Welcome

Supporting Chapters, Supporting Members

Fellow ACP Members,

As one of your newer National Board members, I am excited to report to you the status for Chapter Services activities so far in 2012. It is now the fifth month on the job for me, and those five months have been fast-paced and exhilarating.

Yes, I am one of the four Mikes currently on your National Board. That makes it a little confusing if you focus on the names. With three of us Mikes are based in Texas, that can still be a little confusing...but, when you focus on my area of responsibility, it will be easy to remember what I do! I am the Chairman of the Stakeholder Relations Committee, which is responsible for member and Chapter services and support the Presidents Council, Regional Advisors, and Awards Programs.

One area of my responsibility is to work with individuals wishing to establish new ACP Chapters. Currently, we have requests for new Chapters in the following areas: Portland, Oregon; Rhode Island; Spokane, Washington; Southwestern Virginia; St. Louis, Missouri; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and San Juan, Puerto Rico. It's amazing...each time we host a booth at one of the major conferences we get additional requests to begin establishing a Chapter.

I am also very excited to be involved with the refresh effort to transform our national DSA (Distinguished Service Award) into a lifetime achievement award. The DSA was previously an annual award for one individual. The new lifetime achievement award is planned to be open throughout the year and focus on recognizing people who have had significant lifetime achievements in business continuity, disaster recovery, and/or emergency management. We plan to roll out the new program later in the summer of 2012. Start thinking now who should be recognized as a major contributor to our profession. Keep in mind that the review committee will be able to recognize multiple individuals per year--and a nomination will be possible any time throughout the year.

Another award that is in the early stages of development is one that will allow you to recognize an individual that assisted you in finding a new job position. If you have been looking for a new position in the past few years, hopefully you have utilized the network of individuals within your local ACP Chapter and also people on the ACP National Board. This new award will be a simple recognition for those that are helping others in our profession. You'll see more about this award later in 2012.

One very important area of activity I am also supporting is the revision to our ACP National Bylaws. Ginnie Stouffer, our National BAO/Secretary, is leading this group. We are making revisions to support, among other things, additional categories of membership (which was mentioned in Steve Elliot's column last month). One of my areas of focus will be the various positions we have at the local Chapter level. Once the National Bylaws are finalized, my committee will begin focusing on a revision of the Chapter equivalent of the Bylaws, which is your Articles of Association (A of A). As you perform your annual review of your chapter's A of A, please give me feedback on any revisions you would like to see and we'll add it to the items the committee's work list.

For those of you that travel periodically don't forget that one of your benefits of membership is that you can attend another Chapter's meeting. You would be considered a member of that Chapter, so there may be a fee for a provided meal. Before I joined ACP, I traveled frequently and did not realize this benefit was available. It is an incredible way to meet people in our profession.

If you are planning to attend the 2012 CPM Conference & Expo that will be held in Dallas in October, please plan now to attend our Chapter meeting that will be held at the conference hotel on Tuesday, October 9, from 2 - 4 p.m. Our main focus will be to insure that all the ACP members attending are able to meet each other, so your participation is essential to the event's success.

My committee is here to assist your Chapter, whether it is for assistance or to help share a successful event with others. This fits well with our "Together We Can" five-year growth plan. A component of success is using other people to give you fresh ideas and assist you in solving challenges. We are here to support you and your local Chapter.

Best regards,
Mike Carver
ACP Corporate Director of Chapter Services
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