The AMS VP Finance debate Tuesday evening revealed candidate differences along a number of key policy points. While each candidate emphasized making AMS credit cards more accessible to clubs, updating AMS’s tech infrastructure and fostering financial accountability, they differ substantially in how they plan to do it.
The AMS currently issues credit cards to clubs with budgets of over $50,000 as an alternative to slower, paper-based reimbursement. But according to one audience member, their administration has been slow and clunky — she said she runs a club with $60,000 in assets but still has not yet been able to obtain a credit card. While all candidates advocated increasing the number of cards, they have different plans for how to achieve that.
Former AMS Financial Coordinator Koul Akuechbeny, who aims to get rid of paper-based reimbursement within three months of his election, called for that budget cap to be significantly lowered to give clubs more flexibility and for using IT services to monitor those accounts.
“We can handle it,” he said.
Linda Huang, the current AMS associate VP Finance, agreed that acquiring a credit card should be easier. But she proposed a model of credit card distribution based on the club’s history following AMS regulations and contributing to the UBC community, instead of financial size.
“Currently, the system is based on who has the biggest bank account with the AMS,” said Huang. “But we don’t have that trust and history.”
Current AMS Financial Systems Coordinator Adam Forsgren — whose platform advocates for doubling the number of card-carrying clubs from 30 to 60 — suggested involving Clubhouse to make the clunky application process easier, stressing a need for “oversight and guidance” for club treasurers.
Improving technology
As the AMS prepares to move its accounts from BMO to RBC, the office’s financial mechanisms have taken prominent role in the campaign.
Forsgren, who helped implement payment services like Showpass, aims to make the AMS’s financial system “interactive and intuitive.” Akuechbeny, citing his experience as president of the World University Service of Canada at UBC, echoed Forsgren’s statement in calling for a credit card system that is “easy for everyone to operate.”
Huang argued that while systems should be updated, it should be done carefully.
“When we switch programs, it hasn’t always been done with a consultation process,” said Huang. Giving the example of the introduction of Showpass, she cited a lack of opportunity for users “to report problems easily and anonymously” and called for a renewed, reorganized financial ledger for club budgets and expenses.
Maintaining accountability
Financial accountability and transparency featured largely in the debate, both in regards to the upcoming AMS’s fee restructuring and the revelation that the frozen-yogurt business Qoola was able to remain in the Nest for two years without paying rent.
Forsgren said the Qoola issue resulted from the transition from the old SUB to the Nest, saying it could have been prevented via tighter contractual obligations.
“For any business small or large, there should be a leeway time ... until their transition is complete,” he said.
Huang seemed to reject the notion that the incident was a mere accident, calling the failure to address it “highly alarming.” She stated that problems of rent payment should be “dealt with in a very timely manner” of 30 days. Akuechbeny agreed, calling for tighter internal management and oversight to prevent the loss of AMS funds.
“Anyone who is supposed to do their duty, they should do it at the right time,” said Akuechbeny, “or there should be a consequence tied to that.”
Fixing inefficiencies
Besides these issues, Akuechbeny also criticized the VP Finance office’s inefficiencies from the perspectives of club leaders during the open question period between candidates.
“If you go to the office and you can’t find Alim, Linda cannot help you,” he said, “and if you go to the office and you can’t find Linda, Alim cannot help you.
“How do you work together?”
Forsgren acknowledged that the internal workings of the office could be stronger, citing his own first weeks working there. “A lot of the time, you don’t know what each and every position does, because you don’t even know where to begin,” he said.
In response Huang called for electronic, easily-accessible ways of reaching the finance office to respond to allow for “accessible information at all times.”