Author Topic: AUK Finances and Website Project was: AUK Chairman Statement  (Read 119537 times)

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #325 on: 22 September, 2018, 10:27:42 pm »

But once the 'authorities' are sufficiently distant, they're fair game.

The same could be said for the spending of monetary reserves.....

Chris Crossland once gave me a discount on the Three Coasts for supplying some of the surplus food from LEL 2009, which we'd accounted for. These aren't people who waste money. The usual complaint has been that they're too parsimonious, and lack vision.

j_a_m_e_s_

  • Prisoner 17091
    • AUK results
Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #326 on: 23 September, 2018, 08:37:12 am »

But once the 'authorities' are sufficiently distant, they're fair game.

The same could be said for the spending of monetary reserves.....

Chris Crossland once gave me a discount on the Three Coasts for supplying some of the surplus food from LEL 2009, which we'd accounted for. These aren't people who waste money. The usual complaint has been that they're too parsimonious, and lack vision.

Hmm, perhaps my previous comment was wrong. I apologise for implying they were lavishly spending the memberships dues. I'm not implying that they were frittering it away on coffe and cigars purposely. What I meant was in the same way it is easy to criticise from afar, it is easier to make decisions when it is not solely your liability. Again, I'm not implying it was an easy decision either.

As people, I have no doubt that all involved are wonderful, decent people who share a love of cycling an who's intentions have never been anything other than for what is in the best interest of AUK. I question whether or not they have, or indeed still are the right decisions.

No amount of debate, persuasion, argument or hindsight will move me on this one.
The situation, the terms of the situation and the fact that what was voted on some time ago has ended being many times more expensive, so much so that it could have brought the organisation to its knees, a situation that we still don't, and still won't know for some time if we now have a paddlle to navigate us out of Shit Creek. And even if all works out fine it still should not have been decided behind closed doors. It should have been a decision that the membership, collectively, made.


I cannot be standing alone from this viewpoint.
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mattc

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Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #327 on: 23 September, 2018, 08:57:35 am »

The situation, the terms of the situation and the fact that what was voted on some time ago has ended being many times more expensive, so much so that it could have brought the organisation to its knees, a situation that we still don't, and still won't know for some time if we now have a paddlle to navigate us out of Shit Creek.
Where is the primary verb in this sentence?  :-\
Has never ridden RAAM
---------
No.11  Because of the great host of those who dislike the least appearance of "swank " when they travel the roads and lanes. - From Kuklos' 39 Articles

j_a_m_e_s_

  • Prisoner 17091
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Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #328 on: 23 September, 2018, 09:08:10 am »

The situation, the terms of the situation and the fact that what was voted on some time ago has ended being many times more expensive (so much so that it could have brought the organisation to its knees) This is a situation that we still don't, and still won't know for some time if we now have the necessary paddle to navigate us out of Shit Creek.
Where is the primary verb in this sentence?  :-\

I am but a shoe repairer, not a paragon of grammatical virtue.
Rule 77

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #329 on: 23 September, 2018, 09:28:52 am »
You probably arent the sole person to think this, but you are the last. I think you should hold your tongue rather than try to take the upper moral ground. You are coming across as a bit of a heel. Everyone needs to march instep with one another on this, rather than trying to stick the boot in. There are some nasty welts that can only be cured if we all work together.

 It has not been a good year for AUK but perhaps this will spur some of the loafers into helping rather than whining.

j_a_m_e_s_

  • Prisoner 17091
    • AUK results
Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #330 on: 23 September, 2018, 09:38:23 am »
You probably arent the sole person to think this, but you are the last. I think you should hold your tongue rather than try to take the upper moral ground. You are coming across as a bit of a heel. Everyone needs to march instep with one another on this, rather than trying to stick the boot in. There are some nasty welts that can only be cured if we all work together, rather. It has not been a good year for AUK but perhaps this will spur some of the loafers into helping rather than whining.

Chortle chortle.

How very British.
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mattc

  • n.b. have grown beard since photo taken
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Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #331 on: 23 September, 2018, 09:39:08 am »
<snip> ...

However, why do people volunteer to run organisations where every decision they take is second guessed by armchair experts?

