Greetings from your CSIA Board of Directors! It seems like the year has really flown by and before you know it we will be seeing each other face to face again at our annual conference. For those of us in the US, I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and were able to spend time with family and friends! I am very thankful to continue to serve the CSIA membership as board chair and am also thankful to be a part of such a great group of people!
As Jose and I have mentioned in previous newsletter articles, we are continuing our transition with our new Association Management Company, Kellen. The transition is going very well and their team is getting up to speed quickly. They are bringing new ideas to the table and I know all our members are going to like their professionalism and responsiveness. It has been great working with them and getting to know their staff. Day to day operations are moving forward with very few, if any, glitches. I want to congratulate Kellen on how well they dug in and helped ensure the transition was successful.
In the first week of October the entire board and Jose met at Kellen’s offices in Chicago for a face to face strategy session. Each year the board has two meetings where we meet face to face. One at the annual conference and then one in the Fall, usually in October. Jose and Kellen staff had prepared well for the strategy session and we had a very productive 2 days together. The Kellen staff helped facilitate the meeting, and in particular the strategy sessions which allowed all of the board and Jose to participate fully. This was the first time many of our board had been in the Kellen facilities and they were very impressed. I will let Jose talk about the outcomes of our strategy session in his report as he has some additional exciting news to share as well.
I would love to encourage you all to think about ways that you can serve this great organization. As we begin figuring out and implementing new strategies we are going to be in need of volunteers to help us research options and develop potential future programs for all our members. If you would be interested in serving, please contact myself or Jose Rivera and we will be sure to get you in a task force as they are rolled out. Thank you in advance for considering how to serve. As you have heard many times from the board and our founding members, giving of your time, talents and ideas is what this association was built on. As Charlie Bergman would say “Give one idea and get ten in return”.
I and the board of directors wish each of you a wonderful holiday season!
Jeff Miller
CSIA Board Chair