Unit 128 will host a discussion of the ACBL Proposed 10 Big Ideas
(Bring your own Lunch)
Where: Orchid Room (Across from Caloosa Ballroom)
When: 1:45-2:30 Between Sessions
We want to hear your thoughts!
Your hosts: Betty Sandifer(D9 president), Jeff Overby(Unit 128 President)
Jay Whipple (ACBL District 9 Director)
10 Big Ideas
We have discussed and considered many suggestions from our members and come up with a list of 10 big ideas -- things we think could help reach these goals:
Advertise, Promote, Sponsor - Test a range of advertising opportunities; expand and improve our promotion programs; find new ways to attract sponsors.
Document Health Benefits - Encourage well-designed, broad-scale studies that will identify and prove the health benefits of playing bridge.
Expert Player Guild - Encourage expert players to form a guild that would provide them both benefits (health, retirement, discounts) and a voice in how high-level bridge develops.
Improve Teaching Results - Study different teaching methods and use the results to strengthen bridge education in general; improve ACBL's TAP certification program; enable the development of master teacher programs.
Integrate Social Bridge - Create systems and change rules to encourage social players to integrate into both clubs and tournaments.
Money Bridge - Create a money-bridge tournament platform that will bring attention and sponsorship opportunities to bridge.
Redistribute Tournament Activity - Reorganize regionals into four levels; shift sectional activity into clubs and create regional and national STaCs; change how clubs, units and districts get paid for member tournament activity.
Simplify Masterpoints - Rebuild our masterpoint methodology so that it is easier to understand and administer.
Strength-Based Ratings - Offer members a new way to follow their progress by building a big data-driven methodology for estimating strength.
Upgrade Table Technology - Improve the integration of device and software technology into both tournament and club bridge.
At its next meeting in November, the Board will review these ideas, add and remove elements, and seek to improve their fit with our strategy. They will then ask the staff to devote its skills and resources to implementing a few of these new initiatives. We wanted to give all members a chance to have input into this process. So, please help us focus our energy on the things that you feel are most likely to help the ACBL move forward.
Go to acbl.org/bigideas and read any of the proposals you'd like to learn more about. Then, please let us know what you think, by completing a quick survey. Feel free to add new ideas at the end of the survey. We'll study them and try to incorporate them in our next list of big ideas.
Thanks for your help with this work and for your support of ACBL.