"Decisions are made by those who show up." President Jed Bartlett, The West Wing Benjamin Franklin. Possibly.

"Democracy is a process by which the people are free to choose the man who will get the blame."
Laurence J Peter (1919 - 1988)
Has never ridden RAAM
---------
No.11  Because of the great host of those who dislike the least appearance of "swank " when they travel the roads and lanes. - From Kuklos' 39 Articles

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #332 on: 23 September, 2018, 09:39:42 am »
You probably arent the sole person to think this, but you are the last. I think you should hold your tongue rather than try to take the upper moral ground. You are coming across as a bit of a heel. Everyone needs to march instep with one another on this, rather than trying to stick the boot in. There are some nasty welts exposed by this.

Chortle chortle.

I didn't expect you to be swayed.

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #333 on: 23 September, 2018, 10:25:57 am »
You probably arent the sole person to think this, but you are the last. I think you should hold your tongue rather than try to take the upper moral ground. You are coming across as a bit of a heel. Everyone needs to march instep with one another on this, rather than trying to stick the boot in. There are some nasty welts that can only be cured if we all work together.

 It has not been a good year for AUK but perhaps this will spur some of the loafers into helping rather than whining.

That response was rather hastily cobbled together I think.
"Yes please" said Squirrel "biscuits are our favourite things."

Jaded

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Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #334 on: 23 September, 2018, 10:38:46 am »
This thread is now clogged up in a spat.
It is simpler than it looks.

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #335 on: 23 September, 2018, 10:39:09 am »
Indeed. I can't see the reason for pussyfooting around. Why not get straight to the pointe?


Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #336 on: 23 September, 2018, 10:51:50 am »

I suppose there's always going to be a brogue element.

j_a_m_e_s_

  • Prisoner 17091
    • AUK results
Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #337 on: 23 September, 2018, 11:45:50 am »
I can see everybody's tea was laced with funny juice this morning, if this is the breast we can come up with vamping up old jokes, corkers or not. You won't per suede me otherwise.
Get a heel grip of yourselves and stop trying to shoe horn more funny quips into the thread, leather or not they are funny. I personally think that Hot Flatus' was the most polished, but we could beeswax lyrical about that all day.



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jiberjaber

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Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #338 on: 23 September, 2018, 12:27:01 pm »
hahaha at last normality is resumed!  :thumbsup:

(folds away tinfoil...)
Regards,

Joergen

Ben T

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #339 on: 23 September, 2018, 04:46:12 pm »
I can see everybody's tea was laced with funny juice this morning, if this is the breast we can come up with vamping up old jokes, corkers or not. You won't per suede me otherwise.
Get a heel grip of yourselves and stop trying to shoe horn more funny quips into the thread, leather or not they are funny. I personally think that Hot Flatus' was the most polished, but we could beeswax lyrical about that all day.

Flatus might be right but sounds like an Echo of what Theresa May is saying about brexit - so don't be such a berk, 'n stock up on tinned food 'cos the apocalypse is nigh.

Chris S

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #340 on: 23 September, 2018, 05:47:01 pm »
I can see everybody's tea was laced with funny juice this morning, if this is the breast we can come up with vamping up old jokes, corkers or not. You won't per suede me otherwise.
Get a heel grip of yourselves and stop trying to shoe horn more funny quips into the thread, leather or not they are funny. I personally think that Hot Flatus' was the most polished, but we could beeswax lyrical about that all day.

Flatus might be right but sounds like an Echo of what Theresa May is saying about brexit - so don't be such a berk, 'n stock up on tinned food 'cos the apocalypse is nigh.

I think you'll find this has all be sorted with a good old footwear-based pun war.

vorsprung

  • Opposites Attract
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Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #341 on: 23 September, 2018, 08:32:58 pm »
This should have gone to ballot.

No

Those of us that know shit about IT should have got more involved
But we didn't
So if there is any blame it's ours

Jonah

  • Audax Club Hackney
Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #342 on: 23 September, 2018, 09:07:26 pm »
I can see everybody's tea was laced with funny juice this morning, if this is the breast we can come up with vamping up old jokes, corkers or not. You won't per suede me otherwise.
Get a heel grip of yourselves and stop trying to shoe horn more funny quips into the thread, leather or not they are funny. I personally think that Hot Flatus' was the most polished, but we could beeswax lyrical about that all day.

