Hi Christian,

Thank you for your response.    

Please see the answers to your questions as well as a little bit more clarification on where I stand.

1.  I agree 100% that as OREIO grows we will be hitting a point where a 100% volunteer-based organization will not work and we will need to start paying out bonuses to our volunteers, or hiring staff with specialized skills 

2.     I do not consider contracting a professional to handle a single scope of work with clearly defined and measurable deliverables “hiring staff”.  For me hiring staff means setting up payroll, issuing T4s, paying an hourly rate or salary regardless of delivery etc.  
 
So as an example, if OREIO would like to be more involved with Landlord Advocacy, we should be looking at collaborating with a current group like OLW.  We donate to their organization in exchange for their help in supporting and voicing our members concerns to the relevant parties here in Ottawa.  This donation, contribution whatever we need to call it once we understand their formal set up, will allow OLW to supply OREIO with the tools and resources they have already developed to help us get heard.  Same would go if we needed to re-haul our website, we would hire a company or professional who will provide a clear scope of work and pay them to do that job.

The key to all of this is for the New Board to get organized.  Get all the numbers, and stats infront of them and make decisions based on current and projected performance and fact, not solely on the amount of money in the bank.  Using our current resources is great and should be a factor used in making our decision, but if we deplete those resources and don’t perform as we “believe” we will what will happen to this organization?

As for my proposal.  If I am not elected I will certainly share my proposal with the membership once the new board has set up their change committee and put together their process for doing so, this was the process the membership elected at the March meeting if I am not mistaken.  

Also, should the membership vote to move forward with my proposal I would be happy to volunteer my time to assist the new board in the implementation should they need additional support… assuming I can do so as a non-resident ;)

Christian Szpilfogel wrote:

Hi Lena,

Thank you for clarifying that and yes I did assume that based on how the term "Operations Team" has been used in my professional life. But indeed you did not say they were paid. I would be willing to try a volunteer based operational team and see if it works. That said, I would like us to up our game and grow the club and help as many people as possible. At some point, a volunteer organization won't scale well without some staffing.

The reason I suggested you make your proposal public was because you put it forward during your intro speech. As such, it seemed fair to ask for it. However, it is fine of you choose not to. 

I commend you for constructing such a proposal and it likely has a good thought process around it. If you do not win the election, will you still share it with the membership?

Lena Guirguis wrote:

Hello Christian,

Let me clear up some of the points causing confusion.

I have not once said that we need hired staff... 

I believe you assumed that when I used the word “Operations" I am referring to paid positions but this is not the case.

I firmly believe that our current size of operations does not require hired staff, this has been stated more than once in the train below. 

Our current executive structure is made up of 4 "Operations" positions and 4 which are strictly executive.  

I believe that 4 in either category is not enough however, those in the Operations roles should expect to do some of "busy work" you keep referring to.

The proposal I mentioned has a detailed break down of the executive board as well as the operations team I believe would be ideal to get the results we need without overloading a team of volunteers. Just to avoid further confusion, these would all start as volunteer positions, just more people sharing the load.

I know we have an exceptional membership base (many of whom have already been reaching out to me since Feb offering their assistance should the implementation of this plan become a reality). These volunteers would be able to assist in getting this organization moving forward without the need for unnecessary spending.  

While I appreciate your desire to review my proposal, I have not seen this request made of the other candidates who are also stating their desire to move to the not-for-profit structure, and therefore I don't believe it's necessary for the purposes of this election.

I will be posting something shorty for all members which will outline what I would like to bring to the table.  

Christian Szpilfogel wrote:

Hey Lena,

I'm getting confused about your position on this topic. In one breath you are saying that the volunteers should be able to dedicate the needed time to do the day to day busy work of a position and in another you are saying we should explore the role of an operational team. Further, last night you alluded to a proposal for an operational plan if you get elected. 

Can you clarify your position on whether or not you support certain aspects of the organization being operationalized with hired help or not? I think it would also be useful for you to publish your plan over the next day or two so that there is an opportunity to review your proposal.

As someone who has been more of an observer over the last 2+ years, I view that the executive team seems to spend too much time on day to day matters as opposed to helping the organization meet its broader mandate. As the organization continues to grow, asking volunteers to do the busy work is not sustainable even with automation (though I'm sure we can do better on that front too).

Hello Christian,

Let me clear up some of the points causing confusion.

I have not once said that we need hired staff... 

I believe you assumed that when I used the word “Operations" I am referring to paid positions but this is not the case.

I firmly believe that our current size of operations does not require hired staff, this has been stated more than once in the train below. 

Our current executive structure is made up of 4 "Operations" positions and 4 which are strictly executive.  

I believe that 4 in either category is not enough however, those in the Operations roles should expect to do some of "busy work" you keep referring to.

The proposal I mentioned has a detailed break down of the executive board as well as the operations team I believe would be ideal to get the results we need without overloading a team of volunteers. Just to avoid further confusion, these would all start as volunteer positions, just more people sharing the load.

I know we have an exceptional membership base (many of whom have already been reaching out to me since Feb offering their assistance should the implementation of this plan become a reality). These volunteers would be able to assist in getting this organization moving forward without the need for unnecessary spending.  

While I appreciate your desire to review my proposal, I have not seen this request made of the other candidates who are also stating their desire to move to the not-for-profit structure, and therefore I don't believe it's necessary for the purposes of this election.

