Cycling Australia - a big weekend and a new President

Bicycle related chatter & discussion
Eleri
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Postby Eleri » 11 Nov 2013, 11:39

I spent the weekend at the Cycling Australia board meeting, and the Cyclist of the Year Awards. All in Melbourne.

It was a huge weekend and the biggest and most newsworthy outcome is that we have a new President, Gerry Ryan! I left the meeting impressed with his vision and his ability to bring business acumen and process.

We also farewelled Graham Fredericks as CEO and will now be searching for a new CEO.

I've joined a sub-committee that will be looking at a new, integrated structure for all cycling disciplines. There are currently 3 organisations - CA (Road, Track), Mountain Biking Australia and BMX Australia.

Great to see Caroline Buchanan win Cyclist of the Year - as well as a host of other awards. Being a World Champion in 2 disciplines is an amazing achievement. Also delighted to see that someone I race with on the track and road, Gaye Lynn, won Masters Cyclist of the year. It's fair to say she is 2 grades older than me and can comprehensively beat me every time. Gaye has a world record on the track and won both the Time Trial and the Road race at the UCI World Masters in Trento about 6 weeks ago.

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weiyun
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Postby weiyun » 11 Nov 2013, 16:58

I read there's mixed reactions out there to the appointment of Gerry Ryan (Owner of Orica GreenEdge, significant financial stakes in TdU and Herald Sun Tour) to the post. Concerns have been raised in relation to the potential for conflict of interest amongst other financial deals. Did the board consider this significant concern and what was the rationale for the choice and strategy to deal with it?

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/gerry-r ... -australia

Eleri
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Postby Eleri » 11 Nov 2013, 17:32

I read there's mixed reactions out there to the appointment of Gerry Ryan (Owner of Orica GreenEdge, significant financial stakes in TdU and Herald Sun Tour) to the post. Concerns have been raised in relation to the potential for conflict of interest amongst other financial deals. Did the board consider this significant concern and what was the rationale for the choice and strategy to deal with it?

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/gerry-r ... -australia
Yes we did consider it and did it seriously.

Every single one of us sitting around the board table has potential for conflict of interest, including me. Otherwise we would be dispassionate bystanders with no stake in the sport.

Every one of us signs multiple declarations about related interests, PEDs and integrity issues and there's procedures (as there is in all well-run boards) for people to either exclude themselves from discussion where the conflict is unresolvable or to not vote.

In practice, there are very few issues that come to the CA Board that result in people needing to exclude themselves. A good board sets strategy and policy and delegates operational issues to management.

Gerry brings a lot of corporate experience, a passion for cycling and a willingness to lead needed change. I'm really looking forward to working with him.

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weiyun
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Postby weiyun » 11 Nov 2013, 17:53

Gerry brings a lot of corporate experience, a passion for cycling and a willingness to lead needed change. I'm really looking forward to working with him.
I have no doubt about that along with his passion shown to date. However, when big business dollar contracts are involved, that's a completely different category of "conflict" to what you or some other Board members can bring. At a time when the CA governance has been under the spot light, I think the Board will need to address this legitimate concern by members as well as the public in a more proactive manner. Not something that can be brushed away in a few lines unfortunately. Not easy.

BTW, what was the rumour that Gerry was involved in resolving a $150k debt to SBS? Any validity to that?

Eleri
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Postby Eleri » 11 Nov 2013, 18:09

You'll appreciate Weiyun that I'm not speaking on behalf of CA - rather just giving you my perspective on information already in the public domain.

I understand the need for reassurance around all those things.

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weiyun
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Postby weiyun » 11 Nov 2013, 18:39

Yes, I appreciate your situation. Thanks for the comments.

Eleri
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Postby Eleri » 12 Nov 2013, 10:02

There's an article in today's SMH that speaks to the concerns around conflict of interest.


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