Open query to the organization.

[bob the builder]

Good morning, everyone!


First off, I want it understood that this post is not meant as an attack on SC leadership in the slightest, but as a genuine inquiry from someone concerned over the health of the RC submarine hobby and what our role in it is.

My renewed interest in the value of the SubCommittee to the hobby came when I was nominated for President during the last elections. It got my entrepreneurial brain going in terms of what the organization could do better at, more of, or differently. In my mind, there were a great many possibilities. To my regret, I was not elected and to be honest, my fervor dwindled in favor of keeping my little hobby business afloat and customers happy (aka the "day to day grind"). That said, I was very interested in how the organization would evolve under the direction of new leaders.

As we sit here now over year into the new management of the SubCommittee, I would like to know, in fairly specific terms, what the SubCommittee has done better at, more of or differently than last year. At that rate, I would be actually be quite interested in knowing over the last five years what the SubCommittee has done better at, more of or differently.

I can say that from my perspective, there is ample desire and drive from people to get into this hobby. There are, as we've gone over previously in many threads here, many obstacles that are stopping them from diving in. We are in a good position to help address these issues by leveraging the collective expertise, knowledge and contacts of the organization. I do not feel that we are currently doing a good job of this.

In my mind, the SC is at a very important time right now. New technologies are changing the way that things are built and that businesses are run. People have drastically changing expectations about companies and products. People are interacting in different ways and working together differently. We need to build, grow, adapt, or die.

I'm the first to admit that I could have been more proactive in pushing ideas, hunting for support, campaigning for implementation, etc. I stand ready to assist as best I can, but the SC must be ready to change, and I would love to see some evidence that we're willing to do so.

I'm really interested in the membership's opinion, aligned or contrary to my own, and to SC leadership's reply. Thanks, everyone.


Bob Martin
Owner, the Nautilus Drydocks, LLC

https://www.rc-submarine.com

[eckloss]

I'll just add this... I've been a member of the SubCommittee for 20 years now. In that time, plenty has changed. There has been growth on all fronts. New boats, new members, new vendors, etc. I think it shouldn't be ignored that your concerns wouldn't even be an issue to you if the Committee hadn't grown and flourished over the years, and continues to do so. If it hadn't kept up with the times, we wouldn't be here now. Everything in life, be it hobbies, work, marriages, or whatever, goes through ebbs and flows. It can't be expected to be flank speed at all times.

Bob, I consider you a good business man and a friend. But I'm not going to lie. The tone of your message has really put me off.

[eckloss]

I'm sorry but the more times I read this the angrier I get.

Who are you to question the entirety of the organization?

You want specifics? Why do you feel the SubCommittee should answer to you and prove its worthiness?

If you don't like how the SubCommittee is run or don't see the things it's accomplished over the years, the door out is on your left.

Erich

[scott t]

"what the organization could do better at, more of, or differently"

What is your suggestion?

I see a very nice magazine. There should be a page full of websites for materials, tools, techniques in every SCR issue.
We could share more. Do you guys do any research on submarines then blog it here on SC. I posted some pictures or shared with a friend and am able to see my pictures I lost again because I shared.
We see a lot of finished work pictures. Having the finished product is a goal but not all the fun. Could we show more technique, tooling, layout, jigs used.
Is there a tally of members; new members; returning members?

Scott T

PS I do notice that items in the SCR are held to make the publication. This makes it hard to discuss on this web site what we see in the magazine. Could the photos in the SCR be made available on the website to comment or question about to get discussion going.

[eckloss]

Bob,

My apologies. When I get angry, I pop off. Nothing personal.

[kielbasa]

ok, I get where Bob is coming from.

My first thought is, that this is a pretty narrow subset of a quickly shrinking rc hobby. For me, as a father, (it always makes me feel weird when I say that) the hobby is like number 63 on my priority list. Family, work, more family, soccer, swimming, basketball, lacrosse and coaching lacrosse, restoring my jeep, coaching my HS robotics team, running an after school club, dr. appointments, holidays, vacations, sick kids, pets, sick pets....you get the point. life is busy, and there are periods that last weeks when I don't even get into my shop.

This is my fun. It's what I think about when i'm sitting in meetings.

