A Fresh New Start





"Above all, human existence requires stability, the permanence of things."
- Georges Bataille

 

 

 

Good Day EWI!

 

It seems like much longer than just 10 days ago since my last post as so much has taken place since then.  As of my last post, I was preparing to depart for Salt Lake City for our Q2 Board meeting and what a whirlwind trip that was!

 

We arrived late Thursday afternoon and after checking into the lovely Salt Lake City Marriott downtown, member firm of EWI of Salt Lake City's President, Nikol Smith.  What a great property, right in the heart of things.  Thank you to Nikol and her staff for such wonderful hospitality.  After bags were dropped we headed out to dinner with our entire staff.  What a great way to start the weekend and so nice to meet Bonny and Kim in person.  I was fortunate to finally be able to present new board members Benita Collins, Cortney Ewald-Ihde and Mary Helen Johnston with their board pins.

 

Friday morning saw us all rise early to meet with the Salt Lake City Chapter board for breakfast.  What an energetic and passionate group of women we have there!  It was refreshing to hear firsthand how this Chapter is tackling recruitment and general operations.  Thank you all for rising early to meet with us.  We appreciated the exchange with all of you!

 

We then went over to the new home of EWI and it is an AMAZING space that we can all be so proud of!  Wendy and her team have created a warm, professional space while honouring our past extensively.  I could have spent 1/2 the day just soaking up all the historic photos and materials posted on the walls.  I encourage all of you who are ever in Salt Lake City to make sure to drop by the office.

 

Seeing the staff settling in so well with Wendy at the helm was so rewarding and heart warming to me.  To witness firsthand this fresh start for our organization with solid leadership in place can only bring the long needed stability EWI needs for corporate operations.

 

We were blessed to have Dave Horsager with us on Friday until 2pm as we reviewed our current state of the strategic plan created in Dallas.  Thankfully, I can say we have or are about to complete quite a few of our short term objectives already.  As such, we identified three core priorities for the board and office through the remainder of 2013.  They are as follows;  Rebuild/Retain, Marketing and the EWI Foundation.  A set of tactics is being worked on for each of these strategies and I look forward to sharing them with all of you soon.

 

The remainder of Friday was spent reviewing the renewals compared to our budget and then we had an hour long meeting with Dennis Astill and Scott Czaja, our lawyer and accountant.  We were pleased to hear that our legal concerns with our former ED are progressing as expected.  Dennis and Scott joined us for dinner that night.

 

As for Saturday, what can I say?  We started at 9am, broke at 5pm for dinner and then reconvened back at the hotel for another hour to finalize our review of the both the corporate and chapter bylaws.  The board members are all troopers and I thank them for staying focused and getting the agenda items all completed! 

 

It was not the usual sad farewell on Sunday, as all of the board members have opted to attend Spring Conference at their own expense, so it was nice to say, "See you next month!"

 

This past week was a busy one summarizing all our discussions, following up action items and answering various Chapter inquiries.  I am sad to announce that EWI of Baton Rouge has in fact decided to return their charter due to a lack of members willing to step back into board service.  We are hopeful that many of them will opt to re-join as Members At Large though.

 

On a very positive note, I was pleased to receive a copy of the IEA March Newsletter wherein EWI was the main feature.  On that note, I was thrilled today to see a posting from my Chapter for the first IEA member firm who has chosen to join EWI for the development of one of his staff members.  We are in the process of exchanging contact information for both organizations in the ten cities where we both have Chapters. 

 

Well, I have to save some news for the April Connect which I must also write this weekend, so will sign off here for now.  Have a glorious weekend everyone!

 

- K

 

 

Seize the Day!

 

"Yesterday is gone.  Tomorrow has not yet come.  We have only today.  Let us begin."

 

- Mother Teresa

 

Good Day EWI!

 

Well, I am penning this two days early...which will make up for the post I made late on a Saturday, I hope!  When I signed in to write this today, I was so pleased to see that we have had over 2500 views of this blog.  Thank you for staying engaged with me on this journey!  The reason for the early writing session though is that I am leaving tomorrow to Salt Lake City.  The board and I will be holding our meetings on site at our new EWI home office and I am very excited to see the space that Wendy and her team have created.  Tomorrow evening we will be having dinner with the staff members and it will be so to see everyone and to put a face to Bonny and Kim's voices! 

