Related post: Chuck Ayers announces resignation from Cascade Bicycle Club

Written by Daniel Weise, President of the Board of Directors

Boardmember Joe Platzner

On behalf of the board of directors, I am pleased to announce that Joe Platzner has been appointed to the interim executive director position of the Cascade Bicycle Club. Joe was elected to the board in October 2012, and took his position in January 2013. He brings extensive leadership experience as well as a lifelong passion for cycling to the club. We are confident in his abilities to be an effective interim executive director.

In April, Joe will start working alongside Chuck, assuming the full executive director role on Monday, April 15. Joe and the board have agreed on four main goals during the transition:

     - Execute our current commitments. Provide a seamless transition operationally.

     - Recruit the most capable, experienced and visionary ED for the club.

     - Ensure that the permanent leader inherits the best possible operation.

     - Have fun.

Welcome Joe Platzner to interim executive director role

I’m flattered to have this opportunity. I owe much to Cascade. Cascade pulled me back into cycling with STP, and their work helped create much of the infrastructure I use every day. There are so many exciting projects we can bring to fruition where Cascade has helped lay the groundwork. In my neighborhood, for example, Cascade can influence game-changing projects with regional significance such as the BNSF corridor and the missing link in the mountains to sound greenway.

I look forward to working with the staff, volunteers, and community partners to better understand the club’s operations and to help find the best leader we can. Cascade will have no problem attracting a fantastic group of candidates from which to choose. I suspect our most difficult task will be to choose from wonderful options.

This is an interim full-time position; I’m not applying for the permanent position. I will be on leave from the boards of both Cascade and Bicycle Alliance of Washington while I’m on as ED. I expect to leave most big decisions to the next ED, but I will be fully engaged in the operations of the club, and one can expect changes as are usual with any transition. I’m looking forward to engaging with all of the staff; I’d welcome as many conversations as possible to be on bikes on coffee shop runs.

Executive director search process

A search committee has been formed, comprised of deputy director Kathy McCabe, and board members George Durham, Mo McBroom, Joe Platzner, Charles Ruthford and Don Volta. Finding the best leader for Cascade is a significant responsibility. We will conduct a national search to attract the best talent possible. We expect to open the position for application within a few weeks. We will circulate it through all our communication channels, including the website, blog, Braking News, social media and Cascade Courier. Members who would like to recommend candidates for consideration should send information to CBCEDSearch@cascadebicycleclub.org.

At Cascade, we have a tremendous opportunity to encourage people to bicycle, reduce the size of our collective carbon footprint and improve the health and well-being of our families, friends and neighbors — in short, to create communities that bicycle. If Cascade is to continue being a leader in this transformation, the club needs strong leaders — leaders with vision and drive — to serve on its board.

Our Board of Directors is expanding from 12 to 14 members, and over the last several months, the club’s Nominations Committee, chaired by board Vice President Don Volta, has been busy searching for such leaders. The committee was delighted to present a four-member slate of candidates to the club’s Board of Directors and to have the full slate approved. These four candidates will be running for two open board positions. If elected, the new board members will serve a three-year term.

The Board of Directors represents the voice of the members and is responsible to the membership. Its role is to ensure that Club resources are being used to the greatest benefit for all members as well as the larger cycling community.

The four candidates are:

Click on the candidate’s name to read their full candidate statement.

Maggie Anderson

“I truly believe that we can create a better community through bicycling and have seen that happen through Cascade’s youth programs and education work. I bring a fresh perspective, passion for community engagement, steadfast skills in campaign management, and a wide-angle lens on issues communities face when it comes to access to safe environments for cycling.  I would be excited to work alongside the board and staff to continue to build club membership and expand reach to new communities and demographics.”

Brent Hadley 

“I am excited and humbled to offer my time and energy to support the members of CBC and to provide a voice of the riding members on the board.”  If elected, Hadley is committed to continuing the growth of the club’s influence and activities to enhance cycling in the broader Puget Sound Region, improve cycling safety, increase support for our riding programs and ride leaders, enhance communication with our members, grow and strengthen interaction with other bicycle clubs, and provide opportunities to educate the broad public.

 

Steinar Hjelle

“I would like to serve on the Cascade Bicycle Club board of directors to help promote biking advocacy, influence decision makers to help make Seattle a more bike-friendly city, and move the club forward in its mission to create a better community through bicycling. My skills and experience in strategic planning, budgeting, organizational advocacy and new member recruiting would make me an effective Cascade Bicycle Club board member. With more than 15 years of serving in executive leadership positions in Fortune 100 companies, I will be an effective and active board member and I would help ensure that we stay true to our mission.”

 

Joe Platzner

“Like many people, I owe Cascade Bicycle Club.  They helped re-kindle my passion for cycling, and they work to make cycling safer and more enjoyable for everyone.  I want cycling to be a mainstream activity for many.  I want to see it funded as an essential mode of transportation… I’d like to see Washington State as a model for a bicycle-friendly place to live.  Cascade is an influential organization, and I’d like to help leverage this influence… I have some relevant skills, and I have the time to commit to put in the effort required to make a difference.  I can bring my leadership experience in strategic planning, network planning, marketing, and program management to the table… I’d like to give back a little since I owe them for getting me back on the bike. ”

 

You’ll have an opportunity to meet the candidates in person at the upcoming Board Candidate Forum or the Annual Membership Meeting.  

- The Board Candidate Forum will take place on Wednesday, Sept. 26, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at Magnuson Park Building 30, 6310 NE 74th St.

- Our Annual Membership Meeting will follow on Tuesday, Oct. 9 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the South Lake Union Discovery Center, 101 Westlake Avenue North, Seattle.

Meet the candidates online

If you are unable to make the in-person candidate meetings, you can still meet the candidates on the Cascade forums. Reading the forums is open to anyone, but if you want to post, you must first join the forums.

We are expanding our Board of Directors from 12 to 14 members, which means we are looking for candidates to fill the two open spots.

The Board of Directors of the Cascade Bicycle Club represents the voice of the members and is responsible to the membership. Its role is to ensure that Club resources are being used to the greatest benefit for all members as well as the larger cycling community. Service on the Cascade Board is for a three-year term, and we are seeking qualified, mission-driven Club members who will help us continue to move our club forward.

We need your help in identifying and recruiting Club members who would help build a strong and visionary board. Ideal candidates will have a history of service to Cascade and/or the cycling community, have specific skills needed by the board, the time and passion to contribute, and enhance board diversity in terms of, e.g., age, culture, geography, and constituent representation.

Nominate your friend, colleague, family member, yourself or anyone else you know who has passion for our mission and a desire to spread the joy and power of bicycling throughout the region.

Please submit your nominations to the Nomination Committee at nominations@cascadebicycleclub.org or directly to the Club office.

Nominations for the next club election are being accepted through July 13, 2012. The Nomination Committee — led by Board member Don Volta — will contact nominees to schedule interviews over the period of July 16 to Aug. 3. Following the interviews the board will consider and approve a slate of candidates for the 2012 elections that will take place in October, 2012.

Read more information and get the nomination forms.