It's a long time - a very long time - since I posted about the Federation of Small Businesses. Once a keen local supporter and committee member, I was dismayed at how the organisation handled certain matters to which I was a spectator three years ago - have a look [here] if you wanted to be reminded of the sort of thing. That post talks of previous problems too, so I suppose it didn't come as a big surprise to find that there are some things that appear (to me) to be less than good going on again.

Things have been very quiet apart from the occasional posted newsletter, and I had assumed that nothing much was happening ... but a letter through the post the other day, asking me to confirm that my email address was {something wrong} gave me my first clue as to why I might have been out of touch ... which rather puzzled me seeing as I had been signed up with them, and corresponding by email quite happily too, for years. A very odd error, too - as if someone had manually made a change and - as the Monty Python team would say - replaced something with something completely different!. But, disappointed though I am to have missed the local AGM that at long last is setting up a new local branch committee, I put it down as "just one of those things" and - as I've moved on from being active in the FSB - didn't worry about it too much, or give it any further thought.

But I suppose that if something had happened twice previously - to my knowledge - and the system was unchanged, then it's likely to happen again ... and again, so I shouldn't be surprised to have been told tales of further things (by someone involved) this evening, that have made me start wondering if it's possible that my email address was changed intentionally - I'm not typically a "conspiracy theory" person, but at times I wonder.

Anyway - about a year ago, I was asked rather forcefully by someone who said he was senior in the FSB to amend my blog to make it more accurate ... and I invited him to write to me with specifics so that I could do so. I think I've lost his email now, but it strikes me that if the wrong address was on file he might have written and been frustrated that I did not answer; if he would like to get in touch again ... I'm graham@wellho.net and I would be delighted to update my blog for fairness and accuracy as described [here].

---

I am careful - very careful - about posting about sharp practices but - as you can see [here], I do so from time to time. And it's amazing just how much feedback such posts get from people who were wondering themselves / have been caught by some of the things I describe in that section. However, by offering critical comment, to some extent I court the attention of some people who (by the very reason they came to my attention) are not the most honourable in their business activities.
(written 2010-11-06, updated 2010-11-07)

 Z401 - Federation of Small Businesses
  [1078] Wiltshire - multicultural community - (2007-02-13)
  [1097] Train and business balls all in the air! - (2007-03-02)
  [1133] B-2-B Networking, 20th April. Useful for YOUR business? - (2007-04-03)
  [1157] Speed Networking - a great evening and how we arranged it - (2007-04-21)
  [1246] An oddball day. Strange experiences! - (2007-06-27)
  [1249] Is this how to run a business for businesses? - (2007-06-27)
  [1278] West Wilts Show - (2007-07-26)
  [1284] An update on the West Wilts show ... - (2007-07-30)
  [1286] A wasted evening? - (2007-08-01)
  [1350] FSB (Federation of Small Businesses) Western Region - (2007-09-13)
  [1479] FSB leaves its members feeling like mushrooms - (2007-12-20)
  [1512] Summer Ball at Bowood - Saturday 12th July 2008 - (2008-01-19)
  [1515] Keeping staff up to date on hotel room status - (2008-01-22)
  [1544] FSB, EGM, AGM. - (2008-02-18)
  [1654] The old sayings are the best (FSB) - (2008-05-26)
  [1823] FSB - an update. - (2008-10-07)
  [1855] Volunteer v Employee - a skewed balance? (FSB) - (2008-10-25)
  [1880] Melksham Chamber of Commerce, or the FSB - (2008-11-12)
  [1937] Getting hold of the wrong end of the stick - (2008-12-12)
  [2517] Blogging accuracy - open invitation for any corrections - (2009-11-29)
  [2524] An update on legal changes from the FSB? - (2009-12-03)
  [3214] Melksham Campus - any last minute inputs from Melksham businesses? - (2011-03-26)
  [3522] Networking - North and West Wilts FSB Style - (2011-11-15)

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