=='''State of The Augustan Society, Inc. — August 2012'''==
''submitted by [[Consuls]]''
We are now at the end of a most interesting year (in the proverbial sense of “interesting” where it is equivalent to “cursed”). It included a good number of fresh starts, substantial progress on a number of fronts, and slippage on but few. Sadly, the past two months also displayed evidence that not everyone accepts the authority of the [[By-Laws]] and [[Board|Board of Directors]], but even that has now largely been resolved.
The downward trend in our membership that began in the last years of [[Founder|Sir Rodney's]] tenure appears to have been arrested, if not yet reversed. Our [[CommunicationsMain Website|website]] has been the key tool for this, as fewer than one member per year has been brought in by any other means. That people are willing to send us $146 based solely upon what they see on our website, without even asking for a sample ''[[Augustan Omnibus]]'', argues strongly that the website is is a tool we must support and continually expand.
One step we could take that might help with the membership total is is to discontinue the somewhat pointless practice of electing new members. The website could very easily be set up to permit “instant membership”, as is common in other organizations. This would of course trigger other changes, such as the loss of the postnominals “MAS” (since membership would no longer represent an honor).
''[[Augustæum]]'' has proven a worthy tool, both for staying in more regular contact that the ''[[Augustan Omnibus]]'' schedule will permit, and particularly for giving management the means for quick communications with the membership. In an age of electronic communications, it's difficult to keep ahead of the rumors, but we seem to be keeping up well. Indeed, letters received that say, “Why didn't I know about this earlier?” are thus actually quite reassuring.
''The [[Augustan Society Roll of Arms]]'' project has had a rocky history of late. With an inactive [[Hereditary Order of Armigerous Augustans|HOAA]], it was taken on by the [[Communications|Publications Committee]]. First a color reprint of Volume I was targeted, then the focus was switched to a new Volume IV. More change may well be in the offing. The major challenge is with obtaining translations of the blazons into “English”, as our [[Vice-Justiciars|Vice-Deputy Justiciar GeneralsJusticiars General]] are not uniformly responsive. This project, along with new [[Registration of Arms|Registrations of Arms]], badly needs a traffic manager; someone to track which blazons are ready, which have gone to the artist, right through to delivery of certificates.[''Note: The office of [[Arms Chancellor]] was created to address this need.'']
The [[Cataloging|Library Cataloging]] Project has finally begun in earnest, with over 300 books entered into the [[Online Public Access Catalog]] to date[''Note: 3,500 as of 2017. ''] We invite [[Directors]] and interested members to visit the site at <[http://library.augustansociety.org library.augustansociety.org]> and see for yourselves. Use login “guest” and password “please”. Work continues almost daily. [''Note: No login is required to use most features of the catalog.'']
The associated [["Buy-A-Box"]] program has generated substantial revenue which has been put to the purchase of acid-free storage boxes and steel shelving. We now have enough shelving for half our [[Library]] storage unit, and nearly that many boxes. We do not ask for another assessment at this time, as we think it appropriate to let the cataloging catch up. We will ask for more once we do.
The [[Noble Company of the Rose]] has also been dormant for five years, but a new ''[[Magister Rosae]]'' recently elected may change that … once he gets his new duties as [[Treasurer]] and the [[Audit Committee|Audit Committee Chairman]] under his belt. I recommend that we offer him our patience.
The five [''Note: now four''] [[Lineage Groups]] have not attracted any members to their ranks in the past year. However, we have received an increasing number of calls from non-members wishing to join them. We feel that serious consideration should be given to opening up membership in these groups to non-members. It would provide a source of revenue—the original purpose of these groups—and they may thereby offer a path to membership in the Society that such individuals might not otherwise consider.
One lesson learned in the past year is that too much of our operations are focused on the [[Consuls]]. We have become the bottleneck in most programs, and this is not good. True, some things must necessarily be done at headquarters[[Headquarters]], and it is not possible at present to include volunteers in our operations here, but other projects that could be as easily managed elsewhere are now on a list for “outsourcing”. We look for your support in this change, as it will be necessary if we are to expand our operations.
In order to deal with this bottleneck constructively, Consuls need the Board to set priorities and goals in a clear way. The recent call for a “[[Mission Statement]]” was an effort in this direction that got re-routed. This effort to set priorities needs to be restarted and given serious attention in short order that the Society's energies are directed as the Board wishes, and not at the whim of a couple of volunteers.