The President's Perspective
Greetings from South Florida,
As I pen this note, your board of directors (“Board”) is already making plans for its traditional mid-winter retreat in Dallas TX. Custom dictates that each director pay all his/her own expenses (i.e., airfare, airport transit, hotel, meals and incidentals) except for a Friday evening dinner that you the SER members fund.
Board members receive no compensation for their service but are covered by a so-called ‘D&O’ (i.e., “Directors and Officers”) insurance policy to provide funds for their legal defense should a member or outside third party file an action at law against the Board. Of course, the Board’s first line of defense should such an action surface is proof that we acted prudently in fulfilling our fiduciary obligation and duty of care to you the members.
The Board gathers on a Friday in January at the Omni Mandalay Hotel at Las Colinas, a wonderful facility (at birth the original Dallas Four Seasons Hotel), surprisingly inexpensive and close to DFW airport. We dine together that evening; spend all day Saturday meeting to receive committee chair reports, review our financial condition, listen to the president-elect’s plans for the traditional late-summer annual meeting/conference and discuss the strategic direction of SER. That evening we again dine together at one of the many local Dallas steakhouses with each member paying his/her own way.
The Board also meets for a full morning session on the Friday of our annual meeting/conference in late July or early August. There are occasional telephonic meetings as well to address ad hoc issues, the resolution of which cannot wait for the next in person board meeting.
So, being an SER director is not simply a “walk in the park”.
That said, the Board is always looking for fresh faces. The best road to the Board is to volunteer for a committee. If you have interest, go to our website and peruse the list of our 11 standing committees. Should one or more strike a responsive chord, please let any SER director know of your interest. Now is also the time of year when the SER president re-sets committee memberships.
Of note, as a committee member since 2007 and a director since 2010, I have found immense fulfillment helping serve the membership and shape the future of this organization; met many industry professionals, some of whom have become close personal friends; and had fun to boot!
To current committee and board members, I look forward to our mid-winter gathering in Dallas. To those who have yet to serve, I say: “Join the party and become involved.” Respectfully, Bruce Foerster
Website Statistics
Members: To submit a news item to the Newsroom, first log in, then return to this page and press the button that will appear here.