I will be posting something shorty for all members which will outline what I would like to bring to the table.  

Christian Szpilfogel wrote:

Hey Lena,

I'm getting confused about your position on this topic. In one breath you are saying that the volunteers should be able to dedicate the needed time to do the day to day busy work of a position and in another you are saying we should explore the role of an operational team. Further, last night you alluded to a proposal for an operational plan if you get elected. 

Can you clarify your position on whether or not you support certain aspects of the organization being operationalized with hired help or not? I think it would also be useful for you to publish your plan over the next day or two so that there is an opportunity to review your proposal.

As someone who has been more of an observer over the last 2+ years, I view that the executive team seems to spend too much time on day to day matters as opposed to helping the organization meet its broader mandate. As the organization continues to grow, asking volunteers to do the busy work is not sustainable even with automation (though I'm sure we can do better on that front too).

Thank you Victor, for your response and for the very kind compliment and recognition of my dedication to this organization.  It is helpful to understand where the underlying problem lies, yet is a bit disappointing to hear that even with all the automation in place the people who have been placed into this role over the last few years do not want to invest 5 hours a week into this organization and its members.  

One of the first areas that the new executive will need to look at is why they are not attracting individuals who are best suited for their role, or willing to dedicate the time needed.  Is there a lack of clarity on what is required in each position as well as the time commitment needed?  Is asking 20 hours a month (1hr/day M-F) from all members of the board too much to ask because they are volunteers?

Victor Menasce wrote:

There's one "fact" that you've overlooked. All three of the past membership coordinators stated clearly to the rest of the executive that they found the role overwhelming for a volunteer position. All your facts, miss the most important one, the feedback from those performing the function. I remember you were exceptionally dedicated as member coordinator.  Maybe you were happy to spend 20 hours a month. Those who followed you were not. 

This is definitely an interesting policy idea worth exploring and presenting to the membership.  I think the description is a complex one, more than just a membership coordinator.  The extent of the job discussed thus far is much closer to an executive director. 

Hiring  an executive director to manage day to day operations will give room for the organization to focus on its vision and mission.  It would also give the organization some much need institutional memory.   

+Benefits

The roles  that an executive director to a non-profit are leadership, membership management (complaints and mediation), communications, planning, strategizing, marketing, and problem-solving,.  Some of the specific benefits an executive director could have is; allowing for oversight in managing event conferences, which we currently do not have on the calendar, vendor management and also managing lobbying efforts on behalf of membership. 

Having served on other boards, I envision the benefits and also some of negatives which come with having this paid position.  It will be necessary for the new executive to create a clear and concise position for the general membership to agree upon this position of executive director.   An opportunity to have greater capacity in research, education, outreach and community involvement.

Thanks for reading

MC

While I appreciate your desire to decrease the workload on the Membership coordinator, I would like to offer a few facts about this position to the membership to show why the use of funds in this manner is not necessary.

I was the membership coordinator for the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 term (these were the 2 terms prior to the current president and VP taking over the executive in 2014) at that time EVERYTHING was manual for the membership coordinator (membership purchase, event registration, reminders, and communications). 

Here is the list of things I did on a monthly basis and I will also indicate what has been automated since the implementation of the Wild Apricot platform (I know this platform since I have been using it for Stilettos and Hammers since 2013 and my husband is the one who presented the WildApricot solution to the 2013-2014 Executive team... Rich Danby was president then if it matters) The above mentioned proposal and communications with the board can be supplied to anyone who would like to fact check.

1. All memberships purchased at the event were entered by me manually every month - Now automated!
   
2. All USER ID and Passwords were created by me and individually sent to the member every month - Now automated! 
   
3. All password resets requests were manually done by me and new passwords manually sent to the member - Now automated! 
   
4. All renewal notices were emailed manually by me - Now automated! 
   
5.  A "thank you" email manually sent to all attendees of our monthly meetings - Can be automated!
6. Membership and guest lists printed and populated for every meeting - Now automated via App! 
7. Respond to all membership inquires 
   
8. Verify all membership inquires from Rent Check Corp for member applications - No longer applicable as Rent Check stated they have not been affiliated with OREIO for years. 
   
9. Manually keep and track stats of all meeting attendees, membership renewal, new registration and guest conversions - Now automated! 
   
10. Create member surveys online using google forms - Now available on the platform via poll function! 
    
11. Distribute, collect and report on membership feedback forms from every meeting to the board - Now available on the platform via poll function!  
    
12. Print name badges for all attendees who had pre-registered via eventbrite 
    
13. Manually add all Meetup registrants to the eventbrite registration to streamline check-in  - Not in use.

There were several other small things that we did at the meetings to create a great guest experience but the above were the core duties.

When I started as membership coordinator, we had 190 active members. My last month in the role, we had 297... This means, in 2 years we grew by 107. 

This was achieved with no more than 20 hrs per month in this role. 

Let's ignore the fact that automation has likely saved 80% of the workload and that the additional 100 members we have accumulated over the last 6 years consume 20% more time, can you explain to the membership why we need to hire someone at roughly $60/hr [$15K/ (20hrs/mth x 12mth)]  to do the work that is part of the role of this individual.... and also, how can any of this work be viewed as "busy work"?