RadCom April 2024, Vol. 100, No. 4

April 2024 7 www.rsgb.org RSGB Matters RSGB 2024 AGM The 97th AGM will be held on Saturday, 13 April 2024 at 10am online via www.rsgb.org Arrangements have been made for Members to cast their votes by proxy – go to www.rsgb.org/agm for details. Whilst we encourage Members to vote electronically via the website wherever possible, if you require a postal vote, please call HQ on 01234 832 702. Full details of how to vote can be found on page 6 along with the various Resolutions and explanatory notes. After the formal business of the AGM there will be a Review of 2023 by RSGB President John McCullagh, GI4BWM followed by the announcement of the annual Society Awards, Trophies and winners of the Construction Competition. The AGM will conclude with a presentation (details below) and you will be able to ask questions via the live chat during the presentation. We look forward to Members joining us for the event which will be streamed via the internet on our website and other online platforms. New to voting in the RSGB Elections? The RSGB Board is appointed by you, the RSGB Members. The RSGB Board sets the direction the Society follows and so it is very important that the Board Directors are the people you, the Members, wish to represent them. You will see the list of candidates for endorsement as Board Director on page 8. Unsure of who to vote to endorse? Here are some suggestions to help you choose: • Watch the videos and read the CVs and Personal Statements that have been written by the candidates. See if their background and aspirations match your view of what the Society needs. • Choose someone you think matches the characteristics needed for a good Board Director: someone who is honest and has integrity; who acts professionally and is a team player; who has appropriate skills and experience, as well as time to carry out the role well. • You may vote for all three candidates as there are three vacancies. The decision about who to vote for is entirely yours. But please do vote – it takes only a few minutes and will help to ensure that the RSGB Board reflects your views. All you need is your callsign and membership number – the latter is on the RadCom wrapper, is viewable if you log into the RSGB website or can be obtained from RSGB HQ. Video interviews Each Board candidate was invited to have a video interview as part of the election process this year. We wanted to give them the opportunity to share more about themselves as a person and to explain their thoughts on the issues facing amateur radio and the RSGB. The interviews were pre-recorded separately, and each candidate was asked the same set of questions. They were not told the specific questions in advance, other than the first one which asked about their amateur radio experience and interests. This year, there are three Nominated Directors who are being put forward for membership endorsement. Their answers are combined in a single video so you can see each candidate’s thoughts on the same question. In addition, there is one Elected Director who has already been elected unopposed. Whilst as an RSGB member you don’t need to vote on this candidate, we still asked them the same questions so you can get to know them better as they begin their role. We hope the videos will help you, as an RSGB member, to find out more about each Board candidate and that you will to be able to decide more easily who you feel is right to help lead the Society over the next few years. You can watch the interviews on our YouTube channel and on our website at rsgb.org/candidates Questions for the Board Over the last few years, we’ve been developing the way in which the Board can be asked questions at our online AGMs. This year you have three ways you can get involved: Questions via video on Zoom: You’ll have the chance to ask your question live with one follow-up question on the same topic. You’ll need to register in advance and give the topic of your question, as only RSGB members are allowed to ask questions during the formal part of the AGM. The link to register will be available online until 12 noon on Friday 5 April. Written questions in advance: If you’d like to submit a written question, you can do so until voting ends at 0900 on 11 April 2024. Please use the form on rsgb.org/agm Live chat questions: We’ll take as many as possible during the second part of the AGM. If you would like to ask a question about the formal part of the meeting, please submit a written question in advance or register to ask a question via Zoom. For more information visit rsgb.org/agm AGM presentation After the main AGM meeting, we’ll be delighted to share a recorded presentation by David Willis, the Ofcom Group Director, Spectrum, on the subject of “Making amateur radio licensing fit for the future”. This will be followed by a live Q&A on the licence changes with four RSGB senior representatives: President John McCullagh, GI4BWM; Board Chair Stewart Bryant, G3YSX; General Manager Steve Thomas, M1ACB; and Spectrum Forum Chair Murray Niman, G6JYB.