 

On Friday morning we are meeting with the Salt Lake City Chapter Board and then into a planning session with our consultant David Horsager.  We will then spend Friday afternoon reviewing the renewal actual revenue against the budget and making cuts where needed.  At the end of the day we have a meeting with our accountant and attorney for an update on our legal concerns, followed by a dinner with them and our Dean of AoL, Lori Giovannoni.  Saturday will be a very full day as we work through our normal meeting agendas to completion.

 

I cannot believe we are at the six month mark of our term!  So much has been done already and yet there is still so much to do!  The proverbial panic attack at this point of the year is setting in for me.  However, in spite of these feelings, I know that we can accomplish what needs to be done as I have the best team, ever!

 

I am very sad though to say that our dear Darlene Banogon, Sec/Treas, EWI of San Diego is unable to join us this weekend as her Father passed away tragically yesterday.  Our thoughts and prayers go out to Darlene and her family, and I know you will keep her in your prayers too.

 

Life is indeed so short and if we put off until tomorrow what can be done or said today, we may lose that opportunity, forever.  It can all change so quickly.

 

This past week was busy preparing for the board meeting and I also had the pleasure of formally introducing the members of the Calgary Executive's Association to EWI.  Thanks to those Chapter members who rose early this morning to attend the breakfast meeting with me!  As soon as the IEA Board votes in May on an official endorsement of EWI, I will be forwarding contact information to our Chapter leaders where there is also an IEA Chapter in their community.  Great synergy and support can arise, as we have already witnessed here.  Of course, what is intriguing to both parties is that of our combined 172 Chapters worldwide, there are only 10 cites where we both have a presence. I will share with you the details on this exciting strategic alliance as they become available.

 

I know I will have so much to share with you next week after returning from Salt Lake City!  Until then, seize today to its fullest!

 

- K



Paying It Forward

"The value of anything can be determined by how much of your time and life you are willing to trade for it."

- Brian Tracy

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Day EWI!

 

Happy International Women's Day to each and every one of my sisters in EWI!  I hope you take at least a moment today to reflect on the blessings you enjoy each day, where you began and all of those who helped inspire you along the way!

 

This week I took part in a very sad conversation that I want to share some details of with you in the hopes that we can all learn from the pain and frustration of others.  We have another Chapter considering to cease operations after more than 50 years of history and success.  This literally breaks my heart to hear.  The issue is a lack of member representatives willing to step forward into leadership roles, yet again.  Trust me, each of them have all done their part in the past by serving, but they just cannot continue without identified Officers in place to carry on.

 

Those of us attending the call went in "fully prepared" with lists of new firms in their communities, pledges of support and leads from nearby Chapters and a concrete plan of the steps that were taken last year in the successful re-building of another Chapter.  However, all of that is fine, but the reality for this Chapter is that there are no future leaders waiting in the wings.

 

It has been my observation in EWI that one woman can indeed start a Chapter, but one woman cannot save a Chapter alone.  The current President shared something with all of us on the call and that is what I want to share specifically with you as it really resonated with me.  She said, "If only we had realized the importance of having a successor from within our own Firms involved in the Chapter, this would not be happening now."  You see, all of their current member representatives started out with EWI early in their careers and now, they have been promoted or grown into ever-expanding roles that just do not afford them the time to commit to EWI as they once did.

 

These member representatives all love and are passionate about EWI.  They have all benefited tremendously from their involvement over the years.  I would hazard a guess to say that some of the new found success in their careers was, in fact, a result of their EWI involvement.  What they failed to do, was "pay it forward" by encouraging another young professional colleague to step forward for membership to also represent their firm.  If you are not actively engaged in your Chapter, learning new skills, is there someone else next to you who could benefit additionally, or more?

 

Succession planning is critical, not only for member associations but for all businesses as baby boomers start to retire.  Our own demographics are showing the shift.  We have 7% more member representatives that are 46+ than we did just four years ago.  I read a stat recently that said that less than 30% of private companies have an identified successor in place even though the retirement of the Founder is less then 10 years away.  While this means great opportunity for those wishing to purchase a successful company, the reality is that the majority of those businesses will just close their doors.  EWI cannot have any more doors close!

 

We must make recruitment our number one priority and introduce EWI to the next generation of professionals who are waiting to receive the rewards of EWI.  Do you work with someone you want to see succeed?  I encourage you to sit down and share with them the benefits you have realized through your involvement with this wonderful organization.  Tell your story!  Pay it forward by finding someone else who will step into your shoes before you retire from your Firm or get so busy you can't commit to engaging in Chapter operations. 

