TABLE TENNIS IRELAND – AGM BOOKLET ONE

Booklet one – AGM 2017

DOCUMENTS

  • Doc 1 - Minutes of previous meeting
  • Doc 3 - Chairman’s report
  • Doc 4 - Company Secretary’s report - including company structure
  • Doc 5 - Finance Director’s report
  • Doc 6 - Marketing Director’s report
  • Doc 7 - Coaching Director’s report
  • Doc 8 - High Performance Director’s report – include champions report
  • Doc 9 - Para Director’s report
  • Doc 10 - Anti-Doping Report
  • Doc 11 - Women In Sport Report

DOCUMENT 1 – MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

MINUTES of the Annual General Meeting of Irish Table Tennis Association Ltd held in Sports HQ, National Sports Campus, Blanchardstown, Dublin 15 on Saturday 4th June 2016 commencing at 10.30am.

ATTENDANCE: J. Veselsky (Life President), Mr. A. Thackaberry (Deputy Life President), Mr. Kenneth Strong (President), Mr. J. Hickey (Honorary Life Member) Mrs. Pat Hunter (Chair), M. Barry (International Director & Company Secretary), Rob Cowan (HR Director), C. Higgins (High Performance Director), Mr. Tony Farrell (Director), Mr. Derek Hanley (Children’s Officer), Mr. Mark O’Flynn (SEO + WIS Coordinator), Mr. David Heffernan (SEO + Anti-Doping Officer) Mrs. Vivienne Barry (Vice President), Mrs. Anna Kelly (Vice President), Mr. Tony Martin (Vice President), Mr. Dave Butler, Mr. Simon Cathcart, Mr. Ray Egan, Mr. Ian Erskine, Mr. Brian Finn, Mrs. Tara Fusco, Ms. Amy Lou Hayes, Mr. Jimmy Hayes, Mr. Tony Higgins, Mr. Alan Hurley, Mr. Michael Joyce, Mr. Gervis Knox, Mr. Keith Knox, Mr. Tony Leahy, Mr. Arnold Morgan, Mr. Tom McCreery, Mr. Lorna O’Rahilly, Mr. Thuripal Ragi, Mr. Alan Strong, Mr. Kitty Thackaberry,

APOLOGIES: Apologies for inability to attend were received from, Mr. Liam O’Ceallaigh (Participation Director), Mr. Arthur Brett, Mr. G. Maguire, Mr. J. Murphy, Mr. J. McConkey, Mr. S. McConkey, Mrs Rena McCarron Rooney, Mr. Ronan Rooney, Mr. Joe Finnegan, Mr.Tony Phillips MBE

WELCOMES:

The Chairperson, Mrs. P. Hunter opened the meeting and welcomed all present including the President, Mr. Kenneth Strong. She introduced Company Secretary and Finance Director Mr. Michael Barry, HR Director Mr. Rob Cowan, Director and Events Committee Chair Mr. Tony Farrell and High Performance Director Mr. Conn Higgins.

MINUTES: The Minutes of the 2015 Annual General Meeting, held on Saturday 13th June 2015, were adopted as a true record on the proposal of Mr. T. Farrell, seconded by Mr. J. Hickey.

FINANCE DIRECTOR’S REPORT: The Finance Director, Mr. M. Barry, outlined his Report using a PowerPoint presentation. The presentation covered the following:

  • Role of the Finance Director
  • Performance against Budget 2015 (Control System)
  • Performance against Actual 2014
  • Financial Summary 2015
  • Explanation of Debtors & Creditors
  • Cash and Reserves Position 2015
  • Proposals
  • Financial Outlook 2016
  • Acknowledgements

Mr. M. Barry explained that managing an NGB with multiple stakeholders presents a challenge. Wants and needs vary and are best managed by economy, efficiency and effectiveness through a process of continuous improvement.

ITTA Ltd had a successful 2015 and managed to reverse two years of successive deficits. The increase in income combined with cost savings offset against over-spend in other areas resulted in the association generating a marginal surplus.

Mr. M. Barry emphasised the importance of affiliation income, Core Grant and WIS income to the ITTA Ltd going forward. Affiliates are now getting more value through JLT Insurance.

The Auditors Report and Financial Statements were adopted on the proposal of Mrs. P. Hunter, seconded by Mr. K. Strong.

