[dalekpete]

I apologise if I have offended anyone by posting replies to threads started a year ago.

Certainly the responses and abusive PMs suggest that some feel that I should not have done this.

I thought it was interesting to see how the same themes reoccur at the same point each year. The same will be true for those claiming a right to automatic promotion after we sneak two successive wins or those who see conspiracy when that promotion slips away. There will also be a gnashing of teeth when we slip up in the cups.

These notions far pre-date this messageboard and were debated in pubs long before keyboard philosophers existed.

[Ernie Ernie Ernie]

dalekpete, on Jul 9 2006, 11:09 AM, said:

I apologise if I have offended anyone by posting replies to threads started a year ago.

Certainly the responses and abusive PMs suggest that some feel that I should not have done this.

I thought it was interesting to see how the same themes reoccur at the same point each year. The same will be true for those claiming a right to automatic promotion after we sneak two successive wins or those who see conspiracy when that promotion slips away. There will also be a gnashing of teeth when we slip up in the cups.

These notions far pre-date this messageboard and were debated in pubs long before keyboard philosophers existed.

Pete I think the thing that is getting to a lot of people is the downward spiral we appear to be in.

Last year we started brightly and faded away, we ranged from very good to dire and were helped throughout the season by some good loan signings. We need to do the same again and rely on other people helping us out and the management team having the ability to find some more gems so that we don't waste our loan quota.
Last seasons crowds were slightly down on target/budget but not massively yet we are allegedly cutting the players budget again which will make things even harder. We have a board that has been elected to fund raise to ensure the club survives and progresses, but to be fair the amounts raised in recent years have been insignificant. One of this years main fund raising events was a garden party that sold 400 tickets.

Just who exactly did our marekting experts that we have on board think our target audience was? The average football fan? Families with young children, our fans of the future? I can't imagine any kids wanting to drag their parents along to listen to al Needham and any kids dragged along by their parents will associate a few sandwiches in the park and a boring brass band with Chesterfield football club. Hardly inspiring community engagement.

We seem to be in a well of despair where the CFSS have no ideas on how to raise revenue and ideas that are put forward are treated with what appears to be contempt. Some of the ideas put forward on here have been stupid, costly and niaive. However others have on paper appeared to be excellent, with little or no financial outlay, that only require the ideas to be put into motion.

All ideas should however be given consideration and the people putting them forward should at least know that they have been discussed and the reasons they have been rejected. This can simply be an agenda item at the monthly meetings that lists the ideas, acceptances and rejections and briefly outlines the reasons behind the decision.

This leads on to the issue of minutes. You've tried in another thread to defend the secretary or whoever for the lack of minutes since February and to be fair it is indefencible. CFSS banged the drum about openness and transparancy yet there have been no minutes for the best part of 6 months. What does that suggest to the fans? Yes you have said that some things are sensitive and not open to the public domain but everything for 6 months?

We have a CFSS board memebr putting the phone down on a fan (and sponsor and businesss club member) of the club, again what does that relay as a message about engagement?

We say the new ground is our future, we don't want to engage with our business partners until we get to the new ground etc. This is a bloke that is a business club partner, I'm sure he'll want to invest heavily at the new venture after being treated so shabbily.

We appear to be relaint on everything happening at the new ground. Merely having facilities won't guarantee people use them. We will still be in competition with other people and other venues within the area, all of which will be more professional in their approach. If we don't get the first point of contact right they won't come again.

We also appear to be saying community engagement for the facilities will do wonders. Being soemone that works with many community groups and fund raising activities I can assure you that a lot of the groups that will be coming to the club will want to use the facilities but they will be asking for it for free. There will be ceratin conditions I would asume attached to any grants that are given for communtiy facilities and this in turn may mean we have to let certain groups in for discounted rates or free to comply with the grant funding.

All in all CFSS need to do something NOW in terms of fund raising as the new ground won't do it all. The money CFSS raie directly should suppliment income from the new ground not be reliant on it.

Fans have never been so far removed from the club and it's getting worse. We now have more means of communication than ever before yet the information that comes out of the club is less than under Norts. Yes we get up-dates on the web sites etc but most of it is inane.

We need a professional fund raiser/marketing expert at the club and some of the people on board need to be given tasks and areas of responsibility that are identified to the fans, have targets, deadlines, important milestones and some accountabiltiy for those involved. Too many people appear to be doing nothing and basking in the glory of what was achieved years ago in saving the club.

H and co will say get of your harris and get voted on and change it. Most people won't for two reasons. Firstly they don't believe most on board would welcome, want, encouarge or accept change and secondly more importantly the majority of fans don't believe the whole concept of fans ownership can work in the long term and would welcome either Hubbard or someone else taking back total control.

Our club is going to the dogs.

