National Leadership, Surbaugh Leave of Absense

[TAHAWK]

She got a very warm reception at the Wood Badge regional reunion at Blue Springs when she was new.  Sounded promising.  She was gone before the next annual reunion.

[ParkMan]

2 hours ago, TAHAWK said:

She got a very warm reception at the Wood Badge regional reunion at Blue Springs when she was new.  Sounded promising.  She was gone before the next annual reunion.

A chief executive needs to be both a good idea person, but also someone capable of leading the organization.  The right candidate will understand the challenges going in and develop strategies to address them.  

It sounds to me like Scouts Canada picked someone who could not effectively deal with the challenges and as such was a poor choice.  I do not think that should deter the BSA from making the right decision.

[TAHAWK]

1 hour ago, ParkMan said:

A chief executive needs to be both a good idea person, but also someone capable of leading the organization.  The right candidate will understand the challenges going in and develop strategies to address them.  

It sounds to me like Scouts Canada picked someone who could not effectively deal with the challenges and as such was a poor choice.  I do not think that should deter the BSA from making the right decision.

Right.  A correct decision should not be avoided.  😉

[RememberSchiff]

15 hours ago, TAHAWK said:

Scouts Canada tried that. They reached out for a CEO to private enterprise and recruited a new leader for the challenging times.  She had new ideas.  Good speaker.   The bureaucrats and grey backs, who rarely agree about anything, resisted her ideas and proved to be more than she wanted to deal with, and she resigned after a few months.

Are you referring to Janet Yale, former Scouts Canada executive commissioner and CEO (2010-2011)?  I believe she came from Canada's telecom industry. 

She cited "philosophical differences" in her resignation, but there was also the issue of  a secret  list of pedophiles in Canada. She said the list didn't exist.  A CBC investigation proved otherwise.

Interesting background:

https://mcgillnews.mcgill.ca/s/1762/news/interior.aspx?sid=1762&gid=2&pgid=1023

The July 2009 Action Plan for Canadian Scouting notes, “We have allowed ourselves to become boring.” Membership was declining by an average of 11,500 young people a year. At that rate, the movement would have no members at all by 2017.

One Action Plan objective was to double enrolment over five years. Aggressive recruiting has begun turning the tide, with more young people joining than dropping out for the first time in 30 years. Other priorities include making scouting relevant to today’s youth. “Yes, we have a focus on outdoor activities and that works for some kids,” says Yale, “but we are adapting our programs. We’re not just teaching camping skills, we’re building confidence and character through progressive self-education.”

Although admitting she had “tons to learn” about Scouts Canada, Yale says her 20 years in the public and private sectors as well as her track record as a volunteer fundraiser equip her perfectly for the job. “It calls on every one of my skills. I understand how to do business planning. Like many not-for-profits, Scouts Canada tends to grow from inside and to generate revenue from membership. I know how and when to bring in people from outside. And I know from my background as a successful fundraiser how to call on alumni and build partnerships with corporate sponsors.”

Yale’s credentials are impressive. In the last decade she was awarded the Queen’s Jubilee Medal and named “Woman of the Year 2001” by the Canadian Women in Communications organization. That same year, she helped Ottawa’s United Way set a fundraising record and in 2008, she earned the United Way Community Builder Award for Volunteer of the Year. Among many honours in business, the Women’s Executive Network hailed her as one of Canada’s Most Powerful Women in 2004, 2005 and 2006, then inducted her into its hall of fame the next year.

https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/scouts-canada-appoints-new-ceo-with-mandate-to-build-upon-new-momentum-545458822.html

https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/scouts-canada-ceo-janet-yale-resigns

http://wiki.scouts.ca/en/Janet_Yale

[5thGenTexan]

So, who is Roger Mosby?

 

Dear BSA Volunteers and Scouting Ambassadors,

I am happy to let you know that earlier this evening, the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America named Roger C. Mosby as the organization’s CEO and President after a focused search, which was initiated when former CEO and President Michael B. Surbaugh retired after a tenure of more than four years.

As the BSA moves through an extraordinary time of both change and opportunity, we believe Roger’s experience as a seasoned executive, adept at guiding transformation and driving growth, will bring the right combination of strength and focus needed to steer our organization toward a promising future.