APPOINTMENT OF AUDITORS: The meeting authorised the Directors to appoint and fix the remuneration of the Auditors for 2016 on the proposal of Mr. Farrell, seconded by Mr. Alan Hurley. Mr. M. Barry explained that auditing fees have increased significantly in 2015 as a result of the Companies Act 2014. Members were informed that the Auditors have agreed to freeze the fees for 2016. Mr. M. Barry informed members that the ITTA would continue to search for more competitive services.

BOARD MEMBERS REPORTS: The following reports were published by Board Members on our website prior to the AGM. The Board decided that the only reports to be delivered at the AGM were the Finance and an Executive Summary from the Chair, with Board Members available to discuss their reports and answer queries from the members if required. The following reports were published online:

  1. Finance Report 2015 (Mr. M. Barry)
  2. International Report 2015/16 (Mr. M. Barry)
  3. Human Resources Report 2015/16 (Mr. R. Cowan)
  4. High Performance Report 2015/16 (Mr. Connor Higgins)
  5. Marketing Report 2015/16 (Mr. Tony Farrell)
  6. Coaching Report 2015/16 (Board of Table Tennis Ireland)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The Chairperson, Mrs. P. Hunter, introduced the executive summary. The Chair then indicated, that the Report contained information on all areas of the Association’s business, and that other Directors were available to answers questions on their individual areas. Mrs. P. Hunter summary covered the following areas:

  1. Change - Board and Staff
  2. Governance and Compliance
  3. Finance
  4. Funders and Sponsors
  5. Website growth
  6. Coaching and Performance
  7. Domestic Events
  8. Challenges faced by our organisation

Mrs. V. Barry asked a question on coaching courses, and the need for more communication to the participants of courses. She was advised that this has been a difficult area due to the loss of our Coaching Director, however steps had been made to solve the issue, namely in the forming of a new coaching committee and the appointment of a new Coaching Director.

Ms. L. O’Rahilly suggested that TTI communicate more with parents, and consider the fact that table tennis presents a big financial burden on parents. Ms. O’Rahilly also commented on the morale of parents/players involved in table tennis, and suggested that a social element should be introduced to encourage children to play. Mr. M. Barry suggested re-activating the Parents Association to provide a forum to deal with matters of this nature.

Mr. J. Hickey suggests that the board communicates more with the Branches in order to clarify what their needs are. Mr. M. Joyce seconded this point. Mr. M. Barry indicated that the Board would meet with the Branches prior to the new season.

Mr. T. Martin expressed concern over the small number of competition players in Leinster. Mr. M. Barry explained it would take some time before JCS players are at a standard to play at both Provincial and National Events.

Mr. D. Butler suggested that there are too many Friday night starts, and more advertising is needed. This was noted by the Board.

Mr. A. Hurley asked for a JCS (Junior Challenger Series) option on the TTI affiliation form. Mr. T. Farrell agreed.

The Board Reports were adopted on the proposal of Mr. C. O’Ceadaigh. Mrs. V. Barry seconded this.

COMMITTEES’ REPORTS: These Reports, which had been circulated, were taken as read:

  1. Events Unit Report 2015/16 (Mr. Tony Farrell)
  2. Umpires & Referees Association (Mrs. Vivienne Barry)
  3. Para Report 2015/16 (Mr. Ronan Rooney)
  4. Senior Ranking Committee Report 2015/16 (Mr. Robert Cowan)
  5. Irish Veteran Table Tennis Society Report 2015/16 (Mr. Brian Finn)

OFFICERS’ REPORTS: These Reports, which had been circulated, were taken as read:

  1. WIS Coordinator’s Report 2015/16 (Mr. Mark O’Flynn)
  2. Anti-Doping Officer Report 2015/16 (Mr. Dave Heffernan)
  3. National Children’s Officer Report 2015/16 (Mr. Derek Hanley)

PROVINCIAL REPORTS: These Reports, which had been circulated, were taken as read:

  1. Connacht Branch Reports
  2. Leinster Branch Reports
  3. Munster Branch Reports
  4. Ulster Branch Reports

HONORARY LIFE MEMBERSHIP AWARDS

Mr. M. Barry introduced our two new Honorary Life Members. He summarised the background of both members, Mr. Alan Strong and Mr. Tony Martin, outlining their long list of achievements and contributions to Table Tennis in Ireland.

Both Honorary Life Members were presented with their awards by Table Tennis Ireland President, Mr. K. Strong. All TTI Members in attendance showed their appreciation to both recipients for their exceptional achievement.

