On May 31 an important decision was made on how AAPG will move forward, post-COVID. The House of Delegates decided not to pursue the Reimagine proposal but chose instead to focus on improving the AAPG financial situation.
But where do we go from here? I admit that I liked a few parts of the Reimagine plan and it is still possible to implement several changes through the current set of Bylaws. Currently, the Association is heavily bogged down in overhead, which includes governance of all the many different bits and pieces of the current structure. The major governing elements are the Executive Committee, Advisory Council, House of Delegates, divisions, committees, regions and sections – all of which get ”touched” by staff at some time or another. This overhead is costly, to say the least, given the 43 employees and contractors AAPG is currently carrying on the books!
Addressing Finances
Addressing the current financial picture is at the top of my list.
This effort will be a two-pronged approach: fix the inefficiencies and improve the products AAPG produces.
This past year, Ali Sloan, now past treasurer, and Robert Archer, past chair of the House, did a deep dive into the finances of AAPG. The information they brought forward to the EC was no surprise. Currently, with 43 employees and contractors, the AAPG has a $5.7 million overhead, and this is to service about 14,500 paid members (including associates and students). AAPG is primarily an “events” organization, so we cannot cover this overhead if we don’t make money on the events. Of course, we have income from other sources, publications, advertisements and partnerships with other organizations to bring science to the membership and public. But we have lost money for the last 10 years – an average of about $1 million a year. We need to cut the overhead, scrutinize which events we hold and where, and hold firm to a rate of return required to cover overhead costs. There are some operational paradigm shifts to consider, particularly regarding staff. Adjustments like the EXPLORER’s new format have already saved money and we just need more advertisers!
Additional Steps
So, what else can we do? During the “Merger Mania” (my phrase), several members got their heads together and devised an alternative plan to turn the Association around. The most notable contributor to “Plan E” is Peter Lloyd, from the Asia Pacific Region.
The first part of Plan E is to ask the House of Delegates to take on more responsibility. Currently, AAPG staff does much of the work pertaining to membership – that would be vetting new membership applications, confirming eligibility for emeritus status, addressing member suspension for lack of payment of dues and accumulating information on nominations and honors and awards in “the Book,” which goes to the Advisory Council. In Plan E, a newly created Membership Committee would assume many of those duties, thus saving staff time (and cost!).
A second committee, populated by a proportional representation of the sections and regions, would be a new Nominations Committee, and would handle vetting of nominations of suitable candidates to run for office at various levels, but especially those running for the Executive Committee. A non-voting immediate past president of the organization would be the chair of this Committee.
A third would be a new Honors and Awards Committee created to vet and vote upon the honors and awards of meritorious service and science information put forward by the membership. It, too, would be populated by proportional members of the House representing the sections and regions. It would be chaired by a non-voting immediate past president.
The purpose of the Nominations and Honors and Awards committees would be to replace the duties of the Advisory Council. In doing this, we accomplish a couple of efficiencies:
First, eliminating the Advisory Council saves a lot of money! We no longer use staff time to elect the representatives on the Council, and meeting costs (even using Zoom!) would be reduced.
Second, no longer would there be a need for three past presidents to serve on the Council. This revision trims two years of service from the current job description of running for president. Currently, it is up to a five-year commitment! Do you know how hard it is to recruit qualified candidates to run for president, given a five-year commitment to the job? By reducing the term of office to three years, we open the doors to many more qualified members willing to dedicate their time to helping the organization. In addition, this is an excellent way to get the younger members involved. As I mentioned, the immediate past president would still chair both the Nominations and Honors and Awards committees – but that would be their last obligation to fulfill their term.
This efficiency was also part of the plan in the Reimagine Committee and is achievable within our current Bylaws.
I have asked Chair of the House Kenneth Mohn, Secretary/Editor Rosemary Laidacker and Chair-elect David Hawk to amend the current Bylaws, incorporating the committees and duties above. The House of Delegates created the Advisory Council some years ago and therefore has the authority to alter it.
The Mission of Petroleum Geology
Finally, I have had many friends and members touch base with me on what they can to do help during my term as president. The outpouring of support and good wishes is nothing less than astounding.
I tell them the most important thing they can do now is to help bring back into the fold all who have dropped their membership, believing that AAPG was headed in the wrong direction. I totally understand those members who have undergone “change fatigue” (again – my term). I have too, but I firmly believe AAPG is here to stay. I want to stay focused on the Mission Statement of bringing the science of petroleum exploration and development – and note the key word “petroleum” – to the members.
To quote the purposes of the organization, directly from the Association’s Constitution:
“The purposes of this Association are to advance the science of geology, especially as it relates to petroleum, natural gas, other subsurface fluids and mineral resources; to promote the technology of exploring for, finding, and producing these materials in an economically and environmentally sound manner; to foster the spirit of scientific research throughout its membership; to disseminate information relating to the geology and the associated technology of petroleum, natural gas, other subsurface fluids, and mineral resources; to inspire and maintain a high standard of professional conduct on the part of its members; to provide the public with means to recognize adequately trained and professionally responsible geologists and to advance the professional well-being of its members.”
This is why we are all members of this wonderful 107-year-old organization!
Next month? It is all about IMAGE!
Best,
Deborah