KCBS Regional Vote

This map shows that the BoD does not understand why the members want regionalization. We want it so that the areas we live and cook in are represented and have a voice of what is happening in our area. WTH would a board member from Alabama know what is happening in Michigan or Wisconsin??
 
I can see they tried to split the region into equal members. That works for congressional districts but not KCBS.
I did not vote for regional districts because I think there is a bigger bias in the representation that should be restricted to fields of interest.
I think there should be a qutoa on number of Reps, Judges, Cooks, and member at large.
Secondly, there is (in my opinion) no way the organization can function effectively with a Board of 12 members who only meet telephonically to conduct the business of a organization with 19,000+ members and growing.
I see they have created a "Executive Committee" however I'm not sure how transparent it has been created because there is a bias of BOD members that creation regional representatives will not solve.
 
Better Idea

West Coast CA, OR, WA, HA, AK
Southwest NV, CO, AZ, UT, NM
Northern Plains ID, MT, WY, ND, SD, NE
Central Plains KS, IA, MO, IL
South Central OK, TX, AR, LA
Great Lakes MN, WI, MI, OH, IN
SourhEast GA, FL,SC, NC
MidSouth MS, AL, TN, KY
East WV, VA, PA, DC, ML, DE, NJ
NorthEast NY, MA VT, WH, ME, MN, CT, RI, VT, NH
CANADA
Europe, Asia, Africa

Ya know, at least group them where people travel
 
"I did not vote for regional districts because I think there is a bigger bias in the representation that should be restricted to fields of interest."
David that's a really interesting idea.
Could you expand that?
 
djqualls said:
I can see they tried to split the region into equal members. That works for congressional districts but not KCBS.
I did not vote for regional districts because I think there is a bigger bias in the representation that should be restricted to fields of interest.
I think there should be a qutoa on number of Reps, Judges, Cooks, and member at large.
Secondly, there is (in my opinion) no way the organization can function effectively with a Board of 12 members who only meet telephonically to conduct the business of a organization with 19,000+ members and growing.
I see they have created a "Executive Committee" however I'm not sure how transparent it has been created because there is a bias of BOD members that creation regional representatives will not solve.
Click to expand...

Sounds like two totally different issues. You can't expect a cook from Kansas to understand what a cook is going through in the New York. We need board members that live in these areas and know what is happening.

Example:
I was listening to a BoD meeting where they discussed sanctioning of a contest in MI and started talking about teams traveling from Kansas and they are a few hundred teams here. I have been competing here for a few years and know that information is incorrect. If we had a regional representative they could help with these issues.
 
Rich Parker said:
Sounds like two totally different issues. You can't expect a cook from Kansas to understand what a cook is going through in the New York. We need board members that live in these areas and know what is happening.

Example:
I was listening to a BoD meeting where they discussed sanctioning of a contest in MI and started talking about teams traveling from Kansas and they are a few hundred teams here. I have been competing here for a few years and know that information is incorrect. If we had a regional representative they could help with these issues.
Click to expand...

But how would you like 12 regional representatives on the board that are all judges?
 
All politicians try to preserve their territory. It's called gerrymandering. I would say it is so KS and MO have a shot at two seats to represent the greater KC area. If this is what it takes to get regional representation finally adopted, then it is a great compromise.
 
I doubt anyone is going to like that map, except perhaps the folks in New England.

Kansas and Missouri, Georgia and Tennesee in separate regions? Nutty.

Texas and Washington, Mississippi and Minnesota in the same regions? Equally insane.

You might as just well group the state alphabetically. That map totally fails to meet the spirit of what the membership was asking for with regional representation. It looks like the KCBS Board made regions using the US House of Representatives model, when they should have used the US Senate.
 
Are we voting on the region's shown on the map or for them to continue looking into regional representation. I don't know that it is stated that the map shown is what the region's will be. Between the biased pros and cons and a map that doesn't make any sense, it is clear how they want members to respond.
 
jaestar said:
Are we voting on the region's shown on the map or for them to continue looking into regional representation. I don't know that it is stated that the map shown is what the region's will be. Between the biased pros and cons and a map that doesn't make any sense, it is clear how they want members to respond.
Click to expand...

They have said in the board meeting minutes that the map will not be in the bylaws as it could change with membership numbers.
 
Scottie, until a bylaws change is offered and approved for a membership vote, regional representation is not done. However, an at-large vote, can make regional representation and director diversity happen. Look at the chart that shows where directors are from. There was a time when I personally only voted for candidates that weren't from KC area. I was not alone in my thinking and some diversity happened. When I was voted on the board in 2010, I was the only director that wasn't a rep. The KCBS board has become more diverse there too.

Without good candidates who want to serve as directors for KCBS not their own purposes or agendas, all of this is pointless. MY OPINION ONLY...
 
From experience I can tell you that this is a membership issue, as much as it is a board issue.

Here is what happened during the short time I had that committee.... The members I recruited from different regions were agreeable to working together, and finding a solution to take to the board and then to membership. The next meeting as a group they all became more entrenched in regional biases, and that willingness to find middle ground crumbled. I dismissed the first committee and we repeated the experience, with the exception of a couple of members that decided that they had better things to do than waste there time on something that wouldn't see resolution.

There is a member of this forum that has posted in this thread, that agreed to serve and I now regret not getting him involved earlier. I'd planned to bring him in to help with the final details, and to break any stalemates after progress had been made. We never got to that point. I should have had him in there on day one.

I've read the comments in this thread, and understand them. If you want regional representation then vote that way. If you want to see it implemented then I'd suggest you get together and come up with something to submit to the committee. It needs to be something more than a concept, and it needs to be something that will stand the tests of growth and time. The final requirement is that it has to be something that enough voting members will support to change the bylaws.

I can be as critical as the next guy, but I've listened to the board discuss this issue and understand the sense of frustration because I've been there.
 
Nordy said:
Regarding "regions" this map is silly.

Rather than regions being a determining factor for board seats there should be more representation by cooks and less by judges and reps.
Click to expand...


It's a chore having cooks serve...how many contests are you willing to give up cooking due to your new obligation. How much more time can a cook give to BBQ?

I'm not being negative, I'm being a realist. It takes a whole lot of time and money to be a good competition bbq cook, and it takes a whole lot of time to be a good representative for your BBQ constituency. That's a whole lot of BBQ, especially if you add in/ try to balance, work and family. That's working 3 jobs, and you are only getting paid for one. Judges don't spend the time cooks do, and have more of it to give. A see a cook having to basically take a year off to serve...
Maybe I'm wrong :-D
 
I agree with you... re: cooks time and willingness to serve... I personally fall into that category... I don't have the time to dedicate to KCBS board in addition to all other obligations...

But... I hear cooks complain (including myself) all the time about various issues... Nothing will change until cooks are better represented on the board.

Yeah I realize I'm saying cooks need to be better represented and also saying I'm not doing it... but surely there are cooks out there with the time and desire to represent us...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

N
KCBS Announces Rod Gray as new CEO
Replies
11
Views
126K
Smokin D@wg@77
S
P
Amateur KCBS help
Replies
1
Views
306
thirdeye
thirdeye
snadamo
Wild Fork Membership changes
Replies
13
Views
998
sudsandswine
sudsandswine
shares
Competition BBQ trailer
Replies
2
Views
2K
shares
shares
S
KCBS Judging Classes - cannot find a class
Replies
10
Views
11K
Sledneck
Sledneck
Back
Top