I am 46, (that's weird too) and while at the last Fun Run in Carmel, Erich and I talked out that, and how WE need to be better at doing stuff for the club- or it sinks (see what i did there). There are a few people who do SOOOOO much.

The SC leadership should do stuff. yes, but we need to as well.

just my .02.

otherdave

[bob the builder]

Erich, certainly no hard feelings. I knew when I posted this that it would be polarizing, and gut-check loyalty is not a bad thing to have in any organization. I just hope you're up for the conversation.

Dave, I completely agree that membership needs to supply the horsepower. What I'm looking for is direction. If we have 100 people pulling in 100 different directions, we get net-zero. The SC is in the unique position to help direct efforts, knowledge, resources and people in the areas that will make the most impact to the hobby. Grow the hobby, and everyone benefits through more products, more vendors, cheaper prices and more innovation.

I guess what I was really asking above is:

1.) What did the SC work on last year from a project perspective?
2.) What does the SC have queued up for work on this year?
3.) How can we help?


Bob

[secrtwpn1]

Well, I would like to see cheaper kits to bring in more folks. Yes, I know, this is a cottage industry and I understand that.

Also my 2 cents.....

Farlan

[sam reichart]

Scott-
There's never been any directive to hold an article for the Report in lieu of publishing it here. Anyone at anytime can take something they're writing up for the magazine and publish it here. Or, inversely, publish it here and send it to the magazine.
With social media, online forums and websites, we may need to reevaluate the order of where articles should show up. Perhaps something we need to poll the members about?
Sam

[mar7ck]

I can’t speak for the Subcommittee as a whole, but our little chapter struggles to recruit new members.
A few of out members go to local shows to recruit, demons straight, educate (hands on), and entertain those who are interested in the hobby. We promote the wealth of knowledge on the web site and the eagerness of the members to help with their Submarine projects. We go so far as to donate working Submarines to those who we think are truly interested in the hobby.
So far our recruiting tactics have not produced new members. We like the Subcommittee are certainly open to any ideas on how bring new blood into the fold.

[sgtmac1]

I'm with Bob on this. I love watching all of the neat things about this organization-it's helpful members, the Report which I wish was still in print, the Sub Regatta in Carmel, the only meet I have attended. To have members driving in from all over the Northern hemisphere to IN is absolutely astounding to me. But, what are we doing to get the populace to notice us? I think we need to be advertising our meets to the public weeks before a meet takes place and not rely on people from the food market on Saturday morning as they stroll by to get to their cars. I think we need updated brochures(lots of kids, teenagers taking a turn at driving a sub, women and girls enjoying our passion?) available and being given out at every meet. Maybe a condensed or a smaller Report to put in every hand that comes by. Can we get our meets listed in Fine Scale Modeler or get an article submitted to their editors showing the talent of the members-I see works of art in every sub project that is brought to Carmel. Can we advertise on other venues-print, internet, local papers, invite Boy Scouts, veterans groups, Navy veterans, the local recruiting stations? All of the above? I really learn a lot from all of you guys and I would really like to get the SC moving in some kind of public relations direction to keep it growing. Anybody know the average age of SC members? Can we grow the membership via contest our prize or something? Sorry to run on...

[sam reichart]

1.) What did the SC work on last year from a project perspective?
2.) What does the SC have queued up for work on this year?
3.) How can we help?

Bob, let me answer your third question first.

It would be entirely correct to point out that the current Executive Committee, as well as most if not all of the prior ECs, have solicited feedback from the membership with mostly silence as a response. We cannot be responsive to member requests if they won’t say anything, or suggest anything.

Conversely, the EC cannot do everything, members need to step up and volunteer. No volunteers, no progress. Like Robert Heinlein wrote, "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.".
For example, for the magazine, we constantly struggle to get material submissions. We have had the same amazing group of members producing the SCR and putting on the meet at Carmel for many years. Recently, I submitted a request to ask for help in trying to promote a second fun run/regatta somewhere else beside Carmel; I got a mere handful of replies and some were from the folks that did this work in the past. It's always the same small group of members that do the majority of the work. We need the rest of the membership to step up and contribute; simple as that.

Specifically what have we done and what do we have planned?
Well, we are updating the behind the scenes to make the members experience better.
As you have probably seen, I have been highlighting what we have been doing and planning in the SCR and on the website.

