[hackerspaces] Who currently has the best, most functional hackerspace model?

[Shirley Hicks]

> On Jul 4, 2016, at 5:32 PM, Christopher Agocs <chris at agocs.org> wrote:
> 
> The South Side Hackerspace: Chicago is clearly the best.
> Chris Agocs
> SSH:Chicago
> 
> For real, though, what are some problem areas RMM is seein
> 

Implementing next version of membership management system has been slower than I would like - currently stuck on the PayPal IPN integration (have waved at our local WP devs, but haven’t yet sat down with the one I’ll be working with to get past this one thing. This is the biggy - the people with the skills haven’t had the time, and while I’ve been learning as fast as I can go, I’ve gotten stuck on a couple of things). And as a result, our onboarding of new members is not completely smooth, and we’ve had a lot more member churn than we would like. 

Finding instructors for classes. (we pay them). Getting word out about events in a fractured media environment. We’re building email lists, but it’s taking time. 

Getting good safety practices documented and in place. 

Because we didn’t move into an industrial space, we had about an 18 month delay in getting a higher level of activity going. We had to do significant work to the space to get it adapted. That took more time, money and energy than anticipated. 

None of our current crew has grant-writing experience. We’re working through that, but it seems like a big task. 

Also, working with a local social entrepreneur to work a makerspace into a local city studio/workshop proposal - so being able to compare what we’re doing now to what management tools other spaces are choosing would be useful. Our city arts and tech leaders aren’t strong in this area - we are the subject matter experts. 

Shirley HIcks
Red Mountain Makers
Birmingham, AL

> On Jul 4, 2016 5:26 PM, "Dominic Canare" <dom at makeict.org <mailto:dom at makeict.org>> wrote:

> You'll need to define "best"
> Every single market is different, so even with a well-defined metric for what you're seeking to achieve or demonstrate, it probably won't be that generalizable
> 
> Dominic Canare
> Immediate Past President, MakeICT
> 
> On Mon, Jul 4, 2016 at 5:11 PM, Shirley Hicks <shirley at velochicdesign.com <mailto:shirley at velochicdesign.com>> wrote:
> Hey everyone,
> 
> For those of you who visit other hackerspaces, who has the best financial and operational model? What organizational models have you looked at/borrowed from in order to improve your space? Looking for a couple to study in an effort to improve how the Red Mountain Makers is operating.
> 
> Shirley Hicks
> Red Mountain Makers
> Birmingham, AL
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