Anyway jokes aside, I know I am always so vocal about how the club is being run - but like all of us I love Charlton with all my heart. But I mean a fucking London Knights ex employee - we can do better than that surely.
He is clearly just a puppet to TS - and that's not good enough.
I am sure I am not the only fan on this board that's better qualified than him.
I have said this before - I emailed Thomas and said I would give up my advisory role at Brentford and offered a set number of hours for free. Heard nothing back. My lead investor is part of one of the consortiums short listed to takeover Chelsea. I have spent the last month guiding and advising on his teams bid. I have 22 years experience in sports and entertainment marketing.
We will have loads of fans who love the club and can offer better experience than this guy.
It is so fucking frustrating on every level.
Well hang on, there's absolutely no evidence for that. Yes, it's odd that Sandgaard is appointing people he knows, but that's the way he does things. He didn't know Ged Roddy, who had a great footballing CV, and he didn't turn out too great so I think now Sandgaard is going for people he knows. There were rumours that Sandgaard wasn't happy about the amount he was being kept informed when Roddy was in so the placement of people he knows is likely a reaction to that. Whether he's over-corrected or not we'll see, but it seems a bit much to rule this guy out as being able to handle himself completely because you know someone with a better CV, especially with Roddy's in mind. Let's just see
So looking on the positive side of things - in what way was he deemed a cheat code in the ice hockey world? Perhaps we could wait and see what he offers and maybe even support him - I know it’s a radical thought for some but can’t we at least try?
It was a joke after Inniss was called a cheat code on here recently.
This does mean though that there's no chance of us getting undersoil heating installed now, as if the pitch is frozen we'll stage a game of ice hockey instead
Funny you should say that because the boiler for undersoil heating has been installed 10 years after Duchachatelat but the pipes in.
But maybe it has a "very cold" option 🤔
Good news, I never knew that. It's not been announced?
This does mean though that there's no chance of us getting undersoil heating installed now, as if the pitch is frozen we'll stage a game of ice hockey instead
Funny you should say that because the boiler for undersoil heating has been installed 10 years after Duchachatelat but the pipes in.
But maybe it has a "very cold" option 🤔
Good news, I never knew that. It's not been announced?
No, not sure why not as good news.
Maybe they are saving it to announce the same time as the plastic pitch 😘
So looking on the positive side of things - in what way was he deemed a cheat code in the ice hockey world? Perhaps we could wait and see what he offers and maybe even support him - I know it’s a radical thought for some but can’t we at least try?
Most believed that Brian and the Knights' incredible success was down to how slippery Brian managed to get the ice at their London Arena. What people don't realise is that the secret to his success was how slippery he got the puck on game day.
Unfortunately, Brian's greasy puck was eventually his downfall - as it stopped being about winning hockey matches, but rather how slippery can one man make his puck?
Something to keep an eye on during Brian's tenure at the Valley.
Anyway jokes aside, I know I am always so vocal about how the club is being run - but like all of us I love Charlton with all my heart. But I mean a fucking London Knights ex employee - we can do better than that surely.
He is clearly just a puppet to TS - and that's not good enough.
I am sure I am not the only fan on this board that's better qualified than him.
I have said this before - I emailed Thomas and said I would give up my advisory role at Brentford and offered a set number of hours for free. Heard nothing back. My lead investor is part of one of the consortiums short listed to takeover Chelsea. I have spent the last month guiding and advising on his teams bid. I have 22 years experience in sports and entertainment marketing.
We will have loads of fans who love the club and can offer better experience than this guy.
It is so fucking frustrating on every level.
Well hang on, there's absolutely no evidence for that. Yes, it's odd that Sandgaard is appointing people he knows, but that's the way he does things. He didn't know Ged Roddy, who had a great footballing CV, and he didn't turn out too great so I think now Sandgaard is going for people he knows. There were rumours that Sandgaard wasn't happy about the amount he was being kept informed when Roddy was in so the placement of people he knows is likely a reaction to that. Whether he's over-corrected or not we'll see, but it seems a bit much to rule this guy out as being able to handle himself completely because you know someone with a better CV, especially with Roddy's in mind. Let's just see
You can argue the merits of Roddy's, and Adkins, CVs until the cows come home. I think there has to be questions asked about both the job they were given and how much influence they had over anything.
It's the same as the players actually. The CVs (or the people) were bent to Thomas's desire, as opposed to influence it.
It seems odd to me though that someone like DamoNorthStand, who appears to have the relevant experience, offers his services for nothing and doesn’t even get the courtesy of a reply. The same is true of others too. You’d think if some of your own fans could help improve matters and are willing to get involved you would tap into that knowledge and goodwill. Doesn’t bode well for me, it’s Thomas’s way or no way.
If TS started taking fans up on their offers of help you would have countless other fans immediately calling him cheap, not wanting to appoint professional's, favouring certain fans over others etc. This is meant as no disrespect to those who have offered their services, but regardless of how well intentioned, experienced or qualified for the role those fans might be I suspect TS thinks it would be more hassle than its worth and I'd be inclined to agree.
