Not as Bad as It Seems

I have always been a glass half-full kind of guy. Hence my re-reading (a few times) of the finance committee report and the financial statements presented at last weekend's CurlManitoba AGM leads me to conclude it is not as bad as it seems and not as bad as I reported on this website after the meeting.  Yes - there have been six consecutive years of operating deficits and yes - they do total about $300,000.

So how, you ask, could my rose-coloured glasses suggest this is 'not as bad as it seems'.

It all in how you read the numbers, isn't it. For example, split the six year period into three two-year periods and you see how much better the organization has functioned in the most recent two-year period,
** 2009 & 2010 Total shortfall = 77, 515
** 2007 & 2008 Total shortfall = $109,788
** 2005 & 2006 Total shortfall = $107,222

OR split the six year period into two three-year periods and you see how much better the organization has functioned in the most recent three-year period.
** 2008, 2009 & 2010 TOTAL shortfall = $78,393
** 2005, 2006 & 2007 TOTAL shortfall = 216,132

It is a fact, these are all negative numbers. It is also a fact the recent history is much more positive than it was a few years ago.

Yes, this year's deficit was over $60,000 and yes, I agree - that's not something that can be accepted long-term. I do think, however, it is important to look at the reasons.  Some things won't ever happen again and couldn't have been prevented. The obvious example was that the office moved twice during the past year - something that couldn't be avoided. I don't know the costs related to all of that but they were real. More important, imagine how efficient you would be if your office moved twice in the same year. No matter how focused you and your colleagues might be, you have to know there were inefficiencies created by that situation - inefficiencies which no doubt had an impact in both increased costs and reduced revenues.

Then consider just two items.
1) Bonspiels were projected to generate $43,000 in surplus revenues but entries fell short of projections and left this item as just a $24,000 contributor to the bottom line. Half of the shortfall was in lower entries in the MCA Men's bonspiel alone.
2) Championships were projected to generate $52,000 in surplus revenues but this item was only a $13,000 contributor. Over half of the shortfall was in reduced television & related sponsorships for the Safeway Championship.

I guess the reason I feel 'its not as bad as it seems' is because that is a very short list of three items. The first (the moves) will not be an issue anytime in the near future. The second and third are quantifiable and therefore it is possible to think about building plans to address them - and that process is happening.

On the glass half empty side of the discussion, I do realize there are a range of specific challenges but it is my observation that the revised Board structure and its processes, plus revised office processes, are significant steps in the right direction.

In the end, I suggest the solution lies in a positive attitude - and I'm not talking about the Board of Directors or Staff here. I'm talking about people right across the sport in Manitoba. Every club and every curler has the right to expect strong and responsible leadership from the Board of Directors and Staff. On the other hand, the sport has the right to expect positive, growth-oriented support from every club and every curler. The good news in the financial reports will come when that positive, growth-oriented support results in entries surpassing projections.  That'll be the easy indicator that change is occurring.

That's the challenge for CurlManitoba - to develop programs which grow the sport at all levels. As a new member of the Board of Directors, I look forward to working with those who have already invested considerable time and effort in this regard. I look forward to doing what I can to support initiatives that have already begun and to being involved in the development of new initiatives to grow our sport in Manitoba.