Board Changes

[deanox 9,927]

13 minutes ago, Lucifer's Hero said:

Yeah, I haven't heard much about our governance protocols over football matters either.  Which makes me wonder whether we have them or they are inadequate and maybe Brad's role is to look at 'best practice' and implement and or update what we have.

fwiw I include 'risk' in governance as risk can occur in any part of the club.  Good governance and protocols are there to reduce risk.

I hope our football governance is up there or becomes like the standards the best clubs set.

Agreed there is a line that the board member shouldn't cross and from the outside it looks like it has been crossed at North and Adelaide, to their detriment.

Agree RE governance. I should have used that word instead of operational when describing the AFRC.

We discussed the role of the GM Football recently, and it is possible that the football department structure could be interwinned. That is, in some cases the risk oversight may be delegated to the GM Football or the CEO, whereas in others that may be provided by a football director/board subcommittee.

The later provides complete separation between the two groups, and thus it offers a true external risk oversight, but there is potential for the football director to overstep, mudying the water.

[Deemania since 56 6,640]

21 hours ago, old dee said:

An extremely good question! So we have the normal keep the board members in house. Two members retiring and two only applications so no need for us members to vote. Has been this way for at least the last 15 years. So good ship MFC slowly ploughs on.  

Rennick may be useful for a new MFC residence?

[Moonshadow 17,676]

1 hour ago, A F said:

Sure, but is Green the most qualified to do this? We shall see.

Agreed A F.

Few, if any on here are seriously against the appointment of Greeny, but its very healthy to ask questions of his relevant experience. Only a fool would would accept him on the board without seeking clarification.

[Moonshadow 17,676]

5 hours ago, Sir Why You Little said:

Hopefully he is directly involved in the running of the Football Department 

(Speaks regularly with Yze and Goodwin)

Are you implying it is a way of having him in the FD without being included in the FD soft cap?

[picket fence 17,170]

I'm all for an ex Captain of the club to sit on the board. Gives the decision makers a fair slice of Footy Nous!

[daisycutter 29,616]

3 hours ago, Dannyz said:

You don't need a whole lot of business acumen to assume the footy director position. You need FD acumen which you would assume a prominent former player, captain and then assistant coach would have. 

and more important CURRENT football knowledge

no doubt other board members have some football background but a modern football department and players are so different from football in their time

[Adam The God 30,261]

38 minutes ago, Sir Why You Little said:

You are a fool if you take no notice of the past. It will just repeat itself

i am yet to be a “fan” as i have no idea of his credentials, but he is there, so it better work. 
Brad’s Twitter feed can be quite entertaining 

I agree with this in finance and interpersonally, but I disagree that the past failures at the MFC mean that the current people are doomed to repeat them.

Finance stability is destabilising, but football stability IMV, is that, stabilising.

Unless of course, the decision makers are so pathetic that their decisions cause instability (see Cameron Schwab). 

[Adam The God 30,261]

37 minutes ago, deanox said:

Agree RE governance. I should have used that word instead of operational when describing the AFRC.

We discussed the role of the GM Football recently, and it is possible that the football department structure could be interwinned. That is, in some cases the risk oversight may be delegated to the GM Football or the CEO, whereas in others that may be provided by a football director/board subcommittee.

The later provides complete separation between the two groups, and thus it offers a true external risk oversight, but there is potential for the football director to overstep, mudying the water.

Great discussion here @deanox and @Lucifer's Hero. We don't know what our risk oversight set up is outside of the John Trotter sub committee, do we? 

[Lucifers Hero 39,819]

7 minutes ago, A F said:

Great discussion here @deanox and @Lucifer's Hero. We don't know what our risk oversight set up is outside of the John Trotter sub committee, do we? 

I don't know but I'm sure there is some there thru his sub committee.  Whether it extends to football and non financial stufff only insiders would know.

[Sir Why You Little 37,046]

27 minutes ago, Moonshadow said:

Are you implying it is a way of having him in the FD without being included in the FD soft cap?

Would seem more useful than sitting on the Board. Time will tell, but at this stage i don’t see Brad as an executive  
 

But he is there so i do hope it works

 

[deanox 9,927]

8 minutes ago, A F said:

Great discussion here @deanox and @Lucifer's Hero. We don't know what our risk oversight set up is outside of the John Trotter sub committee, do we? 

From our website I can tell we have:

- Finance, Audit and Risk Committee, chaired by John Trotter, inc David Thurin

- Facilities Working Group, chaired by Glen Bartlett, inc Kate Roffey

- Bentleigh Club Subcommittee, chaired by John Trotter

- Nominations and Remunerations Subcommittee, inc Steve Morris, David Robb

 

I'd be very surprised if there aren't at least a couple of other subcommittees.

 

But the FARC is responsible for all risk oversite, and for setting up structures that oversee/manage risk throughout the organisation. They don't need to necessarily assess the risk themselves, but make sure it is being done properly.

[Sir Why You Little 37,046]

22 minutes ago, A F said:

I agree with this in finance and interpersonally, but I disagree that the past failures at the MFC mean that the current people are doomed to repeat them.

Finance stability is destabilising, but football stability IMV, is that, stabilising.

Unless of course, the decision makers are so pathetic that their decisions cause instability (see Cameron Schwab). 

The Current people are not automatically doomed to repeat. I was answering Pollyanna’s rather cryptic post. 
but i do wonder whether Brad is the best choice, considering he was Captain during the darkest period in our history 

[deanox 9,927]

12 minutes ago, Lucifer's Hero said:

I don't know but I'm sure there is some there thru his sub committee.  Whether it extends to football and non financial stufff only insiders would know.

