. Wilson, he quickly dismissed the idea of a pan-Canadian league, or even a professional league based solely in Canada, so I don't have faith he would use any of his time serving on this committee. People in the corporate world aren't stupid, they see that Canadian soccer is still myred in a civil war, making it a poisonous, tainted organization to be involved with. One of the attributes I don't agree with stated to be necessary for these appointments is soccer knowledge/accumen. I think it is overly limiting and narrow-minded to only look for people with some kind of current soccer connection. Why do any of these three need to have any connections to soccer currently? The appointed individuals on the new CSA Board don't even necessarily have to have any connections to soccer either. The way the new Board will operate means those on the it will not be responsible for operational planning in the least. They will only be responsible for organizational policy, planning, and strategizing for the CSA. It will be Peter Montopoli as the General Secretary who will ensure financial goals are met as well as membership programming is established according to policies set by the Board. It will be the CSA Technical Director (currently Stephen Hart? does anyone know if we even have one right now?) who will ensure that membership programming, with a focus on high performance based under the LTPD guidelines, along with the details regarding training at every age level, are established. Long story longer, I don't believe any knowledge of soccer is absolutely necessary for the appointed Committee members, nor for the appointed Board members, as they will not be making any decisions regarding the game directly. Yes they will have an indirect effect on how the game is run, but only through the approved policies affecting the General Secretary and the Technical Director. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackTheBlizzard Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 Remember that right now the CSA is looking for individuals to serve on the Nominations Committee - not the Board of Directors... So doesn't that simply mean that the existing "old boys club" can appoint people to do their bidding creating the scenario outlined by Jason DeVos which I quoted? For this reform to have been meaningful it would have been better if the three "independent" members of the Nominations Committee were being appointed by other groups within the sport like national team players and the professional clubs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gian-Luca Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 By Jason de Vos Posted: Sunday, November 27, 2011 | 06:10 PM http://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/opinion/2011/11/change-nearly-here-for-csa.html Over the last few years, members of the Canadian soccer community have become increasingly disillusioned with the state of the game in Canada. Actually for me its been the opposite over the last few years - I have found fewer things to complain about with the CSA. Not to say that everything is hunky dory, but I've seen improvement. What's the opposite of "disillusioned" anyway - "illusioned"? Bit of a funny word when you think about it, not that I blame Jason for using it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Ref Posted November 29, 2011 Share Posted November 29, 2011 Actually for me its been the opposite over the last few years - I have found fewer things to complain about with the CSA. Not to say that everything is hunky dory, but I've seen improvement. I on the other hand recently learned of another stab on the back perpetrated by the CSA (and don't ask me for details as I am not at liberty to say). Nothing has really change, the CSA continues to be a misguided group navigating without a rudder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grigorio Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 Not really related but speaking of change and football FA's came across this article about those ambitious Aussie's plans over the next 4 years... http://sports.yahoo.com/soccer/news?slug=ap-australia-top10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Spiers Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 Not really related but speaking of change and football FA's came across this article about those ambitious Aussie's plans over the next 4 years... http://sports.yahoo.com/soccer/news?slug=ap-australia-top10 And for more detail, read here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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