Board Elections 2012

[Ryan Rix]

Hi everyone,

We're coming up on board-election-season again! The board positions are up for
grabs for those interested members in good standing who can rally the
requisite membership support.

Per our bylaws, elections fall on the first membership meeting of October,
which is October 11.

The current positions and who holds them are:

Champion - Jeremy Leung and Jacob Rosenthal
Secretary - Ryan Rix
Operations Manager - Will Bradley
Treasurer - Jose Diaz

If you are interested in running for a board position I would highly advise
reviewing the following descriptions of the positions in the wiki from a
brainstorming session we had a while back:

http://wiki.heatsynclabs.org/wiki/How_to_Run_HeatSync_Labs

Would also be good to familiarize your self with the Bylaws if you haven't
stepped through them yet:

http://wiki.heatsynclabs.org/wiki/Bylaws

Please also speak with the current Board representatives to get an honest
answer as to what they do day in and day out to push the organization
forward. I would urge that you do this before campaigning to get an honest
opinion of what you would be getting yourself into. It is a great
responsibility that requires near daily commitment for follow up and getting
actions completed. When considering running for the board evaluate your
current position in life and ask yourself if you can free up that time to be
there consistently for the organization. If you find that in a week or two
you won't be available to do anything for a month then this position might not
be worthwhile to you.

After having spent a year on the board, I can say that it is a rewarding and
fun experience, even if it's a lot of work. It takes a lot of time and energy
to devote yourself to the board full time, but it is, IMO, worth every bit.
Of course, over the last year, we have done a lot of work to minimize what the
board actually does, pushing everything we can out to the community and our
operations team. We're always looking for more people to volunteer for the
organization and this is a great way to gauge if you can truly commit your
time. Don't let the quest or lack thereof for a Board title hinder you from
shaping HeatSync in to the hackerspace you want it to be.

Feel free to nominate yourself or others in this thread. Along the same thread
as our HYH proposals, we'd like all nominations in by Oct 4, one week before
the Oct 11 HYH meeting. Let us all know why you are a good for for a position
on the HeatSync board of directors and how you plan to make this organization
even more kick-ass in 2013. :)

tl;dr *Nominate people by Oct4 for the board, voting at Oc11 HYH meeting.*

rrix

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Ryan Rix
HeatSync Labs | Secretary of Board
@rrrrrrrix | http://rix.si

[Chad Stearns]

Hey everyone,

I would like to nominate myself to become treasurer of heatsync labs. I presume most of you guys know me, but if you dont, here is a description of myself and my qualifications:

I am a 21 year old working on two undergraduate degrees in Economics and Math from ASU. My degree in economics is through the business school which has required me to take 2 classes in accounting, and 1 in finance. My personal interests have required me to look up financial information for many large companies and I feel this has given me some insight into interpreting financially relevant information. Besides that I own a bit of stock. I have also been the treasurer of a few school clubs at ASU, including the student economics association. For a bit during the summer I was making deposits into the bank on heatsync's behalf, so I already have some a bit of first hand experience in the heatsync cash flow.

I am in the lab almost every day, and I feel fully integrated into the community. I would describe myself as extremely ethical and logical. If I were treasurer I would maintain a healthy level of transparency and would work to make relevant financial information as accessible as possible to the membership. 

-ChadCS

[Tim G]

I'm curious which incumbent board members would like to continue and which would like to step down or be replaced. Digging deeper, are there any that would like to step down, but would continue to hold the position and responsibility for the good of the organization?

On another note, the organization and membership has grown a lot in the last year or two, and 5 board members seems small at this level. I know it's mostly a member rather than board run organization, but 1 person moving for a job, etc. would displace 20% of the board. Some more redundancy might be in order. I'm not in favor of more bureaucracy, and this discussion probably deserves its own thread but I thought I'd throw the idea out there.

Tim

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[Will Bradley]

I'd like for someone to nominate themselves for my position; I think HeatSync is one of the best places on Earth and will continue helping, but I want to see new ideas and energy on the board too.

