Most of us received a letter from the PTF pleading for contributions so that it wouldn’t have to trim its (bloated) staff, but apparently not enough of you felt the compulsion to support a PTF staff that has grown tenfold over the same time period that our membership had been decreasing in size.
Well, the USPA has managed to pick up the tab on this one, adding to a staff that begs the question-“What are all these people doing?”
The PTF couldn’t make any adjustments to its oversized staff so the USPA brought Kris Bowman aboard its already overloaded boat.
I’m not calling to question the altruistic motives of Kris Bowman or any other USPA or PTF employees. I am merely asking that their positions and salaries be justified. Is this the best way to use the financial resources at hand? What impact does this have on the long-range plans of the USPA and polo in America.
I have mentioned time and again that we are investing a great deal of time and money promoting youth polo when little research has been done to prove that these programs are doing anything to promote the game or grow the membership. These efforts have been going on for decades now and we find the membership has been decreasing over the years. I’ve said it before, “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and getting different results”. That, in my opinion, is what we are doing. There has been no tracking system put in place to follow up on these programs to see what their affect is on the growth of polo, and to me that’s just bad business.
There was a time when the USPA and the PTF were each operated by a single person. Today we find twenty people doing those same two jobs for a diminishing membership.
Transparency and accountability! That is what is called for, and that is what the USPA needs to offer.
I have found that subtle hints don’t seem to work well with the USPA, and in fact, not so subtle hints don’t work well either. The fact is that the USPA Board is made up of a number of stubborn, small-minded, closed-minded individuals who have no real understanding of the needs and/or wants of the membership.
I’m sorry, I forget that the USPA considers only clubs as members, but they don’t seem to understand those needs either.
Their hierarchy balk at the concept of getting any information form the many polo blogs that are out there yet an open and positive blog on Polozone allowed the Eldorado Polo Club to sort through its many concerns in an open and anonymous (if so desired) format.
I will continue to ask for the USPA to become transparent and accountable and hope that someone in a “leadership” role will develop a sense of responsibility and morality that will allow the true membership of the association to be informed of the Association’s doings.
We have seen the Association’s constitution reworked over the years to better serve those in official positions, yet we cling to an outdated concept of membership that was created in the late 1800s.
We’re dealing with fantasyland when we look at the moves of the USPA. In my opinion, if this were a movie, the “leadership” of both the USPA and the PTF would be the scarecrow from The Wizard of Oz-looking for a brain.
10 Comments
th000000224am09, 22009vUTC02bUTCTue, 24 Feb 2009 02:26:52 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
I am being repetitive, but as long as the members themselves have little or no interest in the association, nothing will change.
th000000224am09, 22009vUTC02bUTCTue, 24 Feb 2009 04:11:47 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
Transparancy & Accountability??? Yippee! Wouldn’t that be fabulous? I’d like to see a list with USPA job descriptions, designations, salaries and duties. Guaranteed that by 2010, there will be cuts..look at the number of players & sponsors that are selling out of polo, or turning out and “waiting it out.” Sounds a lot like my real estate clients that are looking to buy property right now. They all want to “steal” a property..and they will in a manner of speaking. However..there is still a HUGE spread between what the Buyers will spend and what the Sellers’ think their property value is! Everybody seems to be reading media that supports their own perceptions, rather than looking at the reality of just how much our world is changing. Change is good..it’s the adjustment that is difficult. It sounds like the USPA is in the position of my Seller’s..they still think polo players are untouched by economic realities and that is so far apart from what many, many of the players are feeling. The USPA is reflective of the players…until they understand this, they will continue to hire as if nothing has been altered.
th000000225am09, 32009vUTC02bUTCWed, 25 Feb 2009 01:53:26 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
I agree with some of this article; however, when someone of Kris’s caliber becomes available, I think the U.S.P.A would have been foolish not to have snapped her up. Because they have taken on board a person with vast experience and contribution to polo, and unfortunately that cannot be said of all of the people they have hired in the past.
th000000225am09, 32009vUTC02bUTCWed, 25 Feb 2009 02:31:17 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
I understand she has certain qualifications that are admirable, but I believe you have to approach this as a business. If what she is doing can’t financially support her efforts or if her efforts aren’t significantly impacting the growth of the game, it might be time to rethink the USPA/PTF approch. Qualified, nice people doing a good job is a waste of time and resources if it can’t be financially justified.
th000000225am09, 32009vUTC02bUTCWed, 25 Feb 2009 04:14:19 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
You obviously have statistics that back up your argument that the P.T.F is not bringing in new members, but I find it hard to believe that Kris’s contribution to club developement and her clinic’s are not introducing new members to the sport – could it be that we are actually losing so many older members (through retirement and financial stress), that the new members cannot replace them, never mind increase total membership?
th000000225am09, 32009vUTC02bUTCWed, 25 Feb 2009 07:04:43 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
It might also be because the people who the PTF introduce to the game don’t stay in it or can’t afford it. The “polo summer camp” at Brushy Creek is little more than a diversion for most participants, akin to Space Camp. The future of polo is not in our youth, unless they have the financial backing to continue to learn and play. Our membership continues to erode in spite of the ongoing efforts of the PTF and Little League polo. We are looking at a PTF that has gown to many times its original size with few goals accomplished and a budget that will not support the many “well intended” employees.
th000000225am09, 32009vUTC02bUTCWed, 25 Feb 2009 08:19:21 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
Well, as a club manager, I would love to know how we are to go about increasing members as I have offered clinics and coaching leagues, with a mixed range of participants with no sucess?
th000000226am09, 42009vUTC02bUTCThu, 26 Feb 2009 03:20:19 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
It would be nice to think that either the PTF or the USPA had the answers, but it is abundantly clear that they do not. I am merely asking for accountability and tracking of the success or failures of any of these programs.
th000000226am09, 42009vUTC02bUTCThu, 26 Feb 2009 02:34:36 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
K2polo I beleve if you go to the USPA web site you find a list of employees with their job descriptions.
th000000226am09, 42009vUTC02bUTCThu, 26 Feb 2009 03:23:04 +0000 11, 2007 at 08:46p02
You may find generic job descriptions, but you will not be able to justify the size of the staff with the amount of work that needs to be done for a shrinking membership. This used to be handled by a single person, now we have 10-11 peple working in and out of the office.