We do not need four threads on the subject, so lets discuss here how we think that the FOC should change. It's all very well to complain about the FOC (that's fine and I have no desire to quell whinging as it as national sport ), but how would you have the FOC change to meet the needs of it's members. Should it be cheaper? Should there be more events? Should we get free membership to massage parlours\masonic lodges? Let's hear thoughts (no matter how obscure) on this one thread and maybe they can be presented at next years AGM.
Can anyone explain: Why do things have to go to an AGM? Very much like my old boarding school methods. Conjures images of top tables, club ties and a hierarchy.
They could try and look at other clubs to see how they operate, see if they can improve! I'm a member of the Ski Club of Great Britain, that turns over £3.5 million a year, offers great deals, free buddy skiing, discounts etc and aims not to make a profit, and membership cost only £45 per year!
Can you think of a more democratic way of bringing change? Think of it this way. If you think that you have a good idea, for instance the compulsory wearing of black lacy basques for all fruit distributors who would like to order a 430cs (a good idea in my books ), then I can't really think of another way of deciding wether you idea meets the needs of the broader FOC community, rather than pandering to your own personal pecadilloes.
Sorry to invade a serious thread but the way Izza put this over has made me laugh!!! My 2p worth is that if the FOC organizes as many good meets etc as Fchat with a hefty discount on trackdays I would probably join up. Just out of interest, how much was the FOC track day at Brands???
When operating on such a scale i would suggest a visit from myself(the md) to each of my regional depots to get and listen to feedbackof its members. Then make a decision as the md which issues were benefitial to implement. Less democratic and more personal, also would get more people to attend regional meetings.
Fair question! I'm not sure about the boarding school analogy because most companies have AGMs. It is an opportunity for the shareholders (in the FOC's case) the members to gather together, hear from the commitee and put their own questions and points to them. That is not to say (far from it) that issues cannot be raised through the Club office throughout the year. I'm not sure what better alternative there is? It is sometimes frustrating that things (i.e. decisions etc.) move a bit slowly in the FOC, but I think the issue there is that the committee and directors are all volunteers who have other lives and meet infrequently (I'm not sure, but I think it is about 4 times a year). The committee members are elected by the membership at the AGM, and it could probably do with a better cross-section of the membership, but the problem is finding volunteers. I do think minutes or at least a summary of the committee meetings should be available to members (published on the website, perhaps). In fact, I do think there should be more communication on a number of things. One positive example, I think, was with the Silverstone Classic this year where (possibly partly prompted by me, I think) a note was put on the website explaining that Silverstone were being obstreperous about the event details. Whilst I'm typing, I do wish they'd sort out this damn property thing once and for all, one way or another! Jonathan
I'm not a member so take it as you will, but one thing that seems to be a common thought amongst members I've spoken to, is that the AGM atmosphere is somewhat oppresive. A more informal meeting where points can be raised and discussed seemed to be a desire.
Volunteers, but ran as a profit making organistion.Strange! There's enough profit to pay someone to run it, so why not do it? Surely a full time 'MD' would look at improving all aspects.
1- I think the club should rent it's own premises and move out of Peter's house so it is not just Peter's club 2- I think that the role of club secretary (not sure the terminology for Peters job) should be a rotational one with no one person having the job for more than x years. 3 - I think there is a conflict of interest with the club when the secretary has a steady yearly income, as well as consulting services income plus trips etc from the club. If it was his own company i.e. like an f-chat or similar enterprise, then that would be fine because then he could run it for the benefit of the shareholders. As this is supposed to be an "official Ferrari Club" then the secretariat should not have such seemingly irrevocable benefits. Also, I am sure that for all his good work, Peter and Susanne would miss their £100k or so revenue that they make between them per annum. I am equally sure that if the management was out to tender at that annual rate, there would be a lot of tenders for it. 4 - The club should not have such a large cash balance. This clearly shows that the club has not returned full value to its members. To me this means that the track days could be more subsidised. They could start with some free lunches Also, other events should be subsidised like rooms for the National Concourse. now they are just getting reduced rates for block bookings. 5 - The club benefits from advertising. It does this by telling advertisers it has a large captive audience of socioeconomic type A people i.e. relatively wealthy vs the norm. This advertising revenue should be expanded and the members should benefit from this, not the clubs bank balance. The glossy magazine for example could be a quarterly commercial publication and may be given free or at reduced cost to members. In any case, the advertisers are paying the club to advertise their services to us. The clubs power is its members. This advertising revenue should then come back to the members (This sounds like we are arguing the F1 case against Bernie ) 6 - If the club is managed more commercially, then the club benefits could be greatly enhanced. What about having a club rented premises in all major cities so we can do our local club gatherings? I hope this gives some idea of the direction i would like the official FOC club to go. Cheers Philip
What i also find strange is the fact that the FOC read this site, but prefer to make no association with it. In fact, you Jason, seem to be given the thankless task of being their mouth piece. What is there to hide from? I can see no obvious grounds for not amalgamating what is by far the most widly read ferrari Forum with what is recognised as the 'official' route of Ferrari clubmanship.