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[Will Bradley]

(More broadly, every position is up for election, I'd like each position to be contested to give you all some kind of choice. Encourage your fellow members to nominate themselves by Thursday!)

[Ryan Mcdermott]

To be honest, I think that the board is doing a fantastic job right
now. The only position I could see being up for contest is treasurer,
but that is only because I don't know Jose at all.

Nothing against you, Jose, I just don't know you.

My understanding of board positions is that they don't carry any
additional privileges, only additional irresponsibility. If one of
you guys wants a time out to go back to being a "normal" member,
without the additional burden of board-membering, let us know, and I'm
sure people will rise to the task.

I certainly will

That said, you guys are doing an awesome job, and I see no reason to
replace anybody, unless one of you wants a break.

Will, if you want a break, I nominate myself for the position of Ops
Manager (but I want to stress that this isn't because I want to
contest your position, only because I'm willing to pick up the burden
for you if you want).

-Ryan M

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[Ryan Mcdermott]

s/irresponsibility/responsibility/

(oops: spell-check-induced typo, haha)

[Ryan Rix]

You had it right the first time ;)

I haven't nominated myself for a board position yet because of the same things
that Will has brought up; I'd love to see some new blood in my board position.
not to say I won't run, I'd just like to see people step up to bat before I do
:)

r

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Ryan Rix
http://rix.si

[Paul Hickey]

I'd like to, at this time, nominate myself for the position of Secretary.  Ryan Rix has done a great job so far, but I would like to take a shot at it.

I have served on the board for other organizations throughout my life and in leadership positions at work in the past and feel that I could complete the duties of Secretary.

I have been a part of Heatsync since we were meeting at the FOP lodge a couple years ago and fell in love with the people and the organization's ideals from it's inception.  As part of the board I hope to bring more professionalism to Heatsync Labs and bring us closer to our mission of education.  There is a large movement in education right now for garnering greater interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) at all ages and grades and feel that we should be working with the community to further that goal.

I also have been keeping minutes for the HYH meetings that I take part in, and feel that my organizational skills will help clarify the rules we adopt through Hack Your Hackerspace.

Within the context of the duties of Secretary as outline in the wiki, I feel that I could fulfill all the required duties listed.  I intend to work closely with the Treasurer to ensure an updated list of dues paid members is available.  At my day job I interact with speakers on a daily basis to ensure their needs are met, so helping them will be no issue at all.  I will have no issues with posting agendas and minutes in a timely fashion.  I feel that I will be able to manage the paperwork involved with our status as a 501c3 and all other documents as required by law and HSL bylaws.

Thank you for your consideration!

Paul Hickey

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Paul Hickey

[Chad Stearns]

I would like to add a bit to my previous comments to give the community a better idea of what it would mean if I was treasurer. If I were elected to be treasurer:

1. I would make myself available at every possible HYH to provide relevant financial information to HYH proposals that involve spending heatsync's money.

2. I would work to make financial information complete, accessible, and relevant. This means keeping information up to date, readily available, and providing that information in a meaningful way. 

3. I would work in a way that is transparent, and minimizes the opportunity for problems in the accounting system of heatsync. If, for example, someone had some capacity to doubt the financial integrity of anyone in the space, I would feel that I failed in engineering a good system of accounting.

I view the treasurer position as one that should be neutral to specific interests in the space. For example, if the community was discussing whether or not a piece of equipment should be purchased, it would be my duty as treasurer only to talk about the feasibility of the purchase. It would NOT be my duty to pass judgement on the piece of equipment.

-ChadCS

[Jose Diaz]

Ryan:  No offense taken, the feeling is mutual.

[Jose Diaz]

I will take this opportunity to let you all know that I will not be running for the position of Treasurer this upcoming election. I had informed the Board of this decision quite some time ago but hadn't made it official until now. It's been a fun and challenging few years watching as the organization grew from its spot at the police lodge to gangplank v1 then to GP v2 and now to our own location in Mesa. We've grown from six members three years ago to our now over seventy members. Now it's time for me to enjoy a bit of the space we all helped build. While we don't have a formal transition plan in place I will work with the newly elected Board to make the transition smooth. 

