Scotty

THE MATCHDAY THREAD Discuss ICT & other games in this thread as they happen Queen of the South -V- Inverness CT PREVIEW Sat March 9th @ 3pm, Palmerston Park, Dumfries Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Facebook Go to the Chatroom Media Coverage AUDIO COVERAGE BBC Sportsound BBC Sportsound [UK Only] LIVE TEXT (ONLINE) Sporting Life BBC VIDEO SPFL YouTube Channel ICT Official YouTube Channel TEAM LINEUPS TO FOLLOW Tweets by @ICTFC Tweets by @ICTFC

Usually there are three sides .... each person's version .... and the actual truth ! This is the press release issued when she was appointed : Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC is delighted to announce the appointment of a Chief Executive to provide strategic leadership and advice to the Board of Directors as the club restructures and looks to become a more community-focused club. Mrs Yvonne Crook is an experienced consultant whose skills in business development, branding and marketing are seen as hugely valuable assets as the club strives to attract new investment and operate in a more business-like and sustainable way. Mrs Crook is the owner of View Marketing and a founder and director of Good Highland Food Ltd, which she runs with her husband Mike. She has also held strategic advisory positions for several destinations and visitor attractions in Scotland including Loch Ness by Jacobite as well as Perth Racecourse. Not sure "hemorrhaging cash" is quite the right description as we had been somewhat stable for the few years prior to that and the accounts, while never overly encouraging in any part of our 25 year history were not as bad as people are making out. We were a Premiership team, operating on a premiership budget with some costs we could not control and others that we might have been able to control better (that is ALWAYS the case) .... However, given that we had just been relegated, then a problem with cashflow would be expected to be the case in the coming year regardless of who was in charge. Last time we were relegated it instantly cost us over £1,000,000 on the balance sheet. Some of the challenges we faced last season could be laid at the previous board (contracts) but not everything .... and lest we forget, the "previous board" did not resign en-masse. Our current chairman was part of that board and changes took place over time with some stepping down and others appointed to their current roles. Its also not rocket science to know individuals will be leaving the business ... last time we were relegated the "previous board" cut our staffing to the absolute bare bones to offset costs so its not a new or novel idea for this to happen. The fact of the matter however, is that most of the resignations quoted in the article are not redundancies or sackings due to cost-cutting but individuals making the choice to end their employment with ICT for other reasons. I know the reasoning behind at least two of those from the horses mouths but cannot speculate on the others. The ones I do know about have absolutely nothing to do with cost cutting. The item in red concerns me ... especially given the quote earlier in this thread that the company she was quoted as being a founder/director of is now apparently doing the catering at the stadium and according to those who sampled it, it is of lower quality than what was there before. What was the tender process? Who appointed this company? Did the founder who was also our CEO remove herself from the discussions due to a clear conflict of interest? While she may have been involved in the stadium discussions (or not?) I dont think she can take credit for it. The stadium deal was ready to sign long before she appeared on the scene and the couple of years of posturing, machinations and additional discussions that took place before it was finally signed have done nothing except pad the legal costs. We have yet to see the details of this foundation, how it is to operate and what governance is placed around it. Its a great idea in principle, but as can be seen from sheepslagger's comments on other threads recently, a lot of this is still in the idea stage. It may have been her idea, and I would say that it is a good one ... but its far from the finished article. Financial position is not improved as far as I can see it. The accounts, delayed until the stadium ownership was sorted, and could be included on them as an asset, are horrendous and come with an auditors warning never before seen on our accounts. As I said above, it was not going to be an easy task regardless of who took it on after relegation but to say it has improved is overly optimistic at best. £810K loss IS within her tenure. She was appointed in May 2018 after helping the board for the previous 6 months (as per the press release). That means she was around since November 2017. I will agree once again that we do not need a CEO. No-one who has performed that role in the history of the club has shown it to be a crucial position at ICT. I would also agree with you regarding the serious questions and hope someone does ask these at the AGM. If I were still living locally I would be standing there doing just that. I would also encourage everyone to look at the ballot paper sent out and consider carefully before rubber stamping the options listed. Exactly !!