The board, office and I are doing everything we can to help ease Chapter operations.  We have a committee in place this year strictly looking at ways that can help ease the burden and allow us to work more efficiently.  We are committed to making things as simple as we can for our Chapter board members.

 

As to the future of this particular Chapter, I am remaining hopeful that they can find someone from within to step forward to lead them through a rebuilding process.  They were all going to gather next week to discuss the options further.  They will be in my thoughts and prayers and I hope they will be in yours. 

So, in closing today, I would just like to suggest that the "Rewards" of EWI membership have in fact been a very well travelled road over the past 75 years, but it is time to double the lanes ladies and gentlemen.  I challenge each and every one of you to bring a colleague to your Chapter's April meeting along with your Executive. April is where each of our Chapters will celebrate their individual histories, but also our greater one as a whole.  "Empowering others for positive change!" 

Wishing you a wonderful spring weekend!
- K

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Home Sweet Home!

 

"Home is the nicest word there is."

- Laura Ingalls Wilder

 

Good Day EWI!

 

My apologies as I am officially a day late in writing this!  February being a shorter month was really evident for me this past week. 

 

Well, as of this weekend, EWI has a new home!  I am thrilled that Wendy was able to secure a new corporate office location for the staff.  The suite is a bit smaller in size, but configured properly to meet our needs.  It has lots of natural light and most important to me, it has adequate parking in a well lit lot.  In addition, the suite has a meeting room with a conference table so the board and I will be holding our March meeting in Salt Lake City in our own offices later this month.  I am so excited to see the new space that is going to cost us significantly less each year for the duration of the five year lease.

 

I want to thank the staff and their families for all pitching in and tackling this move themselves this weekend.  I am thinking of you all and wish I was there to help!

 

This past week I had the pleasure of presenting a Webinar on Recruitment and Retention.  What fun that was!  Thank you to all those who attended and to those who reached out to me afterwards.  There is such a dedicated group of leaders committed to growing this organization and I thank them for the continued passion for EWI.  The recording of the Webinar is up on our website if you want to have a listen.  We talked about our current state, membership process, elevator speeches, the top 12 questions you can ask a prospective member firm, ROI points and retention strategies for member Representatives, Firms, Sustainers and Execs.

 

Conducting that Webinar was an opportunity for me to learn a new skill, as I had never been the host of one before.  EWI continues to present me with wonderful new learning opportunities.  What have you learnt this year through your involvement with EWI?  I would love to hear you personal stories!

 

This year, I asked our Secretary/Treasurer and Chair of the Finance Committee, Darlene Banogon, EWI of San Diego, to research alternative revenue sources for EWI.  She has brought to the board a couple of very exciting proposals and we have made the decision to sign on with a company that focuses on finding website advertisers for non-profit groups.  EWI, in turn, receives a monthly portion of ad space revenue sold.  In reviewing the contract and researching the company, we modified the contract with legal so that EWI has the right to approve all ad content and that our member firms would be offered a discount to advertise.  This also goes back to one of the initiatives I had for this year, which is firm to firm engagement.  Does your firm have a special offer they want to make to other EWI member firms?  If so, keep your eyes out for the announcement on how to block your discounted ad space.  I am excited to see this roll out and see what can be realized in the next year with this.  Kudos to Darlene for researching this!

 

Well, I have the board's monthly coffee chat this morning, so better get prepared for that!  Have a wonderful week ahead!

 

- K

 

 

 



Navigating The Future

"When life knocks you down, roll over and look at the stars."

 

- Unknown

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Day EWI!

 

One of our members posted this quote on her Facebook page this week and I love it!  Stars have been guiding mankind forever.  With any setback thrown your way, one has to stop, analyze where and why you fell off track and then "recalibrate" (as our GPS ladies love to tell us)!

 

I am going to think of 2013 as a re-calibrated journey for EWI, one that is navigated not only by where we have been but of course by what we learned along the way.  Our destination? It goes back to "One Vision".  We all want to be part of strong and healthy Chapters who are part of a stronger and more purposeful larger organization, empowering others for positive change.

 

We have new leadership in place...a COO who knows this organization better than many of us and can see the potential of what EWI can be once again.  And I say again, because if the past did not matter, why do we have rear-view mirrors?  We must be cognizant of our history, if only to not make the same mistakes again.  How did we shrink from 5,000 members?  Did we lose relevancy?  Did we forget to focus on our member, which is the firm?  Our employer that pays our EWI dues and that wants to see us, their employee, gain confidence, learn new skills and grow professionally, all while promoting their company?

