IAA AGM 2013 Discussion Thread.

Dogwatch

Posted on behalf of the IAA Committee

Time To Stand Up and Be Counted

So, we now have a date for the AGM of Wednesday March 13th at 8pm. This is a time and day of the week which was chosen in the hope of getting more people to attend the AGM and so try to get as much consensus as possible of the proposals which will be put to a vote and the election of new committee members. The current committee would like to take this opportunity to call on everyone with an interest in the future of our sport to take the passion of love which they have for airsoft and stand up to and be counted.

First things first, in order to attend the AGM you MUST be a current IAA member which means being fully paid up and registered by 5pm on Friday 8th March. If you sign up very close to that time you most likely will not have received your membership card by the time of the AGM, but so long as your membership application has been processed and a membership number assigned, you will be eligible to attend the AGM, vote on proposals there and vote for and run in the election of committee members. As you all know, the past couple of years have seen some serious problems befall the IAA membership system but as you should all also know (if you have been paying attention) those problems have all now been solved so there is no excuse not to sign up for yours.

The next thing you need to do is get your thinking hats on and start nominating people for executive committee members. And if you want to get involved with the committee it’s time to start letting people know that you are ready to run for election.

The association needs a Chairman, a Vice-Chairman, a Secretary, a Treasurer and a Public Relations Officer. Obviously each of these posts require people with a real interest and passion for airsoft who are committed to ensuring the future of the sport here in Ireland. While the work of the association is far from being a full-time job, it does require a real commitment of time and effort and anyone going for the positions really needs to understand this from the outset. The business of the IAA is ongoing with something cropping up at least a couple of times a week and the business is rarely fun or terribly enjoyable, and nine time out of ten you will not be getting any credit for it. You also need to consider the skills that will be required of each committee member be that a bit of political savvy, confidence in speaking with anyone from members of the public to representatives of the authorities. The treasurer and PRO roles in particular need people with backgrounds and experience in financial dealings and media relations respectively. Yes, these are voluntary roles, but the Irish airsoft community deserves to be getting the best chance possible and that can only be achieved by people with the right levels of professionalism, commitment and knowledge to actually do the jobs which need to be done.

So, after all that, if you still think that you want to work on the committee the time to start letting people know if right now. Get yourself to the forums at http://irishairsoft.ie/ or send us an email at info@irishairsoft.ie. In the weeks running up to the AGM what we need to see is some discussion of the potential committee members who will guide the IAA through 2013 and also of the proposals which you the members want to see voted on at the AGM.
Plenty of people like to have their say about the IAA and the work that it does, whether that be online or in the safe zone. Everyone has an opinion, but when it comes to the crunch time, not many people are willing to put their money where their mouth is and actually get something done. It’s time to buck that trend and get everyone involved. If you aren’t on the committee you might have other skills that may be needed in non-executive roles. If you aren’t involved at that level you can get involved in more grass-roots promotion and support of the association and airsoft by bringing new players into the fold and encouraging older players to put aside any old notions that they might have and finally start to muck in and help out.

Airsoft in Ireland and gone through a lot but it is still here and that is thanks to the work of a special few who never give up on working for the sport. They work tirelessly for the promotion of charity events, large scale themed and milsim events, initiatives to promote fair play, safety and the sport in general as well as constantly acting as spokespeople for airsoft. It’s time for us all to start getting involved in whichever capacity we can. If you’re reading this it’s because you love airsoft and you understand that it can only exist thanks to the work of dedicated players. Now is the time to stand up and be counted as one of those players.

We look forward to hearing from you all and seeing as many as possible at the AGM in March.

Thanks
The IAA Committee

S.E.A.L.s

With thanks to the IAA, my membership has been sorted out after almost two(2) years of waiting and I'm planning to attend this AGM

It should be a good event

Steve

Just so everyone's clear on this: contrary to legacy prohibition on IAA discussion here, we are encouraging debate on this at the request of the IAA committee.

In my personal opinion, the IAA are currently well staffed and are making great progress for our sport - kudos for that, lets keep the momentum going.

This is not a licence to rant, if you feel the need to do so then take it elsewhere. Please keep it civil and constructive and we'll all benefit from it.