It's all cobblers to me

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #343 on: 23 September, 2018, 10:00:31 pm »
This should have gone to ballot.

No

Those of us that know shit about IT should have got more involved
But we didn't
So if there is any blame it's ours

I only ever encountered the 'governance' of AUK at the AGM/ Reunion. After the 2014 AGM, when it became obvious that attendance was pointless, it became a separate event, and I took not one blind bit of notice of 'governance'.


Pingu

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Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #344 on: 23 September, 2018, 11:25:53 pm »
You're a bunch of weallies.

Bianchi Boy

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Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #345 on: 25 September, 2018, 07:01:55 am »
We all appear to be missing a point here. In all IT projects you have to ask the questions "What if we did not have an IT system for this?" and "What is the minimum set of functions we can survive with?" AUK board should look at these questions first before looking at extending time lines for projects. Also if some of the functions were farmed out to paid admin there would be a flat cost for functions rather than an a spiralling IT cost. I work in IT and many projects change through their duration because of cost and time.

My recommendation, look at the smallest set of IT functions possible and implement that. Then each year (period) look at enhancing the functions and base this on time and materials (not function as the complexity can be more than you thought at the start). If it does not work in the time hold back and implement the following year. This way the organisation will have a sold base and moving forward. The current strategy looks like it risks bankrupting AUK and not leaving it with a viable minimum function organisation.

BB 
Set a fire for a man and he will be warm for a day, set a man on fire and he is warm for the rest of his life.

frankly frankie

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Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #346 on: 25 September, 2018, 09:45:05 am »
Everybody's "minimum" would be different though.  I would suggest that, since cheques as a means of payment are on borrowed time, the absolute minimum requirement is an online listing of events, with the facility for anyone to enter an event online. 
At the crudest level the listing itself could be maintained by an admin offline on a desktop, with periodic uploads to refresh the list. 
The entry process would simply send a notification to the organiser - though to be safe there would need to be some logging and once you have that you effectively have your online Start Sheet for each event.
And once you have a Start Sheet it's not much of a step to a Finish List, and from there to a Results service.

The rest - membership admin, validation, Arrivee, and background tasks like finances, can be done offline on desktops, admins scattered around the 3 nations.  That's how it was in the last century.  Is that "minimum" enough?
when you're dead you're done, so let the good times roll

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #347 on: 25 September, 2018, 09:47:01 am »
It seems others wish to upgrade their IT Structure too- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-45633212
Mind of a cyclist, body of a dart player.

frankly frankie

  • I kid you not
    • Fuchsiaphile
Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #348 on: 25 September, 2018, 09:53:31 am »
From that it would seem that it's not that costs are too high, it's that - and I have been banging on about this for over 20 years - AUK's income is too low.
when you're dead you're done, so let the good times roll

Ben T

Re: AUK CHAIRMAN STATEMENT
« Reply #349 on: 25 September, 2018, 10:19:14 am »
Everybody's "minimum" would be different though.  I would suggest that, since cheques as a means of payment are on borrowed time, the absolute minimum requirement is an online listing of events, with the facility for anyone to enter an event online. 
At the crudest level the listing itself could be maintained by an admin offline on a desktop, with periodic uploads to refresh the list. 
The entry process would simply send a notification to the organiser - though to be safe there would need to be some logging and once you have that you effectively have your online Start Sheet for each event.
And once you have a Start Sheet it's not much of a step to a Finish List, and from there to a Results service.

The rest - membership admin, validation, Arrivee, and background tasks like finances, can be done offline on desktops, admins scattered around the 3 nations.  That's how it was in the last century.  Is that "minimum" enough?

You don't technically even need the ability to enter through the website.
You can logon to paypal directly and gift the organiser the entry fee, even if the listing is in the magazine - with the instruction 'send me £xxx to yyy@zzz.com in order enter'.

You don't actually even need a website at all to organise and ride audaxes.