 

As we stated on our Open Forum call today, those Chapters that are thriving, have heavy Executive engagement.  They can be such an incredible tool for Chapter's to utilize!  Please be sure that you are sharing your monthly Connects and the Annual Report with your Executives.  Invite them to your next meeting and just see what they say!  Remember...it is THEIR job to ensure that you, their employee, are developing and receiving a return for the dollars they spend with EWI. 

 

Speaking of Executives, I am happy to report that we had six members of the Calgary Executives Association attend our Chapter meeting on Wednesday evening.  They told me today that, "you can expect some applications!"  They came, they witnessed what we had to offer and they get it.  Your Chapter Executives will too if you give them a chance!  Perhaps through Executive engagement we would experience more firms willing to renew?

 

I am working with the International board of Executives Association to determine our next steps for a reciprocal endorsement of one another's organizations.  Very exciting for both EWI and IEA.  Where both organizations have Chapters there can be great synergy and assistance in growth objectives.  We have Executives.  Their Executives have staff they want to develop.  IEA helped EWI grow before, and they are willing to do it again, but we have to be able to provide them with our audience of Executives too.  Quid pro quo.

 

All right, enough of my rant on Executive Engagement.  It is late Friday, it has been a wonderful week with the launch of our very professional Annual Report and I now have to prepare my webinar for Tuesday! 

 

I also want to apologize to a past representative of EWI of Baltimore, Tamara Coleman, who was actually the first black member of the Corporate Board in 1996-1997.  Tamara unfortunately though was unable to complete her full term.  Thank you to Sylvia Napper, EWI of Jackson and Pati Dahmen, EWI of Spokane for kindly pointing out my error in naming Benita as the first in my blog last week.  Another perfect example of why knowing and acknowledging our history is so important.

 

Today, I sadly saw photos of the grave site of our Founder, Lucille Johnson Perkins.  A tragic story really and it just keeps getting sadder.  I am determined to honour her appropriately and I would like to thank the 75th Anniversary Committee for their due diligence on finding Lucille, especially Anna McCutheon, EWI of San Diego, for her exhaustive research.  We hope we will have something very special to show you at Spring Conference in Chattanooga!

 

Remember, deadline for early-bird registration for Spring Conference is next week!

 

Have a wonderful weekend EWI and thank you to all those who took the time to attend our Open Forum call today!

 

- K

 

 

Happy President's Day!


"The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time."

- Abraham Lincoln

 

 

Good Day EWI!

 

Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans...my heart broke a little last week when my flight from Toronto to Philadelphia was cancelled due to the severe snow storm, part of the awful Nor'easter that hit last weekend.  As such, I could not join Wendy Cowley and Kerry Feltenberg on the site inspection tours of hotels in Philadelphia or Arlington.  I was so looking forward to making that trip and visiting with Chapter representatives there.  I know Wendy and Kerry are expert evaluators though and will forward the best choices to Nancy Harrison, LCAM Site Selection Vice Chair for her and her committee to summarize and put forward to you for the member survey due this month.  Remember, "One Voice"...it is up to you the membership to decide where LCAM 2014 will be held, so please do take the time to cast your vote when invited to do so.

 

I did make it to Montreal though for a business meeting on Sunday/Monday and had the wonderful pleasure of watching the move, "Lincoln" on my flight home.  How wonderful that I watched it this week in particular with the State of the Union address on Tuesday, President's Day coming up on Monday and of course it is Black History month, not only celebrated in the US, but in Canada and the UK too.   In researching Black History Month I did not realize February was chosen because of Lincoln's birthday on the 12 February.  I learnt a lot from that movie and I am now rooting for Daniel Day Lewis to take home the Oscar for his mesmerizing performance.  Lincoln's presidency changed a nation and literally the world.  Such awe inspiring leadership from a man who had a vision of what the future could hold.  As Americans, you can look to him and be so proud.

 

We too have a lot to be proud of in EWI and I am so happy to have Benita Collins, Corporate Director serving with me on the Corporate Board this year!  Our first black Corporate Board member and she is a shining example of why diversity in our membership is so important.

 

I know a lot of you are sad at this time of year as not all member firms opt to renew for various reasons.  I am heartened though by the upbeat attitudes of those Chapter leaders who realize that our future state is cast simply by what we do each day.  They continue to make recruitment their top priority and while it is always sad to see valuable member firms not renew with EWI, I firmly believe that what we do offer will resonate with other new potential firms wanting to advance their firms and the skill sets of their employees.