Inari

It's almost too quiet around these parts...something's not right

I'll be honest; with all of the issues surrounding IAA membership the past while, I never bothered. I will be registering tonight/tomorrow, since all of the issues have finally been sorted

With regard to next year's IAA I would love to see what was discussed at the EGM last year come to fruition; a core committee filling the executive positions, but a tonne of volunteer help on a micro-scale. Have small groups work on one particular task from start to finish, and that way the executive positions are not under as much strain, other people get to see that it is not an elite clique or VIP club...many hands make light work etc.

Just my own couple of thoughts anyway.

See you's all at the AGM!

tonymccann

I have offered my help to the IAA to no avail I can only think that this is just because its so close to the AGM id love to stand up and be counted lol

ricka

tonymccann wrote: »

I have offered my help to the IAA to no avail I can only think that this is just because its so close to the AGM id love to stand up and be counted lol

That's what it must be.Personally I think you'd make a great treasurer.
Why not put yourself foward and we can discuss it at the AGM

Tommyboy71

It is not too late for anyone to stand up. If you go here ===>>> http://www.irishairsoft.ie/forum/viewforum.php?f=32 you can start a nomination thread and nominate away. When people are nominated, a separate Q&A thread will be created for each candidate.

If a motion is proposed, a thread will be opened to allow for discussion of the motion.

We are asking the membership to take over and continue the good work that has been done to steer the association back on course.

* Obviously within the rules of the AGM, at this stage it is not too late.

jayod30

Just a question? What happens if no current members put their name forward? Is there some sort of contingency plan in place or does the IAA cease to exist?

fayer

jayod30 wrote: »

Just a question? What happens if no current members put their name forward? Is there some sort of contingency plan in place or does the IAA cease to exist?

The "contingency plan" was drafted last week. It is a very simple document that contains the process to disband and close the IAA, inline with the Revenue commissioners guidelines. It contains a communications plan that will start on the 2nd of February to inform members and the community that the Association will be disbanded.

No committee = no IAA.

9 Days 23 hours left.

Steve
IAA Chairman

Dogwatch

fayer wrote: »

The "contingency plan" was drafted last week. It is a very simple document that contains the process to disband and close the IAA, inline with the Revenue commissioners guidelines. It contains a communications plan that will start on the 2nd of February to inform members and the community that the Association will be disbanded.

No committee = no IAA.

9 Days 23 hours left.

Steve
IAA Chairman

Is that process not contained in the IAA constitution?

fayer

Dogwatch wrote: »

Is that process not contained in the IAA constitution?

No, the framers of the constitution never envisaged the need to disband the operation, so this is not coved and we are required to use what would be the default steps. The process document created is based on the Irish legal requirements for non profit organisations to cease trading, with extra items for insuring everyone that needs to be informed is informed.

In summery, pay all bills, close accounts and all remaining funds must go to a registered charity. The dissemination of funds is covered in the constitution as required by the Revenue commissioners rules for non profits, this is the law for such bodys.

Do you have a specific concern?

K.Flyer

fayer wrote: »

No committee = no IAA.

9 Days 23 hours left.

Steve
IAA Chairman

(No Committee = No IAA) = No Legitimate Voice for Airsoft when some Gob****e who has no idea what he is talking about wants it all shut down.

Keep up the good work!

The_ChiefDUB

Just one week left to make nominations and propose motions for discussion at the IAA AGM. Submissions can be made by emailing info@irishairsoft.ie or starting a thread on the IAA forum at www.irishairsoft.ie. Remember to include your IAA membership number.

Get them in by next Friday at 5pm.

The_ChiefDUB

Including today, there are now four days left for nominations for the new IAA committee. So far only three nominations have been made.

OzCam

The_ChiefDUB wrote: »

ISo far only three nominations have been made.

So where are the nominations? Why aren't they up on the IAA Forum in the usual way?

Inari

OzCam wrote: »

So where are the nominations? Why aren't they up on the IAA Forum in the usual way?

I would assume that those submissions were made via email, an option listed in Chief_dub's previous post.

