@NFTC - Nomination 1/2022

Prior Election Candidates Prior SC Candidates
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Personal Information

Discourse ID: @NFTC

Twitter: https://twitter.com/0xNFTC

Name: Matthew Eric Myers

Country of Residence: United States of America

Educational Background: Bachelor of Science in Supply Chain Management from Arizona State University

Professional Background:

Current:

NFT Trader, nftc.eth (top 100 most profitable wallet trading NFTs in 2021)

Prev:

Honeywell Aerospace, Commodity Manager (managed $160m of metal components used in assembly of aircraft engines)

Viasat, Global Sourcing Manager (team lead for cross-functional group of buyers and planners who were responsible for $10m in annual test equipment spend)

Cisco, Product Materials Manager

Nomination Statement

ApeDAO is paralyzed by inaction, red tape, and lack of consideration. We need leadership who will focus on moving fast, comprehensively, and with purpose. Vote for me (NFTC) - let’s move ApeDAO forward.

Motivation

I’m running for Special Council on the promise that I’ll change the pace of progress in Apecoin DAO.

Like many holders, I was extremely excited when ApeDAO launched. However, that excitement quickly turned to pain as I watched how slowly the DAO operated. It’s hard to believe that the $APE airdrop was in March - 8 months ago!

If elected, I’ll leverage my experience in operations leading teams to deliver results against aggressive deadlines. I’ll knock down glass walls and cut tape where possible, while abiding by compliance. I’ll empower holders to once again actively contribute and feel that their voices and ideas are being heard.

Rationale

Beyond my experience streamlining processes and operations, I also have extensive experience scoping projects, costing, and sourcing. I believe that this skillset can be valuable to the Special Council and ApeCoin DAO.

In Web3 we tend to prioritize developers, influencers, and marketers, but the operational piece is often overlooked. In my opinion Apecoin DAO could benefit greatly from a operationally-minded addition to the Council.

Specifications

I was an active participant in the DecentralGames DAO and was one of the largest holders for several months.

Additionally, I founded an NFT trading group turned DAO. At it’s peak it amassed over $80k in contributions which were and are 100% devoted to the community (I was never paid).

I’m an experienced Supply Chain Professional who managed over $160m in commercial and government aircraft component spend: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattemyers

My wallet is NFTC.eth

Concluding Statement

Don’t hesitate to DM me on Twitter to chat. I’ll also happily set up a phone call 1:1 or host a Twitter Space for all to join.

If elected, I’ll maintain those open lines of communication via phone, email, DMs, and spaces on a full-time basis.

Remember, the Special Council is supposed to work for YOU! I’ll devote my time to servicing the DAO and community with open doors.

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Hello everyone :wave:

Feel free engage with questions here or in DMs on Twitter. I’m also on Discord (NFTC#6668).

Below is additional content I’ve published since submitting my application. Most of it originates from a Twitter thread I published here.

My Four Running Principles:

:chart_with_upwards_trend: Drive value for the DAO and $APE holders
:balance_scale: Increase DAO engagement
:iphone: Communicate with holders, daily
:white_check_mark: Get sh*t done

$APE is down ~80%. The DAO has spent millions on admin and salaries. Token unlocks and mass-dilution are happening at a pace that far exceeds ecosystem development. It’s a bleak picture, but it’s true. The DAO is paralyzed.

A vote for NFTC is a vote to change the status quo. I’ll drive value for the DAO and $APE holders in three primary ways:

:point_right: Accelerate DAO operations
:point_right: Pull opportunities INTO the DAO through active engagement and frequent communication
:point_right: Push internal ideas and AIPs forward, enabling creators and community members to reach snapshot voting quicker

ApeCoin needs an operational anchor and I’m best fit for that role. I’ve been vocal of ApeCoin in the past because it lacks operational do-ers. Coincidentally, current Council Member Maaria touched on this exact topic in a recent twitter spaces.

“The DAO needs executers” said Maaria. Later when asked about the most important qualification for a nominee she replied “someone who understands business operations”.

I’m that person. I promise to get the DAO on track operationally in order to move it forward.

Time Commitments
Did you know that official guidance only requires Special Council to commit a minimum of 3 hours per week? Yes, 3 hours. At $250k annually that’s $1,600/hr! I’ll spend much more that 3 hours weekly to serve this community it’s necessary.

This was a difficult decision because I didn’t want to devalue my nomination, but I think it’s necessary to create change. If elected, while on Council I will donate $100k per 12mo period to nonprofits that align to the DAO’s vision.

I’m here to work and deliver results. Not freeload.

Special Council Expansion
I think there’s a strong case to expand the Special Council. In my opinion, 7 or 9 is ideal. Expansion will allow more diversification of expertise, driving even more value for holders.

