Dema show???

[Sunset_House]

Who are the nominees currently in all categories?

No one yet, Jim. We just appointed chairs and committees 4 hours ago.

5 positions open for 2011. One in each category.

 

[cerich]

Dear Chris,
As the newly elected chairperson of the Nominations Committee, I would like to comment on your apparent misconception of how prospective DEMA Board Candidates are identified. Finding members to volunteer for service on the board is difficult. Historically, the members of the Nominations Committee scour the industry to find members willing to stand for election.
As outlined in Section 4 e, any member may stand for election, provided they meet provisions outlined there.

As the Nominations Committee chairman, I along with the other 3 members of the committee, (the 4th being when the A2 election is finished), would like to invite you to stand for election for the 2011 A-1 Manufactures seat.

For more information on how the Board of Directors of DEMA are Nominated or Elected, See below or by going to DEMA

If you have any more questions, please give me a call.

Section 4. Nomination and Election.

a. The nomination of candidates for membership on the Board of Directors shall be made by the Nominating Committee or by written petition.

b. The Nominating Committee shall comprise five (5) members with one representative from each of the five Class A Divisions. The members of the Nominating Committee may be members of the Board of Directors but no Director standing for election may serve on the Committee. The Nominating Committee shall be nominated by the President and approved by the Board of Directors at the first meeting of the Board of Directors after the annual election of Directors. Members of the Nominating Committee will serve for one year or until their successors have been selected and installed.

c. The Nominating Committee shall operate under such procedures as are adopted from time-to-time by the Board of Directors. The Nominating Committee will submit a slate of candidates to the Board of Directors which may accept or change the slate of nominees and shall present the slate of nominees to the Membership of the Association not less than ninety (90) days prior to the date of the election which shall be December 15 or such other date selected by the Board of Directors from time to time.

d. The Nominating Committee shall exert due diligence to locate and recommend more than one suitable candidate for each Director seat to be filled in the particular election.

e. Additional nominations for the Board of Directors shall be included in the final slate of nominees when proposed by a signed petition of Members holding two percent (2%) or more of the voting power of the Association or by at least ten (10) Regular Members, whichever is less. Such nominations must be presented in writing to the Secretary of the Association no less than sixty (60) days prior to the election.

f. The Directors shall be elected to the Board of Directors by the Regular Members of the Association. The Secretary shall prepare an official ballot listing the names of the nominees and shall provide the ballots to the Regular Members and conduct an election of Directors at a meeting of the Regular Members called for the purpose of electing the members of the Board of Directors, by ballot or by proxy or by letter ballot at the discretion of the Board of Directors.

g. The candidate receiving the most votes for the particular Director seat for which such person is nominated shall be elected Director for the Board Seat. When two or more Director seats are subject to election within a Division or at large, the top two or more candidates receiving the most votes for the particular division or at large Director seat shall be elected. When the term of one seat is longer than the other seat within a Division, the candidate(s) with the most votes shall be elected for the Director seat(s) with longer term(s). In the event of a tie in the election of a Director, the current Board of Directors then sitting shall select the Director from amongst those candidates who have tied for such Board seat.

Keith E. Sahm
DEMA Nominations Committee Chair
Director of Marketing - Sunset House
Cayman Islands Scuba Diving Resort

Hi Keith,

Thank you very much, I will certainly give it consideration.

Best,

Chris

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I may join if you do. Just so I can vote for you and one other candidate I know personally.

 

[USIA]

I kind of miss having the Unified Dive Industry page open to the public on Scubaboard. Ever since they agreed to move it to the private board, there hasn't been 1 post in that thread. I think we should ask Netdoc to open it back up for public viewing. Especially in light of some of the communications Susan Long has been having with DEMA where they have showed no interest in addressing any of the concerns in the petition.

 

[cerich]

I kind of miss having the Unified Dive Industry page open to the public on Scubaboard. Ever since they agreed to move it to the private board, there hasn't been 1 post in that thread. I think we should ask Netdoc to open it back up for public viewing. Especially in light of some of the communications Susan Long has been having with DEMA where they have showed no interest in addressing any of the concerns in the petition.

Agree.

After a few months and being in meetings with DEMA BOD members at the show the truth is NOTHING has changed. That is a shame.

It is astounding that an organization that represents a industry so small can group think themselves into believing that 350+ industry members willing to stand up and say ENOUGH aren't worth the time. If it is because they truly feel that the signers have nothing to complain about and in fact DEMA is meeting their mandate then I can only conclude there is something in the water:depressed:. If they do believe that there is some grounds for the 350+ industry signers to have signed the petition then I can only believe that something simply wrong is happening and they simply do not care what members of the industry think and feel somehow entitled to disregard the very people who fund the association. Neither is a good thing.

Every day that passes that they can ignore the petition is victory for saying "screw you" to all of us that signed the petition. How nice.

 

[cool_hardware52]

Attempting to Co-Opt one vocal critic without reforming the nominating processes is not the answer.

I have no doubt that it is difficult to find those willing to serve on the BOD.

Opening the process seems the logical first step to address this.

