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"The Official Word"
A rotating blog featuring USATF Board members and officials
The Official Word
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Last week, USA Track & Field sent our largest contingent ever to the Olympic
Assembly in Colorado Springs, where the U.S. Olympic Committee brings together
the members of the Olympic Family in the United States. Included in several days
of meetings are National Governing Bodies such as USATF, athletes, committees,
sponsors and scores of others.
In the last year, the USOC has been through a public relations minefield: its
Board of Directors fired CEO Jim Scherr, then became the subject of attacks by
the public and media, who criticized the USOC and its Board for appearing to be
secretive, opaque, elitist and out-of-touch. Other key staff left and a cable TV
Olympic Network was announced without consulting key players. Things came to a
head when Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympic Games was rejected in the first
round of voting, despite having an outstanding bid and benefitting from the
promotional efforts of President Obama and the First Lady.
The USOC got the message.
At the 2010 Olympic Assembly, USOC Chair Larry Probst was frank about his own
failings and those of the USOC, and he was equally clear about the things that
have already changed. Most notable was Larry's willingness to admit his mistakes
and pledge transparency, focus and open-mindedness as hallmarks of the Board and
USOC staff moving forward.
When USA Track & Field's Board had its first meeting in 2009, we all pledged to
be as open and accessible as possible. We post all our minutes online, and we
make sure that those minutes meaningfully describe what we do. Bios of all
Board members, our meeting schedule and organizational Strategic Plan are all
online at
http://www.usatf.org/about/committees/BoardOfDirectors/. I encourage you to
revisit the page or to check it out for the first time.
Since USA Track & Field's Board voted for a change in executive leadership just
over two weeks ago, we have been even more united, clear in our vision and eager
to engage the public. As you will see from reading individual biographies, we
have extensive experience on corporate and nonprofit boards, in Fortune 500
companies, in the committee structure of USATF, and on the field of play.
A lot has been written, speculated and blogged about relating to USATF and our
Board since our vote two weeks ago. The take-away from all this is that we as an
organization are moving forward with a renewed unity and determination. The
Board has been holding "town hall" conference calls with segments of the
volunteer leadership, to hear their concerns and ideas and respond accordingly.
We are legally bound to keep certain personnel matters private as the specifics
of the CEO's departure are worked out, and we are all committed to staying out
of a public mud-slinging contest. But it is critical that we assure the
stakeholders within USATF that our door is open, we are listening to them, and
we understand and appreciate their point of view. Simply by listening to, rather
than talking at, our committees and leaders, we are setting the tone for the
future. "Engagement" is our buzzword when it comes to the interaction of the
Board with USATF staff, athletes, volunteers, officials -- everyone important to
the sport.
One frequently asked question that we do want to address is concern about the
financial impact of transitioning to a new CEO. It is important to us as a Board
to let you know unequivocally that we considered every possible ramification of
seeking leadership change in the realm of finance, politics, governance.
Everything. And we are united in our strong belief that a change is not only
best for the organization in terms of pursuing a new direction, but that in the
end it will be best for our bottom line. I cannot over emphasize the philosophy
that our Board would never take an action that imperils the long-term stability
of USATF. Our fiduciary responsibility to all of you is our guiding principle.
In this blog space in the next several weeks, you will find postings by Board
members about the present and the future, about which we are all excited. The
Board will be meeting via phone weekly, and our next in-person meeting is
October 9 in Indianapolis, when we will finalize the criteria and search process
for the next CEO.
As soon as it is final, we will publicly inform everyone via this blog about
what we are looking for, who will help us look for it, and how we will ensure
that we make the best choice for USATF when we hire the next CEO. Our intent is
to ensure that the stakeholders of our sport understand what is happening and
why.
Like our friends at the USOC, we pledge transparency, focus and open-mindedness
as we all, together, pursue a better future. It's a future where unity, not
divisiveness, pushes us ahead.
Stephanie Hightower is President and Chairman of the Board of USA Track & Field.
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USA Track & Field (USATF) is the national governing body for track and field, long distance running, and race walking. Headquartered in Indianapolis, the organization has more than 90,000 members throughout the country.