03/25/2009                                                                    Contact: Peter Mastrangelo
Also available in pdf format

APS & APRL Boards Give Charge
to Long-Range Planning Committee

In November 2008 the Boards of the American Philatelic Society and the American Philatelic Research Library approved 2009 budgets that would require use of $442,000 in unrestricted donations to offset operating expenses. At that time, The Boards agreed that while this was a short-term necessity, it was not prudent long-term approach to address the financial concerns facing their respective organizations. In January 2009 the Boards approved the creation of a joint Long Range Planning Committee to investigate and recommend plans of action to the Boards.

The members of the Long Range Planning Committee include APRL President Ken Grant, APRL Treasurer Jack Flannery, APS President Wade Saadi, APS Treasurer Dan Walker, APS Immediate Past President Janet Klug, Executive Director (CEO) Peter Mastrangelo, Deputy Executive Director (COO) Ken Martin, Director of Internal Operations (CFO) Rick Banks, and John Barwis.

In a joint meeting on Wednesday, March 18 the American Philatelic Society and American Philatelic Research Library boards directed the Long Range Planning Committee to:

1. Present a plan, by April 30, 2009, for an immediate spending reduction of at least $200,000 in 2009 program components with total recurring savings of at least $400,000 by January 1, 2010.

2. Provide a 20-year plan, by the Board meeting in August at APS StampShow, which encompasses both organizations, provides for balanced budgets and examines the real-estate options.

Items that will come under review also include staffing and services, fundraising and development, membership promotion and retention, and sale of real and personal property.

In a prepared announcement to members, APS President Wade Saadi stated, “we have a lot of work to do, to get where we need to be, but I am confident of the outcome — a financially secure Society in which all members will continue to take pride.”

To help the Long Range Planning Committee, all Board members have been asked to provide comments on our Strategic Plan including SMART (S – Specific, M – Measurable, A – Achievable, R – Realistic, T – Time Bound) goals and the ranking of all services in priority order as well as designating each service Essential, Important or Desirable.

The Board and Long Range Planning Committee have also been provided the costs and level of use of each service. Input from APS members is welcome and input from APS staff is also being solicited. Additional materials including year-end 2008 financials, 2009 budgets, a summary of funds spent on the American Philatelic Center, a Q&A on the Long Range Planning process are available on the APS website — from the front page at www.stamps.org choose “Almanac” and then “Reports.” Hard copies are available upon request.

APS/APRL Members will be kept informed as the Long Range Planning Committee and the Boards move forward.

March 25, 2009 The American Philatelic Society — Today and Tomorrow Our Society is a dynamic one, and as such, it needs to respond to the forces that affect it. In November 2008 the Boards approved 2009 budgets that included use of $442,000 in unrestricted donations. The Boards agreed that this was not prudent and that they would establish a process to address the long-term issue. In January 2009 the Boards approved the creation of a Long Range Planning Committee to investigate and recommend plans of action to the Boards. Using most of our donations to balance this operating deficit is imprudent. To correct this situation, we must bring spending in line with income. Otherwise, we cannot continue as a viable organization responsible to our membership. In February, the American Philatelic Society (APS) board and the American Philatelic Research Library (APRL) board authorized the formation of a Long Range Planning Committee (LRPC) to investigate and recommend plans of action to them. The committee comprises: APRL President – Ken Grant APRL Treasurer – Jack Flannery APS President – Wade Saadi APS Treasurer – Dan Walker APS Immediate Past President – Janet Klug Executive Director (CEO) – Peter Mastrangelo Deputy Executive Director (COO) – Ken Martin Controller (CFO) – Rick Banks John Barwis The LRPC has met several times since and has reported to the boards accordingly; the LRPC acting as a facilitator. It is the LRPC goal to provide to the APS/APRL boards with recommendations on reducing the operating budget deficit by April 30th 2009, and a 20-year plan that will be presented by Stampshow in Pittsburgh. While understanding that it is impossible to “see” that far ahead, it is better to think and plan for long-range contingencies than to simply take things as they come. Going forward, the APS/APRL shall provide for balanced operating budgets, so that cash in equals cash out.

The plan shall be based on realistic assumptions rather than hope; the logic here is that if tactics yield better results than expected, they will not have the negative ramifications of coming up short on the forecast. The APS/APRL can no longer afford to maintain a “wait and see” way of thinking. The plan shall rank-order existing programs based on comparisons of net costs and value to members, so the APS/APRL boards can get a rough idea of cost per member using the service and the significance of the service to the membership. This is being done so that we know which of our services are cost effective and which need to be retooled. The APS/APRL Campaign for Philately will be re-energizing our fundraising efforts and need your continued generous help and support. Donations of any amount are important and appreciated. We will also be ramping up solicitations of large donations, grants, multi-year pledges, and bequests. If you can help, please contact me – wade@pencom.com The trend of membership loss needs to be abated and APS/APRL need to use modern technology (the new APS web site to be launched by Stampshow, YouTube, Facebook, etc.) to the maximum to retain our current members and attract new members. Diversifying our membership gives us the best shot of growing our membership and a diversity committee is in the process of being formed. Lastly, the boards will be reviewing all of the physical assets of the APS and APRL to see how they may best be utilized. Four years ago the APS Board of Directors approved the below Vision for the APS Strategic Plan (in regular text). To ensure a strong, bright future for the APS and APRL, the boards are considering adding the italicized sentence: APS Vision — The American Philatelic Society encourages and promotes the philatelic arts as endeavors that are relaxing, mentally stimulating and historically and culturally important; and is the national center in serving and supporting members who engage in philatelic and related arts. We will achieve our vision in a financially responsible way that exemplifies good stewardship of our members’ investments in us, and ensures our long-term continuity. We have a lot of work to do, to get to where we need to be, but I am confident of the outcome — a financially secure Society in which all members will continue to take pride. I believe it in my heart and feel it in my bones. Respectfully, Wade E. Saadi