It’s
my privilege
and honor to begin our 2011-2012 fiscal year as the president of AMADC,
currently the third largest chapter in the American Marketing
Association. We are fortunate, as AMADC is well poised for success,
thanks to the leadership of our immediate past president Christie Susko
and her board of directors.

It’s my privilege and honor to begin our 2011-2012 fiscal year as the president of AMADC, currently the third largest chapter in the American Marketing Association. We are fortunate, as AMADC is well poised for success, thanks to the leadership of our immediate past President Christie Susko and her board of directors. There’s no question about it – Christie will be a hard act to follow, but one only has to look at the current state of our organization to see the great progress made under her direction, including:

• Membership grew significantly, taking AMADC from the fourth largest to the third largest chapter out of 76 AMA operating chapters during the worst economic downturn we’ve experienced.
• AMADC raised the bar on programming, introducing innovative new events and attracting nationally recognized speakers.
• Fiscal Year 2010-2011 ended showing a cash positive balance, while also allowing us to support our philanthropic efforts.

As I take the lead, I’d like to begin the year by thanking Christie for her energy and dedication to AMADC, and for providing a strong foundation upon which to work as we begin our new year.

Now onto 2011-2012! This year marks a huge milestone for AMADC.  To understand where we are going, it’s important to understand from where we’ve come…

Our chapter’s story officially began when our charter was signed in 1932, just one year after the American Marketing Society (AMS) was formed in NY and 5 years before the American Marketing Association, formed in 1937.  So as of July, we’re a young 79 years, making us one of the oldest and continuously operating group of marketers in the country.  As we finalize our plans for our upcoming 80th Anniversary festivities kicking off this January (more on that later), we’ll also join our National Headquarters in celebrating its 75th Anniversary year.  So, there’s no shortage of reasons to celebrate, reflect and look forward in this, our new fiscal year! 

As we kick off this milestone year, I am pleased and excited to announce that we have assembled an outstanding group of marketing professionals who will be serving as our 2011-2012 Board of Directors.  Uniquely positioned to help us succeed, our incoming board represents a wonderful cross-section of industries in DC from Health to Finance, Sports to Hospitality, Associations to Corporate, and includes representation among Marketing, Advertising and Public Relations Agencies.  Please take a look at their profiles and backgrounds at www.amadc.org/board.  I cannot wait to have the opportunity to personally introduce you to our new board members at our upcoming events! 

To provide a clear road map and framework for success, AMADC will be committed to the following key areas of focus in the coming year:

1. Have Fun and Enjoy Being A Member. It’s so important to a culture that we are going to make it an official rule this year — if we are not having fun, we’re simply not doing it.   After all, we are marketers—the fun people everyone wants to be around.  For years we’ve had this reputation, and AMADC is going to reinforce this theme across everything we do. 
2. Simplify-Streamline. We will be delivering exceptional content to all segments of our membership, and we will do it in a way that will maximize impact and allow us to execute in a highly efficient manner.  We’ll limit email communications through targeting, and strive to make online transactions even more user friendly.
3. Increase Member Value. Each program we offer this year will have significant built-in membership benefit.  Our goal will be to give you, our members, concrete reasons to renew your membership, and even more important — reasons to recommend us to your friends and colleagues.
4. Increase Membership. While we are currently the 3rd largest AMA Chapter in the country, we will set an aggressive goal of moving up to the 2nd largest chapter status only outnumbered by our headquarter chapter of AMA Chicago. 
5. Generate Revenue. By combining great programs, increasing membership, and infusing serious high donor sponsors, we will not only cover costs but we’ll continue to build out our reserves. 
6. Continue to Improve Retention. As marketers we understand the leaky bucket effect.  Like so many organizations trying to make it through this tough economic climate, we need to seal the leak.  Through a laser sharp focus on member value and engagement, we will see our retention rates continue to improve.  It will be the epicenter of our discussions and will help us drive new ideas as we finalize our agenda for the upcoming year.

Lastly, and most importantly, I’d like to acknowledge and personally thank the many volunteers who have worked hard to get our chapter to the state it is in today. We’re a 100% volunteer driven organization and we rely on a dedicated team to help us achieve our goals. To that end, we’re always looking for help, and our new board is actively seeking folks to join their teams and committees to drive our initiatives forward. Please contact us if you are interested in a volunteer role this year. We’d love to have you on board!

So, as we ease into the relaxed pace of mid-summer, I hope you get some time to recharge your creative batteries and gear up for an exciting new year at AMADC. I welcome your thoughts and ideas on how we can continue to improve our chapter and what you personally and professionally find beneficial as a member.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of AMADC, thank you for your valued membership. We’re looking forward to a successful and productive year!