 

Yesterday I had the pleasure of sitting in on the Career Development webinar with Heather Petherick.  Heather spoke to us about finding that "sweet spot" in your career and gave very valuable tools on how to better find meaning and fulfillment in our day to day lives.  A great webinar that is now posted on our website for those of you unable to attend live.

 

Just a reminder that we have our first Annual report coming out next week and I am also hosting our first Open Forum call on Friday, the 22nd.  Please do join in!  I saw a draft version of the annual report and I literally had tears in my eyes as I read it through.  To have a vision and see it surpass your expectations is truly one of the most rewarding things my current position in EWI offers.  My fervent hope is that you too will love the report and use if for your recruitment and retention efforts.  I would like to offer my deepest thanks to Brittany Jones for taking on this project and running with it!

 

Speaking of R&R, I will be conducting a Chapter Development webinar on that very subject on Tuesday,  the 26February at 1pm MST.  I do hope you will attend!

 

One final comment for this week...please don't forget to register for Spring Conference in Chattanooga, April 18 - 20th.  Early bird registration ends on February 28th, so don't delay!  I look forward to seeing you there!

 

Have a wonderful weekend and holiday Monday!  For those of you in Alberta, have a great Family Day!

 

- K

 

 

 

 

 



How a tribe is born...

 

"A group needs only two things to be a tribe; a shared interest and a way to communicate." 

- Seth Godin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Day EWI!

 

Again, writing this a day early as I am leaving tonight for a whirlwind trip to visit Philadelphia and Washington areas along with Wendy Cowley, ED/COO and Kerry Feltenberg, Events Chair, EWI of Phoenix.  We are touring the short-listed hotels in each city for LCAM 2014.  Our goal is to meet with the Chapters in each city, the CVB's and through site visits, narrow the choice down to one hotel in each city.  We will then advise the LCAM Site Selection Committee, headed up by Nancy Harrison as Vice Chair.  The committee will then summarize the two choices and distribute to you, the member, to cast your vote on where we will be gathering for LCAM in 2014.  How exciting!  Of all the initiatives we undertook last year, I am very proud of bringing this decision into the hands of the membership.  I was always very vocal about allowing Chapters to formally express their interest as it is a critical component when there is any revenue to be realized for the Chapters in being named host city.  I am very excited to be making this trip and really looking forward to my first Amtrak experience!

 

This has been a very short, crazy week as I was in Las Vegas last weekend.  Always such an intense city to visit.  You come back wiped and ready for a vacation!  The travel agent in me must take a moment here to pass on to you an enthusiastic endorsement of Gordon Ramsay's "Steak" restaurant in the Paris Hotel.  It was the most incredible meal I have ever experienced.  If you go, be sure to do it right and go for the five course tasting menu with wine pairings.  Unbelievable!  And yes, the menu did include the Beef Wellington which literally melted in your mouth.  Here is last seasons winner of Hells Kitchen, Christina, busy at her new job.

 

 

 

If you are heading to Vegas within the next five weeks, make sure you also take in the Soul 2 Soul show at the Venetian with Tim McGraw and Faith Hill.  Lovely!

 

Okay, enough travel talk!  Yesterday I had the distinct pleasure of attending the Calgary Executives Association breakfast, followed by a meeting with their Chapters ED, President and a Corporate Board Member of IEA.  What exciting energy we shared!  Concrete plans are underway for how their local Chapter and ours can connect and support one another.  Their Corporate Board meets in May again and will be presented with a motion to formally endorse EWI.  Once that occurs, IEA globally will be aware of who we are, where we are and all that we can offer their member Executive's employees! 

 

We have so many things in common and it is easy to see how we emerged from this dynamic group of business leaders meeting in San Francisco back in 1938.  Their concepts are all so similar;  support the firm as that is the member, limit membership to only one company in each minor classification and most importantly, gather regularly as like-minded business professionals to grow from one another.  EWI and IEA can soon easily be described as a "tribe" as we share a common purpose.  I am very touched by their willingness to work together with us to establish a joint community.  The impact on one another where each organization has a Chapter will be huge, as demonstrated by their Calgary Chapter's willingness to attend our upcoming meetings, dedicate one of their meetings to EWI and to help us in our upcoming fundraisers.

 

For locations where only one of us exists, the growth potential can be huge for EWI.  If we want to launch a Chapter in a new location and IEA exists, we will have a group of businesses with the same overall vision and that will make our recruitment so much easier!

 

I look forward to sharing more with you as conversations develop.

 

Have a wonderful weekend and I will have lots to share from this weekends trip in the next blog!

 

- K