Our vendor of the month is AP Professionals..Thank you for your continued support! Please visit AP Professionals at http://www.approfessionals.com

Global leadership in education, certification, and practice of accounting, finance, and information management.

Statement of Mission:

Provide to members personal and professional development opportunities in management accounting, financial management and information management through education and association with business professionals and certification in management accounting and financial management. Ensure that IMA is globally recognized by the financial community as a respected institution influencing the concepts and ethical practices of accounting, finance, and information management.

Rochester Chapter Vision Statement:

The Rochester Chapter of the IMA will be the financial professional's lead choice for education and networking in the Greater Rochester Area.

I am very humbled to retain the presidency this year. Reflecting on my first term, I am extremely proud of the efforts of the Board of Directors, and encouraged by the level of participation of chapter members at IMA events.

Thinking back to past success is fine for a moment and we are very proud to be representing a chapter with such a rich history, but the board is totally focused on the future of this organization as we enter its 87th year in Rochester. We have increased our virtual presence and focus on social media, are working diligently to bring younger professionals into the organization, and continue the long standing tradition of offering leading-edge professional development.

Networking needs to be an integral component of your career path strategy. At a recent networking event, I was reminded by current board member Aretta Stillman of my thoughts on networking that I shared with her many years ago. I had mentioned how important it is to network all the time, especially when you are employed. Then, when you are in the job market, your network is already established and you can hit the ground running. I share that thought with you.

As with any organization, the Rochester chapter faces economic challenges that need to be proactively addressed to ensure its long-term viability. We have been holding our own while offering quality programs, but I would encourage the members to make a concerted effort to help grow the chapter membership and increase attendance at chapter events. To put this in terms you may understand: We need to increase throughput to lower our fixed cost per unit!!!!!

This year, to increase networking and reduce costs, we are going to be planning an informal networking event for people to pick up their yearbook rosters and we will not be mailing them out. More details will follow, but we think this is a tremendous opportunity to really connect with other IMA members. Yearbooks will also be available at the IMA programs. Contact us if you want to assist in the distribution efforts.

Our first event of the year is going to be focused on the CMA certification, and will be held at the Simon School at the University of Rochester on October 21st. I took the leap this year and committed to getting my CMA, and have the 4th part remaining to take this December. Are any of you ready to take this step in your career path development? In the next two weeks, the IMA will be at RIT, SUNY Brockport, St. John Fisher and Digital Rochester's GET CONNECTED, so looks for our booth. Please reach out to me or any BOD member with comments, questions and suggestions.

Respectfully, David Alkins

david_alkins@yahoo.com