ELECTION OF DIRECTORS:

Chairman:Mr. R. Cowan, proposed by Mr. M. Barry, seconded by Mr. T. Farrell

Finance Director: Mr. M. Barry, proposed by Mr. K. Strong, seconded by Mr. R. Cowan

Coaching Director: Mr. A. Strong, proposed by Mrs. P. Hunter, seconded by Mr. J. Hickey

Participation Director:Mr. L. O’Ceallaigh, proposed by Mr. T. Farrell, seconded by Mr. K. Strong

Marketing Director: Mr. P. Hunter announces that Mr. T. Farrell is stepping down. No proposals for Marketing Director submitted so this responsibility has been left with the Board

Associate Volunteer Director (Volunteer Development): Mrs. M. Grace, proposed by Mrs. P. Hunter, seconded by Mr. R. Cowan.

HR Director: There were no proposals for this position. The TTI Board has taken on this responsibility

Mr. J. Hickey acknowledged and thanked the outgoing Chairperson, Mrs. P. Hunter, for her service as Chair of Table Tennis Ireland. The President, Mr. K. Strong concurred with his comments.

Mr. M. Barry announces the reappointment of six Vice Presidents – Mrs. V. Barry, Miss A. Kelly, Mr. T. Martin, Mr. P. O’Brien, Mr. T. Phillips MBE, Mr. I. Shorten.

Mr. J. Finnegan was unanimously elected as an additional Vice President.

Mr. K. Strong invited members to come forward for committees.

ELECTION OF COMMITTEES:

Disciplinary Committee: The following were elected unanimously: Miss A. Kelly, Mr. M. Herley, Mr. A. Morgan and Mr. K. Spitere.

Jury of Appeal: Miss K. O’Hara, Mr. N. Hitchcock, Mr. J. Wilson, Mr. P. Talini were re-elected unanimously.

SPECIAL RESOLUTIONS: Mr. M. Barry introduced 2 Special Resolutions as follows:

  1. Adopting our new name (From ITTA Ltd to ITTA CLG)

Special Resolution No. 1

“That, the Company changes its name from Irish Table Tennis Association Company Limited to Irish Table Tennis Association Company Limited by Guarantee.”

  1. Adopting our new constitution

Special Resolution No. 2

“That, the Constitution in the form attached hereto and initialled for the purposes of identification be and is hereby adopted as the Constitution of the Company in substitution for and to the exclusion of the existing Memorandum and Articles of Association of the Company”

Mrs. P. Hunter asked for a proposer and seconder for No. 1 (New name). Mr. J. Hickey proposed, seconded by Ms. A. Kelly

Mrs. P. Hunter asked for a proposer and seconder for No. 2 (new M&AA). Mr. J. Hickey proposed, seconded by Ms. A. Kelly

Mr. M. Barry thanked Mr. J. Hickey and his staff for their invaluable contribution to TTI on legal matters throughout the year.

TABLE TENNIS IRELAND AWARDS 2014/5:

The 2015/6 Awards were announced by Mrs. P. Hunter. The Company Secretary, Mr. M. Barry, read the citations for each award and these were presented by the President, Mr. K. Strong.

  • Anna Kelly Female Coach of the Year: Tara Fusco
  • Ken Strong Male Coach of the Year: Keith & Gervis Knox (Joint Award)
  • Billy Marshall Junior Award: Owen Cathcart
  • Para Award of the Year: Rena McCarron Rooney
  • School / Club of the Year Award: Ormeau Table Tennis Club
  • McKee Trophy for Senior Female Player of the Year: Mia O’Rahilly Egan
  • Rhanbuoy Trophy for Senior Male Player of the Year: Gavin Maguire
  • International Performance of the Year Award: Ashley Robinson
  • Stiga Volunteer of the Year: Tony Higgins
  • Special Certificates of Merit: Ballincollig TTC (Club Award) & Michael Joyce (Volunteering)
  • Outstanding Achievement Award: John Murphy (TTI HP Coach)
  • Joe Veselsky Merit Award: Joe Hickey

The Joe Veselsky Merit award was introduced by the President, Mr. K. Strong, who read a long profile outlining Mr. Hickey's service to the sport over a number of years. The Life President and donor of the Award, Mr. J. Veselsky, spoke of his pleasure of being present to present this Award to his friend Mr. Hickey.

ADDRESS BY THE CHAIR:

Outgoing Chair Mrs. P. Hunter introduced new Chair Mr. R. Cowan who addressed the meeting as Chair of TTI for the first time.

