By IABC Phoenix President, Julia Wallace Smith, ABC
Welcome to a new year at IABC Phoenix. I’m excited to serve as president of the Phoenix chapter for the 2021-2022 term.
I’ve been an IABC member since 1994, and I began serving on the board two years ago. It’s been a learning experience, especially through 2020 with everything going online. I’m hoping that this year will be different, and we will be able to have in-person gatherings as well as online forums to give everyone a chance to get involved.
Check out our new IABC Phoenix Board of Directors for 2021-2022 on our website. Our board members have a wide range of experience and are anxious to connect with our current membership and also potential members. Be sure to come to our IABC Phoenix events and invite all your friends in the communications profession to attend as well. Our board members have been assigned members to email, call or meet. Be sure to connect with them as they reach out. Let’s get to know each other!
During our board planning session July 10, we set one vital goal – to grow our membership in the upcoming year. To accomplish this goal, we are expanding our outreach activities so that we can be more responsive to our members and provide more content that you can use. We are planning more communications and events to get people together (online or in person). The professional development programs will be geared to offer something for everyone.
We need to hear from our members, too. Be sure to complete the member survey. We would love to hear from you.
We could also use more volunteers. We have an open position on the board – VP of Membership. With growing our membership as our top priority, this position is key. If you have any interest in filling this role, please let us know. Another opportunity is for someone to shadow our VP of Finance/Secretary this year to learn the ropes of that position and take it over for the 2022-23 term.
As we try to reignite our chapter and provide more offerings, be sure to check the many resources available to you at the regional and international level. Here are just a few:
- Online virtual meetings open to all IABC members
- The online Catalyst publication
- The Hub where you can ask other members anything or find information you can use
- The IABC Career Center (job postings)
- Professional Development resources from the Southern Region
Take advantage of the offerings that are part of your IABC membership.
Let’s come together this year as professional communicators to help each other grow and make new friends along the way. Be sure to come to our First Annual Soirée Thursday, Sept. 9, and meet IABC Phoenix members and other communications professionals from the Phoenix area. We hope to see you there!