It's good to see people stepping up. It'd be a real shame to see the IAA disband, as it would leave the players and collectors with zero representation

TheDoc

OzCam wrote: »

So where are the nominations? Why aren't they up on the IAA Forum in the usual way?

As indicated above, there are numerous platforms now for nomination.

Once the initial due diligence is complete threads will be provided as per the normal process

Dogwatch

TheDoc wrote: »

As indicated above, there are numerous platforms now for nomination.

Once the initial due diligence is complete threads will be provided as per the normal process

It is not too late for anyone to stand up. If you go here ===>>> http://www.irishairsoft.ie/forum/viewforum.php?f=32 you can start a nomination thread and nominate away. When people are nominated, a separate Q&A thread will be created for each candidate.[Unquote]

Are the committee waiting until after the closing date for nominations before disclosing the names of those that have been nominated??

The_ChiefDUB

As has been said above, people can be nominated via email or letter as well as via the forum and that is how the current nominations have been received - nominations can also be may by posting on the forum. Threads will be opened on the forum to allow for questions and debate regarding each nomination that has been sent in via email. This will be done after membership numbers and interest of nominees have been confirmed.

andy_g

So the IAA are allowing phantom nominations this year and how are members meant to second these phantom nominations?

Looks very cloak and dagger this year.

The_ChiefDUB

andy_g wrote: »

So the IAA are allowing phantom nominations this year and how are members meant to second these phantom nominations?

Looks very cloak and dagger this year.

An utterly ridiculous accusation. Nominations are accepted via three routes as previously stated - by writing by post, via email or through the forum. When nominations have been received by email or otherwise they are confirmed and then a thread opened if it has not already been so that the membership can debate the issues. There is nothing cloak and dagger about it and I have no idea what the concept of a "phantom nomination" might entail.

andy_g

The_ChiefDUB wrote: »

An utterly ridiculous accusation. Nominations are accepted via three routes as previously stated - by writing by post, via email or through the forum. When nominations have been received by email or otherwise they are confirmed and then a thread opened if it has not already been so that the membership can debate the issues. There is nothing cloak and dagger about it and I have no idea what the concept of a "phantom nomination" might entail.

So far i see one nomination on the IAA forum and thats martin fehilly from cork.

Where's the other two?

The_ChiefDUB

andy_g wrote: »

So far i see one nomination on the IAA forum and thats martin fehilly from cork.

Where's the other two?

As has already been explained those nominations have come in via email and when the nominees confirm that they want to run they will be asked to open a thread so the members can debate with them on the issues which they hope to raise and goals they want to achieve.

Gatling

Not relevant to the AGM

The_ChiefDUB

The other two nominees have now confirmed their interest and threads have been added to IAA forum.

TheDoc

More members and players are communicating with us through more convenient platforms then the forums(convenient on their part), as far as I'm aware there is actually nothing that specifically denotes nominations MUST be done through the forum.

It just so happens that was the norm in years gone by, this year after reviewing the constitution, there was no mention of strictly forum nominations. So alternative platforms were opened up for members of the public to use at their discretion.

Nominations are typically , from what I can see provided by the "seconder" , not by the individual looking to get into said position.

A forum post is instant, and obviously is straight there. And after the publication due diligence takes place. We are doing the various checks and making sure everything is in order before we post the public threads.

What would be the point in posting, and then a few minutes later, outlining that its invalid.

The communication being received through the various platforms is being correlated and worked through, and published once deemed the application is valid, and meets the requirement set out by the constitution.


And now ends Doc being rather amicable, and now returns old Doc.

TheDoc

Not relevant to the AGM

TheDoc

andy_g wrote: »

So the IAA are allowing phantom nominations this year and how are members meant to second these phantom nominations?

Looks very cloak and dagger this year.

To literally clear this up, 100%.

Nothing is stopping anyone from posting a nomination on the forum. You can nominate someone now, you could nominate someone last week. No one, bar one, has posted a nomination on the forum.

Nominations have come via Facebook PM and e-mail.

Scenario 1 :
I nominate someone. IAA check my validity. See I'm not a member. Inform me my nomination cannot be accepted.

Scenario 2:
I nominate someone, IAA check my validity. See I'm a member. Post to forum.

