Not sure if the Barcamp list is the most ideal forum to raise and answer questions about this, but we can move it elsewhere if it carries on and disturbs people...
A few questions if you don't mind: - Do you have detailed prospectuses planned and written up for the programs described on the Programs section of the web site? - Have you begun building a roster of mentors who are willing to be recognized at this stage? - Are there Thai nationals that you have worked with to this point who have showed interest in being founding/board members of this association? That seems to me fundamental to reducing barriers to success in this endeavor. - I suppose there is somewhat of a chicken-and-egg problem here in that you probably need registered status before you can legitimately seek investors. Do you have plans for funding strategy and organizational structure if you do achieve this status that you can publish? Are you making any offers of founding member benefits to those who are willing to pledge at this stage, given that they carry through with donation/investment if the pledge goal is met? I think your mission is worthy so I hope I don't come across as critically grilling, just figure these are due-diligence questions you're going to encounter from potential supporters, if you haven't already :-) Regards, Ches On Wednesday, August 22, 2012 3:34:40 PM UTC+7, Ian wrote: > > Dear All, > > Depending on what mailing lists and FB groups you read, you may have > already heard about the IT Startup Association of Thailand's pledge drive > we have been holding. We have been seeking pledges to help cover the costs > to become an officially registered Thai association. We already have a > website up here: http://www.itstartups.org/ > > On our website we talk about a range of activities and programs we plan > the association to work on to support the IT entrepreneurial community here > in Thailand. Many of the people who are working on founding the official > association are and have been strong supporters of IT community related > events like Barcamp. > > The IT Startup Association of Thailand could be a reliable vehicle that > helps moves the Thailand IT community forward. As an official Thai > association, the organization would have the ability to manage funds for > one time events, ongoing programs or other activities and programs to > support the community and accept tax-free donations. The association could > partner with other community groups to provide them support, which may be > particularly critical during a group's startup phase. > > The number and types of activities that the association will be involved > in will be almost entirely guided by its members. Beyond Barcamps, there > are other potential international events and programs the association could > help to bring to Thailand. > > Additionally, the association formation committee has already been playing > a role in being a central point of contact and connection point for the IT > community here in Thailand. We would like to continue and strengthen this > role in the community as an official association. > > We started our pledge drive in February and are very near our pledge goal > needed to formally register our association with the government. We are > looking for more people within the community committed to being founding > members of the association. We are asking that these initial founding > members pledge to pay their first year membership dues upfront. The amount > is up to the individuals but we are asking for a pledge in the range of > 3,000 to 5,000 baht. Of course, more would be appreciated. > > A lot of our efforts have been spent on this pledge drive and coordinating > with law firms. This has delayed us from moving forward to providing direct > assistance to Thai startups. Additionally, our unofficial status has > prevented us from fully engaging and securing commitments from both > prospective corporate sponsors and partner organizations. The future status > of our association will determine the type of support we provide to the IT > community in Thailand. We have decided that if we can not reach our pledge > goals by September 15th that we will likely discontinue pursuing formal > registration as an Association and pursue the goals of the Association as > an informal group. Unfortunately, not being formally registered will not > allow us to accept corporate sponsorships and any future events or > activities the members wish to organize and will require a request of funds > from individual members on an event or project basis. If you have not had > the opportunity to pledge your membership dues please do so by September > 15th so we may successfully conclude our pledge drive, commence the formal > registration process and eventually pursue our ambitious but worthy mission. > > Pledging is simple, merely email one of us with your pledge amount with > your full name (or name of your company) and we will record your pledge. > Once we have the full amount needed to move forward, we will email all of > you that have pledged with the account into which you can deposit the > money. Written confirmation for receipt of funds can be provided if > requested. > > If you would like more information beyond what is on our website, please > feel free to contact one of us. We thank you in advance for your support. > > Sincerely, > Ian Korman ([email protected] <javascript:>) and Dave Shelters ( > [email protected] <javascript:>) > > -- Barcamp Bangkok 4: October 23-24, 2010 More details at http://www.barcampbangkok.com/ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Barcamp Thailand" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/barcamp-thailand?hl=en