Roger Mosby most recently ran his own consulting firm focused on executive coaching, following his retirement from leading energy infrastructure company Kinder Morgan in 2015. During nearly two decades with the company, he served as HR lead and was one of the original six officers. During his tenure, Kinder Morgan grew from 175 to more than 11,000 employees, with Mosby leading extensive change management and cultural transformation efforts.

Roger was a Scout as a youth and served for more than 33 years as a volunteer in the Mid-America and Sam Houston Area councils, in addition to positions with the Southern Region and National Committees of the Boy Scouts of America, as well as the World Organization of the Scout Movement. He has received the Silver Antelope Award and the Silver Beaver Award and is a Vigil Honor member of the Order of the Arrow.

We thank Michael Surbaugh for his years of service and leadership to the Boy Scouts of America.

Now, as we enter the next stage, we welcome Roger and his well-suited expertise to guide us toward even more opportunities to bring the benefits of Scouting to more youth, families and communities.

Yours in Scouting,

Jim Turley
National Chair, Boy Scouts of America

[RememberSchiff]

Human Resources?

 https://www.facebook.com/roger.mosby.3   

Edited December 30, 2019 by RememberSchiff

[Eagle1993]

LinkedIn profile 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/roger-mosby-a6300a61

He worked for Enron for 11 years... 

Hope he can guide us through the next few years.  I expect it to be a bit bumpy.

[TAHAWK]

Accusations by the media do not amount to facts.

From a  Canadian plaintiff's law firm site, soliciting cases:

"Scouts Canada categorically denies that its files are similar to the secret records kept by its U.S. counterpart and stresses that the two agencies operate separately.

In a written statement, Janet Yale, Scouts Canada's executive commissioner and CEO, described the U.S. system as 'pink files' that track 'incidents, reports or even rumours concerning volunteer leaders.'

'Unlike the Boy Scouts of America, Scouts Canada has no history of keeping so-called 'pink files,' 'pink folders,' 'secret lists' or 'secret files,'' wrote Yale. 'To be clear, we keep no file, folders, lists or records of any kind that detail suspected instances of misbehaviour, policy violations or abuse on the part of volunteer leaders.'

Yale stressed the organization does not monitor volunteer leaders "'in the face of concerns or complaints,' but rather suspends individuals and then looks into the complaint.

Scouts Canada spokesman John Petitti sent CBC an email later stating that the organization does keep records of suspension and termination, but information is shared with police and youth protection services.

'This is our policy and practice,' he wrote. 'And it has been our policy and practice for as long as we are able to determine. Furthermore, we are unaware of any exceptions to this policy and practice.'"

 

From CBS: "The records documented sex abusers barred from scouting and sit in its national headquarters, a square, two-storey grey building in Ottawa’s west end."

From the LA Times which "broke the story" : "Scouts Canada Chief Executive Janet Yale denied that her organization kept confidential records. She resigned abruptly in November after the CBC published proof of their existence."  (See her statement above from plaintiffs' lawyers where she claimed that Scouts Canada maintains that it  keeps no records of suspects, having  automatically suspended all accused pending investigation.)  Post hoc ergo propter hoc is a classic logical fallacy regularly indulged in by the media.  Who abruptly resigned from Enron?

From NBC:  "The speculation is that the FBI is close to making the case. They probably have enough to arrest him [Richard Jewell] right now, probably enough to prosecute him, but you always want to have enough to convict him as well. There are still some holes in this case"  [Those "holes," amounting to a total lack of evidence of guilt, proved very expensive to NBC  and CNN.]

Edited December 30, 2019 by TAHAWK

[prof]

I like that he was a volunteer for 33 years.

[TAHAWK]

10 minutes ago, prof said:

I like that he was a volunteer for 33 years.

 

Hope.  Bill was a volunteer until the day he died.  Also an paid volunteer for many years.

Edited December 30, 2019 by TAHAWK

[RememberSchiff]

My understanding. Following the CBC investigation  which occurred about 8 months after Ms. Yale resignation, Scouts Canada hired KPMG to audit their records.  The KPMG June 21,2012 report (below) was made public and supported the CBC investigation findings with more details and analysis.

https://postmediaedmontonjournal2.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/sc-kpmg-report.pdf

After the report was released, Scouts Canada made a public apology.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/scouts-canada-apologizes-to-sex-abuse-victims-1.1068528

Whether Yale was fully informed of the facts is not known. Unlike fellow scout executives, her statements did not give wiggle-room. 

