The eClub Experiment
Thanks to everyone who sent feedback on my previous post on whether I should run for eClub leadership. Really appreciate the kind encouragement and thoughtful feedback to consider, e.g. doing more for entrepreneurs in non-tech endeavors, connecting with the d.school, and other excellent points I’m incorporating for a future post.
Yesterday I met with teams and individuals also interested in eClub leadership—in my mind, a fantastic community of talent and energy.
Here’s my latest thinking on running:
Consensus makes more sense than elections
While I want to contribute to eClub in a material way, I don’t want to pick among friends as “running mates”. On one hand, it sucks to lose, on the other hand, if winning excludes someone who’d otherwise put their heart into helping others, that sucks too. Sure, theoretically losers could join the winners—but given the opportunities at the GSB I think top people would likely go elsewhere.
That’s such a waste!
“Volunteer Candidates”
I’m considering a concept I’ll call a “Volunteer Candidate”—someone who is on the “slate” of every team that runs for eClub. It’s someone who wants to help, that would be a welcome contributor to any team. Most often, this a CFO position, but I’d love to see the concept extended to any position.
The experiment
To figure out if this concept works, I’m offering to be the first Volunteer Candidate. I’ll join any team running for eClub. You’ll get someone who’s passionate about helping others, and 100% ready to be a leader for the organization (if your co-president roles are full, I’ll be a VP and we can figure out which area works best).
Here’s my bio:
As a former engineering manager in Microsoft Office, Ian led the design of features now available to millions of Excel, Visio and SQL Server users. Later he ran Microsoft’s online photo service, growing it to the 4th largest in the world. He holds cognitive science and computer engineering degrees from the University of Waterloo, where he served as a University Senator, Engineering Society President, IEEE Chair, and Newspaper Editor-in-Chief.
Join the experiment?
If you’re more interested in contributing to eClub than winning an election, how about becoming a Volunteer Candidate too?
Just mail me about what you’re interested in achieving with eClub next year and I’ll maintain a list to share with all the “slates” who’d value volunteers in addition to the candidates in competition.
To emphasize, this is just an experiment.
I could be a total dork in my thinking.
Would be grateful for any feedback you have,
PS: Most student leadership positions I’ve undertaken came through consensus. The one into which I was elected was rocky, so I’m slightly allergic to the whole process.