Scenario 3:
I nominate myself. IAA check my validity. I'm not able to under constitution. I'm informed.

Scenario 4:
I nominate myself. IAA check my validity. I'm eligible, and thread posted.



That is literally it. The medium, is entirely negligible and is not a requirement. Fab can confirm, but I think nominations have to be in a form of writing afaik, so you cant just tell someone, or make a phone call, there has to be a written nomination.

The_ChiefDUB

That is correct, nominations have to be in writing. In cases where nominations have come in via email, I have been confirming with the person nominated that they actually want to run before creating a thread myself. As Doc said above, what is the point of me creating a thread without checking that person wants to go ahead first and possibly having to declare it invalid?

It took about a day to get confirmation from two nominees that they wanted to run. As soon as it was provided, the threads were opened. Anyone can just post a nomination to the forum or they can send an email or a letter by post (I'm getting bored of repeating this very simple fact now).

The work of this committee has been completely transparent at all stages. The nominations process is no different.

And in reference to the debt which you believe the IAA has, it is a well reported fact that a lot of work has been done to repair the damage done to the IAA through the regularising of all financial affairs. A full financial report will be delivered by the treasurer to the membership at the AGM.

At this point I would like to appeal to all members and anyone with an interest in the IAA and continued health of Irish airsoft to please ignore the rantings of certain individuals and instead take the time to read all that has been published by the current committee and draw your own conclusions.

Lemming

As an observation ... rather than saying "there are three nominations. But yeah but no but yeah but no but yeah, there is only one right now", might I suggest that you say there are "n" nominations, and "x" proposed currently awaiting ratification?

The "Three nominations" was very misleading and a bit dishonest as that was not the case until the two proposed nominees consented. Untill & unless they consented, the fact there were proposed nominations accounts for nothing. Could have saved yourselves a whole load of bother with more concise statements of fact.

The_ChiefDUB

Fair point - my goal was to encourage more people to come forward as has been my goal from the very outset of this process. The IAA needs people and my role as PRO in the run up to the AGM is to encourage more people to come forward for committee nominations.

The fact of the matter is that as we approach the deadline for nominations I have been getting seriously concerned about the sustainability of the association. We had a total of three nominations put forward (which as you rightly point out still needed to be fully confirmed) - it was this frighteningly low number which I was trying to draw attention to.

Tommyboy71

Not relevant to the AGM

Dogwatch

No more rants. Keep in on topic or else.

tonymccann

I was going to stand but on reflecting on a post made here id say it would just cause me more hastle than its worth pity cos id really like to stand

ricka

tonymccann wrote: »

I was going to stand but on reflecting on a post made here id say it would just cause me more hastle than its worth pity cos id really like to stand

That's a shame because that's definitely Airsofts loss

tonymccann

point proven

Tommyboy71

Tony. If you want to run then do so. Do not let anything written here affect your decision. It would be a shame to allow something written here deter someone from stepping up.

eversmann

Dogwatch wrote: »

Are the committee waiting until after the closing date for nominations before disclosing the names of those that have been nominated??

andy_g wrote: »

So the IAA are allowing phantom nominations this year and how are members meant to second these phantom nominations?

Looks very cloak and dagger this year.

Disappointingly predictable nay-saying from the sidelines.

In before the Not relevant to the AGM

Steve

Lads, really, last warning, keep this constructive please.

Leftyflip

Looking fairly dire this year indeed - which is quite disappointing. If I was in any able to step up for the positions I would - but there's a far better group of people out there that can do it, not to mention I haven't been a member for two years (somewhat hypocritical admittedly). But jesus lads - the IAA has been a huge help for Irish Airsoft, the people who volunteered here over the years whether you loved them or hated them did major work for this sport/hobby.

I find it hard to believe that the nominee's I saw (3 of them) on the IAA are the only people willing to do it. There's been a lot of shít and petty name calling and accusations for a while now - but this shouldn't deter people from stepping up.

Don't let the IAA die, whether we want to admit it or not - it's been a major help in the past and no doubt will be again in the future.

(Damn - me being positive and righteous? I'm scared...)

TheDoc

Perhaps maybe its finally getting to the realisation, that whilst everyone gives it loads of gob, they simply don't want to take the work on.

