I wanted to take this opportunity to give fans a full and clear appraisal of all the activity which has been taking place off the pitch recently.
The last six weeks at Boundary Park have seen a number of changes in personnel and organisational structure, and the Board has had to move quickly to ensure the continued smooth running of all operational activity.
- CEO Karl Evans tendered his resignation at the end of September which was reluctantly accepted by the Board of Directors. At the end of his notice period, I asked Karl to stay on for a short period of time on a part-time consultancy basis to assist me with a smooth handover and to use his experience on governance matters.
- Shahed Alam, who was responsible for all financial matters at the Club, also departed at the end of October.
- Having joined the Club in June and successfully overhauling the commercial area, I was pleased to be offered and subsequently accepted the newly created position of General Manager, a role that I have held at other clubs. My role is to ensure that the staff perform their roles to the very best of their ability in what are very difficult circumstances. Even in my short time in this role, quite a number of issues have occurred meaning that I have had to reluctantly cancel meetings at short notice but I can assure you that this hasn’t been deliberate and my intention will be to engage with fans and fan groups as much as possible over the next few months.
- Jack Tomlinson became the new Club Secretary in October, he is supporting the Head Coach and Sporting Director on all football administration.
- Adam Street has taken the role of Ticket Office Manager.
- Pamela Makin has been employed as Office Manager. She will also have the day-to-day responsibility for safeguarding at the Club.
- Paul Hughes left his position as OASF Director in September but has also agreed to work pro-bono for a couple of days a week to bring his local knowledge and business expertise to the Club.
Whilst these changes have without a doubt kept everyone busy and demanded that much attention be given to structure, training, and succession plans, this can only place us in good stead for the future.
Against this backdrop and despite not wanting to break the commitment that Abdallah made to produce a comprehensive three-year plan for the whole Club by the end of October, we felt that allowing the new structure to bed in and review the short, medium, and long-term strategy and plans with their support was the best approach.
We would like to again praise the Community Trust for their fantastic work and the plaudits they receive from whoever interacts with them. The Academy also continues to bear fruit, with a run into the FA Youth Cup third-round proper and regular spots in the first team squad for recruits such as Benny Couto and Harry Vaughan.
As we move towards the end of the calendar year, we can assure all supporters that everyone working at and for the Club is focused on ensuring that we can provide the best platform for our team to perform the best way they can. Hopefully, we can all enjoy some fantastic matches over the festive period, and we’ll be in a stronger league position come January.
Steven Brown
General Manager