One thing we have accomplished after years of struggling is to produce a complete SCR Index which is something members had been requesting for years. It would be great if we got feedback from the membership if they found it useful or if they are actually making use of it.

Retaining new members and growing our base is one of the top goals of this executive committee. We are sending welcome emails to all new members and asking them to post and to openly communicate with us if there are any concerns or suggestions. We are also looking at ways to communicate when members leave or see what we can do to retain. Posting to the SC website on builds going on and innovations is another way to retain members and fan that flame of passion. Many members get burned out and/or been there/done that and nothing new has peaked their interests.

We continue to fund and/or front monies for FunRuns, or things like trade show participation.

We are discussing possible advertising options in other publications.

In the past we have offered payment for submitting articles to the SCR, but that incentive doesn’t seem to work.

Moving to the electronic version of the SCR has allowed us to move to an all color issue as well as allowing us to change the format (from portrait to landscape) to better accommodate our subject matter. Subs are, after all, long and not tall! That move from paper to paperless helped secure the SC finances.

We're currently discussing where we can use some funds to help promote the hobby. We've talked about making donations to museums and organizations.

We are working on approaches to help new members (and implement this year). For example, we are discussing a mentor program where we could help modelers complete an unstarted or abandoned model. We are actively trying to see how we can get help to members that want to build their first sub without need to take a loan to make it happen.

One of the areas where we still need to work is mending the rift that occurred some years ago between various members of the club. I believe that still stands in the way of the common goal of promoting the hobby. We’d like to find a way to better tie together what are today separate communities of R/C sub enthusiasts to create better synergy in an admittedly very small segment of the R/C hobby.

So Bob, please know that we're absolutely open to your thoughts or suggestions. What things/changes would you like to see? Do you have any articles you would want like to submit? What builds would you like to see on our site?


If you have other ideas, please let us hear them.

[bob the builder]

Thanks for the detailed reply, Sam. It helps a lot.

There have been a lot of great ideas thrown out over time, some in last year's thread and others in sgtmac1's post above. While I agree that the EC cannot DO everything, there is no reason that they can't manage or appoint management of new initiatives.

The SCR is world-class, but open only to members. The new world order is all about open-source, crowd-source. The new generation sees barred information as being "corporate" and "greedy". It would be great to tease out some of the more resonant articles to the public in hobby publications and other online platforms. Additionally, the new generation i unwilling to sit down and digest a ten-page article. They want bite-sized portions, easily digestible, that they can view in a few minutes on a mobile device. We need to re-think how we're getting information out to the public and what that information will be. Heavily leveraging video and social media is an absolute must.

Some of the ideas that really resonate with me (so far):

-Mentorship program: Hell, yeah! This is a daunting hobby, and getting someone a rock solid path to knowledge would be awesome. I would absolutely volunteer as one of these mentors

-Social media manager: Let's get a volunteer to simply peruse the forums, extract the coolest, most engaging threads and throw up a few posts on Instagram, Facebook, etc. A few sentences of description, a cool photo and a link to the thread on the forums is all we'd need.

-Networking with schools: I can't tell you how many schools and students reach out to me about submarine projects. We need to leverage this, big time. This is who we want.. the new generation of sub drivers, hungry for knowledge and open to new experiences.

-Networking with veteran's groups: So many of my customers are former sub and navy guys, desperate for a hobby that plays to their experiences and passions.

-Cheap, entry-level kit: I vow to start work on this


That's all I have time for right now. I'm boarding a plane for home after my surgery last Monday. I'm excited to see this discussion progress.



Bob

[sam reichart]

Good morning Bob! Hope you're feeling better and better each day.
Thanks for the feedback! Some great comments/ideas you've posted here. We'll keep the discussion going, I promise.
Safe travels home!

[bob_eissler]

I think what we really need is chatter and activity here, and I admit I'm part of the problem. I troll sub sites constantly looking for new info and find little activity going on. On the other hand, I have, and have worked on, more different sub models than anyone else in the midwest but I post little of it. I take pictures usually of progress but am not really motivated to put together a post on the build. I build things and like to share them if it is easy but I am not going to spend a lot of effort trying to present anything. A maker space I joined, (Rivercity Labs), uses slack for conversations in the group that is a lot more free flowing than the way we present here. Also a way to simply like someone's posts as on facebook would be a nice way to encourage people.