As soon as he took one fan up on their offer he would be inundated with other fans offering their services. You'd have cooks/chefs wanting to advise him on matchday meals, accountant's wanting to speak him on the finances of the club, lawyers wanting to discuss employment contracts. And then as soon as he started turning down these offers those fans who had been spurned would start turning against fans who had been taken up on their offers, and suggesting he is only listening to certain elements of the fan base.
Of course fans should have a say in the running of the club, and TS does seem to be making efforts to facilitate this and these efforts are more than any of our other owners have made in recent years. Granted that bar is very low, and sure he could probably do better. But I think if you asked any fan of any club they would tell you that their club should listen to fans more, allow them to be more involved etc. That includes many that we would probably consider very well run clubs.
I'm not sure TS can be blamed for wanting key people in the business to be employed full time, almost all businesses big or small are made up of contracted staff and very few will rely on the services of volunteers. Even fewer will rely on the services of volunteers in key or significant positions.
Many have pointed out there is lots of work to do at this club, that includes fans of the club, staff past and present and even TS himself. And many have suggested TS needs more boots on the ground at the club on a daily basis.
To get that work done you need people in key posts who can dedicate all of their time and efforts to the matters at hand. I am a volunteer myself however I have a full time paid role which pays my bills, and therefore when push comes to shove it will always take precedence over my voluntary role because it puts food on the table. Broadly speaking, volunteers volunteer because they have other commitments which mean they can't dedicate their full time efforts to the role they are volunteering for.
Employees in senior roles such as will know they answer to TS, if he wants to tell them to do something they have to do it, if he wants them to work a certain day they have to do it, if he wants to ring them at 3am in the morning when he's in America he can expect they will answer. That is all the kind of stuff you cannot expect of a volunteer who is not paid.
Many seem to think this appointment is cheap or lacks ambition, but it seems a stretch to suggest that but then criticise TS for not taking up fans offers of free help? If he was cheap and unambitious surely he would be quite happy to accept those free offers of help and save himself whatever salary he is paying this potential new guy, who is no doubt not working for free. Many debates can be had about how well TS has spent his money, but he has spent lots of his own money and clearly plans to spend lots more of it if he is to be believed so I would not subscribe to a view that he is cheap or lack ambition.
On the matter of this appointment, i have never heard of this guy so have no view either way. I doubt many others have heard of him either. However that is no doubt the case for almost all football executive's at practically every club, almost all of them will be unheard of before being appointed. And whilst he lacks football experience the same can also be said of the majority of football executive's as well. There are many roles in a football club you need people with football experience for, and many where you just need people with the right experience and skills. What I would say is football is a very emotive and passionate business to be involved in, and lots of mistakes have been made by individuals involved in other clubs who have let their heart rule their head. See Derby as an example. Sometimes it is good to have people involved in a business who will think with their head rather than their heart, and who will make decisions methodically and not influenced by the emotion of whether we've won, drawn or lost the weekend before.
I've no idea whether the new guy will be a success or failure, but clearly TS feels he is a good fit and is willing to part with a fair chunk of his cash to pay his wages so I'm all for giving him a chance and welcoming him to the club.
It's so interesting to read about what a superb appointment this is and what a great range of experience he has. Although it's a pity that he's a terrible candidate and shouldn't be anywhere near the club. I'm glad he worked for a company that has nothing to do with the Holocaust, because that is always one of the first considerations when taking someone on. He obviously knows TS really well, because he's from a country that's very close to Denmark and he went to university in a country which is very close to the United States. It's disappointing that he isn't the most experienced CEO in English football (because that's the level we should be recruiting, obviously) and hasn't got any background to Charlton at all. But it's great that he's linked to lots of people close to Charlton, businesses in and around the area and the Trust.
I agree with everyone that says this is a terrible appointment. And with everyone that says it's a great appointment.
I fully expect him to do really well, or badly, or resign very early on, be sacked and/or not appointed at all.
(And I'm astonished that TS doesn't respond in detail to every unsolicited request he gets from LinkedIn. Maybe he thinks one conversation with Acworth gave him all he needed to know).
The Icelandic 62 year old was rumoured to be our new COO on twitter by @churchyruns and by @RedRobin here on the Tony Keohane thread.
Jokat was CEO of the London Knights Ice Hockey side and worked for AEG for five years as well as being an ice hockey coach.
He's had various sports consultancy roles too and has been based in Europe for over 20 years.
He has a degree in Sports Administration.
Rumours say COO not CEO although that might, IMHO, be a title to allow TS to remain CEO while Joket is the on the ground, de facto CEO. My speculation only.
Nothing official so WIOTOS but @RedRobin said Joket has said it himself.
The Icelandic 62 year old was rumoured to be our new COO on twitter by @churchyruns and by @RedRobin here on the Tony Keohane thread.
Jokat was CEO of the London Knights Ice Hockey side and worked for AEG for five years as well as being an ice hockey coach.
