The Magic of What We Do

At our Board of Directors meeting this month, we reviewed and tweaked the strategic priorities defined by the NYSAE Board in July 2019. So much has changed since then not only with the personal and business implications of the pandemic but also considering the social justice issues that have swirled around us in the ongoing turmoil that was 2020. Turmoil prods change and NYSAE has stepped into this new world for the benefit of the members we serve and the organizations they represent.

At our meeting, in assessing what we have planned and what we need to plan, Dr. Robert Spangler, Chair-Elect of NYSAE, with his usual enthusiasm and energy reminded us of “the magic of what we do.” How right he is! We need to talk about it and to amplify it.

This past year we have been here for our members helping them to pivot, offering guidance and direction to address staffing, financial and burn out issues. We gathered regularly not only to benefit from the knowledge of speakers but also to provide a safe forum to vent about the frustrations we were feeling and the concerns that we had running our own organizations or finding ourselves suddenly furloughed or unemployed. We needed help dealing with the tremendous loss that many of our employees had experienced either through the loss of a loved one or with the loss of control they felt trying to juggle so many new expectations with their children’s education or with caring for extended family.

And now as we step out into the still to be defined new world, we need help with what that might look like. If you were not able to attend, check out the fabulous presentation “Getting Back to Work: Addressing Post-COVID-19 Workplace Challenges” featuring Andrew Kimler, a partner with Vishnick, McGowan, Milizio LLP, where we learned about the protections and concerns for both employees and employers. NYSAE is nimble and flexible and increasingly well connected to bring you speakers that can relate to what we do as association professionals and can share their war stories and solutions. 

We see ourselves as stewards of a larger role as well. Thriving associations and the supplier community that we all work with add to the vibrancy that is New York City and beyond. We hold meetings and conferences, use catering facilities, book hotel rooms, attend Broadway shows, and travel to places in the state and beyond. By resuscitating and empowering our associations, by default we will breathe life into the city we love to live, work, and play in. NYSAE wants to be one of the engines that empowers that.

Another of our Board members, Bobby Blumenthal, who heads up our ExecConnect program, defined our big audacious goal. Let’s make NYSAE the best state association of executives in the country. Other Board members offered suggestions to get us there and to keep our momentum going by expanding our digital presence as well as bringing back in-person meetings. So we are thrilled to announce that we are back live and in person for our premier event Meet NY on Thursday, Sept. 30 at the Marriott Marquis and for our Synergy Awards Breakfast on Friday, Oct. 29 at Chelsea Piers. I look forward to welcoming you all there!

We are ready. We will be nimble, innovative and forward-thinking to help you prepare for the change ahead. We will help define it for the association world. Be a part of the conversation. Let us know your thoughts.

Happy Summer!

Joanne S. Barry, CAE

CEO/Executive Director, New York State Society of CPAs