Hello. My name is Jeff Johns WE4B and, as you probably know by now, I am a candidate for a BoD position with AMSAT.

I am not going to try to blind you with promises of HEO satellites in an attempt to gain your vote. We all want HEO but we need to get our house in order so that we can begin to reach higher in the sky. Until AMSAT can have regular, functional Board meetings we will never be able to have HEO spacecraft in orbit.

Professionally, I have been successful in operations management and most specifically, operations management with a concentration in Continuous Improvement. I am a Six Sigma Black Belt and am highly skilled in running Kaizen events. The last Black Belt project I completed will save a Fortune 500 company approximately $1.7mm annually through an improved inbound logistics program. This project involved a cross functional team consisting of everyone from warehouse associates to C-level executives. To be successful in continuous improvement, one must be able to work with and influence all types of people. For me, that means that sometimes I am wearing steel toed boots and on the floor of an operation while later in the day wearing a coat and tie and sitting in a board room. I know that the skills of someone involved in operations management and continuous improvement would be a great benefit for AMSAT.

I am well educated having most recently attended Louisiana State University’s MBA program. I am currently rearing two daughters. One is 8 years-old and one is 13 years-old. One is licensed and active in amateur radio and satellites and the other is active operating under my call with me as a control operator. She is only eight but will soon be taking her Technician exam. Amateur radio and satellites have meant a lot to me and my family. There is rarely a day, weather permitting, that either myself, my daughter or both of us are not active on amateur satellites. Odds are, if you are active on FM, SSB or digital satellites that you have had a QSO with one or all of us.

Board of Director members oversee Directors and volunteers and set the direction for the organization. Board of Director members need to have a good understanding of how business and business relationships work. We need business minded people, such as myself, on the Board of Directors to help provide crucial guidance for the organization.

The incumbents and the Director, that lost his Board seat last year, are appealing to members through a campaign of launching an HEO satellite. That’s a wonderful thought. Let’s be honest. Why did it take an election cycle for them to do so? What have they done before this election cycle? If they couldn’t make it occur while they were in office, what makes someone think they can do it now? Please don’t vote for someone thinking they will provide you an HEO satellite. I will not promise you that but will promise you that I will assist in making it possible if the opportunity presents itself. Until then, AMSAT needs to be honest with members about opportunities and failures. There must be transparency within the organization. If nothing else, this campaign cycle has proven that there is a severe lack of transparency.

I would appreciate your vote for a position on the AMSAT Board of Directors and look forward to serving you, the members, in that position. You can view my campaign website at the following URL:

http://www.WE4Bravo.com

Thank you for your consideration and please also cast a vote for Bob McGwier N4HY and for Howard DeFelice AB2S.

Jeff Johns WE4B