Welcome to the IOG Blog
Welcome to the IOG’s new website. As part of our ongoing commitment to improve what we offer to our members, we hope you will take time to tour the site. We have responded to what many have asked for and provided a range of opportunities for you to have much more interaction with the IOG and, of course, each other.
No doubt you will have views on the site yourself and, of course, if there are things you would like and we have not thought of please let us know and we will see what can be done. We hope you find the new site an improvement on what we had before, and I am sure we will continue to work on improving it further.
In short, tell us your needs. We are pleased with the improvements but the more you let us know your views the more we can do to improve the site.
You can join the IOG group via Facebook, you can enter into debate or discussion via the Forum, although you will need to be a member of the IOG to take part. Take a look also at the online magazine section which provides back issues that you can read at your leisure or maybe use to print off articles of interest.
Also, check out the brand new IOG Conference and Awards site www.iogawards.com , which has been designed to greatly simplify the nomination process (some last year commented that it took too long and was too in-depth, which meant some people were put off voting). I am confident that what we have done for 2010 is a significant advance. On the site you will also see details of last year’s winners, who I am sure will agree enjoyed a great night and have subsequently benefited from winning an Award.
We are pleased to be taking this year’s event to Cardiff where we have one of the most active Branches throughout our Regional structure.
So this year, don’t let the opportunity pass you by - as the saying goes, it could be you!
If you are from a particular Region and have something to talk about, make sure you use your Regional page to alert others to news or events in your area. We will be making slight changes to these pages once we have held the AGM in May, which is officially the start point for the new Regional structure.
With the network of Regional Advisors we have in place/soon to be in place, we will look to develop the Region and Branch network. Not an easy task, as we know recruiting and retaining volunteers in this day and age is increasingly a science in itself. But we have many good volunteers putting time into the IOG and who are deeply passionate about the IOG and the industry in general. But the message is clear: we need more of you! So if you want to give something back or have the time, contact the Region or Branch nearest to you and get active!
Where are all the youngsters? No offence to anyone over 25, but if you are starting out rather than nearing the finish line why not get involved? I already have a couple of names who are interested in forming a Young IOG Board, something that would be great for this organisation. We need to engage far better than we have with schools, colleges and the next generation of groundsman (and women?) We know you use social networking as a way of communicating with each other, so why not set up a virtual Branch network! You can then teach the rest of us how to use digital media to communicate!
Changing tack completely, I write this blog the day after the date of the General Election was announced, and this will be the first election where the likes of Twitter, Facebook and other digital platforms determine the fate of who we elect to Government. I am reliably informed that there are key marginal seats, one of which is Milton Keynes, that will determine the outcome. We now have 29 days of wall-to-wall 24-hour Election coverage, but who will be best for our industry? Perhaps you may wish to discuss on our members forum page?
Once that is out of the way, we can look forward to non-stop coverage of the World Cup in South Africa, and I am sure there are many in this industry that have played an active role in advising or actively contributing to this event. We have many members who lend their experience to such worldwide events, and it will be interesting to see the state of play when the time comes.
Of course, in between all this we have a number of iconic sporting events that once again as we enter a summer of sport (hopefully with some sun thrown in) where the skills of many of you will be seen by people all over the world. What better advert for our profession?
Of course, let’s not forget all of you operating at a grass roots level across a myriad of sports, and my question to you is how much support, recognition or understanding do you get from the National Governing bodies of Sport? Can they do more to support you and this industry? We know that many clubs operate on a shoestring budget, indeed in certain instances this is the case for those in paid positions at professional sports stadia. Are you getting a fair deal? If not, why not? Let us know via the Forum so we can represent the reality when we engage with sports administrators at a national level on your behalf.
Behind the scenes we are well advanced with our plans for all IOG events from In Action days to IOG SALTEX and, of course, the Conference and Awards. There is much happening and plenty to demonstrate that, despite the downturn in the economy over the past 18 months and the present outlook, this industry has the skill, ability and foresight to survive and gain greater recognition for itself in the future.
So, welcome once again to the new look website. Please enjoy it, improve it and use it.
Geoff Webb
CEO
The institute of Groundsmanship
