Director of Finance

[Stewart Reuben]

Matthew Turner >C.J. hoped to have a Finance Director in place on Saturday - is there any news?
C.J. hoped to have a Finance Director in place on Saturday - is there any news?

Adam Raoof came up with a probably better qualified candidate and this is being investigated.

Stewart Reuben

[John Philpott]

I am pleased to announce that the ECF Board, at a meeting that is currently taking place by conference call, has appointed Gareth Caller to the position of Director of Finance. Gareth, who is a member of Hendon Chess Club, is a qualified accountant who is a Manager at the National Audit Office, which audits most public sector bodies in the UK (including the DCMS!) and produces value for money reports into the implementation of Government policies.

[Paul McKeown]

I am pleased to announce that the ECF Board, at a meeting that is currently taking place by conference call, has appointed Gareth Caller to the position of Director of Finance. Gareth, who is a member of Hendon Chess Club, is a qualified accountant who is a Manager at the National Audit Office, which audits most public sector bodies in the UK (including the DCMS!) and produces value for money reports into the implementation of Government policies.

Excellent! That really helps. Thanks, John, for the news, thanks Adam for suggestion and thanks Gareth for accepting. I think everyone on the forum would be happy with the appointment of a candidate with such well matched qualifications ...?

[Matthew Turner]

Of course we are all delighted that such a well qualified individual has been appointed Director of Finance. However, I would just sound a note of caution. This is a huge, unpaid job and one must be really committed to take on what is a thankless task. I am slightly surprised that someone who I have never heard of would take the post. I note that Gareth played just 6 graded games last year, so it would appear that he is not a 'chess fanatic'. We wish Gareth well, but I think we need to temper our jubilation in case this is another false dawn as with Michael White.

[John Upham]

I am slightly surprised that someone who I have never heard of would take the post.

How many other people have you not heard of? I am sure there are quite a few...

[Matthew Turner]

Yes there are, but there are not too many that would take on a massive unpaid role altruistically for the benefit of English Chess

[David Pardoe]

First of all we must thank Gareth for volunteering his time on behalf of the ECF. I guess his lack of chess matches is down to the fact that he`s very busy doing other things...
I`d suggest he reads some of the material/threads on this forum to get a flavour of all the various strands to the UK chess scene...and no doubt he`ll be in close touch with other senior figures.
I hope he can persuade the Gov to remove the `block` on the chess grant. One suspects that perhaps the Gov are using every possible lever to hold back money in these difficult times...now that the `Banks` etc, have got us into such dire financial straits...with the `crunch`. If we can demonstrate a `can do` approach to taking forward our UK chess offerings, I`d hope the Gov will recognise that they have a responsibility to help contribute towards its future success, not least because it is part of our social, culture and heritage that is worth preserving.
Essentially, the success of chess is largely down to the will and resolve of all the constituent components to be positive in its outlook. We have a great product to offer, so its important that we let joe public and others know about it.
Not only that, but it offers great cultural and social benefits, which society needs to encourage...its all about participation...whether it be club chess, leagues, counties, congresses, junior events, Internationals, and so on....its vital that `chess` is firing on all fronts.
So, I dont see the FDs job as necessarily being about `tightening the belt`, although we must learn lessons from areas where our events are struggling. There may be a need for some close scrutiny on spending budgets, and whether money is being spent wisely. On the other hand, we have a real need to address revenue streams, and how these can be improved.