Statement of Intent for BoD: for Walter Anderson

DMS General
#1

Walter has asked me to post this for him. I am also nominating him or any one else that needs to be that wants to run. here is the statement he has sent me.

From Walter Anderson’s email:

This letter is to serve as formal notification that I, Walter Anderson,
am officially submitting my name to run for election to the Board of
Directors for Dallas Makerspace for the year 2017.

My goals for 2017 are:

  • Get the bylaws rewritten and approved by the membership to address
    some of the current problems with the document. For instance the
    current document states that only voting members are allowed to
    ‘influence’ the corporation. If this by law were actually followed then
    only voting members would be allowed to speak at member meetings and
    board meetings. Clearly this should not be the case, but simply
    ignoring the by laws forces the board to violate their duties. There
    are many other issues with the document that should be hashed out with
    the members to obtain mutually agreeable solutions to these problems and
    place the space on a firm future.

  • Increase savings and ensure that the Makerspace is ready for an
    inevitable move to a new location and the massive costs that will mean
    for the corporation.

  • Currently the credit cards that are used by all purchasing officers
    are guaranteed by the personal assets of one board member. This is both
    an unnecessary burden upon him as well as an unreasonable risk for DMS.
    I will work to find a solution to this situation so that a $600,000 per
    year corporation is independent of the financial support and risk with
    relying on a single member for such a critical aspect of our existence.

As some of you are aware, I was planning on leaving Texas and relocating
to Florida sometime during the summer. I have canceled those plans. I
have informed my colleagues that I will be officially fully retired,
effective Friday March 24, 2017. This will mean that I can devote a
significant portion of my time to helping to manage the Dallas Makerspace.

As part of this Letter of Intent, I also agree to the duties and
functions expected of me in this position that include, but are not
limited to:

Making every effort to attend the annual meeting(s) and regular
meetings. Perform the duties and responsibilities of Director as
outlined in the Dallas Makerspace Bylaws as well as the Dallas
Makerspace Rules and Policies. If elected, I am fully aware and
understand the importance of my full participation as a productive and
effective leader during my tenure on Dallas Makerspace Board of
Directors, and I agree to the terms and conditions set forth above.

23 Likes
*sigh* Walter has been muted on Talk
#2

…as a director. Blocking Walter may well have given him a seat. Politics works in funny ways and demonizing a candidate sometimes propels him/her to an unexpected victory.

7 Likes
#3

That’s why there’s a vote.

As Walter is a candidate now, I’m interested in knowing more about his really big plans to retire and move the Florida. In the course of a couple of days, he’s now planning to be in Texas forever and pursuing a leadership role at DMS. I guess Florida was just Big Talking? Is Big Talking a favorite Walter pass time? I don’t know him at all, but that’s definitely a question I’ll be asking before I vote.

DMS board right now is mostly a group of thinkers sprinkled with some doers. I think there’s room for one more doer, but that will mean one of the thinkers needs to step back. I just don’t see a Big Talker fitting in to the advantage of the community, so I’ll need to investigate if Walter is a Talker or a Doer.

======

(Edited to put this back to post. This was not the comment’s original location. It was moved to this thread by moderator Lisa Selk on Friday, March 24.)

#4

Vote Walter. Make DMS Great Again.
(sorry can’t help myself sometimes when I get a thought in my head)

3 Likes
#5

He is both. To an extreme.

5 Likes
#6

Walter has been a huge doer at the space and has been motivated enough by these actions to cancel a move, cancel a job, and retire early. I think his actions speak volumes.

8 Likes
#7

Those actions may speak volumes, but they are very quick to the draw. It concerns me a bit. What if his enthusiasm ebbs and flows with such extremes? Thanks for offering your perspective, though. It’s added to my consideration.

Of course, with only two candidates announced, looks like they’re both in, huh? (That’s a hint to get your name in the hat if you really want the job.)