ApeCoin DAO History
Most candidates have ZERO history in ApeCoin Discourse. This is a huge :triangular_flag_on_post:. If they lack a history, they’re not qualified.

I’m an active member of the DAO. Please check my profile for a full history. Serving the community and driving value for holders is my #1 priority.

Relevant Links:
My history of criticism and indentifying a major problem with ApeCoin.
Link to Maaria’s spaces where she identifies the need for “executers”. The discussion starts around 57’.

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Awesome background @NFTC!

You stated three primary ways on driving value for the DAO and $APE holders, I would love to know on how you can specifically create value for the DAO?

Thanks!

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Sure I’d be happy to elaborate. While writing, I realized that it made sense to roll “Accelerate DAO Operations” up into the “Push” bullet point. Therefore I’ll discuss 2 primary means of value creation.

The “Push-Pull” strategy that I reference can alternatively be viewed as a balance between external and internal engagements. It’s critically important that a Council focus on pulling excellent opportunities and people into the DAO. Once those entities are within ApeCoin DAO, there is a responsibility to push them forward to a community snapshot vote.

Examples of Pulling Opportunities into ApeCoin DAO

  • Encouraging existing holders to participate in DAO governance and discussion through current and new communication channels

  • Frequent, targeted outreach to both web3 and traditional companies/organizations

  • Tapping the shoulder of all proven builders, inviting them to join

Examples of Pushing Opportunities in ApeCoin DAO

  • Review and improve upon DAO processes which pertain to AIP progression workflow

  • Facilitate organic discussion among members in order to connect likeminded, AIP-focused individuals

  • Monitor the status of approved AIPs while amplifying the value they will bring to $APE holders

Value is measured in different ways depending on which $APE holder you ask, but I believe that my strategy above can maximize value for all.

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I saw that you have lots of knowledge and experiences when it comes to NFTs.

I really want to know, if you get elected, what is your first plan or the first thing you will do in this ApeCoin Community.

Thanks!

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The first order of business will a transparent, open discussion with holders regarding the DAO Council’s open engagements and to-do list. Obviously I’ll be mindful of NDAs and this will be a unified speech from all Council Members.

There are really only three possible outcomes:

A) “Hey we’re working on a lot of stuff and here’s an update on everything.”
B) “Hey we’re working on some stuff and here’s an update on what we can share publicly. There is more that we cannot share publicly at this time, but trust us we’re working it.”
C) “Hey we honestly have little to no open engagements or items.”

It needs to be put on the table for all to see. The perfect time to hold a “State of the DAO” discussion is in the weeks following the election of new Special Council Members.

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I appreciate you responding to my query and providing the information. Best of luck. @NFTC

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I looked through your history and see that you created then withdrew an AIP. Why?

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Hey @Mcdo, yes it’s true I created and withdrew an AIP. There’s a bit of a story behind it so I’ll lead with this.

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When I took the plunge from lurker to contributor, I couldn’t help but notice that only 5-10 people contributed here on a weekly basis. It seemed like a ghost town so I wanted to really test the engagement with an egregious, ugly, expensive, ridiculous proposal.

I proposed that we use ApeCoin funds to build a $1.3m 100ft tall BAYC monument in the Nevada desert lol. Just as I expected, just 7 people responded - 3 of which are part of ApeComms. Some people constructive, others were…I think rude is a fair way to put it.

Anyway, after the initial discussion period I withdrew the AIP. Halina DM’d me after she saw it was withdrawn so I came clean in DM’s, but I don’t think the others knew the background until now. It was a good learning experience and gave me a lot of insight. Cheers for finding it.

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Hello again :wave:

Tune in to the 22:25 mark of the the Twitter Spaces linked below to hear me speak to my vision, goals, and platform. Thanks to ApeComms team for putting together the Spaces today.

https://twitter.com/i/spaces/1YpKkgDnDPEKj?s=20

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Hi @NFTC, I am asking all candidates these same questions:

  1. If elected, what is the one item you feel passionate about and would like to see accomplished during your tenure within the DAO? (Let’s pretend you only had the time and energy to make a personal push for one item - what would it be?)

  2. Are there any factors in your life that may limit your ability to serve? (conflicts of interest, time allocation, limited wifi bc you work from Starbucks… etc)

  3. What is your least favorite thing right now with our DAO in it’s current state?

  4. What is a Koda?

Thank you,
F/S

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Hey @foxSlightly, thanks for the questions!

  1. Special Council members should strive to assign their name to value creation activities. By the end of their term, they should have no problem answering the simple question - “How did you drive value for holders?” I intend to drive real, measurable value for $APE holders in at least one way before my term expires.

