Strength in Numbers: It’s More Than Just the Numbers

September 13, 2018

It’s hard to believe that I’m writing my final column for AICC’s BoxScore when it seems as though a mere six weeks have passed since my first. In the November/December issue last year, I introduced myself as your new Chair and explained that my theme for the year, “Strength in Numbers,” was an appropriate description of the value AICC delivers to its members.

Now that nearly a full year has passed since that first column, I’d like to reflect on some of the “Strength in Numbers” that AICC has brought us. Just as in our own businesses we watch certain metrics, so too does your Association. Here are a few:

62 new members in 2017–2018.
94 percent member retention rate or, if you will, member satisfaction rate.
3,416 e-learning logins, with 1,049 active users—and growing!
1,000-plus completed e-learning courses.
Eight AICC Associate Member Education Investors signed on.
10 percent growth in attendance at AICC National Meetings.
20 percent growth in our regional summits.

As I hand over the gavel to my successor, your First Vice Chair Joseph M. Palmeri of Jamestown Container, I want to say a special thanks to all of you who have welcomed me into your plants and offices. One of the privileges of being Chair of this Association is the ability to be a roving ambassador here and abroad for the independent entrepreneur in our industry. It’s a real pleasure. I also want to thank my fellow officers and members of the board of directors, as well as my advisors, Ed Gargiulo, Kim Nelson and Jim Akers. AICC is blessed to have an active, engaged leadership, and our success as an organization is because of their selfless efforts. And it goes without saying that none of this could be accomplished without the cheerful enthusiasm of AICC’s dedicated staff.

One final thought about AICC’s “Strength in Numbers”: The leadership bench for AICC consists of successful, dedicated business owners who will be assuming the chair in the years ahead. They are Joe Palmeri, Jay Carman, John Forrey, Jana Harris, and Matt Davis. This design has meant that AICC’s continuity in leadership is assured. So too is it with our professional staff. Earlier this year, when AICC President Steve Young announced that he will step down in June 2019, your board of directors unanimously chose Vice President Mike D’Angelo as Steve’s successor, thereby ensuring a smooth transition.

Thank you again for allowing me to serve, and remember, in AICC there’s “Strength in Numbers.”