If you’ve read my blog at all in the past, you know I’m not a fan of David Minster, NA2AA, ARRL’s current CEO. He’s driving down membership, which is now well under 20% of licensed radio amateurs. He’s driving away staffers, too. The latest to go is Steve Goodgame, K5ATA, ARRL’s Education and Learning Manager. In my humble opinion, his tenure has been a disaster.
It’s a mystery to me how the majority on the ARRL Board of Directors continue to support him and pay him the big bucks. According to Frank, K4FMH, Minster’s total compensation is in the ballpark of $350,000 per year. The question isn’t whether or not the CEO should get paid that much, but rather should this particular CEO get that much?
I guess the majority of directors do think he’s worth it. That says a lot about them, I think. And, if they don’t think he’s worth it, why does Minster still have a job?
At any rate, if you’re thinking along these same lines, and would like to show your disapproval, send me a buck (I’m good on QRZ), and I’ll send you one of my “NO MINSTER” buttons as shown above. They are 2-1/4 in. in diameter, and are the perfect thing to wear to the next ARRL member forum.
Thanks. Good post. There’s so much going on it’s hard to know where to start. What’s as disturbing as the shrinking share of hams is the decline in membership in absolute terms. It looks like current ARRL membership is around 132k, down from peak in 2015 of 170K (16% decrease). And I think ARRL has lost about 26,000 members under Mr. Minster’s tenure alone. Add to that ARRL’s reneging on QST subscriptions for paid-up members. On top of that, there was the shameful episode involving the Bylaws amendments (particularly Bylaw 46). And then there’s the extravagant expenditure on lobbying for the HOA law, which at best has a low chance of ever succeeding. I think ARRL does a lot well and in many respects, they’re all we’ve got. I’m an ARRL member, and I make extra contributions regularly, and I’ll continue to do. But ARRL sure is making it hard to stay a member of the fold. The buck stops at the desks of the current executive team. 73 Skip K4EAK