If this were a front page article I might agree with you .. but its an article by their chief football writer who typically has decent content despite the rag-like content of the paper itself. (a bit like Bill Leckie and the Sun). Which part of his story is incorrect ?

I will give her her due in one respect ... she did not call me up at home (in Toronto) at 5am on a Saturday morning asking me to remove a critical post from CTO !!! If she had, she would have got the same response as he did !!

Pressreader makes it easier to read and an even scarier story : https://www.pressreader.com/uk/scottish-daily-mail/20190307/283424897907476 . If true, this woman eclipses Mike Smith with consummate ease in terms of potential damage done to our club. If indeed true then good on the directors who rejected that ultimatum and good riddance ! This is another reason why we should not have a CEO meddling in football affairs. what does a CEO (any CEO we have had) know about the footballing side of the business. Nothing. I would rather have a Director of Football and a Director of Business on the board who managers responsible for each part of the club report to. Let them do their jobs on a day-to-day basis with governance in place to make sure everything is fine. Robbo and the Academy head would report to the Director of Football and whoever is the commercial and stadium managers would report to a Director of Business ... Looking at who we have lost, that's quite a number of good people and it seems she only fell when trying to oust yet another good person with a long history at the club in a part of the business she has no f***ing clue about. The more I re-read that article, the angrier I become at both her and the method by which she was installed in her position !

100% agree The matchday stuff is fine and usually pretty interesting, but outside of that, on a day to day basis any increase in presence seemed to be focused on shoutouts to companies that did some work for the club and got mentions - perhaps in lieu of a small discount? Not exactly enthralling or engaging and certainly not award-winning as we had been previously ! We have had 4 CEOs (or equivalent role with different job title) over the years and to be honest I am not sure what any have brought to the table in terms of justifying their positions or raising/saving more money than they were costing. Debbie and Morven were at least pretty likeable folk and I certainly had a number of run-ins with Mike Smith, but as I said above I cant really comment on anything other than my personal dealings with the most recent incumbent and those were far from positive. In fact, these were negative enough that after 25 solid years of sponsorship and free or low cost service provision to the club we literally want nothing to do with the commercial side. Thats no reflection on the sales staff themselves who are excellent, but the leadership. As Satan has asked ? Out of all the promises or goals that were mentioned back at the start of her tenure, what was actually achieved during that time? and at what cost both financially and in terms of relationship with fans and other sponsors? I am sure she worked hard and had ideas, and some may have found her very pleasant, but none of those things put money in the bank. Do we actually need someone? We have had 4 people take on that role - with different job titles at times - over 25 years and none of them have been a roaring success. A stadium manager and a senior sales executive reporting to a director rather than adding an extra layer and having them report to a CEO who then reports to that same director seems to have been sufficient for the majority of our existence. If we are going to replace her are we going to advertise the job this time and have an actual job description and pick the most suitably qualified candidate? Do we actually need someone? As I already said, some of our most productive years have been with good people in charge of sales and running the stadium without the title of CEO. People prepared to roll their sleeves up and do it themselves. They already did over the festive season did they not ? I must admit to finding this a bit strange too ... why jump now, just ahead of the 25th year celebrations ..... and the presentation of the accounts for scrutiny at the AGM !

A Caley/Thistle or ICT connection is irrelevant IMHO. Business acumen and the ability to find, develop and maintain meaningful relationships that generate revenue or further the reach of ICT is far more important. I actually question whether this position is required or not. A club of our meagre resources may not be able to sustain that expense. Depending on which former chairman you speak with, it is seen as either a good idea or it is something that can be done by some combination of sales staff and directors thereby saving a significant yearly salary. I have no idea how she performed on a day to day basis as my only dealings with Ms Crook were on email - when she chose to respond - and based on those interactions I personally do not have a positive opinion on her presence at the club. These were not fan or CTO communications, they were business related ones, and to ignore people who are not only service providers but also sponsors, customers and shareholders is bad business.

