There was so much call for "unity" from the current board members.
I agree that unity is essential, but I don't think we can achieve it without confronting the problems that have led to our current situation.
It was a missed opportunity for our leaders to take responsibility for their actions and work towards finding solutions and solutions which they did not do.
And council missed an opportunity for meaningful discussion and growth to fix the chronic issues of the past to insure this never happens again. So the status quo was accepted as "good"
There is much more to the story which was not disclosed and the past Presidents Letter to the council beautifully laid it out.
The tone of the CEO (who is leaving) was that of gaslighting, shaming and hyperbole. And completely out of line! The board does not serve him! He serves the board and every member. His arrogance was over the top and when called out his lawyer was his cover, but bottom line parliamentary procedure was not even followed in the meeting. ( as a side note: are you aware that he makes 675k per year? And the CFO 575? Both have received a 50k raise for the last few year. And that's to manage a staff of 50? And an association that brings in 12 million a year. Who is responsible for this? The BOD.
I would love to say we should all accept the outcome and unify, however too much wrong was done to truly believe that it's is the best course of action.
With great sorry I'm taking mt dollars and putting them into an organization which displays the integrity I respect and financially uses funds to serve its members in the highest way.
I can see with what the payments that are being made to the CFO and CEO why there could be Finacial problems. What happened to the working photographers that used to hold these positions. What happened to all of the photographers that used to volunteer and ran the association. It’s not my PPA any more. You cannot void an election without giving details why you did it. That is what is done in socialist communist countries. When did we change…
I see that a lot of the people who have left and are leaving PPA is because they that the "leadership" (and I use that term very loosely) and not doing anything for the rank and file, small business photographers. After what has been happening lately, I believe the floodgates of members leaving is about to open. As far as the CPP program, it is circling the drain because they fired all the people at the lower level when they ended the CPP Liaison program. I don't agree with taking the written test one section at a time, but I could get on board with candidates taking the entire test and the retaking the section(s) they failed as long as it's done within 30 days of taking the original test. After that, retake the entire test. As far as replacing the portfolio with Sherman, I agree completely with that change. The portfolio was very subjective and in many cases showcased the candidate's ability to manipulate and edit an image into a good image instead of getting it right in camera. Having received 8 different computer and electronic certifications, I know that everyone had to do the same thing according to the same objective standards.
As I said, because of the fact that the "leadership" has been ignoring the rank and file small photographers, I expect to see more people leaving PPA. There's a good chance I may be one of them.
Once I realized what the CFO and CEO made per year, I realized that PPA was not the organization that I joined years ago. This clinched what I had been thinking when the requirements for CPP went away from only using client work for the portfolio review. The nail in the coffin that was my PPA membership was finding out that the promoted business insurance was not going to pay for my studio computer that was destroyed by Hurricane Helene because I had homeowners insurance. (Like a good business owner, I keep my business expenses separate from my personal) Really bogus
I'm really sorry. I have no dog in this fight but it's terrible to see an organization with such history literally falling apart and being co-opted by those who don't care what the bylaws say, they just want to stay in power. What a shame.
I attended Imaging and heard some grumbling about the board meeting, but didn't hear any details. I've been out of the loop, or more accurately, I don't think I've ever been "in the loop", even after many years of membership. However, I have long felt that the PPA leadership, namely the CEO and CFO, have been over-compensated, at least as compared to the earnings of the membership. They both make more than probably 99% of the membership.
CEO David Trust's total compensation (as of 2023) was $711,615. Scott Kurkian, the CFO/COO, was earning total compensation of $654,827. To further complicate the issue, Scott's wife is also the Director of Education, and was earning about $109,000 back in 2019. She is still listed as the Dir. of Ed. (and now as Deputy CEO as well) but curiously, her compensation doesn't seem to appear on the IRS990 forms since then. That is also troublesome to me, as compensation for key employees is required by law to be listed.
There was so much call for "unity" from the current board members.
