Message from the President
BOMA/NY is moving forward on many fronts and our president, Thomas L. Hill, RPA, shares his views on topics as far-ranging as the new direction for the Association’s legislative and government affairs work, to a seminar topic "near and dear" to his heart, and how to deliver more membership ROI.
Q. You've often talked about making membership more meaningful, most recently for the Allied and Professional members. What actions have you been taking in that area?
A.Our Allied and Professional members are mission-critical to the future of BOMA/NY, so in the coming months, I will be hosting them at a series of town hall meetings to gain insight on what they see as their "ROI" as a BOMA/NY member. Without this input, our Long Range Strategic Plan will lack an important dimension it needs to be successful. I’ll report back to you later this year!
Q. Members are currently signing up for Response & Recovery: It’s All About the Money, the latest in the BOMA/NY seminar series. Your thoughts on why this is valuable for building teams and execs?
A. This is near and dear to my heart.
We spend a lot of time on prevention and preparedness planning--all crucial and necessary--but the true measure of resiliency lies in our ability to safely and quickly recover. That requires careful, thoughtful planning regarding the way we work with our insurance companies, public authorities and clients--the post-Sandy stories bear this out.
The issues are complex and if not dealt with properly, can result in severe economic consequences for owners and tenants alike. John Brandstetter, who is directing the seminar, and I share a common passion for this topic. I can’t think of anyone better to conduct it, and I am confident attendees are in for an eye-opener!
Q. Daniel Avery (see story below) has joined as the new Director of Legislative Affairs. Did the Executive Committee expand or make changes to this role?
A. Let me first say that while our search took a little longer than initially contemplated, we are very satisfied with the result.
Filling this position presented a unique opportunity. Rather than charging forward with old approaches and ideas, we took a more thoughtful approach, which included re-tooling the job description and engaging the BOMA/NY Executive Committee at every step in the process.
The new role of the Director of Legislative Affairs will still have a familiar ring when it comes to the basics. But we’ll be pursuing a much more active agenda and deepening relationships with local and state governmental and legislative officials. We’ll also be collaborating more on joint advocacy initiatives with REBNY, the Building Congress, ABO and other associations as merited.
Q. You’re even mixing it up with some changes in the traditional Dinner Dance. Tell us about those plans.
A. Working with Tony LiFrieri, our Dinner Dance Chair, the team decided we had to make a departure from past events. We knew what we didn't want; so we spoke to members about what they did want. Bottom line--it has to be fun and memorable. What better marquee venue than the newly renovated Rainbow Room at the Top of the Rock, with a band that will have our guests dancing? So we created Rock the Top of the Rock, and on Oct. 24 we’ll be giving our members of all ages a night to relax, network and dance the night away.
A lot of effort has been put into making this a splendid evening out, so I hope you will come out and support this enthusiastically! And special thanks to venue manager Tishman Speyer Properties, who worked very hard to make this happen for us--I can’t thank them enough.
BOMA/NY
http://www.bomany.org/