My $0.02,  

Edited December 30, 2019 by RememberSchiff
added my own wiggle room :)

[TAHAWK]

She said she had "differences" with the Board members.  I wasn't in the room and neither was the LA Times or CBC.

Is it your "understanding" or your acceptance of the media understanding?

Plaintiffs' lawyer Rob Talach of London, Ont., who has represented victims of childhood abuse, said "The KPMG report was 'simply a documentary review' and it would be "bold" to draw conclusions about whether there was a coverup."  Imagine, a plaintiffs' lawyer with more class than the media,  Shocking!

Sorry, but my attitudes are based, in part, on having to defend newspaper and TV "journalists" in defamation cases in state and federal courts.  Their lack of concern for fairness or simple accuracy was disappointing, to say the least.  I did not regret leaving that practice.  The Richard Jewell media lynching has been much studied in the defense bar, and little to the credit of the media emerged.  To the "rush to publish" has been added overt political prejudice that casts doubt on much that the media "reports," one way or the other. 

Edited December 30, 2019 by TAHAWK

[Mrjeff]

I certenly wish no Ill will on our former BSA CEO, and pray for his complete recovery. I also question the necessity of having such a huge machine devouring tangible resources.  A lot of very unpopular decisions were made that has had a negative impact on those individuals who mattered the most, the boys they were supposed to support.  As a result many dedicated members, both youth and adult, have elected to leave.  As a result the machine has less to do and should be reduced in order to survive the loss of the product demand.  Even Baden Powell made the statement that the scouts should never become a professional organization because it will reduce the idea of civic mindedness among the volunteers.  I have a slightly different list of necessary professionals that include council and district executives, camp rangers, and administrative assistants. I would also suggest that those professionals be allowed to focus on service to its members and not be forced to concentrate on growth.  If the BSA had a good product, to sell, people would buy it and growth would be automatic.  The focus and measure of success is now based on numbers and statistics and the idea of fun, fellowship, and personal growth has been burried by the numbers.  I wish the new CEO well and I really hope that he will be the guiding light on these stormy seas.

[RememberSchiff]

On 12/29/2019 at 7:17 PM, 5thGenTexan said:

 , a nit perhaps but ...

Dear BSA Volunteers and Scouting Ambassadors,

I am happy to let you know that earlier this evening, the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America named Roger C. Mosby as the organization’s CEO and President after a focused search, which was initiated when former CEO and President Michael B. Surbaugh retired after a tenure of more than four years.
...
Yours in Scouting,

Jim Turley
National Chair, Boy Scouts of America

1. I think Mr. Turley, the current National Chair,  meant Chief Scout Executive (CSE) not CEO.  There is no CEO position in BSA.

2. There is also no President position, which would have been Mr. Turley's title had the position not  been renamed to National Chair.  The last President of the BSA was Randall Stephenson. Michael Surbaugh was never President of BSA, he was the unlucky 13th CSE of the BSA. 

https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2018/05/31/meet-your-bsa-national-key-3/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_national_presidents_of_the_Boy_Scouts_of_America

I hope CSE Mosby hits the ground running with a  workable rescue plan.  IMHO, releasing a video to the troops today would be a start. 

My $0.01, 

P.S. Is Roger Mosby related to John Mosby , assistant CSE?

P.P.S. No Powerpoint please!

Edited December 31, 2019 by RememberSchiff

[Eagle1993]

I expect his first job will be keeping BSA alive through bankruptcy.  This will include saving our high adventure bases and major cost cutting.  

He should read Bullsh*t Jobs by David Graeber and Six Simple Rule by Yves Morieux.  Both talk to how corporations (and private enterprise) create inefficient and ineffective solutions to solving problems.   

Centralize what makes sense for consistency or cost needs (IT, uniform, program requirements, marketing (some)).  Distribute the rest  back to councils, districts, units. Lay off most if not all assistant chief scout executives ... I see no reason why their high salaries are needed.  

Find ways to revitalize our volunteer ranks. They (unit, district and council) are the key to our success.  Consider dropping non core items to our methods or aims (learning for life, STEM) so focus can remain on the program.  Reach out to long term volunteers who quit to find out why... if it is girls/gays, not much you can do, but I expect there are other reasons that may be able to be improved.

Just a few thoughts.  This will be a significant challenge and I wish him the best of luck.