Race Profile: VP Finance

UBC Insiders Analysis

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The VP Finance has traditionally been one of the most difficult jobs to be effective at in the executive committee. Tasked with crafting a budget to spend millions of dollars in three months, there’s little the VP Finance can do to shake up the status-quo in their most important task. Other parts in the job are the SUB businesses, sustainability, the AMS/GSS health and dental plan, and financial administration.

Because elections don’t yield the best accountants and because the post has been neglected in the past, the VP Finance role was once thought to be a liability to the society. To make sure the job gets done, the staff assumed much of the job. The AMS has matured since those days, and I would claim today the staff has too much control. What the job needs is an insider who understands the system, has the trust of the staff, but also has a vision on how to modernize a fiscal system that’s as rigid and cold as the building it’s housed in.

Recently challenged at council were philosophical questions about the operations of the SUB businesses. The AMS has prided itself on being one of the only student societies in Canada that has a business operation that nets a profit, which is one way the AMS retains the lowest student fees in the country. That said, profitable businesses often come at the cost of pricier food and lower employee wages, many of whom are students. Which is better: cheap mandatory fees, or cheap Pendulum T-Birds?

Also challenged was the extent that the AMS should be volunteer- or employment- driven. While the undergraduate societies are largely run by volunteers, does the importance of their parent organization warrant the added accountability only paid employment can ensure? Insiders answers this question with an unequivocal yes, provided the position at hand has any significant stake in the future of the society. There is, however, a larger role that volunteers and interns can play within the AMS, as opportunities there are currently non-existent.

Budget-wise, the VP Finance is the mastermind behind the AMS services. Operationally overseen by the hired ECSS, the VP Finance still sets the political direction of the otherwise non-political services for the year. In particular, an issue is controlling the spending of the $130,000-annual Safewalk, in which a walk costs more than a taxi-ride.

Also, an alleged structural deficit was uncovered in the budget this year, of which not much is yet known (we asked). It will be the incoming VP Finance’s job to make sense of this hoo-hah, and hopefully use the crisis to introduce some overdue changes.

The candidates in this race are the rather fashionable Elin Tayyar, ’09 SAC Vice-Chair, and the hyper-transparent Invisible Man. We’re elated to see a joke candidate in the running, but disappointed at the overall lack of interest for this race. Tuum Est, Elin.

See Candidate Profiles after the jump.

Candidate Profiles

Name: Elin Tayyar
Age: 21
Year: 4
Faculty and program: Arts, double majoring in Economics and International Relations
Years on campus: 4th year
Past campus involvement: AMS SAC Vice-Chair, intramural leagues,
Past non-campus involvement: Toque Tuesdays to raise money for raise the roof foundation, basketball coaching for elementary school aged children.

1) Should the AMS’s businesses continue to be run as businesses, or should the AMS be looking to make them more at the service model? Why?

AMS businesses provide a method for raising funds in addition to the amount that is collected by our annual fees. This allows the AMS to provide more services than it would be able to otherwise. Thus, a profit-maximizing model would theoretically be beneficial to all students, assuming that all of the money used by AMS benefits all students.

At the same time however, the majority of our customers are students. This provides an opportunity for our businesses to deviate from the profit maximization model in order to make students’ lives better. For example, one thing I intend to look into is having one of our businesses, such as Blue Chip, open late during exam period. A significant number of students study late into the night on campus, but there is a lack of businesses that are open late. Although this may not be highly profitable, the benefits of such a move could be higher than its cost.

2) Volunteer positions save the AMS money. Paid positions put money in the hands of students and help finance their education. To what extent should the AMS be a volunteer-driven organization?

AMS revenues come from students. All salaries paid to our staff are coming from our member. Given this fact, as well as our structural deficit, we cannot afford to pay salaries as a way to help our student staff finance their education. In effect, giving salaries above the market rate for the purpose of helping our student staff pay for school, would act as a wealth distribution scheme. Given that student staff are not selected based on their financial situation, this would be both ineffective and unfair. For this reason, AMS should minimize its expenses on salaries for student staff.

Although creating more volunteer positions would save us money and potentially increase participation in our student government, the AMS cannot rely on volunteers to carry out its operations. Many student staff positions require significant time commitment and responsibility. Furthermore, the supervision required for volunteers would also present a difficulty. For these reasons, there are limitations to having volunteers.

All in all, I would like to see the AMS incorporate the concept of volunteerism into its organization, even given the limitations. This push must take into account factors outside of finances. Money should not be the only motivation for this change in organizational composition.

3) If, as a cost-cutting measure, you were forced to eliminate two AMS services, which would you pick and why?

If there is one thing the majority of students recognize in AMS, it is range of services offered by it. AMS services cost the AMS over $400,000 per year. The major portion, roughly 30%, of this money is allocated to our Safewalk program. Combined, Safewalk and Sexual Assault Support Centre make up 58% of the services budget.

