Wanted: CKLN boss

By Amy Brown-Bowers

Hiring is on hold for a new station manager at CKLN because it says its finances are a mess.

The station has been without a manager for five months after the last station manager, Conrad Collaco, resigned in August.

The station received 26 resumes and interviewed 11 candidates for the position — six of which were internal candidates.

However, according to Mike Phillips, vice chairperson on the CKLN board of directors, the station didn’t hire anyone because all of the applicants lacked “managerial and radio station experience.”

Other members of the board, including Lindsay Kneteman, head of the student committee on the board, backed up his statements.

“The big problem was not getting enough decent resumes,” Kneteman said.

“We did interview people but it didn’t seem like anyone would be able to take on the job without burning out or quitting.”

In December, The Eyeopener learned that one applicant had complained to CKLN’s board of directors. The applicant claimed in his complaint that he was told a manager had been hired before the decision had been ratified by the board.

If this were the case, CKLN, as a not-for-profit corporation, would be violating their own constitution by not putting the decision to its board of directors, which includes Ryerson students.

No one from CKLN was available to confirm the story.

Instead, CKLN has suggested the main reason for the managerial vacancy is that the station’s finances are in shambles.

“There’s money there, but the accounting practices are not as good as they should be,” Kneteman said.

She went on to say that most of the accounting is done by hand on spreadsheets because the station does not have accounting software.

Kneteman added there has been discussion of having someone come in from a non-profit organization to help kick start the cash clean up.

In the meantime, Kneteman said, Phillips is “trying to make sense” of the financial mess and is busy putting the right papers in the right folders.

According to Phillips, the station manager position is on hold until all accounting procedures are in place and all office systems are reviewed.

The plan of action was to have been discussed at the directors meeting Tuesday and is on the agenda for the annual general meeting Wednesday night.

The position pays $500 per week before taxes with no health benefits.

Tim May, who currently serves as programming director, is temporarily filling in as manager until a qualified candidate can be found.