From the looks of this thread I see there are a few people going after various positions on the Board. While this is awesome it would be nice to see those that have expressed interest in the past put their hats into the race. More options are always better. Unfortunately due to business travel I will not be in attendance at next weeks elections. Good luck to all the candidates.

[Jeremy Leung]

Wow! This year zoomed by so fast.  And we've really accomplished a lot as a community.  Take a few minutes to scroll through the blog and flickr pictures for the last year.

We've worked very hard to transition many of the every day operational tasks that the board was performing over to the community.  It meant a lot to see community members step up to keep the place open during public hours from 7-10pm throughout the week when a couple board members were out of country.  And more to see people keeping those doors open consistently ever since that call out for help.

Changes within the space are now successfully being carried out through the "Hack Your Hackerspace" process without having to wait for board meetings.  The community has been self empowered to make decisions from voting in fellow members and purchasing anything from large machines like the new bandsaw to purchasing t-shirts and voting in budgets for the stations in the labs.

For those current board members that have decided not to renominate this year I just want to recognize the insane amount of energy and time they've put into growing and keeping HeatSync Labs alive.  We're not losing anyone and I'm excited to see them continue to be able to have fun and use the space that they've helped build.  As highly driven individuals, I'm also curiously excited to see what they will accomplish with the added time they're getting back.

I wanted to take this time to nominate myself for the position of Champion this year.  

In the next couple months I would really like to see us improve/automate/streamline as many of the current processes that we have.  This increased efficiency will free up more time to focus on events supporting the mission this year.  Last year I emphasized wanting us to be able to focus on ourselves and the lab.  Really thoroughly use the space so we can learn what we want and need as a community and build the space out accordingly.  Have more people in the lab making things.  I feel we've gone through a lot of self improvement and would love to see us harkening back to the old days of HeatSync putting on educational events both inside and outside of the space.  Now that we have this functioning space lets use it to help tap into and benefit our local community.

I am so proud to see multiple members nominating themselves for roles on the board.  I want to encourage people to step up and do so as we have yet a couple days for nominations.  Do treat this thread as an open dialogue and ask questions.  What do you want for your space in the next year?

To create you often need some things:  A determined but open mind, time, sometimes a helping hand, tools, materials, and some space.  With all of these taken care of what's stopping you from creating?  What can you do in the next few minutes to get things going?  Let's do it!

-Jeremy Leung

[arizonamarita]

I would like to self-nominate for the position of treasurer. 

 

I have been a member of HSL since June of 2011.  I think HSL is an amazing place.  There is an incredible diversity of people who all work together to create some wonderful things.  I would like to contribute by acting as treasurer because I feel that it best suites my talents. The current board has put a lot of time and energy getting us up and running in the current space, but I do agree that it is healthy for the community to have options.

 

Currently I am an electrical engineer working for a medical device company where I deal with documentation as a major part of my job.  Previously, I was the manager of an actuarial department for an insurance company.  While working for the insurance company, I worked on preparing the financial statements and participated in audits by state insurance agencies, CPA firms and the IRS.  My volunteer experience includes several years as the Advancement Committee Chair for a Boy Scout troop of about 60 boys.  I processed enrollment forms, kept track of the rank and merit badges for each of the boys, along with the accounting for the scout shop. I was also the primary person who dealt with the paperwork it takes to get 30 boys through a week at Boy Scout Camp.

 

I am often in the lab and I am almost always there on Monday nights.  As you can see from my experience, I am more of a behind the scenes person who is capable of doing the necessary detail work that is required to keep an organization running.  I believe an organization like HSL should have open books.  I am quite used to having my work audited and believe it is necessary. 

 

If I am treasurer I will keep the community apprised of our financial status so that it can make informed decisions about equipment and operational priorities. 