Cheers AM. watched and enjoyed. What a belter from Chalmers !

Scarlet - you do realise that this is about 50 FEET x 30 FEET (1500 square feet). Thats one hell of a piece of glass ! You do have a point though ... perhaps there is a way for the club to come to some agreement with CaleyD and display it - mural-like - somewhere in the stadium and put it behind perspex or something to protect it ..... after they have negotiated using it at Hampden again of course ?

THE MATCHDAY THREAD Discuss ICT & other games in this thread as they happen Dundee Utd -V- Inverness CT PREVIEW Sunday 3rd March @ 3:30pm, Tannadice Stadium, Dundee Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Facebook Go to the Chatroom Media Coverage AUDIO COVERAGE BBC Sportsound BBC Sportsound [UK Only] LIVE TEXT (ONLINE) Sporting Life BBC VIDEO SPFL YouTube Channel ICT Official YouTube Channel TEAM LINEUPS TO FOLLOW Tweets by @ICTFC Tweets by @ICTFC

Peter Pawlett sent off

1-0 : Nicky Clark penalty after a foul by Donaldson ?

I get where you are coming from, but the simple fact is that football clubs cannot be compared to any other traditional businesses. Where else would you have people throwing money into a loss making business year after year other than football clubs or some other comparable venture where loyalty, support and tribalism is more important than profit. Whether you have 250 shares or 250,000 shares in ICT you did not buy them for any expected return. However, you can only go to the well so many times before it dries up so yes there does need to be a plan and it does need to be communicated to the supporters openly (and quickly by the sound of it). Depends on how much those individuals are being paid, how much revenue they generate, and how crucial the tasks they perform are. For those whose main task is to bring in revenue then its easy to measure if targets were reached, but for those who may provide support services or perform duties that enhance the matchday experience then its harder. We know that after our first relegation the staff was pared to the bone, perhaps too close to the bone, and many staff were let go with those remaining taking on multiple roles. I am not sure how things stack up now but given my dealings with a few folk then some of those same people are still doing multiple roles ....

Its a little more complicated than that I would think. Whilst the previous board may have overspent on a premiership budget with premiership income (plus the odd windfall from other clubs' European football escapades or indeed OFW bonus from the Euros), the concern here is current and ongoing problem highlighted in the auditors report. We have obviously taken steps to reduce our spending since leaving the premiership and we are now operating on a championship budget with championship income (leading to grumbles about the quality of play). Part of the issue may be a legacy from our time in the top flight, but not all of it. I would be interested to hear how we are aiming to plug this hole. Using the stands as collateral to our debts is a recipe for disaster and the admirable idea to crowdfund some more finances will - in my opinion - only scratch the surface. What is the plan ?

THE MATCHDAY THREAD Discuss ICT & other games in this thread as they happen Inverness CT -V- Greenock Morton PREVIEW 23rd February 2019 @ 3pm, Caledonian Stadium Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Facebook Go to the Chatroom Media Coverage AUDIO COVERAGE BBC Sportsound BBC Sportsound [UK Only] LIVE TEXT (ONLINE) Sporting Life BBC VIDEO SPFL YouTube Channel ICT Official YouTube Channel TEAM LINEUPS TO FOLLOW Tweets by @ICTFC Tweets by @ICTFC

Whilst it is true to say people from the club do read this site, and at times do comment, we are not an official communication channel. One of the board directors - who was a site member long before being a director - is inviting questions to his official club email address and saying he will answer or pose those to others. He has already answered some of the questions posed on here so far from kicking things into the long grass, I would say he is mowing that grass to try and make a smooth path ! As they say, dont look a gift horse in the mouth - especially when one of the complaints people have is a lack of communication !

