Election for Board Seats – NEWS.KMIKEYM.COM

This is a record of the first election for the shareholder elected seats on the Board of Directors.

The Process

The election will happen in three parts.

Candidates present opening statements and respond to Q+A in a shareholder vote. The candidate with the least support will be eliminated.
The candidates will decide internally to eliminate a candidate and write a joint statement to the shareholders.
The final three candidates will participate in a live discussion/debate that concludes with a final vote.

Part 3: The Final Vote

The final vote ended after a live interactive elimination event on Sunday, July 14th 2024 at 2pm.

The remaining three candidates, Beau Gunderson, Douglas Dollars, and Josh Berezin joined Mike for a series of questions and discussion. Viewers were able to update their preferences in real time and conclude with a vote for which two candidates should be admitted to the board.

In a very close vote, Josh Berezin and Beau Gunderson were elected to the board and Douglas Dollars was not selected.

Part 2: Private Deliberations

In part 2 of the process the candidates met on a video call to determine who should be the next eliminated.

Results

After submitting their ballots Jefferson Nunn was eliminated and the remaining candidates issued the following statement:

Joint Statement from the Board Candidates

Led by Mike the four candidates went through several straw polls and a final binding vote. While Jefferson would bring real skills to the nascent board he was ultimately voted out. This decision reflects not only the best attempt of the existing candidates with the information they have at this time, but also reflects the sentiment expressed by the shareholders in the first vote.

The board candidates thank Jefferson for his proactive campaign and wish him well. They also look forward to engaging with all the shareholders in the coming debate.

Part 1: Opening Statements

Candidates are listed in order of when they became a shareholder.

Josh Berezin

Josh holds 655 shares with an average purchase price of $4.11. He has been a shareholder since January of 2008.

Hi. I’m Josh. I’ve been friends with Mike since the late 1980s. I know his secrets. I’ve seen his highs, I’ve seen his lows. I know that Mike wants to be the best Mike he can be and I consider it the Board’s role to help him achieve that.

As a project, I believe that KmikeyM is at its best when it is: Entertaining, Inclusive, Ethical, and Profitable.

Entertaining: KmikeyM should be fun! It should surprise, enlighten, amuse, challenge, and excite the people involved in it. This gives the project its energy and life force. The Board should serve to keep the entertainment value of this project in focus.

Inclusive: One of Mike’s superpowers is inspiring people to get involved, to come into community, and do things together. The creation of the Board is an example of this! But we can also make sure this aspect of KmikeyM remains front and center.

Ethical: KmikeyM should avoid causing harm. This may seem simple or easy, but while KmikeyM is a project, Mike is a person, and his actions through the project have the potential to cause harm. The Board should use its outside perspective to raise the flag when KmikeyM has the potential to do harm.

Profitable: Lest we forget, KmikeyM is a financial investment, and we, the shareholders, absolutely deserve to get rich off it. The Board should push the project toward generating value for shareholders whenever possible.

And me? I’m from Alaska, I live in Portland, and I work at making Democratic and progressive political campaigns more effective.

Let’s bring KmikeyM into the next phase with a board that’s creative, driven, fun, thoughtful, and all about making money.

Douglas Dollars

Doug holds 1,326 shares with an average purchase price of $7.73. He has been a shareholder since August of 2011.

My name is Doug Dollars and I am this election’s longest-serving and most-invested shareholder, at thirteen years and $3900 to date. My commitment remains to the financial security and longevity of both the KmikeyM project and Mike, the being. I’ve abstained from voting when it would reverse the balance of overall shareholder intent, helped cemented their views when aligned, and consistently voted with an eye toward the potential for personal and share value growth.

Despite holding no degree and being an immigrant still learning the nuances of American capitalism, I’ve successfully run a conglomerate’s engineering roadmap program, since 2016, now spanning ~34,000 staff. In previous versions of adulthood I was a portrait photographer, a TRS/TTY operator for the deaf and hard of hearing, cocktail bitters company founder, and newspaper entertainment columnist. I believe my open approach to being whatever works best, guzzling every exciting opportunity life offers, is aligned with our highest hopes for both Mike, and this project. This may include being a board member.

There is incredible value to be rediscovered in the years ahead, and I intend to support decisions and programs to bring excitement and share value back to their $15-$20 range of many years past. It is time to not only double, but triple down on our belief in having fun in capitalism through community. Let’s make it happen.

Beau Gunderson

Beau holds 432 shares with an average purchase price of $4.56. He has been a shareholder since March 2013.

