Job description

The difference used to be, in business mistakes get punished, even that doesn't seem to happen these days at corporate and boardroom level, with massive bonuses being issued for failure. This then mirrored in the Public Sector with top earners rewarded come what may, often with golden hand shake payments to say goodbye, then re hired as 'consultants' later. The point of this diatribe? Professionalism at high level does not necessarily equal success, particularly where stakeholders, shareholders, or taxpayers, are footing the bill, it's simply put, high earnings for the boys. Do we want our Governing body to continue down this route? Probably not.

The problem they have, is their income stream is from members and Government sports funding, linked to the Olympics and as I once said to the owner of a particular boat building business exposed to Olympic classes they should have a strategy that at the very least acid tests that disappearing and be developing a plan B, which is us.

Us being multi role water users, once upon a time I couldn't really get by without being an RYA member, now I cheerfully and quite deliberately am not. They have incensed, outraged and disappointed me in equal measure over the years and I dare say I'm not alone, so, first call i would have thought would be to find out why that is.

Edited by iGRF - 16 Jan 19 at 10:22am

It's not only that, it's the fact that people like me could and would have helped them back in the day and didn't even ask for expenses remunerated.

I may be an irritating troll in this environment, but the real world experience I have and am still engaged in would be invaluable in formulating a strategy that would help them cope with the next ten years.

But there is no longer a mechanism, via a committee or meeting route whereby they could be even approached. Corporate rules would rather expend vast sums on equally inexperienced out of touch 'consultancys'. Employees would rather protect their own shallow competencies than expose themselves to the harsh light of market realism. It is an impossible situation, they have a destiny to continue to fail, and fail big, it makes me weep thinking about the myriad ways in which they are failing.

Edited by iGRF - 16 Jan 19 at 7:50pm

I’ve got to say that I’m with Rupert in terms of my personal experience. That’s not to say that I think they’re doing everything right - (all IMHO) I think there’s too much short-term thinking in the Youth, Junior and PP Squad stystem that has already lead to a lack of depth in quality in across the top Squads and I think they do a particularly poor job of communicating what they actually do to the wider water sports community, that perpetuates the opinions expressed I this thread.

If you’re part of a proactive Club that engages with the RYA, I suspect that you’ll have a more positive view of the organisation.

Nowt wrong with the people down at the grass roots (or those directly supporting them) but iGRFs T15 comment strikes a chord. I raced D1 and Raceboards pretty seriously for nearly 30 years and even at local level the RYA guys kept the T15 kids away from our regional, adult, race circuit so they never had a natural progression when T15 threw them out...... I know of one serious T15 sailor who was, luckily for her, taken under the wing of a local RB hotshot and went on to win a World RB championship. What she would have done if she hadn't been introduced to Raceboards is anybodys guess (but I'd lay good odds it wouldn't have involved any kind of sailing).

Edited by Sam.Spoons - 16 Jan 19 at 11:59pm

Where Word Sailing lead, the RYA will follow?
Corporatism in all its glory?