ABOUT ST. LOUIS AREA CHAPTER — MPI
ST. LOUIS AREA CHAPTER — MPI RESOURCES
THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL ONLINE MAGAZINE
MPI - St. Louis
4728 Hedgemont Dr.
St. Louis, MO 63128
p: 314-416-2234
f: 314-845-1891
e: slampi@qabs.com
Greetings to the entire membership of the St. Louis Chapter of Meeting Professional International!!! It is with great pleasure that I accept the role of President of the St. Louis Chapter of Meeting Professional International.
For those of you that may not know me personally, I would like to share a little about myself as I begin my presidency of this great chapter!
I was born and reared in Ireland , and after leaving high school I decided to start a career in the hotel industry, an industry that was unfamiliar to my family whose background was in finance and nursing. My four years attending the Shannon College of Hotel Management provided me with a great basic knowledge for my career ahead. During these years, I spent a year in Switzerland with Movenpick Restaurants (where I learned to love ice-cream), a year outside London with Trusthouse Forte Hotels (where as a management trainee I would plan for my weekend off only to be told on Friday at three p.m., “Sullivan, it's housekeeping for you this weekend!!!”) The joys of this industry!
I moved to the US and Washington , DC in 1993 after winning a green card in the lottery to become a nanny for my cousins. This lasted for one day before I got my first state side job at the Phoenix Park Hotel/Dubliner Restaurant on Capitol Hill.
The following 10 years took me to Pennsylvania , New Jersey , and Southern California , where I thought my new career was going to be a surfer boy!! Needless to say it did not happen, and St. Louis called!
Having moved here just over 5 years ago, I have made some great friends and business partners as a result of my involvement in this chapter. I was recruited by Ann Parsons to be on the Awards committee at the very first meeting I attended at the Renaissance Grand Hotel, and my career within MPI continued from there.
As I take over the reigns from Wade, I believe the leadership of this chapter is at its strongest. I would like to express my sincere gratitude and thanks for the time and dedication that this board has volunteered. The membership is very fortunate to have a group of dedicated leaders whose goal is to carry forward the vision for this chapter, but I promise that this cannot be done without you!!!
The year ahead is going to be an exciting one. With a new direction coming from MPI International in Dallas that no one chapter is the same and will be judged the same, your board gathered together, in the beginning of May for a day and a half of intense retreat at the YMCA Trout Lodge.
I would like to share with you the goals that the board has set for the year ahead:
1. Net Member Growth
We are looking at a 3% net growth over this year which is equivalent to 8 new members (net).
2. Membership Satisfaction
Our goal is to achieve a 5.05% average as a result of the Annual MPI Member care survey which you all will receive in the course of the year.
3. Engagement/Participation
Our goal here is to have a minimum of 25% of our current membership of 275 involved in some form of committee or volunteerism – that is equal to 70 members.
4. Chapter Financial Management
We need to adhere to our chapter budget +/- 5%.
These goals can't be reached without you and your involvement. I am asking that you participate in committees, attend our monthly meetings, and most of all feel comfortable giving valuable feedback to me and the board.
During the board retreat we focused our discussions on the above goals; we looked at how we can provide you with a greater value for your membership, greater out of the box education programs, how we can educate your bosses to the value of the time commitment that you give to the organization, and finally how we can get them involved.
We also focused on how we, as a chapter, can give back to the community in the following ways: looking at ways to encourage our members to buy from other SLAMPI members, a joint community outreach program with other hospitality focused organizations within the community, and finally how we can become more green friendly
In closing to this first article of the new MPI year, I would like to thank a few people for their dedication to the success of this chapter, Beth Quick-Andrews and her team at Q&A Business Solutions, this chapter could not achieve its goals without you; Wade Thompson, for serving this chapter for the last two years; and to my fellow board members and their committee chairs and members, thank you for your volunteerism.
I would like to leave you with a final thought…our organization is only as strong as the members' commitment. We can only meet our goals for the future with your involvement and volunteerism - big or small - it is all valuable!!!
Have a great summer!!!
Fergal
Fergal O'Sullivan
President
St. Louis Area Chapter, MPI
The St. Louis Chapter is pleased to announce that Ungerboeck Systems International, also referred to as USI, is the sponsor of a scholarship to attend the Professional Educational Conference 2008.
The USI/SLAMPI-PEC Conference Scholarship was recently offered by USI and agreed to by the Board of Directors. With the formation of this new scholarship, USI ... [MORE]
