New head of NRA Training and Membership

[Ovenpaa]

If he can listen to and grow the membership, stand up to the senior management when needed and fight his corner he will get my vote.

[Strangely Brown]

As the original poster let me reitirate that I am not knocking his appointment, just slightly concerned with the line in Derrick Mabbotts email to the membership.

Richard has a track record of growing and developing membership bases which in turn has helped increase the representation within the relevant sector. Having worked in over 60 different health clubs plus with large organisations within the private and public sectors of sport Richard will bring valuable experience to the organisation on creating partnerships and developing new member initiative’s.

Or does Derrick Mabbott mean he has worked with 60 different health clubs under one organisation??

[Doz]

Or does Derrick Mabbott mean he has worked with 60 different health clubs under one organisation??

Perhaps that's it, many health clubs/gyms seem to be chains or groups, it wouldn't be so difficult to work with that many under those circumstances. However, some of them seem to have some questionable recruitment practices too (several in our local press recently selling unsuitable memberships or misleading contracts) so I hope that sort of thing isn't likely to be making an appearance.

[Strangely Brown]

Or does Derrick Mabbott mean he has worked with 60 different health clubs under one organisation??

Perhaps that's it, many health clubs/gyms seem to be chains or groups, it wouldn't be so difficult to work with that many under those circumstances. However, some of them seem to have some questionable recruitment practices too (several in our local press recently selling unsuitable memberships or misleading contracts) so I hope that sort of thing isn't likely to be making an appearance.

Well to be honest that industry does have a certain reputation for hard selling......

[dromia]

As has been said I do wish Mr Blackmore luck. He is going to need shed loads of it.

However, regardless of how skilled and talented he or other new members of staff are, what they achieve will always be limited by what the organisation allows them to do.

Obviously I will reserve any judgement on the position and incumbent until a year or so has passed and we can reflect on what he has achieved.

To be able to measure that I will need to see very quickly the NRA's strategic aims for membership and training, obviously in the context of its overall strategic aims for the next five years, along with its membership and training policy. These aims should be informed by the needs and ambitions of all it members not just Bisley shooters. Then the position holders delivery plan to achieve these aims along with measurable targets and the resources available for the delivery of these targets. In other words what is he going to do and how is going to do it and how will we know that he has done it.

Those are key issues of transparency that will allow us as members and the British shooting community to assess whether the post holder has been worth the money.

The post holder will be responsible to the chief exec and the Trustees and Council. The trustees and council should then be accountable to the membership so that we can decide on our representatives effectiveness and suitability for the task. So as to start building a functional organisation.

For the post holder to to have any chance of being effective then council has to set its stall out about its policy and strategy for the development of the NRA. Setting out a tangible vision with clearly articulated achievable goals. They will need to take the lead on this and have ownership of the vision, they cannot as they have done in the past hide behind the paid officers and blame them and shove them out of the way when things go wrong.

The NRA has to change at the very top both in vision and action, they have to provide dynamic leadership for the paid officers to have any success of delivering an organisation shooters would want to be part of rather than just managing a run down shooting facility that needs modernising.

So come on Mr Blackmore, to cut through all the speculative crap, misinformation and gossip that forms any discussion about the NRA due to lack of hard information, meaningfully words or actions by the NRA. Tell us what you are going to do and how you are going to do it in the context of what the NRA is going to do and how its going to do it.

The NRA needs to be honest and start delivering for its members and shooting, not just Bisley shooters if it is to have any chance of building its membership and becoming a national organisation.

Hells teeth up until the recession we had 20 years of unprecedented growth in this country and during that time the NRA has amassed circa six thousand members. It takes a pretty flawed organisation to underachieve so spectacularly in such times of opportunity.

After decades of membership this jaded, disillusioned and resentful member is on the cusp of leaving. I was going to pack in last year but after promises of change (again) I thought hang in there even although I wasn't told what the change would be only that is would be for the better. Then I find council presiding yet again over another financial debacle. There is no reason for me to stay a member other than optimism and the romantic belief in Lord Elcho's vision and words for a national rifle organisation where shooting was promoted, celebrated and valued in all the counties of the nation.

The NRA needs to be modern but not post modern.

What say ye Mr Balckmore and the NRA how will we notice a difference other than in names, titles and the spin?

[Watcher]

Shall we just give the poor guy some time to get his head round his new job? For any job, especially a relativelly senior one like this; it will take a new incumbent at least three months to get his head round the issues, meet all the stakeholders and formulate a plan.

It would be grossly unfair to expect him to appear before the bar of this forum and set out his position before he's had a chance to carefully consider his plans.

[dromia]

I don't think anyone said that he has to do that now and also he is under no obligation to do it here either. His obligation is to the membership and the organisation and as a member I would expect him to communicate with me through membership channels. If he chooses to communicate here as well then that is a bonus.

The parts of my post relating to council does not require time for them to get their feet under the table as they are already there and as I said the post holder will struggle to formulate any plan 'till council give him a context to do it in. As a member I would expect to have that context shared with me.

[The Cupcake Kid]

Does anyone know his start date?

[karen]

Think it was a couple of weeks back but hey what would I know - I'm only on the Membership Committee and I found out the same way as you all did yesterday!

Love

Karen

[shugie]

Weren't David Lloyd (which has 80 UK clubs according to its website) fairly notorious at one point for having memberships that auto-renewed and were nigh on impossible to cancel? Tales of people going in for a free try out and ending up paying a year's subs seemed to be commonplace a while back?