While cutting Safewalk or SASC could greatly reduce our deficit, they are important services that make students feels safer, and add value to our organization. I believe all our services are essential, and I would be very reluctant to cut any of them. However, as with many areas of our organization, there is much room to improve in the efficiency of our operation.

At the current level of efficiency, the number of AMS programs and services is unsustainable. We need to either cut some programs or become more efficient at what we do. I believe we can make huge strides in reducing unnecessary costs in our operations, eliminating the need to completely cut our programs.

4) What is your plan to deal with the AMS’s structural deficit?

Currently, we have a large unsustainable budget deficit of over $200,000. This is a very pressing issue that will have to be dealt with this year. The 1-year terms of our executives creates a situation where the incentive to dealing with a deficit is weak. However, I will prioritize AMS’s long-term interest over our short-term interests. In other words, dealing with the structural deficit will be my highest priority during my term.

To resolve the deficit problem, I intend to restructure the Student Administrative Commission, as well as the Finance Commission. I plan to spearhead an audit, as recommended by the previous year’s budget committee, in order to reallocate our resources to make our organization more efficient.

I also plan to continue integrating electronic systems to our operations to reduce paperwork, streamline communication, and save us money and time. While we have done this in a limited manner this year, there is a need to invest more in these systems. The reason for the slow implementation of such systems is the initial investment requirement, as well as the time required.

Furthermore, we will need to renew our contract with the permanent staff union. It is essential for the negotiator, the VP Finance and VP Admin, to be familiar with the nature of the role of the staff. I will use my familiarity with the system to negotiate a deal that satisfies both our interests as well as theirs.

While cost cutting measures will need to be taken, there is a congruent need to raise our revenues through our business operations. There is a need to increase marketing of our businesses.

Decreasing unnecessary cost and increasing business revenues will allow us to cut our deficit without having to cut any services or programs.

5) If you are elected VP Finance, what will you do to make yourself equally or more transparent than your opponent, The Invisible Man?

I believe in accountable leadership. I plan to have an open door policy to allow students to raise their concerns. This is one thing the Invisible Man will be unable to do, as no one will be able to have a face to face conversation with him. I believe the interests of students are clear and evident, and so being transparent will not be an impediment to carrying out my role.

Name: The Invisible Man
Age: 22
Year: 5
Faculty and program: Engineering Physics
Years on campus: 5
Past campus involvement: UBC Hide and Seek Society, Pre-Optometry Club, PhotoSoc, Navigators
Past non-campus involvement: Vancouver Birdwatching Society

1) Should the AMS’s businesses continue to be run as businesses, or should the AMS be looking to make them more at the service model? Why?

The AMS businesses have been dragged in the mud as UBC has been increasing their food presence on campus. The AMS needs to respond to this by advertising the visibility of our storefronts. We need to shift the student eye towards Blue Chip, and my favorite, The Pit, because right now it’s focused on that blindingly bright Shoppers’ On Campus sign.

2) Volunteer positions save the AMS money. Paid positions put money in the hands of students and help finance their education. To what extent should the AMS be a volunteer-driven organization?

Without strong student support, the AMS will lose its student focus. To avoid becoming an empty organization, we need to be sure students are present, so I’ll make sure their pockets aren’t too light.

3) If, as a cost-cutting measure, you were forced to eliminate two AMS services, which would you pick and why?

From my point of view, we need to keep those services which show clear results. In particular, I’m a fan of Safewalk, whose visible presence on campus illuminates the reality of campus safety. I’m always comforted when I see the red coats coming. I would also remove the Food Bank because most people don’t even know it’s there!

4) What is your plan to deal with the AMS’s structural deficit?

I think we need to take a glance into our internal red tape and make sure we aren’t weighing ourselves down. I propose we gut all the red tape with Scotch® Crystal Clear Tape, as only with crystal-clear accounting policies can we truly see the void our money is falling into. I would also do away with the shady President’s fund, by declaring all past expenses null.

5) If you are elected VP Finance, what will you do to make yourself equally or more transparent than your opponent, Elin Tayyar?

At first glance, Elin states to have transparent and clear policies, but really if you look through the murky waters and smokescreens, you can plainly see he’s out to erect a wall to block the students’ vision. Through his empty and short-sighted policies, he’s planning to hollow out the AMS’s bank accounts. If elected your VP Finance, I will cast a ray of light through the turbid AMS budgeting procedures, and ensure we hold an open consultation that process that will take a gander at every student’s concerns.

Further, I hope to make the AMS more transparent by replacing the thick walls in the New SUB with glass windows. Think Ladha Centre. By having a visible presence at the heart of campus, the AMS can act as a focal point in the barren wasteland our campus has become.