 

I will work closely with Jose for a smooth transition and I will make being treaserer a priority.  I would also like to see some of the treasurer's task's be shared with the community although the ulitmate responsiblity would be with me.

 

As others have expressed, I would also like to see HSL get back to education. We have a great orginization and I will do what is necessary to help improve it.

[Zachary Giles]

Boy Scout troop of 60 boys.. That's how you are able to stay around
everyone with no problem. :)

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Zach Giles
zgi...@gmail.com

[arizonamarita]

But they are so sweet... once they fall asleep. ;)

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[Jasper Nance]

Diethyl ether?

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[arizonamarita]

After the first day of 6 am polar bear swim it is not necessary. But it would have been handy on that first night.

[Ben Humpherys]

I am not running for anything, but there are two things I would love to see happen here:

First, I think a new website would be awesome. I have a lot of ideas in my head that I'll elaborate more on when I get them better defined and written down. But I think we should create a new website that would act as a repository for the collective knowledge of all the HeatSync lab members, where we can share knowledge and information more readily, as well as put names to faces and better network with eachother. A couple people lately have expressed interest in some sort of directory where we could see who has what skills and learn a bit more about eachother. I'm thinking a sortof social network.

The other thing i would like to see is more educational outreach. I am most envious of those young makers, and dearly wish this place existed sooner! But i think there are a lot of possible ways we could connect with other educational institutions to provide more knowledge to more people. I have been encouraging the leaders of the Engineering club here at Chandler-Gilbert to come and check out the space, and I think there has got to be all sorts of awesome things which could result from that. I think it would be great to pursue opportunities like that.

So what say you, board member candidates?

[Chad Stearns]

I have seen Erik and Jacob working on the new website. It looks very cool. If elected treasurer my first action will be to tell Erik he is doing a good job and then pat him on the back.

-ChadCS

[Ryan Mcdermott]

I've seen a couple of people here commenting about education outreach,
and I'd just like to add something to this:

You guys don't need to be on the board, or need the board's approval,
or the board's acknowledgment, or even the board's knowledge to do
education outreach programs.

Do your outreach program. Here is how:

First, put together a presentation to give to the people in charge of
the people you want to be educating.

Who are you?
Why are you somebody who should be teaching our kids?
Why can I trust you around the kids?
What, specifically, are you going to teach?
What are you credentials?
When can you do this?
How much will it cost?
WHY SHOULD THE KIDS CARE ABOUT THIS!?

Put something together that addresses these points, and you'll have no
problem doing education outreach programs.

A little background: there is a charity in Phoenix that a family
member of mine is on the board for. They work specifically with
at-risk kids, and do after school education programs for them.

I approached them about doing something with the kids, and this is
exactly the stuff they wanted from me.

Especially: these things are obvious to us. It's obvious [to me] why
somebody should know how to use a 3D printer and a laser cutter, and
program an arduino, in fact I gave a hot topics talk about this...

...but it IS NOT obvious to somebody who hasn't done these things why
they're important, and nobody on the board at the charity I'm talking
about has even heard of an arduino,
If I told them I was coming from a "hacker space", they'd probably
think I was trying to teach the kids how to break into bank accounts
or something.

SELL YOURSELF to these people. That's step 1 in doing education
outreach, and you don't need the board to do it.

-Ryan M

(Sorry if this is thread-jacking)

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[Paul Hickey]

If elected I believe I would be able to leverage my experience in education to help develop partnerships with other educational bodies and organizations to effectively develop a plan to meet specific outcomes and relate them back to the base math and science skills that the nations current educational system is looking to enhance and increase interest in.

Paul Hickey
Sent from my mobile device

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[Jerry Davis]

I don't know how to say this. But I will try to not ruffle any feathers.

I am the "grandpa" of this place. I frequent here as often as I can.

I am definitely not a prude, I *was* in the Navy. My meaning here is not to offend anyone.

But when I am here I hear a LOT of f-bomb's being thrown about -- even when ladies are present. It is contagious -- I even threw one out once, which I hardly ever do. 

To me this is not conducive to having kids around IMO.

