Former PIAA Victoria state secretary Ron Patterson has put his name forward for the PIAA elections and will run against Finsbury Green CEO Peter Orel for the Victoria seat on the board. In Tasmania, former AIW Printing director Peter Clark will contest the ballot against Martin Guilliamse, GM of Mark Media in Hobart.
All seven sitting directors who sought reappointment have been returned unopposed. They are:
Kieran May – ACT
Matt Aitken – NSW
Walter Kuhn – Queensland
Peter Lane – South Australia
Graham Jamieson – Western Australia
Chris Segaert – National
John Scott - National
"The entire pre-existing board is being returned uncontested, which is a healthy result and a great endorsement of what they have done," says PIAA CEO Andrew Macaulay. "There will be a ballot in Victoria and Tasmania where existing board members retired. [Current Victorian-based member Kellie Northwood is stepping down and Tasmanian board member Craig Pearce resigned last month.]
"The four candidates are all excellent members of the association and it's always good to see competition for new places on the board. The AEC will now send out the ballot papers to the eligible voters - that is current financial members - in those two states."
Patterson is a high-profile industry identity and has been a prominent critic of the way the board has been run in recent years following his acrimonious departure from the PIAA in 2012, when his position was declared redundant after a consolidation of operations.
He was formerly sales and marketing manager for M&M Binders in Melbourne, where he teamed up with the Todisco family, before leaving early in 2014. Patterson says one of the most important issues facing the board today is the lack of industry training.
"A lot of people are just not being trained and it is bloody criminal. You only have to look at the recent apprenticeship numbers. It's an issue that has to be discussed with the membership. A lot of us have complained but no one wants to put their hand up. I've been involved with the PIAA for 16 years in one way or another and now that I'm semi-retired, the timing is right. I'm keen to get my feet under the desk and go to work. The board needs some new blood with printing industry experience."
Tasmanian candidate Martin Guilliamse of Mark Media says if he's elected he'd like to see the board focus on boosting membership numbers.
"I've been a member of the PIAA for a long time and we've lost a lot of members over the past few years. The board and the new CEO seem to be back on track now but for a while people became disappointed and saw the PIAA as becoming more of a corporate structure than a members' association. I know members in Tasmania and elsewhere who left because they didn't see how they were getting value for money. We need to speak to them and find out what we can do to get them back on board."
Guilliamse has been on the Tasmanian regional committee for about 20 years and also served on the PICA/Diemen Award committee.
He's standing against former AIW Printing director Peter Clark (pictured, right), who retired from the web offset company in 2012 but has continued in the industry as a consultant to AIW and other companies in the region.
PIAA President, Kieran May, says he's pleased that the current Board members who sought reappointment have been returned.
“We are focused on reinvigorating the association and the industry and the job must continue. As an industry, we cannot forget where we have been, but our eyes must remain firmly on the future. Members in both Tasmania and Victoria now have an opportunity to decide who joins us on the journey.
“I am sure the members will carefully consider the relative strengths of each nominee and make their choice wisely. The candidates in both States will add to that diversity, albeit in different ways and from very different backgrounds."
The ballot will officially open tomorrow, 29 September 2016, and close at 10:00 am (AEDT) on Thursday, 27 October 2016.