And in fairness I empathise. The guys put in long hours, and I mean LONG hours. There is also a skillset required to be a GOOD committee. Good communication skills, proffessional and unbiased etc.

Lefty I get where you are coming from. I've been around a long time, and I only put myself forward for a position once. And then, probably as it would be now, the issues seems to the fact that I'm just a blunt **** online, and call it the way it is. Now I know for a fact I'm utterly professionall when it comes to certain things among others, and I know I can hold a pretty impartial, unbiased straight forward constructive debate.

But then also when I think about it, why should I bother wasting my time when you have to deal with a massive mountain of negativity, derived out of nothing. And I mean nothing. I think its funny that the ONE year the IAA did some DEPLORABLE ****, that nothing really much came out of it. Whereas beforehand, when the IAA was doing tremendous work, it was being slated by lads on the peripheries.

I literally 100% empathise with people who don't want to do it. I always maintained, that no one should be forced to do it, and no one should be looked down upon because they haven't. And someone's opinion isnt worth less because they wont either.

The IAA can always use volunteers. I think the only reason my help was accepted this year was on the strict understanding I didn't say a ****ing word online, which didn't exactly work out, but I didn't exactly raise hell either.

I think there is a misconception around "Non-Exec" positions. Myself and Biohazrd helped maintain and run the web interfaces this year. That job could have been just one of us, it could have been twenty of us. If the IAA get offers of help, they can deploy those individuals into roles that assist the assosiation.

Another great example was Salute, there was a big offer of help and it was taken and a good representation was had. If you think you can help, but don't want / don't feel comfortable with the executive positions, then offer services/ assistance in other areas

tonymccann

TheDoc wrote: »

Perhaps maybe its finally getting to the realisation, that whilst everyone gives it loads of gob, they simply don't want to take the work on.

And in fairness I empathise. The guys put in long hours, and I mean LONG hours. There is also a skillset required to be a GOOD committee. Good communication skills, proffessional and unbiased etc.

Lefty I get where you are coming from. I've been around a long time, and I only put myself forward for a position once. And then, probably as it would be now, the issues seems to the fact that I'm just a blunt **** online, and call it the way it is. Now I know for a fact I'm utterly professionall when it comes to certain things among others, and I know I can hold a pretty impartial, unbiased straight forward constructive debate.

But then also when I think about it, why should I bother wasting my time when you have to deal with a massive mountain of negativity, derived out of nothing. And I mean nothing. I think its funny that the ONE year the IAA did some DEPLORABLE ****, that nothing really much came out of it. Whereas beforehand, when the IAA was doing tremendous work, it was being slated by lads on the peripheries.

I literally 100% empathise with people who don't want to do it. I always maintained, that no one should be forced to do it, and no one should be looked down upon because they haven't. And someone's opinion isnt worth less because they wont either.

The IAA can always use volunteers. I think the only reason my help was accepted this year was on the strict understanding I didn't say a ****ing word online, which didn't exactly work out, but I didn't exactly raise hell either.

I think there is a misconception around "Non-Exec" positions. Myself and Biohazrd helped maintain and run the web interfaces this year. That job could have been just one of us, it could have been twenty of us. If the IAA get offers of help, they can deploy those individuals into roles that assist the assosiation.

Another great example was Salute, there was a big offer of help and it was taken and a good representation was had. If you think you can help, but don't want / don't feel comfortable with the executive positions, then offer services/ assistance in other areas:)

my offer of help was never accepted ????????????????

OzCam

The_ChiefDUB wrote: »

A full financial report will be delivered by the treasurer to the membership at the AGM.

I await this report with great interest.

Will it include an Income & Expenditure Account and a Balance Sheet, prepared and signed off by a Certified or Chartered Accountant?

Tommyboy71

A full financial report will be provided in line with the constitution of the IAA and the legal requirements for associations such as this under Irish law.

Steve

OzCam wrote: »

I await this report with great interest.

Will it include an Income & Expenditure Account and a Balance Sheet, prepared and signed off by a Certified or Chartered Accountant?

With the greatest of respect Bernard, please drop it. I know there are unresolved issues wrt accounts but this isn't the time or the place for it.