My name is Beau Gunderson and I’ve been a shareholder for the past eleven years since first reading about Mike’s project in WIRED magazine. I’ve voted on almost every proposal in that time, offering constructive criticism where appropriate and advocating for openness when I felt it was lacking. I’ve also been involved in some of the larger sub-projects, including running the shareholder poker game since the start of the COVID pandemic as well as being involved in the EGG crypto project. Notably, I took decisive action to initiate the shutdown of that project via a vote when it was clear the interest in crypto had waned.

I believe establishing a board of directors is a crucial next step for KMikeyM. It will help consolidate the voices of those most passionate about the project into a cohesive force for improvement. I would like to be part of this board, and I hope my track record of positive involvement speaks for itself.

In terms of corporate experience, I am the Chief Technical Officer of a healthcare startup. This role has provided me with extensive experience in building consensus and achieving alignment among diverse teams. Before that, I worked as a software engineer for many years, though I always considered myself more of a “software gardener,” nurturing good approaches and pruning poor ones.

Regardless of who you vote for, I encourage you to communicate your desired outcomes for the board of directors. This will help the board understand the broader shareholder community’s needs.

Jefferson Nunn

Jefferson holds 214 shares with an average purchase price of $5.88. He has been a shareholder since February of 2019.

My name is Jefferson Nunn, and I am a Tech Marketing Guru with a passion for connecting products and services to consumers. I have a proven track record of scaling businesses, such as growing GoWireless from 50 locations to 2,000. This led to a successful sale for $800 million. My expertise lies in harnessing the power of strategic marketing to drive growth and engagement.

I am also adept at problem-solving and innovation. In 2009, I faced a critical challenge of how to charge 1 million CCs a month with slow disk I/O. Within 24 hours, I engineered a solution that ensured continuous revenue flow, demonstrating my ability to tackle complex issues efficiently.

I am now establishing a fund at Agency84 to connect and guide innovators to capital and processes. I have found that innovators are not always aware of the opportunities that are immediately available in the marketplace. I have a passion for technology, and new innovations like AI and Quantum Computing will further improve our lives. I want innovators to have the same opportunities that I have had.

For KmikeyM, my vision is to establish him as a powerful brand, expanding the offerings beyond just shares. Mike has a compelling message that deserves to reach millions of consumers, and I am committed to making that happen. By leveraging my marketing skills, we can unlock new opportunities and create a vibrant community around KmikeyM.

For more about my journey and achievements, please visit my website at jeffersonnunn.com.

Let’s make it happen.

Austin Pearson

Austin holds 130 shares with an average purchase price of $5.80. He has been a shareholder since April of 2021.

I am excited to be considered for a board seat at KmikeyM, where I hope to contribute my unique blend of honesty, technical expertise, and problem-solving skills to drive the project forward.

My commitment to KmikeyM is demonstrated through my participation in Build Week 2023 and my contributions to the changemap, including suggesting the establishment of a board. Additionally, since joining the community I have been actively involved in discussions related to the project, contributing ideas and feedback to help shape its direction. I currently also act as the unofficial Canadian branch of KmikeyM, facilitating a more efficient withdrawal process for those in Canada.

My expertise spans several fields that are crucial to the success of KmikeyM. I bring years of hands-on experience in audio engineering, camera operation, video switching, lighting, and graphical overlays. I also possess a variety of computer technical skills, from building systems to coding, that make me a reliable resource for troubleshooting and tech support, capable of quickly recommending and implementing solutions.

My long-term involvement in the crypto and Web3 space has provided deep insights and a cautious approach to this high-risk environment. Witnessing Bitcoin’s evolution and navigating the post-Mt.Gox era, I advocate for a conservative stance on crypto investments, recognizing the benefits of measured exposure while mitigating risks.

My problem-solving capabilities were recently demonstrated in my current position, where I managed a surge in tasks by integrating a specialized service to offload a manual process. This change, which I championed and analyzed over the past year, ensured timely and high-quality task processing.

I understand the concerns from shareholders that the creation of a board may reduce their visibility into KmikeyM and diminish their influence. If elected, I would push for maximum transparency with general shareholders at all times. As the smallest elected shareholder with no prior personal connection to Mike, I share many shareholders’ perspectives and I am committed to representing their interests on the board.

I am confident that my vision, technical expertise, and innovative problem-solving skills will bring valuable perspectives to the KmikeyM board. I look forward to contributing to the ongoing success of the project.

Thank you for considering my candidacy.

Results

The initial vote from the shareholders left Austin Pearson with just 16% of the vote and he was eliminated.