Mr. R. Cowan set out 3 key objectives for his time as Chair:

-Increased participation of Women

-Strengthening and development of clubs

-Modernisation of the organisation

Finally, he thanked all present for their attendance and wished everyone a safe journey home.

Mr. Michael Barry

Company Secretary

30 June 2016

DOCUMENT 3 – CHAIRMAN’S REPORT

CHAIRMAN’S REPORT

ITTA Ltd ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING: 8Th JULY 2017

INTRODUCTION

Mr. President, Chair, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am pleased to present the Chairman’s report covering the period from the 2016 AGM.

REPORT

I was elected as HR director at the 2015 AGM and then as Chairman at the 2016 AGM.During the last year, there has been considerable change and many challenges. While I recognise some deficiencies during the year I also see some achievements and progress.

The biggest challenge has been recruitment and retention of volunteers and, for the volunteers we have, having time to commit fully to their roles. Considering the last two years, we have had an almost total change of directors and office staff, in many cases with inadequate time to have a well-planned hand-over, a real challenge to our institutional memory. I also recognise that many Branches have struggled to operate effectively for a variety of reasons.

Many of our problems this year related to events, with the low point perhaps the failure to have a Munster Senior Open, although there were others such as late changes of venue etc. Our performance in the area of participation has also been less than I would like to see, but the lack of a Participation Director has hindered us greatly. While Para table tennis was a success at the level of sending an elite athlete to the Paralympics, generally participation under this important category was weaker than we would have liked and there was little in the way of leadership, again due not having a Para Director for most of the year (however, we certainly have bounced back in this area since Paul Dolan took over). Our financial management was a challenge with a gap while we searched for a replacement Finance Director. We found it difficult to raise funds and sponsorship, due to the lack of a Marketing Director for much of the year. The lack of a dedicated Company Secretary has hindered our ability to further improve Governance. The failure to grow the numbers playing and in particular the continued fall off in women playing our national competitions are concerning.

While the introduction of any new online system is expected to have hiccups, the move towards the GoMembership system constitutes progress. However, it will only give us out, what we put in.Some extra work is required to bring the office staff and members up to speed on the use of this system. Strategically, it is an important step forward. Also, the appointment of a Chief Technical Officer (CTO), Mr. Breon Timmins, as a volunteer is expected to be of great benefit, although his work has just begun.

We continue to receive a Core Grant and WIS fundingalong the lines of previous years, which in itself is a success. Another great success, initiated and led mainly by the office staff, has been the achievement of extra funding for Club Development, allowing us to fund a three day per week position. As work has just begun under this heading, there is no Club Development report this year, but there will be one next year. We have also received our first High Performance funding that we are required to target at one player and, depending on his results, this may continue. Although the amount was low, €6,000, it certainly allowed us to increase the quality of HP training, which ultimately benefitted not only the nominated player, but those who trained with him. We will leverage this funding over the next few years for others on a similar trajectory. There was also an initiative from a member to initiate funding for the highest potential player and, so far this Exceptional Athlete Fund has received €1,206 of anonymous contributions. Thank you to these generous benefactors.

Our events are supposed to operate on a cost recovery basis, but this year, they could cost us €6,000 more than we receive in entrance fees. There is planning on reducing this gap this season, including combining some events and not offering prize money for the Nationals, as well as finding better value medals etc. from China. Other funding avenues were explored, but without a dedicated marketing or Commercial Director, they are unlikely to be fruitful.

The High Performance Program has been a success over the last few years, led by our HP director, Mr. Conn Higgins and also by our national Coach, Mr. John Murphy. Team performance and individual performances have been notable this year. The HP program has benefitted around 40 players, some of whom are HP and many of whom are critically important development players with the potential to become HP.

Having considered the situation, consulted with the Board and others in TTI, including Branches and associations, it appears that a restructure is necessary to ensure the continued successful operation of TTI. This will consist of a two level Board structure and also a restructure of the office staffing, subject to staff consultation. These two initiatives are interlinked and co-dependent. A paper is provide in the AGM pack with more details. However, changes like this are never painless and we need to moves slowly and deliberately taking into account the needs of all our stakeholders.

One unanticipated challenge this year has bene dealing with disciplinary matters. These matters are always complex and sensitive, but TTI needs to adopt rules and procedures to process these type of cases expeditiously, and we must support and develop our disciplinary and appeals committees. There is significant work to be done on our rule book. I would like to than those who spent many hours working on these and other related work. These issues took up far more board time that we anticipated and certainly distracted us from the important work of running TTI.