Time for someone else to step up I have done all I can do. I'm out.

[SeanGothe]

In the last 3 months a lot has been said about my posts. They have been read more than 4,000 times.
The appointment of a new CEO and the departure of that same CEO have obviously been talked about quite a deal.
For the record and you can look back through my posts - I described the new CEO pretty accurately well before his appointment (I did not know his name). My description which was very accurate was told to me by a non-bowling TBA official well ahead of the official announcement. I am not smart enough to have guessed.
Secondly I knew the about the departure of the CEO because I sent him an email on 5 March because I still hadn't received a response or acknowledgement to my letter of 5 December. I thought given exactly 3 months had elapsed I would forward Martin a copy of my 5 December letter and see if he was aware of it. Below is a copy of a text message I received prior to me submitting my letter of 5 December - "Can I request you submit your concerns via an email. Will then discuss with the board and respond accordingly formally. You will then have a formal record of your correspondence to you related to matters you have some concerns on and we then as an organisation also have this on record. Many thanks and have a great day". I did exactly that.
Three months on I have not received any response or acknowledgement at all.
Now, as for Martin's departure Í received an automatic email reply as follows:
Please be advised I no longer work at Tenpin Bowling Australia, please refer all matters to the TBA National Office. With Thanks Martin Stillman
The departure can also be confirmed by Martin's linkedin profile. I am sure that a lot of people would have received the same automatic email reply before it was switched off. A CEO receives a lot of emails.
I emailed Martin and received an automatic reply. As I said after 3 months I was tired of waiting for a response to my letter. I have now basically given up. This whole thing is starting to effect my health. For 3 months I have tried to bring about some positive change but more importantly greater transparency to a sport I love. I have now done all I can do. Maybe someone else can have a go. Steve Jones along with myself loves this game and it hurts to see the direction it is taking. I am exhausted and it is physically and mentally wearing me out. I hope some others who care about the game can take up the fight.

 

[DaleS]

So am I reading this right Sean? He lasted 3 months ?????

 

[SeanGothe]

No 6 weeks but I sent in my letter with questions for the TBA 3 months ago. The CEO commenced around 6 weeks after my letter of 5 December was sent in to the TBA Chair. It has never been answered. I just thought given I had been waiting exactly 3 months I should also pass it on to the new CEO. I then received the automatic reply email telling me he was no longer in the employ of the TBA.

 

[DaleS]

So nice to tell the bowling community about it.....what is it with the secret squirrel stuff in TBA ?

 

[steve jones]

It's a reaction that is common Dale when people know they are a mile out of their depth..............they simply pull down the shutters.

Sean, have a break, a beer or two and stay off this thing for a while and then you'll be OK. Keep smiling mate.

 

[SeanGothe]

Thank you both very much.
Greatly appreciated.
Sean

 

[portals]

The CEO's name has now been removed from the "Our People" section of the TBA website...

 

[RobK300]

Don't give it up Sean. I fear Dale was spot on with his comment in the other thread - if it doesn't appear on social media then it isn't visible to the majority. I heard this news had circulated on Sunday at the QLD Open, then again heard some things finally started to appear on socials.

If and WHEN the passionate core of the membership base understands how the association has been co-opted, change will come. Change will have to come from this. There were many red flags that had been raised prior to the appointment, in the wake of his departure there are even more. The non-bowling contingent of OUR SPORT's governance is surely not going to be able to cling on for much longer.

The beauty is that our governing body has a constitution. I've read all of the governance documents, as I did the position description for CEO. I understood what the role entailed, the authority it held (and crucially didn't hold) - but perhaps this was overlooked by the new-former CEO and our consultancy partners who were oh so instrumental in the recruitment process.

HERE IS THE CONSTITUTION (And I've saved multiple backups of this and all "policies" applicable at the time of writing, just in case they walk too.)

https://www.tenpin.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/TBA_Constitution_v2.3_Final_May_2019.pdf

But back to this constitution. The TBA board is mostly required to be elected and not appointed. Furthermore, those appointed members are a) from industry bodies (2) or b) require sign-off from the majority elected directors in order to be approved and accepted onto the board. Essentially (although a bit of a convoluted process) we do have democracy, therefore with appropriate mobilisation we do have the opportunity for all decisions to be made by a quorum of bowlers.

