overhauling the BUSINESS OPERATIONS OF THIS UNION

For too long now,  L1403 has worked in an uncoordinated manner without clear & consistent focus on the big picture.  Politics is important, but an overemphasis on it, has failed to yield unprecedented changes that benefits our membership as a whole.

As an organization, we are not as influential in politics as this body could be.  The weight of these efforts cannot and should not be borne upon any one union official with personal political aspirations.  To play the political game effectively at a level that yields substantial benefits for our membership, requires a much more strategic approach to politics than merely yellow shirts and an involved union president.  Importantly, your PAC contributions should be managed in a way that serves the body's interests.

Lobbying efforts will be coordinated by professionals, at the direction of Billy and the executive board, and our members' involvement will be impactful and worth their time.  Billy will also immediately change the manner in which PAC funds our distributed.  He will be waiving his unilateral right to contribute without oversight.

This local needs much more human power driving us forward.  I disagree with the concept of executive assistants working at the pleasure of the President.  I think our Treasurer wears too many hats and the job duties related to operating as an effective and energetic COO (Chief Operating Officer) of our companies, with millions in assets under management and numerous opportunities to grow, should be split from the fiduciary responsibilities of a Treasurer.

 Billy will immediately request resumes from all interested members to begin structuring this position and will work to expedite the election of our 3rd Vice President to serve as 1403's de-facto Chief Operating Officer.

Operating 1403 effectively is an ultramarathon.  Executive Assistants should be used on a temporary basis, with the approval of the executive board, to sprint us toward specific goals.  The persons that occupy this position shouldn't be permanent.  It should be a revolving position where we collectively decide what our next most urgent project is, and we pick the one member that is uniquely positioned to help us achieve outsized results.

At the first meeting in 2020, Billy and your executive board will develop a strategy document.  A solicitation for interested members to work as an executive assistant on a targeted issue on a temporary basis will be posted.  It may even be you!

The way our finances are accounted for are not up to appropriate standards.  Clear explanations for some expenditures are not offered and in some cases have been flatly refused.  The policies related to how we govern this local's money must be completely overhauled.  

Billy will immediately request that an audit of 1403's corporate structure and operating policies.  Changes are needed immediately.  He has also personally pledged that all expenses incurred by his authority will be voluntarily submitted to the Treasurer for his review to ensure compliance with 1403's accounting standards.

It is difficult sometimes to understand the reasons that Union does what it does.  Much of the time, we are doing our very best.  But we can do better.  Votes are not clearcut, positions and relationships are not obvious to the average member and explanations are sometimes not provided when requested.  And when time passes, it becomes impossible for us to recollect why historical actions were taken because we have no historical documents to consult.

Billy will immediately require that all votes by any meeting of principal officers or of the executive board are mandatory roll call votes.  Further, the policies related to audio recordings of meetings will change to provide more transparency for our members.  He will also create a policy whereby certain decisions will require a summary document describing the facts presented, the options considered and the reason for the elected direction.  Lastly, he will begin the process of taking the hundreds of thousands of paper 1403 documents to a cloud-based system that will be keyword searchable.

It's a sad sight to see many of the Union Boards at Stations are neglected.  In some stations, they were never installed or have gone missing.  It's time to re-imagine how we present information to our members during their shifts. 

Billy will immediately direct the creation of new Union Boards at all stations that embrace 21st century tech (it's nearly 2020 after all!).  QR codes and electronic displays will give us the opportunity not only to make information more accessible, but it will also allow for information to be sent to your Union from the Station.

Station Captains set the tone at firehouses and a close relationship with each of them can change how we represent our members.  These Captains need to be included in much more of what goes on and need to know that this Union should be the first call whenever they might need some advice, some information or an extra bit of help with an ongoing problem.  In addition to those 

Billy will open channels of communications for our station captains to connect with one another.  He has started to build the first of several channels of communications through WhatsApp and he intends to begin having breakfast with each of them at least once per year to ensure we are exceeding the needs of the members at his firehouse.

Everyone wants to love firefighters.  They trust that if God forbid they should ever need our help, that will be there at a moment's notice.  We need to do a much better job of getting to know our neighbors again through both old-fashioned ways and new tech-driven methods.  We shouldn't just care about residents and visitors of Miami-Dade when they call us or when we need their votes, we should always be in and around public places, remind them of who we are and why we are here.

Billy intends to create several means of engagement with local community organization.  Operations North has done a phenomenal job representing MDFR and we should many of the same things proven successful in Northeast Miami Dade and much, much more!

Perhaps our biggest challenge is to find ways to help ALL firehouses, develop the deep and meaningful connections that are found in some places and not others.  If you ever have the chance to spend a few minutes with a retiree, you'll hear two things - 1. they miss the relationships with guys and girls around the station, and 2. they are happy to have connections that keep popping up around town and in places like Dahlonega once a year.

Billy intends to spearhead the creation of station logos at all stations by helping each station connect with an artist, develop a logo approve by the department, help leverage the Local's buying power to purchase shirts, hats, patches, stickers, etc at lower costs and help each station develop their own identities.  He also intends to create events where all MDFR firefighters, active & retired, can get together and enjoy each other and get to know one another's families.  These activities should not be restricted to special events.

Due to the size and complexity of union affairs, our meetings have become somewhat technical in their workings and at times its conduct exceeds the expertise of your elected officials.  We need a subject matter expert to keep us moving forward.

Billy has already spoken with the Career Resource Centers at UM Law and FIU Law and both were excited by the opportunity for their very best students to be able to help one of the largest fire labor unions in the country.  As soon as Billy takes office, he will begin the processes of bringing order to our meetings through the selection of Union Parliamentarians and the provision of "101" classes to your elected officials.

This list will continue to grow in coming days.