Anyone else trying frantically to get everything done this holiday season? It seems each year there is more and more to get done and it starts earlier and earlier. I think I saw Christmas decorations in the store the day after Halloween. As much as I enjoy the magic and excitement of the holiday season, I find myself feeling a bit overwhelmed with all that is going on.
In the midst of all of this, I remind myself that this is the time of year for ‘a few of my favorite things’! You’re probably thinking presents and egg nog. While I do enjoy those things, it is actually budgeting and strategic planning on my mind right now. Hopefully you enjoy these activities as much as I do. For me, these activities include a hard look at where we have been to plan for where we are going.
I think everyone reflects on this at the end of year. Did we accomplish our personal and professional goals? Did we take the much needed vacation we wanted? Did we spend time and connect with those most important in our life? A review of what happened in the year and what’s next.
I began reflecting on all that VHMA has accomplished as part of this process. Our association has come a long way since our humble beginnings thanks to the hard work of so many volunteers and staff members. The greatness of our association lies with members and their selfless contribution to our industry. Thank you!
In 2017, our association saw record membership with over 3,300 members. This growth is directly related to our focus on delivering world class education and the opportunity to network and connect with our colleagues. Certification continues to be a goal for so many professionals and we saw our CVPM membership grow to over 500 in 2017.
Our Annual Meeting and Conference saw record attendance this year with 354 attending management professionals. This is 30% more than the previous record! VHMA offered 84.5 hours of continuing education this year at our two conferences, five Regional Workshops and 15 monthly webinars and our first Mastermind Group.
VHMA Member Connect continues to thrive as a resource for networking and connecting with our colleagues. More than 980 unique individual members participated in our community discussions with 9,152 posts, and 299 shared documents. I am continually amazed at the selfless sharing of knowledge and information from our members. We are truly committed to one another and the success of our industry.
We should be excited about our accomplishments this year and even more enthusiastic about what the future will bring. Our association is preparing to lead the industry toward continued success by delivering incredible education and development tools, even more opportunity to network with colleagues and support for our certification process. Keep an eye out for some exciting programs in 2018 and join in the learning and fun.
Thank you for making VHMA great and I wish everyone tremendous success in 2018.
VHMA President
Jim Nash, MHA, CVPM