I agree that unity is essential, but I don't think we can achieve it without confronting the problems that have led to our current situation.
It was a missed opportunity for our leaders to take responsibility for their actions and work towards finding solutions and solutions which they did not do.
And council missed an opportunity for meaningful discussion and growth to fix the chronic issues of the past to insure this never happens again. So the status quo was accepted as "good"
There is much more to the story which was not disclosed and the past Presidents Letter to the council beautifully laid it out.
The tone of the CEO (who is leaving) was that of gaslighting, shaming and hyperbole. And completely out of line! The board does not serve him! He serves the board and every member. His arrogance was over the top and when called out his lawyer was his cover, but bottom line parliamentary procedure was not even followed in the meeting. ( as a side note: are you aware that he makes 675k per year? And the CFO 575? Both have received a 50k raise for the last few year. And that's to manage a staff of 50? And an association that brings in 12 million a year. Who is responsible for this? The BOD.
I would love to say we should all accept the outcome and unify, however too much wrong was done to truly believe that it's is the best course of action.
With great sorry I'm taking mt dollars and putting them into an organization which displays the integrity I respect and financially uses funds to serve its members in the highest way.
I can see with what the payments that are being made to the CFO and CEO why there could be Finacial problems. What happened to the working photographers that used to hold these positions. What happened to all of the photographers that used to volunteer and ran the association. It’s not my PPA any more. You cannot void an election without giving details why you did it. That is what is done in socialist communist countries. When did we change…
I see that a lot of the people who have left and are leaving PPA is because they that the "leadership" (and I use that term very loosely) and not doing anything for the rank and file, small business photographers. After what has been happening lately, I believe the floodgates of members leaving is about to open. As far as the CPP program, it is circling the drain because they fired all the people at the lower level when they ended the CPP Liaison program. I don't agree with taking the written test one section at a time, but I could get on board with candidates taking the entire test and the retaking the section(s) they failed as long as it's done within 30 days of taking the original test. After that, retake the entire test. As far as replacing the portfolio with Sherman, I agree completely with that change. The portfolio was very subjective and in many cases showcased the candidate's ability to manipulate and edit an image into a good image instead of getting it right in camera. Having received 8 different computer and electronic certifications, I know that everyone had to do the same thing according to the same objective standards.
As I said, because of the fact that the "leadership" has been ignoring the rank and file small photographers, I expect to see more people leaving PPA. There's a good chance I may be one of them.
Once I realized what the CFO and CEO made per year, I realized that PPA was not the organization that I joined years ago. This clinched what I had been thinking when the requirements for CPP went away from only using client work for the portfolio review. The nail in the coffin that was my PPA membership was finding out that the promoted business insurance was not going to pay for my studio computer that was destroyed by Hurricane Helene because I had homeowners insurance. (Like a good business owner, I keep my business expenses separate from my personal) Really bogus
I'm really sorry. I have no dog in this fight but it's terrible to see an organization with such history literally falling apart and being co-opted by those who don't care what the bylaws say, they just want to stay in power. What a shame.
I attended Imaging and heard some grumbling about the board meeting, but didn't hear any details. I've been out of the loop, or more accurately, I don't think I've ever been "in the loop", even after many years of membership. However, I have long felt that the PPA leadership, namely the CEO and CFO, have been over-compensated, at least as compared to the earnings of the membership. They both make more than probably 99% of the membership.
CEO David Trust's total compensation (as of 2023) was $711,615. Scott Kurkian, the CFO/COO, was earning total compensation of $654,827. To further complicate the issue, Scott's wife is also the Director of Education, and was earning about $109,000 back in 2019. She is still listed as the Dir. of Ed. (and now as Deputy CEO as well) but curiously, her compensation doesn't seem to appear on the IRS990 forms since then. That is also troublesome to me, as compensation for key employees is required by law to be listed.
By the way, you're an amazing writer!
Dave, I sure thank you for those kind words. And for reading my ramblings!
You can still vote, recall your memberships.