Performance Evaluation for Pacifica ED, Arlene Englehardt

[Margy Wilkinson]

Dear Bill:  Below is an evaluation of Arlene Englehardt.  It was prepared with input from some KPFA staff and is beinging submitted by me.  I am the new Chair of the KPFA LSB.  I hope your committee will give it serious consideration. Please let me know if you have any questions.  You may contact me by email or by phone at 510-219-2567.

Thank you.

Margy Wilkinson

 

1) The Pacifica ED works effectively on key financial issues:
*ensuring the return of fiscal soundness to the Foundation,
*ensuring that expenses do not exceed income (even if lower than budget) in all units of Pacfica; and
*fundraising strategies

Rating: 1 (strongly disagree)
Arlene has exercised poor judgment in cutting costs that are revenue generating, while keeping untouched units that don't generate revenue.  This guarantees that Pacifica's financial woes will continue.  She has done very little to raise money for the network, which is a crucial dimension of her job as ED.  When Pacifica faced a financial crisis in 2002 following the mismanagement of the old board, the ED oversaw a strategy to raise millions of dollars to pay off the network's debts.  And he closed units that were not revenue-generating, not ones that were.  Arlene has done the opposite. Arlene alienated a major KPFA donor. After she dismissed KPFA's general manager in 2010, a longtime major ($60,000/yr) donor wrote a letter to Arlene saying he was concerned about the dismissal and asking her to contact him. She failed to do so and KPFA staff had to step in to urge the donor to renew his gift. 

2) The Pacifica ED handles other financial responsibilities well, including
*developing fiscally sound budgets, and thereby setting spending priorities, with appropriate personnel
*reviewing financial statements with the CFO to ensure accuracy, completeness and clarity
*timely acknowledging major contributions and support
*bringing contracts to the PNB for review as appropriate

Rating: 1 (strongly disagree)
Arlene did not work collaboratively with the appropriate personnel at KPFA in developing a budget, but went over the heads of local management -- those who best understood the station's budget -- to implement what appear to be politically-motivated cuts.

3)The Pacifica ED fosters an environment of understanding between all listeners, staff and directors that is mission compliant.

Rating: 1 (strongly disagree)
Many staff at KPFA perceive Arlene as having taken sides in the factional divide on the board and deliberately exacerbating divisions among staff members. She told some staff people that other staff members were trying to get rid of their programs. She posted on the front page of Pacifica's website an outright attack on one KPFA staff member which she was later forced to retract. Arlene also has shown a stunning disregard for the thousands of listeners at KPFA who have contacted her to voice their protests to her programming changes.  They received a form letter reply and Arlene ignored the feedback they gave.  She has entirely disregarded local management, the Local Station Board, and union staff.  She has fostered the worst environment we have seen at KPFA during the past decade.  Even the officials of KPFA's paid staff's union have stated that they have never been treated by such disrespect as they have received from her.

4) The Pacifica ED effectively promotes and coordinates outreach, promotion, development and marketing activities to help Pacifica maximize its audience while staying compatible with the Pacifica mission

Rating: 1 (strongly disagree)
Arlene has damaged Pacifica's public image with both her intervention at KPFA and her handling of its fall out.  The statement that she posted on the Pacifica website, which attacked a member of KPFA's paid staff and its union, was a bizarre form of damage control.  Her roll out of Al Jazeera, which should have been a proud moment for the network, was equally clumsy and poorly thought out. There had been many discussions at KPFA on how the rollout should be promoted both on the air and in the community. Instead, it was a surprise when Al Jazeera began airing.

5) The Pacfica ED handles personnel management duties well including:

*selection, coordinating, and reviewing key personnel,

*establishing clear and attainable job performance standards for all staff

*working with the HR Director to ensure proper training for all personnel
*ensuring compliance with all laws as well as Pacifica diversity and equal opportunity goals

Rating: 1 (strongly disagree)
Arlene has demonstrated a disregard for the personnel basics, including demonstrably overriding the HR Director in making personnel decisions.  Her decisions appear to be based on discriminatory and illegal criteria (such as saying that she would replace the hosts of the KPFA Morning Show with younger and more diverse hosts -- although she then replaced them mainly with older white people).  It is illegal to lay people off because of their race or age. Arlene has engaged in unprecedented micromanagement.  The Executive Director of  a multimillion dollar organization should not be making decisions about who the 8 a.m. host should be on KPFA on Wednesday morning. This level of decisionmaking properly belongs to the management staff. Arlene made significant program changes to the all-important morning drive time without consulting station management or senior staff, despite a letter from the KPFA Department Heads, who collectively have nearly 100 years of experience in the organization, urging that she discuss the issue with them. The result has been a steep decline in listening as measured by the daily online listening graph.

6)The Pacifica ED effectively facilitates governance by the PNB and its committees, and communicates well with the PNB

n/a

7) The Pacifica ED is handling other duties listd in the job description (under the headings of Programming and Legal) well

(this question then refers to the job description which deals with under Programming: providing opportunities for staff to participate in national programming, ensurng development of national programming,ensuring technical systems, equipment and strucutres adequate for production and distribution of programs are maintained; navigate the foundation through technological changes; developing affiliate relations; promoting activities that make it possible for Pacifica to maximize its audience and expand its membersip and technical capacity.

Under Legal : Managing litigation and other legal matters, deveoping monitoring and enforcing procedures and policies and maintaining confidentiality on legal, personnel and other matters in collaboration with HR director,

Rating: 1 strongly disagree

Programming:
KPFA has historically been the station that has produced national programming for the network, free of charge.  By upending KPFA's finances and programming personnel, Arlene has done major damage to Pacifica's capacity to produce national programming.  As a consequence of this, she has alienated affiliates who are despairing of Pacifica's counter-intuitive actions. 

Legal:
Arlene has exposed the foundation to multiple grievances, expensive arbitration, and possible lawsuits from her heavy handed and poorly thought-out programming changes at KPFA.  She also fired a previous general manager at KPFA in the midst of a lawsuit against the station, throwing the oversight for fighting that suit into disarray.  KPFA has now spent over $100,000 on legal bills for that case -- which could have been avoided if Arlene had been less hasty to fire a competent manager.

 
8)This question asks for overall ranking of ED

Rating: 1 (strongly disagree)

9) This question asks for one area were the ED is doing best

10) This one is one area where ED needs greatest improvement

Her decisions appear to be driven by political alliances, not with the best interests -- financial and mission-based -- in mind.