OMSA President's Message

Welcome to the new OMSA Website!

We know you have waited a long time for the new OMSA Website. I am pleased to say we have now officially launched it! This represents the first phase of our long-term strategy to improve OMSA.

Simply put, our strategy is to establish OMSA as the preeminent worldwide organization for orders & medals research and knowledge sharing. This is what our future membership will demand from us. We also recognize the OMSA Website as an increasingly more important vehicle to help execute our strategy.

As a result, a small team of OMSA members (Peter Lomdahl - Project Manager, John Allgood, Chris Cawthorne, Dave Bondi and Geoff Reeves) came forth and submitted a proposal to redesign our old OMSA Website to meet our future needs. This proposal was submitted on February 9, 2011 and was accepted at the 2011 mid-year OMSA Board Meeting. 

The New OMSA Website Redesign Project Team assessed and defined the ‘OMSA customer needs’ and this can be quickly summarized as follows:

OMSA Board of Directors –

• Replace the existing OMSA website with an open website architecture (Content Management System) that allows OMSA to easily delegate the responsibility for maintaining, updating and improving the content of the website among numerous volunteers.
• Continuously populate the new website with research material that adds substantial value to an OMSA membership.
• Create a forum architecture that can be moderated and expanded over time to open and share information between members. 
• Provide the means to communicate OMSA business in real time with its membership.
• Provide the means to promote the JOMSA and all other OMSA publications.

OMSA Members -

• Give OMSA members substantially more value from their OMSA membership by using the OMSA Website as the key communication vehicle for the organization and a channel for medals related information not readily obtained elsewhere.

Future OMSA Members -

• Attract a new generation of OMSA members through their preferred choice of communications (web-based) regarding the society and offer value-based information about medal collecting.

Within any project such as the new OMSA Website, there are always risks that must be weighed and taken into account. One such risk is the possibility of alienating some OMSA Website visitors and OMSA forum members who don't like the consequences of the necessary changes. The reality is that our old OMSA Website was ‘effectively obsolete and dying’ and your OMSA Board made the decision in 2010 to take the long term view by implementing a new website that can grow with OMSA rather than impede it.

Remember too that OMSA is an organization made up of volunteers supporting all of its functions to keep us running. If you do not like the way things are done, then pitch in and propose a positive way forward to make a difference. That is what five OMSA members did last February when they worked up a website proposal for the OMSA Board on their own volition.

So please give us your support and understanding as we move forward. As I stated previously, this is only the first phase of work on the OMSA Website. I have asked OMSA Director Chris Cawthorne to take on the responsibility of formulating a team to complete the long-term OMSA Website strategy going forward. His proposal will be presented for approval at the OMSA Board of Directors Meeting at the 2011 OMSA Convention.

Should any OMSA member want to discuss the new OMSA Website with me, you can reach me at the e-mail address listed under the Officers & Directors Tab. I will try to check my email at least once a day and be as responsive as I can to your concerns, questions, complaints, and suggestions concerning the new website. Email is my preference, if for no other reason than it provides a written record and will help me to keep track of your concerns. I am looking forward to continuing to support the new OMSA Website and want to thank all of you in advance for your continued support and understanding.

Best wishes to all,

Fred Borch