He's had various sports consultancy roles too and has been based in Europe for over 20 years.
He has a degree in Sports Administration.
Rumours say COO not CEO although that might, IMHO, be a title to allow TS to remain CEO while Joket is the on the ground, de facto CEO. My speculation only.
Nothing official so WIOTOS but @RedRobin said Joket has said it himself.
Sandgaard said: “Brian has a wealth of experience and contacts, and is a really important addition to the club. He will lead on all our business activity as we look to increase our commercial revenue.
Sandgaard said: “Brian has a wealth of experience and contacts, and is a really important addition to the club. He will lead on all our business activity as we look to increase our commercial revenue.
I thought that was Mumford's role?
Presumably the business activities are anything non football, and Mumford then reports to jokat
Comments
Maybe they are saving it to announce the same time as the plastic pitch 😘
Unfortunately, Brian's greasy puck was eventually his downfall - as it stopped being about winning hockey matches, but rather how slippery can one man make his puck?
Something to keep an eye on during Brian's tenure at the Valley.
It's the same as the players actually. The CVs (or the people) were bent to Thomas's desire, as opposed to influence it.
As soon as he took one fan up on their offer he would be inundated with other fans offering their services. You'd have cooks/chefs wanting to advise him on matchday meals, accountant's wanting to speak him on the finances of the club, lawyers wanting to discuss employment contracts. And then as soon as he started turning down these offers those fans who had been spurned would start turning against fans who had been taken up on their offers, and suggesting he is only listening to certain elements of the fan base.
Of course fans should have a say in the running of the club, and TS does seem to be making efforts to facilitate this and these efforts are more than any of our other owners have made in recent years. Granted that bar is very low, and sure he could probably do better. But I think if you asked any fan of any club they would tell you that their club should listen to fans more, allow them to be more involved etc. That includes many that we would probably consider very well run clubs.
I'm not sure TS can be blamed for wanting key people in the business to be employed full time, almost all businesses big or small are made up of contracted staff and very few will rely on the services of volunteers. Even fewer will rely on the services of volunteers in key or significant positions.
Many have pointed out there is lots of work to do at this club, that includes fans of the club, staff past and present and even TS himself. And many have suggested TS needs more boots on the ground at the club on a daily basis.
To get that work done you need people in key posts who can dedicate all of their time and efforts to the matters at hand. I am a volunteer myself however I have a full time paid role which pays my bills, and therefore when push comes to shove it will always take precedence over my voluntary role because it puts food on the table. Broadly speaking, volunteers volunteer because they have other commitments which mean they can't dedicate their full time efforts to the role they are volunteering for.
Employees in senior roles such as will know they answer to TS, if he wants to tell them to do something they have to do it, if he wants them to work a certain day they have to do it, if he wants to ring them at 3am in the morning when he's in America he can expect they will answer. That is all the kind of stuff you cannot expect of a volunteer who is not paid.
Many seem to think this appointment is cheap or lacks ambition, but it seems a stretch to suggest that but then criticise TS for not taking up fans offers of free help? If he was cheap and unambitious surely he would be quite happy to accept those free offers of help and save himself whatever salary he is paying this potential new guy, who is no doubt not working for free. Many debates can be had about how well TS has spent his money, but he has spent lots of his own money and clearly plans to spend lots more of it if he is to be believed so I would not subscribe to a view that he is cheap or lack ambition.
On the matter of this appointment, i have never heard of this guy so have no view either way. I doubt many others have heard of him either. However that is no doubt the case for almost all football executive's at practically every club, almost all of them will be unheard of before being appointed. And whilst he lacks football experience the same can also be said of the majority of football executive's as well. There are many roles in a football club you need people with football experience for, and many where you just need people with the right experience and skills. What I would say is football is a very emotive and passionate business to be involved in, and lots of mistakes have been made by individuals involved in other clubs who have let their heart rule their head. See Derby as an example. Sometimes it is good to have people involved in a business
who will think with their head rather than their heart, and who will make decisions methodically and not influenced by the emotion of whether we've won, drawn or lost the weekend before.
I've no idea whether the new guy will be a success or failure, but clearly TS feels he is a good fit and is willing to part with a fair chunk of his cash to pay his wages so I'm all for giving him a chance and welcoming him to the club.
I agree with everyone that says this is a terrible appointment. And with everyone that says it's a great appointment.
I fully expect him to do really well, or badly, or resign very early on, be sacked and/or not appointed at all.
(And I'm astonished that TS doesn't respond in detail to every unsolicited request he gets from LinkedIn. Maybe he thinks one conversation with Acworth gave him all he needed to know).
has Keohane gone, wasn’t he COO?
I don't know a lot about Jokat's ability, but hopefully he's a positive addition.
I have been fortunate to have been previously involved in Charlton Athletic Community Trust from 2005 to 2012
Brian’s knowledge will help drive us to becoming Premier League-ready on the business side.
Good luck in your job as COO, But I hope you realize that the PUCK stops with you.
I thought that was Mumford's role?