We need to become more sensitive to issues like this, if we are going to do any "outreach" at all.

My $0.02,

Jerry

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Licensed Amateur Radio Operator: K7AZJ
Registered Linux User: 275424
Arduino programmer

Recursion: (noun):
      see: Recursion

[Jeremy Leung]

Also, check out this thread where Jacob and Erik discuss their progress on the site they're working together on with others, and poke them for an update:

https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups=#!searchin/heatsynclabs/website/heatsynclabs/IZZHOH5gPB8/ADHUa4cKpN0J

And here's a link to the new concept site they've been working on:

http://dev.heatsynclabs.org

There are other projects currently in the works that could use your help as well and could do well to jack into the same concept you are thinking of.  When you have a few talk to Ryan Rix about the Hackerspace Management stuff they've been working on.

As far as the educational steps you mentioned, it sounds like you've already started the process.  Working on trying to answer a lot of the questions Ryan M. listed is important if you have an idea for a program you want to work on that group with.  The easiest thing you can do to get started though is offer up a tour.  Next time you head down see if you can get some of the club leadership to go on a field trip with you and check out the space.  Maybe schedule it for the next time they meet.  Let them know they can come in any time during the public hours to work on their projects.  If they don't immediately have any ideas for stuff to work on help brainstorm with them.

Something we've thought about in the past, which could be fun if we have multiple groups from different schools, is try to schedule a day where we have volunteers that can man all of the stations at HeatSync Labs.  Allow students to get first hand exposure to a lot of the tools in the space, hold finished products in their hands, and let their creative juices flow.

Simply put.  I think it's a great idea to get them involved.  Bring them in.

-Jeremy Leung

On Tuesday, October 2, 2012 1:05:29 PM UTC-7, Ben Humpherys wrote:

[Will Bradley]

There's also a thread sitting lonely about having a booth at the art festival; you don't even have to be a member to show up and show HeatSync off for a few hours, let alone a board member!

Our job as board members isn't to DO all the things listed on the wiki; we'd burn out in a month. We have to inspire YOU to do it. As you can see, it hasn't been easy going but we've all made some progress.

Please, if you have a few spare hours and think outreach/education are good ideas, here's your chance; pipe up in that thread.

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[Tim G]

With just another day or so left for nominations, one seat has gone unmentioned, the second Champion. If the community thinks that I would be a good Champion, I would accept a nomination. I extend the offer to serve HSL in this capacity, if called upon, to give back to the community that's given me so much. The members, the operations team, and the board continue to make this an awesome place, and they can be assured that there will always be someone to step up to the responsibility to keep it excellent. It happens every day.

More importantly, what do you want from your Champions?

I see growth. I see increasing diversity and specialization in interests. I see the calendar and the toolbox gradually filling up with new things. I see more groups and individuals seeking us out because of all of the great accomplishments of our members over the years. I see the members reaching out increasingly to other communities. I see maintaining the small community atmosphere amidst the growth to be the challenge of the next year. It's simple to achieve by continuing what I've always seen: Welcome new people. Encourage each other to make great things. Be generous. Start a thing. Lead a thing. Fix a thing. Pick up the ball and run with it. And make lots of robots.

I'll echo that no one needs to be on the board to do any of this. Especially the robots. But I'm here if you need me. For either.

Tim

[Will Bradley]

Hi all, I'm putting my hat in the ring for Operations again; I welcome challengers! It sucks when there's only one name on a ballot. Ryan M or anyone else, if you're interested please throw your hat in too.

Despite what it says on the wiki (those pages were written a long time ago before we moved most tasks from the Board to volunteers), I don't plan to do a whole lot as a board member. 

  As an operations volunteer, I manage technical aspects of HeatSync, field questions from other volunteers and members, train new members and manage card access with help from other volunteers. 

  As a board member, I pledge to confer with the rest of the new board to ensure HeatSync is fulfilling its mission (both as a 501c3 and as one of the best hackerspaces in the world) and ensure the organization is financially and ethically sound.

