The State of the Association

It’s December and the year is winding down. The holidays are upon us and before we know it we will start a new year. As we begin to reflect on the events of this year I think it appropriate to inform our members of the state of our association, primarily from the perspective of our board and me. The following are some key observations to provide insight.

The embezzlement we experienced in our office almost two years ago is well past us. We recovered some costs through insurance coverage and those implicated are currently dealing with our country’s judicial system. We’ve put many checks and balances in place to prevent another such occurrence.

We have a detailed budget and again will finish “in the black” this year. Our budget for next year looks even better. Our budgets no longer depend upon our show, NACE/CARS, to be balanced or profitable.

Thanks to a lot of great work by Dan Risley, our executive director/president, and our board, our financial picture improved to the point that we were able to purchase our own office building this fall. It is our intention that it will be a resource and asset for our association for many years to come.

Our show, NACE/CARS, was a great success this year, reversing a trend of declining attendance and financial performance. Again, thanks to a lot of good work from many, including our new show management company, the show was profitable as it highlighted many new features. We expect it to be a foundation on which our 2015 show, again in Detroit, will be even bigger and better.

We invest our profits in member benefits such as our Washington D.C. office, our active staff, education, operation committees, representation, publications, and industry events.

We have been preparing for board elections in early 2015 and have some very good candidates, thanks to many people – including our nomination committee.

We continue to evaluate all that we do, including our member benefits, promotions, advertising, representation, legislative activities, publications, and education. Expect to see more changes and innovation in the months to come.

Our board set many goals for the year succeeding our fall meeting. Even though there will be some changes on our board after the annual meeting in April, we set goals that have the support of the board members whom we already know will be in place. We feel there should be no need for a decline in our activities nor a significant change in direction when my chairmanship ends and Donny Seyfer’s begins.

Lame duck periods as well as orientation periods would only slow us down. Instead, we continue to communicate and work together for the long-term benefit of our association.

Among our goals, we will use our Washington D.C. office to enhance relationships and to address some specific mechanical issues like vehicle safety inspections and telematics. We also have some collision issues in mind like Most Favored Nation clauses that we will continue to monitor and influence. We intend to raise more PAC funds to assist our efforts.

We’ve set specific membership goals for growth and support and sponsorship.

We set goals for support for our affiliates, as we intend to help them grow and prosper.

We set goals for increasing our presence in the area of education.

We set goals for our show regarding attendance, financial performance, and inclusiveness of industry activities.

Last but not least, we set goals for our financial performance, budget, increasing our reserves, and paying off our mortgage early.

Goals are meaningless unless they are achievable, receive constant focus, and include the persistent effort to accomplish them. I am humbled, flattered and gratified to have the opportunity to work with our current board and staff who together possess the attributes to pursue excellence and innovation that I expect will lead to accomplishing our goals.

I wish you a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a prosperous New Year.

I am confident the New Year will bring great things for our association.