[Town_Fan]

The irony was Pete that your old posts show how little (if at all) the club is progressing. Its not like DB did the club up the bottom last week and its a new situation, its been 5 years since CFSS took over and one seriously has to ask how much have we really moved on and are CFSS relevant anymore?

The club needs investment to really move on and the reality is CFSS seem incapable / unwilling to bring this into the club. The CFSS board have to look at themselves and ask if they have taken it as far as they can. Once they admit that maybe something can be done, my fear is you genuinely believe there is no other way and I really do think that some people enjoy the "kudos" of being involved with the perception of running the club. For many board members it would be hard to say goodbye to that.

As for Ernie's excellent post, I have to say I agree with most of it especially the last sentence. Just one point of clarification it was a CFC board member that hung up on the business club member.

[Balearic Mac]

Ernie Ernie Ernie, on Jul 9 2006, 11:46 AM, said:

Pete I think the thing that is getting to a lot of people is the downward spiral we appear to be in.

Last year we started brightly and faded away, we ranged from very good to dire and were helped throughout the season by some good loan signings. We need to do the same again and rely on other people helping us out and the management team having the ability to find some more gems so that we don't waste our loan quota.
Last seasons crowds were slightly down on target/budget but not massively yet we are allegedly cutting the players budget again which will make things even harder. We have a board that has been elected to fund raise to ensure the club survives and progresses, but to be fair the amounts raised in recent years have been insignificant. One of this years main fund raising events was a garden party that sold 400 tickets.

Just who exactly did our marekting experts that we have on board think our target audience was? The average football fan? Families with young children, our fans of the future? I can't imagine any kids wanting to drag their parents along to listen to al Needham and any kids dragged along by their parents will associate a few sandwiches in the park and a boring brass band with Chesterfield football club. Hardly inspiring community engagement.

We seem to be in a well of despair where the CFSS have no ideas on how to raise revenue and ideas that are put forward are treated with what appears to be contempt. Some of the ideas put forward on here have been stupid, costly and niaive. However others have on paper appeared to be excellent, with little or no financial outlay, that only require the ideas to be put into motion.

All ideas should however be given consideration and the people putting them forward should at least know that they have been discussed and the reasons they have been rejected. This can simply be an agenda item at the monthly meetings that lists the ideas, acceptances and rejections and briefly outlines the reasons behind the decision.

This leads on to the issue of minutes. You've tried in another thread to defend the secretary or whoever for the lack of minutes since February and to be fair it is indefencible. CFSS banged the drum about openness and transparancy yet there have been no minutes for the best part of 6 months. What does that suggest to the fans? Yes you have said that some things are sensitive and not open to the public domain but everything for 6 months?

We have a CFSS board memebr putting the phone down on a fan (and sponsor and businesss club member) of the club, again what does that relay as a message about engagement?

We say the new ground is our future, we don't want to engage with our business partners until we get to the new ground etc. This is a bloke that is a business club partner, I'm sure he'll want to invest heavily at the new venture after being treated so shabbily.

We appear to be relaint on everything happening at the new ground. Merely having facilities won't guarantee people use them. We will still be in competition with other people and other venues within the area, all of which will be more professional in their approach. If we don't get the first point of contact right they won't come again.

We also appear to be saying community engagement for the facilities will do wonders. Being soemone that works with many community groups and fund raising activities I can assure you that a lot of the groups that will be coming to the club will want to use the facilities but they will be asking for it for free. There will be ceratin conditions I would asume attached to any grants that are given for communtiy facilities and this in turn may mean we have to let certain groups in for discounted rates or free to comply with the grant funding.

All in all CFSS need to do something NOW in terms of fund raising as the new ground won't do it all. The money CFSS raie directly should suppliment income from the new ground not be reliant on it.

Fans have never been so far removed from the club and it's getting worse. We now have more means of communication than ever before yet the information that comes out of the club is less than under Norts. Yes we get up-dates on the web sites etc but most of it is inane.

We need a professional fund raiser/marketing expert at the club and some of the people on board need to be given tasks and areas of responsibility that are identified to the fans, have targets, deadlines, important milestones and some accountabiltiy for those involved. Too many people appear to be doing nothing and basking in the glory of what was achieved years ago in saving the club.

H and co will say get of your harris and get voted on and change it. Most people won't for two reasons. Firstly they don't believe most on board would welcome, want, encouarge or accept change and secondly more importantly the majority of fans don't believe the whole concept of fans ownership can work in the long term and would welcome either Hubbard or someone else taking back total control.

Our club is going to the dogs.

Excellent post, Ernie. I just hope the content permeates through to the CFSS hierachy. It really is time to listen..

[Wooden Spoon]

Balearic Mac, on Jul 10 2006, 08:59 PM, said:

Excellent post, Ernie. I just hope the content permeates through to the CFSS hierachy. It really is time to listen..

*rapturous standing ovation*


superb post ernie. best ever.