Gray

Mission Statement
I am the current Secretary of the IAA & have accepted the nomination to stand again.
Late last year a number of people were approached to be co-opted onto the committee of the IAA due to the departure of the existing committee I was one of those & accepted.
Since then the committee has done a lot of work to get the IAA back on its feet. Some of this has been in the background such as work on the IT side & preparing a handover process. Some such as resolving the problems around processing membership applications are more visible but required a lot of effort. The biggest success was the display at the Salute show which was mainly due to the large number of helping hands.
But all this is in reality just a stopgap to prevent the IAA deteriorating further; it is now time to start moving forward. When the IAA was founded the situation for Airsoft in Ireland was very different & the main aim of the IAA was the legalisation of the sport. Things are now different & the IAA needs to change as well.
If re-elected my main aims will be to make the IAA more relevant to players, sites & retailers.
The original focus of the IAA was as a governing body this need to change to a representative body of the entire Airsoft community. In order to achieve this I would undertake a complete review of the structure & constitution of the IAA to see what changes are necessary to make the organisation more relevant to the Airsoft community today with a view to putting proposals for an updated IAA to the membership later in the year.
I firmly believe Airsoft needs a voice & that the best way to achieve that is to update the IAA rather than let it die & hope something else pops up.
If you agree with my vision for the future of Airsoft & the IAA the vote for me. If you don’t then vote against me but whatever you do get involved remember Airsoft is your hobby, sport or living.
Graham Read
IAA Secretary

tonymccann

Gray wrote: »

Mission Statement
I am the current Secretary of the IAA & have accepted the nomination to stand again.
Late last year a number of people were approached to be co-opted onto the committee of the IAA due to the departure of the existing committee I was one of those & accepted.
Since then the committee has done a lot of work to get the IAA back on its feet. Some of this has been in the background such as work on the IT side & preparing a handover process. Some such as resolving the problems around processing membership applications are more visible but required a lot of effort. The biggest success was the display at the Salute show which was mainly due to the large number of helping hands.
But all this is in reality just a stopgap to prevent the IAA deteriorating further; it is now time to start moving forward. When the IAA was founded the situation for Airsoft in Ireland was very different & the main aim of the IAA was the legalisation of the sport. Things are now different & the IAA needs to change as well.
If re-elected my main aims will be to make the IAA more relevant to players, sites & retailers.
The original focus of the IAA was as a governing body this need to change to a representative body of the entire Airsoft community. In order to achieve this I would undertake a complete review of the structure & constitution of the IAA to see what changes are necessary to make the organisation more relevant to the Airsoft community today with a view to putting proposals for an updated IAA to the membership later in the year.
I firmly believe Airsoft needs a voice & that the best way to achieve that is to update the IAA rather than let it die & hope something else pops up.
If you agree with my vision for the future of Airsoft & the IAA the vote for me. If you don’t then vote against me but whatever you do get involved remember Airsoft is your hobby, sport or living.
Graham Read
IAA Secretary

my offer of help was never accepted ???????????

Gray

Tony as far as I am aware your offer of help was received some time after the current committee was installed. At that time we were engaged in stabalising the IAA, your offer of training was dicussed but it was decided there were more pressing issues & this was something for a future committee. This was not ment as a refelection on you & I hope this has not turned you against the IAA.

My over riding aim is the betterment of airstoft & the IAA, from your interest your aim seems to be the same & hopefully in the future we can work to gether.

tonymccann

Gray wrote: »

Tony as far as I am aware your offer of help was received some time after the current committee was installed. At that time we were engaged in stabalising the IAA, your offer of training was dicussed but it was decided there were more pressing issues & this was something for a future committee. This was not ment as a refelection on you & I hope this has not turned you against the IAA.

My over riding aim is the betterment of airstoft & the IAA, from your interest your aim seems to be the same & hopefully in the future we can work to gether.

its a huge pity that this explanation was not given earlier because it has turned me off the IAA in a major way what a pity I wish u luck

S.E.A.L.s

Can non members of the IAA attend to observe this AGM please?

S.E.A.L.s

SEALs_Ireland wrote: »

Can non members of the IAA attend to observe this AGM please?

*cough