We are in the age where we have the facility to liase with each other on a national and global basis via the wonderful internet, as we all do on here. I have never even looked at the FOC website but surely they have a forum on there where questions/suggestions can be posted and more importantly polls posted to make decisions relative to members. If the FOC had got things right, with a good website we would all be on there and not on here would'nt we??? The problem with having regional meetings and a "heirarcy" etc, a desicion made by the (shandy drinking) southerners may not suit the northerners and vice versa, so perhaps this is why it takes so long for them to come to a decision??
Hud90 is right ! , Each local FOC should report back with the problems and views of its members, ( after actually meeting them !!! ) then have a meeting to discuss them, and act accordingly. After all..its should be a club run by members for the members....I'm not sure thats the case, but not been able to see the whole picture makes it unfair to comment. The AGM is not a place to have an open forum anyway, it would lapse into a shouting competition otherwise.
No, it isn't a profit making organisation (but I don't want to get dragged into the whole money for a property issue yet again right now!). The Secretariat do receive a (pitifully small - don't be deceived by the accounts which lump several things together) remuneration. Jonathan
1. Purchase an Office building with some workshop facilities, similar to both the Bugatti and MG owners club, both of whom have superb facilities (and in the case of the bug club less members), this should be somewhere that members can browse the archives, Sponsoring dealers or tech's could host tech seminars etc etc..Thereby negating all the arguments over whether or not Peter should have the use of the property. 2. Increase usage of the club forum by dumbing down the level of moderation (has anybody ever tried to actually get a thread started?) 3. Obtain more corporate sponsorship for events and track days, thereby allowing members to pay a reduced and genuinely discounted. I think the FOC actually do a decent job for a club with the current amount of members and turnover (comparing the cost and value for money against the Porsche and MG club is silly due to the amount of members), its also my understanding that Peter's company who actually run the club on the members behalf does have to submit a tender before it gets its contract renewed (but as always I could be wrong)
Personally i have no issue with the fact they do make profit.Well done to them!! But why not run it as an out and out business and do things better?
In most companies AGM's are held to make presentations of how well the company has done and what direction it will be going in next year. There is no real open forum for fear of intimidation on either parties part.
HEY!!!!!!!! Cobblers to this debate! More importantly I've just noticed I'm Formula 3 now. How long to an F1 rookie??
Small change - I'd like to see pro-rata membership rates introduced. If you join only a couple of months(or less) before the accounting year end then it's a bit galling when you still have to pay the full amount. Should be fairly easy to steadily reduce the mid term membership cost to co-incide with the release of the newsletters. Oh and free bananas for all
Do you mean me? I'm Jonathan not Jason!!! I am not the FOC's mouthpiece. I am just a member. However, I do speak to the Club Office frequently because I am (voluntarily) responsible for the membership database program. I post in defence of the FOC or Peter Everingham or whoever when I think criticism is unfair. I post an explanation or an answer to a question when I have that answer. My entirely selfish interest is in enjoying my car as much as I can and partly that is through events organised by the FOC. Very opinionated on the FOC for non-member! I have commented on this! So you haven't looked at the website, but you're saying it's no good! I think the website is pretty good. The attached forum, however, is completely unused and unuseable because of the moderation. I agree with your point, but it really isn't Peter's club. He runs the day-to-day aspects on behalf of the members and committee, does a really superb job and gets unwarranted and ill-informed flak from a small number of people. This really is not the case as you state it. Yes, it is Peter's job, but he and Suzanne get paid a miniscule amount and put in a huge amount of work. I do know the actual amount Peter gets paid, (I have no intention of posting it here), but it is nothing, absolutely nothing, like £100k. The accounts are misleading because they lump together various exapenses etc. under the one heading (I don't have a copy of the accounts to hand). Jonathan
Spot on Phillip. It would appear that the club is being run and given the image of being a professional club, but has a shoe string budget and the proof is in the bank balance. The money should be used to promote the club to an audience that is worth socialising with like the F-Chat community, properly subsidised track days, discounted car insurance, deals with garages on servicing etc. With the money they have, they should appoint the relevant people to do these jobs (communications / marketing manager etc)
Don't know about the free bananas, but there is already a pro-rata membership rate for those joining in the last quarter (roughly) of the year. Jonathan