There is a mad obsession on any football forum for sacking the board when things are not going well .... I haven't logged onto the Toronto FC boards yet this morning (dreading it) .... but after going down 4-0 last night in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League to an unfancied Panamanian side and now having to score 5 at BMO field in Toronto next week to progress, I expect to see multiple discussions to sack the board, the manager, the kitman, everyone ... and also to sign about 20 players that people will name to solve the issue of replacing the departed Sebastian Giovinco, Victor Vazquez and Gregory Van Der Wiel ..... its not an ICT thing or a Scottish thing, its a football thing. It happens whether you are a poor club or a rich club, its just the logic and rationale that are different. For me, Kingsmills hit it on the head as quoted below ... you can call to sack the board if you want but before you do make that knee-jerk reaction perhaps you should have a clear idea of what or who you want as a replacement and what they can bring to the table. In ICT terms, after a few years of being ostentatious in some peoples eyes, we are now cutting our cloth to suit our level right now and everything is magnified because we were operating at a higher level until recently. As with Kingsmills, I have my own opinion on the current board based on my interactions with some of the members over the last couple of years but not in 'sack the board' territory just yet !!! I look forward to seeing the shareholder accounts very soon to see if there are concerns over the stewardship of the club. If they steady the ship then look to put us back on an upward path then I have no concerns.

yes. 5 out of 5 penalties. McManus penalty saved by Ridgers. we are through.

i wish you luck ! thats a horrible airport !

THE MATCHDAY THREAD Discuss ICT & other games in this thread as they happen Inverness CT -V- Ross County PREVIEW 19th February @ 7:45pm, Caledonian Stadium Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Facebook Go to the Chatroom Media Coverage AUDIO COVERAGE BBC Sportsound BBC Sportsound [UK Only] LIVE TEXT (ONLINE) Sporting Life BBC VIDEO SPFL YouTube Channel ICT Official YouTube Channel TEAM LINEUPS Tweets by @ICTFC Tweets by @ICTFC

FC Cincinnati are the new boys in MLS this year and given that they play in orangey red/blue vertical stripes, I think over the coming years we might get a glimpse of what our own strips could be like if made by Adidas.... got to say I quite like these although some on here might prefer Atlanta’s new strip ...... https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2019/02/15/atlanta-united-unveil-new-primary-jersey-ahead-2019-season

Ross. Appreciate the responses so far and for you taking the time to give your own opinion/answers on the questions asked. You have been registered on here for about 10 years, so as a fan yourself and not just a director, you know that most are realistic in knowing we always have challenges and that supporting any football team is a rollercoaster ride, but receiving responses to questions and regular communication is sometimes all thats needed to calm fears and defuse bad feeling when things are tough. Even if the answers are tough ones too. We had a great few years of success so this current malaise is hard to take. I wish you well in trying to turn it around.

Where did you get a warning? Did you report the post using the reporting system? if not then get down off your high horse. IHE has had more warnings than you have had birthdays.

Ok, I'll bite. Your multiple accounts over the years have all ended in you getting personal with others and dishing it out but not being able to take it in return, then taking the huff, dishing out abuse and buggering off to P&B for a while before coming back and registering a new account all of which are pretty obvious to anyone who has seen you post before. All your other accounts are still there - just marked 'pending' until discussion with site admin. This is a private site, with rules. They are not very complicated ones, and if you keep wanting to ignore them then this account goes the same way. Your choice, not ours. be civil. We do reserve the right to refuse or revoke membership to the site ... its not a public service so the entitlement you display is unfounded ! If you think there is something wrong with any particular post from IHE or anyone else then use the reporting mechanism in place instead of hijacking the topic. The mods will discuss and make a decision. As the site owner, I can and will say that if you continue to bad mouth site users and try to moderate within topics by throwing out insults then we will simply set your account to post moderation. I have other things to take care of in real life and no time to babysit grown up children.