  2. None. I can be fully committed. I have no conflicts of interest.

  3. I believe that forcing discussions through Discourse in a forum format creates too much friction for holders to participate. Key word here being participate.

I’ll clarify that I think Discourse should remain as the official means of communication for AIPs. If you want your feedback documented for snapshot voting - it must be made in Discourse.

But to simply participate in the DAO, I think that we need a Discord. It can be a token-gated place where informal and more frequent discussions are held. Not having a Discord is one of the reasons that the DAO is in a paralyzed state.

  1. I think that Kodas will be able to create sub-worlds within Otherside. NFT Collections or individual contributors will need a Koda to build a unique world. My theory originates from details that were in the leaked pitch deck.

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Hi NFTC, your answers to these 4 questions are the most interesting to read, and thank you for sharing your thoughts about the Koda in regard having the abilities to build the unique virtual sub world like Disneyland, or Michael Jackson built the Wonderland! :slight_smile: :star:

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I definitely agree with you. There are lots of great values in the Discord recording statistics about the participants compared to Tweeter or Facebook, and ApeCoin DAO and its community members need to have a semi-private place for their own discussions, specially for the ApeCoin DAO inner circle working groups. We just need more members to participate. :slight_smile:

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If you were re-elected for the 2nd term, what are the 3 important things you would like share with the other two newly elected Special Council members?

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Respectfully I think that this question is too many steps ahead :laughing:

I’m focused on winning this election first :slight_smile:

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Good Afternoon Matt,

Thank you for your quick response. I can see you have been actively involved and engaged for promoting the ApeCoin Community in the Tweeter space! I like your tweet comments, and let me borrow 3 quotes from your tweets:

“The DAO has a $250k/mo burn rate.”

“It’s a bleak picture, but it’s true. The DAO is paralyzed.”

“There are approx 10 people that participate in Discourse. Yes, ~10 people for a $1b+ DAO. “

I would like to work with you and other Special Council member candidates to build up the ApeCoin leadership teams. Either I will be elected and wining the election or not, I am willing to volunteer to work for the ApeCoin DAO. I have 10+ years CEO, and President positions working experience in the State of California and Texas, USA. I respect law and regulations, I can definitely help the ApeCoin DAO in transition to decentralized the governance. Specially structure and legally form the ApeCoin Leadership Team to collaborate with the Cartan Group LLC leadership team.

Best Regards,

Ken Forest

Special Council Candidate

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All threads may be locked after today. If that turns out to be true, there may be no way for Nominees to continue the discussion with holders via Discourse.

I invite all holders and Nominees to continue the discussion via a temporary Discord that I created for this sole purpose.

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I believe that it’s important to share my position on Cartan’s recent Admin Extension and the associated Open Letter. If you haven’t read it yet I highly recommend that you do, because it’ll quickly become the most contentious discussion after Special Council Elections and will likely go to Snapshot vote on December 29th.

In a proposal submitted 7 days ago, Cartan requested to be compensated for increase of scope. If the proposal goes to vote in the current state, it would increase Cartan’s monthly compensation from $150,000 per month to $330,000 per month.

I spoke out on the proposal here, here, and here. My key thoughts are summarized below:

Cartan Group plays a very important role in this DAO. They were appointed by the Special Council around the time the DAO was formed and it’s not an exaggeration to say that they manage all of the behind the scenes work. They do it all. Unfortunately, the demand for more and lack of oversight by existing SC has led to scope creep.

I want to be clear that:

I genuinely believe that Cartan is acting in the best interest of the DAO while also balancing the need to run a profitable company.

That said, I’m not in support of Cartan expanding their scope to do even MORE. We risk our decentralization by granting more and more responsibilities to a single entity. When the scope of work did expand beyond AIP-1, the existing Special Council should have alerted us and steered the community to propose AIPs to fill the gaps. That did not happen and now we’re in a tight spot with Cartan’s funding expiring at the end of December and Special Council elections overshadowing it all.

We risk becoming fully paralyzed on January 1 if Cartan’s extension does not pass and I believe that as it is written today, it will not. That will put a massive burden on the community and new Special Council members. This is a real, embarrassing risk.

If elected to Special Council, I’ll bust my b*tt to ensure that we as a DAO:

  1. Continue to operate during a gap, should it occur
  2. Retain Cartan in either their original scope or one very similar to it
  3. Advocate for the creation of working groups and committees that will further decentralize ApeCoin DAO

Thank you for your time and consideration! I invite all questions here and don’t forget to vote on December 15th!

Cheers,
NFTC

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Cartan’s Admin Extension (AIP-138) was actually pushed to Snapshot vote this week. I would urge all to vote NO on this AIP and allow the DAO negotiate an revised AIP with Cartan.

Their proposal actually had a ton of feedback yet they seemingly ignored it all.

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