by Callie Castro, CAE, KCSAE Director
As many of our organizations are ramping up for annual meetings, we are in full-blown planning and education mode for our members. We all have the goal of providing high-quality content and engagement opportunities that our members will value. KCSAE is no different. We remain committed to creating an association management community for members that advances careers through education, professional development, and networking.
With the help of the Education and Networking Taskforce, your board of directors has spent the last year reviewing current programming strategy and networking opportunities and recently approved some very exciting changes for the future. A new Professional Development and Networking Steering Committee has been formed to work with existing content generators to create and implement a cohesive educational and networking plan that better meets the needs of KCSAE members and the association profession in the Kansas City metro.
The board also approved creation of two new Special Interest Groups (SIGs). These will be focused on membership and advanced professionals (members who are no longer new to association management, but are not yet CEOs). These will be added to the existing Emerging Professionals and CEO Roundtable SIGs. These four SIGs will serve as a platform for members to further network with like-minded individuals. The Professional Development and Networking Steering Committee will work to ensure that programming for all SIGs is consistent each month and builds upon a common theme.
Educational programming going forward may look a little different as well. Deep-dive sessions that have been on the schedule the past several years may continue with a presenter going further into the topic covered during the second hour or they may be SIG-led with the presenter for the first hour, then roundtable discussions on how the topic relates and can be applied to each SIG.
Finally, the board reviewed the concept of a Leadership Academy for KCSAE to work primarily with advanced professionals and emerging professionals in preparing them for future leadership opportunities. As such, the board has created a Leadership Academy Taskforce. Members include:
• Jim Griffith, CAE (chair)
• Marilyn Bier, CAE
• Stacy Brungardt, CAE
• Callie Castro, CAE
I look forward to hearing the outcomes and recommendations from the Leadership Academy Taskforce in the coming months. I am confident this initiative will serve as a tremendous resource for members.
These groups are to be commended in their work to advance the education and networking strategy of KCSAE. Their recommendations will allow us to build upon our strength of being a local association dedicated to providing high caliber professional programming and a network of local association peers and business contacts.