The Reprographics 101 Blog 2013 Mid-Year Survey is not being held in conjunction with the IRgA nor is it sanctioned by the IRgA. So what! Is that a good reason not to give industry-wide exposure to the Survey?

UPDATE on June 26 at 1:00 pm - the IRgA has posted an announcement of the Survey on its web-site.  My thanks to Ed Avis of the IRgA for doing that.  Joel


23 days ago, I posted a note in the IRgA LinkedIn Group page to let reprographers know that I, that day, resumed publishing the “Reprographics 101 Blog” at its original Internet address, http://reprographics.blogspot.com.  Most who’ve followed the Reprographics 101 Blog since its inception in early 2009 were aware that I moved the Repro 101 Blog to the IRgA web-site when I took over as Managing Director of the IRgA on August 1, 2012 and are aware that I relocated the Repro 101 Blog back to its original blog-site when I left the IRgA at the end of May this year.

Today, I received a blast e-mail from the IRgA LinkedIn Group, and, for those of you who did not receive this blast e-mail from the IRgA, here’s what it said:

A message from the IRgA President, John A. Davis, Alabama Graphics.

The IRGA Board of Directors on May 13 sent out an email about changes going on within the structure of the IRgA relative to a replacement for the Managing Director.

Since there seems to be some confusion, I thought it would be important to clarify what has transpired. On June 1, 2013, Ed Avis became the IRGA’s Managing Director, replacing Joel Salus, who served the IRgA from August 2012 until May 31, 2013. During the month of May the transition was completed. Joel retained the Reprographics 101 blog he started and the IRgA will continue with its own blog with plans to develop a new blog as well.

Joel recently posted notice about a 2013 mid-year “Reprographics Survey” on his blog and the IRgA LinkedIn discussion page. This survey is not affiliated in any way with the IRgA. In the future the IRgA will probably conduct its own membership survey and the results will be posted on the IRgA website.

Respectfully,

John A. Davis- IRgA President.

My comments about the note sent out by John Davis on behalf of the IRgA:

The Reprographics 101 Blog launched its 2013 Mid-Year Survey of Reprographers on Sunday, June 23^rd, and, when I did that, I posted a note about the Survey on the IRgA LinkedIn Group and in the “comment section” on the IRgA’s web-site.  I posted those notices – about the launch of the Survey - in an effort to reach as many reprographers as possible.  I did not say in those notices that this new Survey was being held in conjunction with the IRgA, is affiliated with the IRgA, or that the IRgA has sanctioned the Mid-Year Survey I’m currently conducting.  As to the notice that I put up in the “comment section” on the IRgA web-site about the survey, that notice has been deleted by the IRgA.  Apparently, the IRgA does not want Reprographers to know that Reprographics 101 is conducting a Mid-Year Survey of Reprographers, and, for the life of me, I have no idea why the IRgA would take that position.  The IRgA is, supposedly, an open forum for ALL in the reprographics community, and if that is the case, I would think that the IRgA would encourage any communications or surveys in the Reprographics Industry even if the IRgA is not the one communicating or surveying.  If the purpose of the IRgA is to foster and encourage open communication within the industry, then what purpose does it serve for the IRgA to come out with a statement that, in its purest essence, implies that Reprographers should not bother to participate in a survey that’s not sanctioned by the IRgA?  Surveys are intended to educate and inform.  What difference does it make who actually conducts industry surveys?  I respectfully ask that the IRgA post a note about the Mid-Year Survey on its web-site and further ask that the IRgA encourage all IRgA members to participate.