2017 Statement of Intent David Guill

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David Guill 2017.jpg

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

I believe I would currently be a great Director of Dallas Makerspace because I generally don't enjoy being in charge of things; I think that's currently what our organization needs more than anything else. I would strive to exceed the expectations of the office, do my best to avoid overstepping my authority, and would work toward the general governance of DMS being passed from the Board of Directors back to the general membership.

These are some of the things I want to see happen here at Dallas Makerspace, regardless of whether or not I'm elected:

Governance Model

  • Improve general membership engagement in governance and volunteer activity at Dallas Makerspace.
  • Update the quorum algorithm so quorum can be met or exceeded at every member meeting so long as a reasonable number of members stay engaged and show up.
  • Investigate the possibility of long-term and indefinite proxies as a means to enact pseudo-representative government within membership and committee meetings. This would better serve members who trust another individual to represent their interests and can't or won't attend meetings.
  • The Board of Directors should strive to give power back to the general membership and limit what issues it handles. If Board meetings generally last longer than 1 1/2 to 2 hours, we're not doing it right.

Organizational Structure

  • Encourage (or require) chains of command and succession within every committee. Work toward a system where at least two individuals in every committee can do every vital task their committee is responsible for so no individual is irreplaceable.
  • Generally, break up unrelated tasks so there are no longer any single-officer roles that are too large to realistically be fulfilled by a single volunteer with a full-time job and a real life.
  • For large roles that can't so cleanly be broken up, work toward committee governance models with shared control and responsibility (e.g., storage may be a 3-5 volunteer job)
  • Much like honorarium, try to find a legal way to allow people to effectively trade volunteer work for membership or access to DMS
  • Work toward a state where we have so many eager volunteers that community outreach would become the norm, even for committees that have never done so in the past.

Organizational Culture

  • Encourage the grooming of future leaders within Dallas Makerspace
  • Correct or root out elements of toxic organizational culture that likely discourage members to step into volunteer roles or outright encourage law-abiding members to quit.
  • Seek out other opportunities to improve the member and volunteer experience
  • Squash and discourage nepotism and conflict of interest
  • Pursue a welcoming community atmosphere through more and better new member training and creating a space where members feel a sense of community and feel invited to socialize and get to know each other.

Membership

  • More clearly define what our membership dues buy us
  • More clearly define standards of acceptable and unacceptable behavior for members and leaders
  • Share a better understanding of what it takes to keep Dallas Makerspace going with the general membership

Looking Ahead

  • Work toward better utilization of our existing space and resources by attempting to quantify the value to membership of things that use floor space or have recurring costs
  • Work toward moving to a larger location or expansion to a nearby location for continued growth
  • Exercise fiscal restraint so we have resources available when the opportunity arises to move or expand


If elected, I would vote appropriately toward these ends and work toward making them happen. But I acknowledge that this is a lot to get done and I would need a lot of help. My plan would be to get as much of it as possible done by delegating responsibility to other members who possess appropriate skills and specializations.

As part of this Letter of Intent, I also agree to diligently execute the duties and functions as a member of the Board of Directors. Those duties 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 the Dallas Makerspace Board of Directors, and I agree to the terms and conditions set forth in the Corporate Charter, Bylaws, Rules, and applicable government laws and regulations.

Nominated by: Stan Simmons, John Webb

/s/ David Guill

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