[Psml] PSML Digest, Vol 34, Issue 10
Dan Bartell
dtb at usps.org
Sat Jul 11 00:57:28 EDT 2009
OK folks let me start by saying I take umbrage with what Cdr Daybell is saying.
Let me put this in some background. After telling the Information
Technology Committee and specifically me what bad guys we are he is
turning to the PSML to find some sympathy.
I personally spend at least 1000 hours a year in support of ITC
projects not to mention the work I do for my home squadron as SEO and
active member. So I really feel strongly about USPS and personally
feel badly about the loss of any members. As a minimum I spend half
an hour each morning checking nightly audits of USPS
information. Therefore I know that in the last three days we have
lost over 6,000 members as a result of dues nonpayment. This
included at least 5 Commanders. I know the latter because of the
audits. Some of these are because they just forgot. Some because
they were not happy with what we offered them. Some because they
felt an economic pinch. I feel badly about all these losses and I
hope and know that we will get a number of them back if the squadrons
do their job and contact those who have dropped out and encourage
them to stay in.
Since I have been following these audits we have dropped from a high
of about 52,000 to the current 38,000 members in about 14
years. Actually don't despair, last year we were even lower and we
will come back up with the fall recruiting efforts. I personally
think we may have turned a corner.
Let me get back to Cdr Daybell's complaint.
I am not completely up on my facts so you can pick holes in the
following but I think I am close to correct.
I believe there is at least three months between when dues billing is
sent out and members are removed from active status. During that
time reports on who has sent in their dues are available online
through the membership page (software courtesy of the ITC) and are
updated every day. I personally am not the membership chair of my
squadron so I haven't used this but I know that the reports show when
payment is overdue. Once overdue I believe it takes close to a month
and a half to make a member inactive. Using these tools is something
the squadron membership chairpersons would know if it is passed on by
squadron chairs, the chair attends district conferences, or the chair
looks at the membership pages on the national site and learns what is
available for them to use. If they use the tools they will be on top
of the situation.
I will also point out that the dues and inactivation is spelled out
in our bylaws and is not a arbitrary decision on the part of the
ITC. Actually the decision is made by the headquarters computer
which is programmed by the HQ staff and ITC support to enforce
national and squadron bylaws.
Now probably more about the databases on the USPS web server than you
ever wanted to know.
Each squadron/district has a profile on a database which contains
information about the squadron/district including who their
information technology contact, public contact and roster contact
are. The database uses their certificate number to indicate who that
person is.
Why these three? Because they are closely connected with information
technology functions. The ITC contact is the webmaster and should be
able to be contacted by the ITC concerning ITC issues. The public
contact is referenced by "locate a squadron near you" or other online
functions which provide a person to contact for a squadron. The
roster contact, who is responsible for updating roster information,
receives update requests from online forms which allow you to
indicate personal information update requests.
Each member has an entry in a membership database. That contain
names, nicknames, addresses, email addresses and phone numbers plus lots more.
Jobs held by members are contained in a jobs database which has
national, district and squadron jobs. The jobs database refers to
the members by their certificate numbers.
So when a member is no longer an active member, they disappear from
the members database. That means that the member referenced by the
squadron/district profile database and the jobs database by
certificate number no longer exist. This is the heart of the
issue. In order to keep members around after they are no longer
active we would have to keep a 3 month old copy of the membership
database around to reference. Add to this that we don't know why
they were removed from the current copy and we could be sending
emails to someone who has died. This used to happen and rather than
the two unhappy Cdrs with the complaint I am addressing in the last
two years you have to deal with the spouse of a member who has gone
over the bar. This is a no win situation. I am not personally
willing to put in 3000 hours rather than 1000 to try to make this
work. Any of you folks want to volunteer for the ITC? Remember any
changes to this software will require a lot of HQ staff and ITC staff
hours; neither of which we have available.
So when the three job positions on the squadron/district profile
disappear we give the squadron/district a courtesy message telling
them of the change rather than having the job position softly and
silently pass away as is the case of all other positions. If you
were to look for the Cdr of those squadrons where they did not pay
their dues you will get a "NOT FOUND" message.
