Corporate Structure Proposal
Letter from John Hogg
The Global Corporate Structure is one of the most important proposals to come before the HOD in the last 25 years.
Back in 2004, when Chair-Elect of the House Steve Sonnenberg was Chair of the Advisory Council, the council undertook a long range planning initiative that was vetted through the annual leadership conference, the Executive Committee, and the HOD and Membership through articles in the Explorer.
The “Big Audacious Goal” that came out of the long range planning process was for AAPG to be “indispensible to geoscientists worldwide.” This statement is particularly remarkable because it came at a time when the Regions were in their first years of existence and non-US membership was around 25%. Today, our Regional leadership and membership are running conferences, short courses, field trips, working with universities on the Imperial Barrel Award and are involved in the leadership of AAPG through the Advisory Council and the Executive Committee. They are fulfilling the vision that was portrayed to the House when we formed them in the late 1990s.
Interestingly, the AAPG tag line, “An International Organization,” has been on our letterhead since the late Bruno Hanson requested it in his 1986 Presidential year. A lot has changed in the AAPG from the year we put that on our letterhead and even more has happened around the world in those 20+ years. All of the changes that we have made in the last 15 years—from the formation of the Regions to the modifications to the Executive Committee and Advisory Council—have brought us closer to the global organization envisioned in the AAPG strategic plan.
Last year, President Will Green charged Past President Marlan Downey and his committee to look at how to modify the AAPG to protect the Association’s assets and how to allow the Regions and Sections to come under the umbrella of the AAPG. Marty Hewitt chaired a presidential Global Structure Committee formed by President Scott Tinker earlier this year that considered how best to implement the actions Marlan’s committee recommended.
At minimum, the AAPG requires a structural change to protect the organization legally and financially. However, there are other desirable benefits from the proposed global corporate structure. The United States can lay claim to some of the largest, most productive, learned societies and associations in the world. In the energy world, AAPG, SEG, and SPE are known around the world and have worldwide memberships. Both SEG and SPE have redefined their organizational structures to better serve their members and protect the assets of their US-based origins. The proposed global corporate structure takes advantage of lessons learned by these organizations yet would result in a structure better suited to AAPG.
Chairman Bole has placed the Global Corporate Structure on the Agenda for discussion in Denver in June. Getting the sense of the House will be important. The next steps, assuming the sense is positive, will be to have the C&BL review the proposal. There would also be extensive discussion with the Executive Committee, Advisory Council, and the AAPG membership before the issue could come for a vote at the HOD meeting in New Orleans in April 2010.
I support the findings and recommendations of both Marlan Downey’s and Marty Hewitt’s committees and hope that you too will support the concepts that will be presented.
My request is that each of you please review the documents that have been provided, listen closely to the presentations by President Tinker and Chairman Hewitt and then express your views on the proposed model at the meeting. When you do, please think about these changes affect AAPG, not only about how this affects your Region or Section, but also how this will help AAPG and the worldwide membership in our wonderful Association. We do not have all the answers yet, but I believe it’s important to the health of AAPG to begin the discussion now.
If our goal is to be “indispensable to geoscientists worldwide,” the time has come for the next step in our incredible journey.