 

[steve jones]

Rob very well done if I may say - whilst I have never been an analyst of the ATBC/TBA constitution [I am far to dim] it is at this time a very relevant consideration and those like you [and most certainly Sean] who do have an analytical mind for the essential fundamentals are as rare has hens teeth - yet are so important to the overall.

 

[RobK300]

Thank you Steve.

Incidentally I gave thought to Dale's comments about social media taking over, so I threw a few posts around on Facebook last night to try to drive some traffic to the forums here.

I note this thread went from 135 views prior to 220 at the moment. No comments came from anybody new to the debate though.

Apathy reigns. Perhaps this is why we end up with non-bowling appointed directors? Insufficient push from OUR community (bowlers) to have OUR people (bowlers) into these positions?

 

[DaleS]

There is some conversation about it on social media - Chris Batson has put his hand up for the role.
As much as I think Chris would be perfect for the role, I have a feeling he would not be well received by those that make the decisions as it would be one bowled (The Bat) essentially replacing another bowler (Cara). And then there are people saying Chris would be too old and we need someone young with new ideas, on the flip side others are saying you need someone with experience as well.

I know this may be a silly idea and I am just brain dumping here, why wouldn't we have co-ceo's - we have co-captains in sport, we have co-chair people on boards.

It doesn't matter who does it, what does matter is that the person understands the game and where it has to go as well. The league bowlers relationships with the centres and the proprietors, and the fact that you once a week league bowler is not really interested in the majority of focus going to the elite players.

NRL, AFL, Soccer, ARU all push funds towards grass roots organisations, this enables the grass roots organisations to do better recruitment. They all make sure that they have talent scouts at local events identifying those players that appear to have a natural affinity for their game, they all encourage players of all skill levels to train, get better, work harder....I don't really see any of that in our sport. Moving forward - perhaps that is where we (the board - or Australian bowling as a whole) to focus our efforts.

 

[steve jones]

I'm guessing but I'd say it was unlikely any of the senior staff located in Melbourne turned up at Keon Park on the weekend to see the John Sullivan Event and meet bowlers [that would be the TBA's customers]. If someone did well that's a good thing and I happily stand corrected - so long as their visit wasn't fleeting.

Here's an idea - every Melbourne based TBA senior executive/'staff person - paid or unpaid - must bowl in a league for at least half or more of a season [can have a roving sub to assist with travel demands if there ever are any travel demands in these strange Chinese Flu times].

How else can any of these people know or speak with knowledge about the sport they represent if they don't participate formally in the sport they represent? This is nothing new - it's a regular corporate mandate - at least it was during my career - everyone in the business gets their hands "dirty" now and again - it reminds you of who you are and what it is you represent.

Not to mention you actually have to rub shoulders with your customers who just might teach you something now and again.

 

[SeanGothe]

It's a very good idea Steve that they bowl in a League. It should be slightly less strenuous than rowing on the Yarra.
I was at Keon Park for most of the weekend and bowled in A squad.
To the best of my knowledge only one of the GMs made a brief appearance in the afternoon on Sunday. I am told he arrived after I commenced my squad and he left before I finished my 8 games so I never spoke to him. He was actually pointed out to me by a couple of people as he was wearing a black TBA shirt. I know of at least one bowler who suggested that he wait until I finish to speak with me. I would estimate that there was probably between 3,500 & 4,000 years of bowling experience and knowledge in the centre each day on the weekend. If I was new to the sport and was holding a position of supposed authority and genuinely cared about the game and its participants I would have been at Keon Park from the minute the doors opened on Saturday morning until the very last bowler went home on the Sunday evening absorbing every piece of knowledge I could consume.
PATHETIC!!!!

 

[Swooper]

Well said Sean, hang in there agree with what you pointed out as a big problem in the running of T.B.A.

 

[twenban]

Facebook gets much better results ..