Tobin

 

[The Chairman]

I kind of miss having the Unified Dive Industry page open to the public on Scubaboard. Ever since they agreed to move it to the private board, there hasn't been 1 post in that thread. I think we should ask Netdoc to open it back up for public viewing. Especially in light of some of the communications Susan Long has been having with DEMA where they have showed no interest in addressing any of the concerns in the petition.

The people who were posting on it STILL can see it. It's not the venue, it's the impetus. If you post there, people in the industry will find it.

Personally, I think that Keith has shown that the BOD for DEMA is willing to at least explore the possibility of the Internet and forums such as these for communication with the masses. The new Town Hall meetings should be on such interactive media and global in nature.

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

I heard a great description about DEMA BOD today....

Big fish in a small pond....and when the big fish are in the real world, they are small fish, but they think they are big fish.

Basically, they think they are Top $hit, when nobody cares. So the president of ScubaPro comes on here...everyone gets giddy and listens to what they say and jumps if they say jump(just an example) If he walks into a bar...nobody CARES, yet they think they are the top of the game.. "Ummmm, what's Scuba Pro?"

The guys don't wear two hats. When they are in the DEMA meetings, they try to advance opportunity for their own interests, instead of the industry as a whole. If you are going to be in this position, you should advance SCUBA...not the company you work for.

So.....I bet the Be a Diver Pool will be at BTS this year...AGAIN. Isn't this like bringing sand to the beach? If they goal is to attract new divers, why go to a dive show? Aren't 99% of the people there divers?

They spent $200k on a dive commercial that was marginal at best....Why the hell did they not take that Be a Diver pool and that $200k and follow around some college football games, follow Nascar around, be around a motocross tournament or other non scuba events. Even some ads in Sports Illustrated or something. Why do all of the agencies run ads in scuba mags? Why aren't these ads in other magazines that would actually attract new students? If we are trying to attract new divers, why are advertising to those that already dive??

I was at Our World Underwater this weekend, and talked with some of the guys from DEMA. Nice guys...but to me, they are disconnected from everything going on.

Check this....Most of them have never even worked in a dive store...yet they know what I need to do to succeed? Most of them started working at a company, lets take PADI, that was already at the top of its game...how are they going to help battle Scuba back to the top? They have never done it. They have always been on top and seen the glory. We need some guerrilla tactics, not boardroom tactics to bring the industry around....

New ideas, new faces, new strategy....people that have grown something from nothing, people that have something to lose, people that will give it their all even though its volunteer. As it stands, the TOP Members will be in control and ALWAYS look out for their interests. They are already biased and have proven that they can't wear two hats when in the DEMA meetings. They are advancing their own agenda which reminds me of our current economic state. Everyone is short sighted and thinking of themselves.

When will they WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is SCUBA, it's a lifestyle, it's fun, it's exciting, it's AWESOME....yet its dying. And you have all these manufacturers trying to figure out how to pull money from retailers and bring it into their own hands instead (Aqualung online, shopatron, Manufacturers selling on their websites) Last time I checked the sold equipment to STUDENTS>....retailers create students.....yet when retailers make less, and are subsidized by shopatron and a little kickback from Aqualung, they never advance or grow. This in turn slows student growth. The retailer makes less money, they work less on attracting students as they can't afford it. They give 2 for $199 OW classes to try and survive. They sit back and get subsidized until they are about to go out of business...all you hear is the complaints about the economy and the wooo is me. WAKE UP AND GO MAKE YOUR MONEY!!!

argggghhh....rant over I talked to too many people this weekend in the industry and its got me frustrated. Too many people doing nothing to make money. They want it given to them...Get up and go get it! It's out there.....We will leave any similarities to the government and current state of economy for another thread

 

[The Chairman]

What is the mandate for DEMA? What is their mission? Perhaps we are expecting too much?

 

[The Chairman]

Ah... here it is

Mission Statement: To promote sustainable growth in safe recreational diving and snorkeling while protecting the underwater environment.
Purpose: DEMA exists to serve its members by identifying key issues that affect the growth and success of the scuba and snorkeling industry. It is the united voice that speaks on behalf of the sport and its operational function is to create focused programs that positively affect the industry.
Promise: DEMA fosters the highest levels of cooperation and professional standards among all the constituent groups who make up the scuba diving industry. DEMA delivers membership value by promoting an ongoing, powerful, consumer-focused image of scuba diving and providing information and tools that assist its members’ focus on reaching, communicating to and affecting the consumer.
Goals:
1. To produce an annual trade event for the industry which services the needs of its stakeholders and produces a successful financial outcome for the association.
2. To engage in marketing programs which promote the industry, create new customers, drive business into retail stores and resorts and promote diver retention.
3. To reserve funds annually to be dedicated to potential legislation which could adversely affect the industry.
4. To engage in marketing research programs which will:
a. Define the universe of divers
b. Determine the rate of erosion amongst existing divers
c. Determine the number of entry level certifications which take place in the United States and Caribbean each year
d. Provide retail audit information that is made self-liquidating through annual subscriptions.
5. To conserve and protect natural aquatic resources.

DEMA is widely known for DEMA Show, the annual trade show it produces, however DEMA is involved in MANY other activities focused at helping the industry. Information about these activities can be found below:​

For more info (and what's found below...) go to DEMA
​