The fact that, historically, the people keeping HeatSync running on a day-to-day basis were also board members, is something we've wanted to stop, and so honestly I feel you should vote for this position based on the direction and trustworthiness of the individual and not their ability to do a bunch of work. 

  Congress (the board) doesn't *do* anything they decide on, they just decide things. It's up to government employees (members and volunteers) to actually do the work. This has been our goal, so I'm totally in favor of the Treasurer simply reviewing the work of our hired CPA. I'm in favor of the Operations Manager simply being a point of contact for volunteers. Nobody should have to overwork themselves volunteering and then never get the chance to make cool stuff at the lab.

The following is my observations/plans as a member who cares about the lab and volunteers my time, and is not related to being elected to the board at all:

I'm glad to see the candidates for Treasurer pledge to increase transparency; I hope to help them especially via creative use of technology to decrease the workload required to manage and provide this information.

One thing that we knew was an issue last year and is going to be an issue this year as well, is proper use of the space. We have to know what we *are* and *aren't* otherwise we're nothing. We *are* a place for making things. We *aren't* a place for yoga classes, consuming media, or social debates. Many other hackerspaces around the world are hesitant to make these types of (sometimes brutal) distinctions, and their tools collect dust because the yoga classes can't meditate. It's not easy, but unless we want to become a community center or social club instead of a hackerspace we've got to each have enough self-control to stop ourselves and politely stop others from distracting from creating things. 

  I've been guilty of distracting myself and others in the past; I'm sure each of us have. But when people visit from all corners of the world and, unsolicited, say that we're the best space they've ever been to, it's because we actually *make cool stuff* here. We're not bullshitters in the corner of a coffee shop talking about how cool we are; we're actually creating and teaching each other. Usually.

  So, this year I hope to help foster social activities outside of the space, and creative/learning activities inside the space, to help us focus and make the lab a productive workshop while still giving us an opportunity to socialize and relax; everything a time and a place. With any luck, this will help boost local businesses that are going to need it during light rail construction as well, and get creative juices flowing with a nice balance of work and fun between the amazingly talented people in our community!

Finally, the question of moving to a new space, adding a second space, improving our current space, or keeping things as-is has been raised this year; I think I speak for other founding members when I say that it's an excellent question. But we aren't here to dictate this to you; founders aren't dictators-for-life, the vision is for a self-sufficient community. So YOU decide how big to grow and how to expand/improve/allocate space. If there's enough community support (time, effort, and money) for something, I'm sure it will happen. Our lease is coming to an end soon, at which point you will need to make a decision about the future of the space. I look forward to seeing what that future becomes!

[Jacob Rosenthal]

You should have noticed by now I have not self nominated. Indeed, the rumors are true! I do not intend to run for office this year.

It is not that I'm going anywhere, or that I intend to volunteer less of my time to HeatSync than I currently do, but that my voice tends to carry and I would like to hear some new voices for a while.

I also think theres an opportunity for me to do more outside of the board than on it right now. I like messing with things like the vending machine and acrylic supply which have been called out as conflict of interest and worried some in the past. I hope without my 'power' I can continue to play with the expectations of a hackerspace and encourage you to do the same. Hackerspaces are new and fun because they're a mess and every one is different.

 

I look forward to working with the new board in any way they see fit--and probably ways they don't see fit. 

See you at the lab Space Cowboys

-Jacob

[Brian Aday]

I would like to nominate Austin Kipp for Operations board member. This nomination coming on the heels of Will's self nomination is a coincidence. I discussed this with Austin last night and am just now free to write this nomination.

I would describe Austin, but basically everyone already knows him by face if not by name. Austin is the guy that for the last year has taken care of the space, performing most if not all of the maintenance and repair Heatsync has required. On top of this, he teaches the Welding class and acts as our safety officer. You would be hard pressed to find anyone who has done more for Heatsync than Austin. He has shown a real commitment to the space, day in and day out, without title or even much recognition. 

In light of his past performance and interest in the position, I think Austin is the right guy for the job. 