So to rap this very long email up. Cdr Daybell just what do you
expect from us? And don't tell me make the dues period 45 days longer
which means 4.5 months which pushes half a year. If you want to
carry a member after their dues expires, I think that is a squadron
financial responsibility not a national issue.
I open this to you folks for discussion.
Regards,
Dan
At 01:28 PM 7/10/2009, rdaybell at earthlink.net wrote:
>We object to taking a persons name off the list as a "nonmember" who
>is in fact a member having financial difficulty while arrangements
>are being made to get his dues paid. This person is a valuable
>member of our squadron and shouldn't be classified as a nonmember
>by an inpersonnal automatic computer system.
>
>-----Original Message-----
> >From: psml-request at usps.org
> >Sent: Jul 10, 2009 9:00 AM
> >To: "R.Daybell" <rdaybell at earthlink.net>
> >Subject: PSML Digest, Vol 34, Issue 10
> >
> >Send PSML mailing list submissions to
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> >Today's Topics:
> >
> > 1. Re: Automated changes in our roster information (Harleigh Ewell)
> >
> >
> >----------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >Message: 1
> >Date: Thu, 9 Jul 2009 21:14:29 -0400
> >From: "Harleigh Ewell" <hewell at comcast.net>
> >Subject: Re: [Psml] Automated changes in our roster information
> >To: <rdaybell at earthlink.net>
> >Cc: 'United States Power Squadrons Mailing List' <psml at usps.org>
> >Message-ID: <AD0C99C9C2074DD7B4A61E8FFF577C74 at 85wpjmbt8kk67tb>
> >Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
> >
> >It's hard to believe that someone could object to national taking a
> >nonmember off the roster. If the squadron wants someone who can't pay
> >the dues to still be a member, it should pay the dues itself and,
> >hopefully, get reimbursed when the situation improves.
> >
> >P/C Harleigh Ewell, JN
> >Rockville Sail and Power Squadron
> >
> >-----Original Message-----
> >From: psml-bounces at usps.org [mailto:psml-bounces at usps.org] On Behalf Of
> >rdaybell at earthlink.net
> >Sent: Thursday, July 09, 2009 5:59 PM
> >To: hewell at comcast.net
> >Cc: United States Power Squadrons Mailing List
> >Subject: [Psml] Automated changes in our roster information
> >
> >For the second time this year the information Technology committee
> >system has automatically taken a name off our OD -2 roster form without
> >our squadron's consent and without prior notice. In this case it is
> >our member who handles the DB 2000 reporting and management for the
> >squadron.
> >Our member is having financial difficulties at this time and will be
> >late in renewing his dues. We intend to keep him as a member and for
> >him to continue managing DB 2000 for the squadron. Therefore Alamitos
> >Sail and Power Squadron, Squadron number 075 will have no individual
> >handling DB 2000. We will not be submitting a new roster since we have
> >elected to keep the roster which we set up and assign members to handle.
> >It is our place to make changes rather then the national IT committee
> >and their automated nonsense.
> >
> >If the IT committee is going to continue dictating to squadrons in this
> >manner you may soon find a vacancy in the Commander position for
> >Alamitos and possible loss of other Alamitos members as well. We run
> >the squadron not the IT committee or National.
> >
> >Cdr R.D. Daybell, SN
> >
> >
> >R.D. Daybell
> >________________________________________
> >Need to subscribe, unsubscribe or change your email address? See
> >www.usps.org/mailman/listinfo/psml for details.
> >
> >
> >
> >------------------------------
> >
> >________________________________________
> >Need to subscribe, unsubscribe or change your email address? See
> www.usps.org/mailman/listinfo/psml for details.
> >
> >End of PSML Digest, Vol 34, Issue 10
> >************************************
>
>
>R.D. Daybell
>________________________________________
>Need to subscribe, unsubscribe or change your email address? See
>www.usps.org/mailman/listinfo/psml for details.
_______________________________________________
P/C Dan Bartell, SN
SEO - Shallotte River Sail & Power Squadron - D27 (NC)
Member USPS National Information Technology Committee
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