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At the Canadian Soccer Association's annual general meeting last weekend, delegates voted in favour of a new governance framework that will revolutionize the organization. 

 

The decision could prove to be the most important one ever made by the CSA, and the response from the soccer community across the country has been very positive. 

 

However, as with any change this important, there are many questions that still need to be answered. 

 

Lots of questions

 

In my last blog, I outlined the basic features of the governance framework, including the mandate that there be seven elected and six appointed Directors on the Board. The responsibility of identifying and recruiting those appointed Directors would be the task of a Nominations Committee. 

 

There are some who, on the basis of their experience with the CSA, remain sceptical. Will this Nominations Committee simply appoint the same individuals to the Board who have been there for years, maintaining the status quo? Furthermore, who will be on the Nominations Committee? 

 

Let me start by saying that the purpose of appointing Directors to the CSA Board is not to ensure that those individuals who are not elected have another opportunity to gain a seat at the table. The goal is to bring in new ideas through the recruitment of professionals and business leaders who will provide expertise and credibility in their respective fields. 

 

The Nominations Committee will be looking for people with expertise in law, accounting, and governance, someone with a professional soccer background, and individuals from the corporate sector. And there is a requirement that there be at least three women on the Board, so if none of the elected Directors are women, three of the appointed Directors will be. 

 

This last point is an important aspect of the new framework, as not only do women make up a significant percentage of soccer players in Canada, but they bring diversity and a different perspective to a Board that has traditionally been male dominated. 

 

I have told many people this week that the makeup of the Nominations Committee is crucial to the success of this reform. Recruiting the right individuals to the Board will allow the CSA to essentially re-brand itself as a diverse and forward-thinking organization. Respected business leaders, financial specialists and other professionals will bring skill-sets to the Board that it needs in today's world. 

 

Their recruitment will provide the CSA with instant credibility in the corporate community, which will allow the Association to develop new revenue streams. This is vital for the future of the game in Canada, as the CSA must find a way to move away from its reliance on the player levy as a main source of revenue. 

 

The Nominations Committee will consist of five members, three of whom will be independent and two of whom will be members of the Board. The criteria I outlined above regarding the identification and recruitment of Directors will be written into the CSA's governance policies, which must in turn be approved by the Board. 

 

The current Board will choose the members of the Nominations Committee, by consensus. 

 

Old boys club

 

The three independent Committee members will have no connection with soccer, and it will be they who ensure that the nominations process remains objective and effective. As I said before, there is a fear in some circles within the soccer community that the Nominations Committee will end up making appointments that simply maintain the "old-boys club", which many feel are holding the Association back. That will not be the case.  

 

The Nominations Committee will be a balanced panel including experienced professionals, whose job will be to seek out the most qualified candidates to fill the six appointed Board positions. 

 

And before you protest about the inclusion of two current Board members on the initial Nominations Committee, remember that many of the current Board are in favour of governance renewal. They want this change to happen because they recognize that it is in the best interests of the Association. 

 

Some individuals have expressed anger and disbelief that there would be delegates at the AGM who would vote against this reform. There have been calls to name those delegates and the provinces that they represent. If we can put this into the context of a team, we have to stop blaming each other for our failures and start taking collective responsibility for the situation in which we find ourselves. We can lay the blame for our lack of unity at the feet of province X, Y or Z, but that brings us no closer to becoming a unified team. 

 

I said at the AGM that if the Canadian Soccer Association were a soccer team, the eleven players on the field would need eleven balls with which to play, because no one wants to work together for the benefit of the team. That has to stop. 

 

We need to start thinking about the CSA as our team. Each and every one of us should be asking ourselves the question, "How can I make my team better?" rather than, "What can I gain for myself?" 

 

When we all start doing that, the Canadian Soccer Association - our team - will be ready to achieve great things.

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