 

[Brian Aday]

Hey everyone! I would like to self nominate for a Champion position on the HeatSync board! For those that I haven’t met, I am the guy who hosted the Hack-A-DayHack-A-Day visit. (I’m the bald guy). I host the aluminum casting group, I build stuff for the space, and can pretty much be counted on to volunteer to help out on other people projects when they need an extra hand. I am ready to take that to the next level, so I am running for Champion!

Here are some of the things I can bring to the role!

Organization! Yes, I have taken on the role of project manager from time to time (actually, pretty often). I have been formally trained as a ‘Project Management Professional’. I know what it takes to get things done and produce positive results. From where I sit the each member is a customer and the board works for you. You can expect me to perform with that in mind and  I won’t take it personally if you hold my feet to the fire!

Entrepreneurial Spirit! I led a military communications R&D lab on the east coast. We built it up from a one man shop to 11 engineers in four years! Our greatest achievement, they gave us our own building! This was a big thing for us, it’s hard to get space on Military bases, but I digress. :) Over my career I have managed the creation of of five server farms so I understand the challenges in building facilities. I have written requirements,  assisted in designing power systems,  and even calculating heat load. I enjoy the work! I will take the lead in tasks that require a Board Member, like getting a sign on the building!

Communication Skills!  I believe that the more people we involve in a decision, the better the outcome. I will work to get more people involved in HYH, participate on Google Groups, or whatever works for you! Some of the best ideas come from casual conversations, and I believe it is the Champions role to bring them to the community. Good ideas are good ideas even if you don’t have time to champion them. Lets change our default answer from “We are a do-ocracy.” to “How can I help!”

Well, that’s a little about me. In closing I would like to thank all the members on and off the who have put in work to get us where we are. Heatsync is a rare and amazing place, given the opportunity, and your help, we can keep it that way.

[Ryan Rix]

I, too, have been grappling with the question of whether I will run again
since I called out for nomincations two weeks ago.

Our organization has grown in incredible ways in the last year, and I have
loved to be a part of the board during that time; our membership has done
incredible things, and we have received the praise we've deserved for those
things.

One personal thing that I have noticed in the last year is something very
simple: When it is time for our board meetings, my updates as secretary have
been, essentially, "Yeah, things are pretty good; There hasn't been much to do
as secretary, in all honesty and everything I've done has been with my Ops hat
on". I'd like to see that continue, and hope that some other member in our
ranks (hello Paul!) can push the envelope on what the secretary of the board
is expected to do outside of those regular board meetings.

Looking back at what I had promised to do in the last election cycle, I think
that I have reached those goals. And looking forward at the next year, my
goals are better achieved by stepping back and letting some of our other
passionate members take the reigns. I said last year that the board position
would legitimize those efforts, but I think that is not a requirement for me
to continue to do great things.

I want to take the next year to get back in to personal projects while still
not abandoning the infrastructure work that myself and Will have taken on in
the last year. I also want to work with the membership from an operations
standpoint to make our processes more streamlined. Hack Your Hackerspace
voting meetings should not have to be an hour long process full of contention
and drama, and I want to work with our next administration and our membership
to solve that. Some fellow spaces have been working on tools to streamline
these processes and I want to start implementing these tools within our space.
But, like I said and have been saying (much the chagrine of some of our
membership): I don't have to be a board member to make this the space I want
to love, I can do it as a 'regular' member, and I will do it as a regular
member.

Lots of love,
Ryan

[Chad Stearns]

I nominate Tim!

My expectations of the champion, is the representative of the space. And its their obligation to handle people and the external affairs of heatsync. And in general they are the top authority of the lab. But any particular goals I am not sure.

Talking about this has reminded me of something I have thought about with a few members of the lab. Recently we lost one of the bigger donors of the lab. I dont think this represents trouble for Heatsync, but, maybe its time that Heatsync takes some active effort in looking for donors. Since donor money would both involve the finances and public representation, if I were elected treasurer I would like to cooperate with the champions in finding donors for the lab.

-ChadCS