#8

I’m pretty sure nobody wants that job. From what I’ve observed, the BODs do a ton of work, and deal with a lot of griping. It seems to be a thankless position. They do it because they love the space.

13 Likes
#9

Well right now only two of them “love the space.” Time to put your name to the list.

==== Edit below ====

In my three months of watching, I’ve seen the griping you mentioned. At times, and based on some items to the agenda, it looks like the BoD is being asked to be hall monitor in addition to making guiding decisions for DMS.

Perhaps it’s time for the membership to allow a board of hall monitors to handle the “so and so wasn’t excellent” complaints. (Oh geez. There are a couple of times where that’s the case like not paying for your consumables or IMHO this instance of of third complaint about how a tool is being used, but there are other complaints that are laughable, yet the BoD gets stuck with them anyway.)

Another thing that needs to be buttoned down at DMS is budgeting and asset allocation. Half of the BoD meeting (again, according to the minutes) is pie-in-the-sky proposals for one-off expenditures that departments want the main budget to fund.

The new board needs to arrange a master plan, and that plan needs to be recognized as the guiding document for growth. There’s big money at DMS now. It’s time to run the place like a small corporation instead of a hobby shop.

1 Like
#10

There is an explanation here:

but I’ll quote it here as well, from his wiki SoI if there are any differences:

edit: happy retirement day, Walter!

3 Likes
#12

Everyone who knows Walter in person would likely agree with this comment. The list of things that Walter has taught, created, and fixed is long - and all voluntary, I might add. He is a very diverse maker and willing to share his knowledge and talents. The Board was not taking issue with Walter in this capacity - it was solely regarding his online persona.

And no, I don’t want to debate his online persona. We’ve pretty much beaten that to death. I don’t see any evidence that anyone is going to change their opinion so I don’t see any need to beat it any further.

9 Likes
#13

You do not have your facts straight and come off as condescending Walter was not going to retire and move to Florida. He was asked to return to Florida by a business he is/was part of. Given the hassles of moving, not terribly fond of returning to Florida, not wanting to train/deal w/ ill prepared job candidates, and seeing the future potential of DMS, he decided to retire and stay here.

Walter is a Thinker, Doer, and yes, Talker. He has designed/built projects involving at least 7committee/SIG areas. He has also taught in at least 3 different areas. Given his involvement w/ the Space, his business background and attention to detail, he is well prepared to take a position on our BoD

Not going to be a problem. No more than for any of the other candidates.

Again you do not have your facts straight. Weekly Finance Committee mtngs take place every Sun. mrng starting at 10:00a. Check the Event Calendar. Attend one and get informed/educated. There are plans currently in place.

8 Likes
#14

Sadly, the jumbling of threads is causing a blip in continuity.

Ok, again I’ll offer that this is why there’s a vote. And again I will suggest that with two members coming forward as candidates for five seats, Walter’s gonna be a winner!

I’m going to go weekend. It’s going to be fun. I hope you have a good one as well.

#15

Why are you so interested in his personal life? Is it really any of your business whether Walter is retired, working, a student, or a lion tamer? Why on earth should you be privy to any of this information?

7 Likes
#16

That would be so freaking cool … :smiley:

7 Likes
#17

Divide and attack works better when you have more details to pick from…

1 Like
#18

This might actually be a good skill for a board member to have. A minor in cat herding should be an absolute requirement.

8 Likes
#20

Note that among the things Walter has promoted over and over again are better accounting, budget planning, and financial preparedness. Sounds very much in line with the last point Art addressed above. Walter is ahead of the game on this one.

5 Likes
#21

I would recommend a post-doctorate degree in the field and >30 years of experience.

6 Likes
#23

Cute sidetrack guys… BUT ~ This is a thread that should remain focused on Walter’s Intent to run for the Board of Directors. Please keep it on topic.

PS… Animals are adorable! Feel free to open a new thread about all that under the #off-topic category.

Thanks!

3 Likes