[Tango-L] Business practices (was Speak up if you are uncomfortable - policies)

[Trini y Sean (PATangoS)]

--- "Chris, UK" <tl2 at chrisjj.com> wrote:

> Trini wrote:
> > In a lot of small communities, tango gets started
> through people pooling their resources to form
non-profits.  Officers are often elected as a legal
requirement to share a balance of power.  That is how
things are often done in the States.
 
> "in the States" - no doubt. But I think you'll find, as I
said, that phenomenon is largely confined to the tango
third world. Perhaps in part because in established tango
communities, "balance of power" and getting a share of it
doesn't have quite as much appeal...

On the contrary, it becomes even more important, as I shall
explain below.  But first, please elaborate what you mean
by "third world".  You say it as if there is something
wrong with being third-world.  What do you mean by it? 

On issues about the balance of power.  In larger cities,
the monetary figures goes into tens of thousands of
dollars.  When this occurs it is critical that an
appropriate structure be in place, especially for
nonprofits, to protect the funds and property of the
nonprofit.

Since I'm much more familiar with for-profit corporations
than I am with nonprofits, I'll discuss the issues in those
terms.  The underlying ideas, however still apply to
nonprofits.

A corporation is a legal entity (i.e., a "person") with its
own rights.  The structure and laws governing a corporation
are intended to allow it to grow in perpetuity.  The
officers of a corporation (e.g., the chief executive
officer, chief financial officer, chief operating officer,
and director of marketing among others) have a fiduciary
obligation to treat the money of the corporation with the
same care as if it was their own (this is the legal
standard).  This is to protect the investors.  These
officers also report to the board of directors (comprised
of both outside directors and company officers) who
represent the shareholders. It's the board who hires/fires
the CEO or the president of the company.

Imagine what would happen if the CEO and the CFO was the
same person.   Of if the officers didn’t have to report to
the board.  Or if the CEO was chosen by the officers of the
company.  Think of how easy it would be for the funds of
the corporation to be siphoned away into a Swiss bank
account.  This is why independent auditing is such a big
deal.  The Big 5 accounting firm of Arther Anderson was
dissolved after the Enron scandal because its accounting
practices were not thought to be completely independent of
Enron.

In nonprofits, you can have one person doing the function
of a CEO and CFO, but this can be dangerous since it would
be so easy to doctor the bookkeeping.  By now it should be
pretty obvious why the balance of power is so important.  

There is also the potential problem of groupthink – that
is, people can be trying so hard to get along that they may
not do what is actually best for the nonprofit.  An example
of this is the Bay of Pigs fiasco early in John F.
Kennedy’s term.  The invasion plans had been developed with
Kennedy’s predecessor, and Kennedy sorta’ went along.  When
the Cuban Missile crisis came along, Kennedy secretly
appointed his brother Robert to be a devil’s advocate to
make sure that all information (not just the pros) were
brought out before he made a decision.

In terms of a tango community, people need to hold the
officers of the nonprofit that they belong to accountable
for their decisions.  After all, it’s their own resources
they are investing that they are trusting the officers to
use wisely.  But it’s also not just the funds, it’s
goodwill (which is actually considered to be an intangible
asset owned by the company).  What tends to happen is
groupthink – people are not willing to challenge a decision
they feel an officer made is bad because they may not want
to “rock the boat”.  When problems occur, say a community
divides, people tend not to say anything and hope that
things work out.  I say:  be active, say something, rock
the boat, treat it with the same seriousness you do with
your own investment.  Because people will invest simply
because they feel it is important to support their
community. 

Whether you realize it or not, there are people in
communities who have influence (i.e. community leaders)
whether they realize it or not.  This is true not matter
how big the community is.  You may not realize it until a
crisis occurs.  For this, tango communities might be
ill-prepared.  But I think I’ve written enough for now.

Trini de Pittsburgh


PATangoS - Pittsburgh Argentine Tango Society
  Our Mission: To make Argentine Tango Pittsburgh’s most popular social dance!
  http://patangos.home.comcast.net/
   



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