04/18/2016
The ARRL's new Chief Executive Officer Tom Gallagher[1], NY2RF, got down to
work on his first day in office by promising to make the League's foundational
business processes "rock solid" and bringing them up to state of the art, which
members have a right to expect. Gallagher, who arrived at Headquarters on
February 29 as CEO-Elect, has now assumed the top leadership post long held by
David Sumner, K1ZZ, who officially retired on April 18. In late January, all 15
ARRL Directors voted to elect Gallagher as CEO and Secretary, positions that
Sumner now has relinquished, and Gallagher said he plans to build upon Sumner's
legacy. During weeks of walking the halls and speaking with what he described
as "the 95 outstanding employees we have here at Headquarters," Gallagher said
he's seen a lot that's positive but acknowledged that some issues need
attention.
"My colleagues require the tools to do their jobs efficiently and effectively,"
he said. "When they don't have them it makes it harder for them to serve our
members. We want to keep traffic moving. That will require investment and hard
work, but we're going to do it."
Gallagher said some resources would be redeployed into areas that need more
support, to improve or enhance the League's service.
The new CEO pointed to the recent example of more than 1000 issues of QST that
were lost in transit to members' mailboxes due to a train derailment. "Within
24 hours, we knew exactly which copies had been destroyed, and the Circulation
Department sent out replacement copies via First-Class Mail," he said. That's
the kind of world-class service we want to perpetuate."
QST readers soon will see Gallagher's personal stamp on the monthly editorial,
which he's renamed "Second Century." While it will be essentially the same
format as Sumner's "It Seems to Us" editorial, "the latter belongs to Dave,"
Gallagher said. "I don't think I could ever replace his erudition and his
scholarship, or match his plain speaking; and I'm not going to try."
Gallagher also has promised a spirit of openness and inclusiveness to bring the
enrichment of Amateur Radio to a wider community. "Greater transparency is my
guiding principle, as well as of ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, and the
goals included in the Strategic Plan[2] approved by the ARRL Board of Directors
," he added. Gallagher invited members to bring their suggestions and concerns
directly to him.
Gallagher's assumption of the CEO post coincides with World Amateur Radio
Day[3]. He said he hopes to get on the air from W1AW to speak with other
organizations and individuals who are celebrating the occasion, which marks the
founding of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU[4]) in 1925.
On April 19, Gallagher will head out of town on his first road trip on behalf
of the League. He'll be attendingthe National Association of Broadcasters
(NAB[5]) convention[6] in Las Vegas, heading up the ARRL's contingent with ARRL
Pacific Division Director Bob Vallio, W6RGG, and other volunteers to promote
Amateur Radio. "I will be meeting with a number of broadcast professionals who
are also ham radio operators, and I will be discussing topics like interference
to signals in the AM broadcast band where ARRL's lab has clear subject matter
expertise," he said, citing one common issue shared by hams and broadcasters.
"We'll also be looking to build a stronger alliance between Amateur Radio and
the broadcasting industry." He noted that ARRL also hopes to build on its
excellent relationship with the IEEE[7] community, which includes numerous
radio amateurs.
Gallagher said that while he celebrates the past, he's also keeping his eyes on
the road ahead. "I respect tradition. I'm a traditionalist, and I'm a historian
by training, and I recognize that celebrating the past is the duty of a
grateful steward," he said. "But embracing the future is vitally important to
bring the art and science and enjoyment of Amateur Radio to an even wider
community."
[1] mailto:tgallagher@arrl.org
[2] http://www.arrl.org/arrl-strategic-plan
[3] http://www.iaru.org/world-amateur-radio-day.html
[4] http://www.iaru.org/
[5] http://www.nab.org/
[6] http://www.nabshow.com/
[7] http://www.ieee.org/
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