Constitutionally it is required to "monitor Club's finances, audits of the Club's finances and its risk management systems and other responsibilities as tbe Board may determine..."

[Adam The God 30,261]

12 minutes ago, Sir Why You Little said:

The Current people are not automatically doomed to repeat. I was answering Pollyanna’s rather cryptic post. 
but i do wonder whether Brad is the best choice, considering he was Captain during the darkest period in our history 

I wonder whether Brad is the best choice too, but mostly because I'm not totally sold on the idea of having football director and what he brings to FD operations is two very short stints as an assistant coach and a football career a long time ago now. And as if Pert doesn't know how the modern FD functions. 

However, I'll back the club for the moment.

Edited October 23, 2020 by A F

[Queanbeyan Demon 6,850]

At the global level, the ‘board model’, as we understand it, is completely broken. Corporate governance is in a shambles no matter what country or sector we look at. Failures pervade all sectors of the media on a daily basis. 

In Australia, for profit, not-for-profit, government and non-government entities are mired in muck at a governance level. There are many reasons for this - far too many to canvas in this forum. The MFC has not been immune to this phenomena in the past, and is highly unlikely to be so in the future. It’s not the fault necessarily of one particular individual, or even a group of individuals. It is the fault of a mechanism that is completely out of step with the times.    

So, with respect to the MFC board appointees announced yesterday . . . good luck to you. You’re going to need it. 

Edited October 23, 2020 by Queanbeyan Demon
Typo

[Sir Why You Little 37,046]

4 minutes ago, A F said:

I wonder whether Brad is the best choice too, but mostly because I'm not totally sold on the idea of having football director and what he brings to FD operations is two very short stints as an assistant coach and a football career a long time ago now. And as if Pert doesn't know how the modern FD functions. 

However, I'll back the club for the moment.

Similar reservations. I do hope it works as i had a long conversation with Brad when he was Captain, he was having some lunch at my local Cafe and was happy to talk Demons  He does love the Club, but doesn’t strike me as a Board Director. 
But i am happy to be wrong in time

[deanox 9,927]

5 minutes ago, Queanbeyan Demon said:

At the global level, the ‘board model’, as we understand it, is completely broken. Corporate governance is in a shambles no matter what country or sector we look at. Failures pervade all sectors of the media on a daily basis. 

In Australia, for profit, not-for-profit, government and non-government entities are mired in muck at a governance level. There are many reasons for this - far too many to canvas in this forum. The MFC has not been immune to this phenomena in the past, and is highly unlikely to be so in the future. It’s not the fault necessarily of one particular individual, or even a group of individuals. It is the fault of a mechanism that is completely out of step with the times.    

So, with respect to the MFC board appointees announced yesterday . . . good luck to you. You’re going to need it. 

Agreed to some extent. But the board model we all know isn't necessarily the standard everywhere.

The German codetermination model means that once a company reaches a certain size, the employees get to elect either 1/3 or 1/2 of the supervisory board depending on company size.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codetermination_in_Germany

 

[dazzledavey36 54,947]

Yeah can't say I'm thrilled about the Green appointment. 

[Queanbeyan Demon 6,850]

5 minutes ago, deanox said:

Agreed to some extent. But the board model we all know isn't necessarily the standard everywhere.

The German codetermination model means that once a company reaches a certain size, the employees get to elect either 1/3 or 1/2 of the supervisory board depending on company size.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codetermination_in_Germany

 

Yes, great point deanox. I remember coming across research, probably over 20 years ago, that seemed to indicate for-profit companies with rank and file workers on their boards out performed their peers by a substantial margin. Maybe a position or two, on a 12-month rotational basis, should be created and reserved on the MFC board for 'supporters in the stands'.   

[old dee 23,792]

1 hour ago, Deemania since 56 said:

Rennick may be useful for a new MFC residence?

Appears that way Deemania. I hope I am wrong but I have difficulty see any movement in 2021.

[old dee 23,792]

9 minutes ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Yeah can't say I'm thrilled about the Green appointment. 

Versus who dd?

Edited October 23, 2020 by old dee

[Graeme Yeats' Mullet 6,777]

A Caro Wilson article of September, said a group of former players were making calls to find a challenger to Bartlett on the board as they were unhappy with direction of the club.

Fair chance a few of Green's contemporaries were a part of that group and potentially Green's appointment is an olive branch to that group.

[Adam The God 30,261]

1 hour ago, Graeme Yeats' Mullet said:

A Caro Wilson article of September, said a group of former players were making calls to find a challenger to Bartlett on the board as they were unhappy with direction of the club.

Fair chance a few of Green's contemporaries were a part of that group and potentially Green's appointment is an olive branch to that group.

Maybe. Though I doubt the board would have appointed him if they had an inkling that his presence would undermine their governance. I also doubt that they would have appointed him to quell external discontent.  

[Diamond_Jim 12,590]

one woman on an 8 person board.

would be nice to see a little more diversity including age and background.

 

[Graeme Yeats' Mullet 6,777]

29 minutes ago, A F said:

Maybe. Though I doubt the board would have appointed him if they had an inkling that his presence would undermine their governance. I also doubt that they would have appointed him to quell external discontent.  

The Caro story referencing a group of former players and the board is too much of a coincidence for me.

Green and crew represent some big, truly Melbourne names from a relatively successful time and they carry some sway.