Author: Jennifer Sommers, 2020 GMC PCMA Secretary 

Hopefully by now you’ve read or heard about several positive changes being implemented by the Greater Midwest Chapter this year. Making these changes gives us the ability to continue laying the foundation of a steady path in 2020 which sets the course to achieve new goals in 2021. The content in this article is intended to provide you detail that we, the Board of Directors, hope will encourage you to either become or continue as active Chapter members through one of the many opportunities offered. As the chance to VOTE is upon us, we are asking everyone to respond to our Call for Nominations of Board, and Committee Volunteers.

First, as announced on August 3, the recent vote to make changes to our Bylaws has passed! Of the 20% of eligible members required to vote, we were delighted to see a 25% turnout at an acceptance rate of 95%.  As you can clearly see, your participation in these opportunities is critically important to ensure we have a strong and successful Chapter giving every member an improved learning and networking opportunity through virtual and the eventual return to F2F meetings.  The rewards of volunteering are great as you help steer the Chapter’s evolution and institute changes for the better with the heart of our Member community in mind.  The significance of the Bylaws vote was to allow GMC-PCMA leadership the ability to create a more nimble and flexible structure allowing a far easier reaction to sudden, unanticipated challenges brought on by circumstances outside of our control, like the Coronavirus has created. Specifically, with the vote, we have been able to restructure our Committees as follows:

Second, regarding our current and upcoming voting process, GMC leadership has long wanted to improve membership engagement in this area.  We have had historically low member engagement when it comes to the Call for Nominations for our BOD and Committee Volunteers. Without healthy participation we are limited as to the ability to fulfill the desires of our Membership. We believe that restructuring the application process will bring to bear members with ideas and a specific focus on driving positive change within our Chapter. In turn, these active members will naturally lead to a more robust Awards pool of successful peers.

For 2021, the Board of Directors has a total of five positions accepting nominations:
One (1) Officer Position of President-Elect
One (1) Officer Position of Secretary
Two (2) Director level positions (Supplier Member)
One (1) Director level position (Planner Member)
Directors fill the position of liaison between the Chapters Board of Directors and various Committee and Sub-Committee volunteers.

As you consider making nominations, you can, and should, read descriptions of the various Board positions, duties and qualifications required via this document (PDF) which includes a self-appraisal questionnaire created to ensure the existence of a true desire to serve.  Once ready to nominate, please submit the nomination(s) form by 11:59pm on Friday, August 28.  Once nominees have been vetted by confirming membership in good standing a questionnaire will be distributed requiring experience and ideas be detailed in order to provide that members “vision” for their specific are of interest in the Chapter.

Finally, we have some important dates coming up in addition those previously noted which apply to other ways you can get involved to help shape and grow our organization as follows:

September 1 – 15: Committee Chair Applications Open – If you are not quite ready to take on a Board of Directors position, a good path is to get involved at the Committee level. Being a Committee Chair is a natural step to the Board of Directors. New this year, we are implementing an application process for Committee Chairs as it is vital to understand a certain level of commitment is required and for the BOD to understand the vision that each Chair has for their chosen area, prior to their appointment.

September 15 – October 15: Call for Volunteers – New this year, ALL volunteers (including those returning) will be asked to complete the Call for Volunteers form. Should you desire serving on a Committee you are doing yourself a favor by opening a door that will allow you to network more deeply with fellow members, learn more about how the Greater Midwest Chapter of PCMA operates and be a part of our Chapters success!

August 15 – November 1: Award Nominations – Over the years it has become clear, WE LOVE TO CELEBRATE THE SUCCESS OF OUR PEERS! The annual Awards event is a fun and exciting time to come together. The voting process provides a vital role you can play as you, our membership, will nominate the outstanding work you have witnessed. Our goal is to make this process easy so please, when the opportunity comes along, take a couple of minutes and nominate those who have worked so hard to improve our Chapter.

We look forward to your involvement. Please reach out to a current Board member or contact leadership directly at [email protected].

Here’s to our mutual success as we look ahead to 2021!