Showsight January 2021

LINES FROM LINDA: CANDID CANDIDATES: PART TWO

Dr. Gregory J. Paveza Elm City Kennel Club New Haven, Connecticut

1. The pandemic has changed the world of dogs. What is your vision for the future of AKC in this new world? While the pandemic has certain- ly changed the world of dogs, I think we need to be careful in assuming

I BELIEVE THAT THE MOST PRESSING ISSUE THAT WILL NEED TO BE ADDRESSED FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE WILL BE HOW DO WE HELP OUR VARIOUS DOGS CLUBS, MEMBER AND LICENSED, STAY IN EXISTENCE.

that these changes are permanent. As I noted in my speech to the delegate body in December, I believe that the most pressing issue that will need to be addressed for the foreseeable future will be how do we help our various dogs clubs, member and licensed, stay in existence. What are the actions we can take to support clubs financially and, if needed, how can we help clubs consolidate without losing the rich history that the consolidating clubs might each bring to that consolidation? Various ideas have been floated on the Delegates List and should be considered, but always within the context of maintaining the overall fiscal integ- rity of the AKC. 2. The AKC laid off a large number of employees. Even today it can be difficult to receive a timely response to club and exhibitor questions. What are the plans for returning to proper staffing levels, and what can the AKC do to offset the inevitable loss of dog/sport knowledge that will occur as staff members leave? Since I am not a currently sitting board member, I am not privy to what plans have been developed to return to proper staff- ing levels. Also, we need to be cautious about assuming what proper staffing levels should be. In general, proper levels would be that the business of the organization and the issues brought to it by constituents could be addressed by employees in a generally acceptable period under normal working conditions. It is entirely possible that prior staffing levels were the proper staffing levels, and it is also possible that current staffing levels, even with the layoffs, are proper staffing levels. I do find your use of the word “timely” interesting. When I started as a faculty member in higher education, I was consid- ered to have made a timely response if I returned an inquiry in a few days. By the time I retired as a university administrator, my responses were often not seen as timely, by the person submitting the request, if they didn’t happen within an hour or two of the inquiry, and it was often irrelevant to the sender if they sent the inquiry at 2 AM. As to the second half of your question, there is always a loss of institutional memory when someone leaves. If the departure is anticipated, you can plan for it and have the person prepare an “after-action” report outlining accomplishments, issues facing the unit, and some critical pieces of history. If the loss is sudden, then there may be nothing that can be done about the loss of the institutional memory. If the person who previously held the posi- tion is still available, one can hope that they are open to being contacted and consulted concerning the institutional memory or directing the current occupant to where the pertinent informa- tion can be located. But, sometimes the institutional memory is just lost. 3. The LINK collar and the doggie day care businesses were controver- sial and losing business ventures. The AKC has not been transparent with the delegates regarding these activities. (1) What are the lessons learned? (2) What are the AKC’s plans to invest in the future of its mission-driven activities?

I am not quite sure how to respond to this question as I am not currently a sitting board member. Here are some general thoughts, however. I hope that one lesson not learned is that taking investment risks should never happen. Secondly, it seems to me that we need to move beyond either/or thinking, that is, either invest in activities that do not appear to be mission-driv- en or invest in mission-driven activities, and move to both/and thinking, that is, it is possible to invest in both activities that do not appear to be mission-driven and in mission-driven activities. Moreover, given the financial situation at the time, the decision by the board, which I have no doubt was well discussed within the board, was to take a risk in these investments to help shore up the overall finances of the organization. Finally, I think it is time that we move beyond reacting to the Board as if it is some nefarious group of marauders out to destroy the sport, and grant the same presumption of grace that we want extended to the delegate body and members of the fancy in general as we express opinions and make decisions about the sport, which is that we are all working in the best interests of the AKC and its mission-driven activities. 4. The AKC Museum of the Dog appears to be an expensive and little- used facility, located in a city going through a major transformation. How much does the museum cost the AKC annually? And what is the future of the museum as you see it? I’m glad you used the term, “appears to be,” since I do not know how much the museum costs the AKC annually, nor do I have information concerning how much traffic passes through the museum annually. Also, I’m not aware of any major trans- formation taking place in NYC that isn’t part of the temporary aberrations caused by the current pandemic. As to its future, we need to continue to help it be more self-sustaining through its fund-raising efforts. However, the museum, as are all museums and libraries, is our archives; the keeper of our institutional his- tory and memory. Your question above raised concern about the loss of institutional memory due to the layoffs, but this question seems prepared to suggest that we discard the physical artifacts and written records that document the importance of dogs in our lives. The museum may be one of the stronger arguments that we

SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, JANUARY 2021 | 85

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