2024 IPMS/USA Annual Business Meeting

Purpose

• Provide the IPMS/USA membership with reports on accomplishments and future activities and events. (A copy of the meeting presentation is available for download).

 

Meeting Agenda

• Executive Board Introductions
• National Staff Overview
• Executive Board Reports
• National Office Reports
• Business Meeting Wrap Up / Q&A
• National Convention Updates (2025 Status and 2026 Bid)

Call to Order

• The meeting was called to order on July 20, 2024, at 9:06 AM (CDT) by Phil Peterson during the 2024 National Convention in Madison, WI.

Executive Board Reports

• Phil Peterson, president of the Eboard, kicked off the annual business meeting with a brief agenda overview. He introduced the EBoard and members of the national staff.
• Phil Peterson, Eboard President - presented an overview of his accomplishments, including the recent scholarship recipients under the Ralph Forehand Scholarship Fund, the newest members of the IPMS Eboard, and the continued expansion and use of Wild Apricot. His announcements, such as the special membership pricing and the upcoming Eboard selection process, instilled confidence in the attendees. He encouraged all members to consider volunteering their time on the Eboard, reinforcing the positive impact of their potential contributions.
• John Noack, 1st Vice President, shared his accomplishments with the Reviewer’s Corps and his work with new suppliers and highlighted his engagement with “models for vets.” He wrapped up with a special announcement that would be shared at the competition awards ceremony.
• Scott Hackney, 2nd Vice President, shared his accomplishments with the National Convention Committee and his engagement with inherited knowledge and documentation. He provided guidance and support in creating a new process for a reusable convention website that is expected to reduce costs at future conventions. In the future, he will focus on determining how to build a better convention and improve the annual contest.
• Mike Oberholtzer, Treasurer, shared his accomplishments, including expanding the use of Wild Apricot through the membership portal (MyIPMSUSA.org). He reviewed the year-to-date financial statement of activities for IPMS/USA as of June 30, 2024, and shared that we continue to be fiscally responsible as a non-profit. He will continue managing and monitoring all monetary activities and provide guidance and recommendations to the membership and the Eboard as needed.
• Jessica Ivancso, Secretary, shared her accomplishments, including work with the Special Interest Groups and their alignment across the IPMS/USA website and Journal, improvement management of General Inquiries, and the recent addition of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to help reduce repeat inquiries, and support for the Eboard including a central location for documents, a schedule for monthly meetings, and an overall improvement in communications. In the future, she will focus on "connecting” with the membership and providing guidance and direction when needed.
• John Figueroa, Director of Local Chapters, shared his accomplishments in supporting the U.S. regional coordinators. He worked on creating a candidate package for the next election that will help volunteers better understand the commitment required for Eboard participation. He supported two surveys and feedback from the general membership. His work with chapters through social events was well received at this year’s convention. He closed his reporting referencing a new “Chapter Toolbox” to support local chapter management.
• Ro Annis, Publications Director & Historian, provided his report for viewing, which Phil Peterson reviewed in his absence. He touched upon Ro’s efforts to build a new publication team and a shared publications platform to support the IPMS/USA Journal and the success of digitizing historical periodicals previously published by the society. He closed with news regarding John Heck’s retirement as the Journal’s Art Director.
• Eugenie Taylor Ray, Director of Social Media, provided details of the social media activities, including levels of engagement with members and their global reach. Support for managing this content is a key focus, including multiple administrators and creating and managing a content review process. Promoting the hobby and creating a safe place to discuss it is critical to society's success. The goal is to create a more targeted use of social media, including videos via YouTube and other social media platforms. She encouraged the participants to reach out to her with their ideas to help support the growth of the membership.
• David Knights, Recruitment & Retention Secretary, asked the crowd how many people were long-standing members of IPMS/USA. It was observed that most participants were members for 20+ years. He noted changes in the types of activities that should grow with society. He encouraged the group to consider more than the basics of local meetings, shows, and the Journal in their recruitment efforts. He shared that the Eboard had met with a consultant who volunteered to coach and offer suggestions on how to appeal to new members while retaining existing members.

National Office Reports

• Marie Van Schoonhoven, National Office Manager, shared her accomplishments, including reminders for renewals (email and address changes), engraved name badges, and the process to purchase historic Journal issues back to Jan/Feb 2016. She asked that inquiries be sent directly to her.
• Nancy Kennedy-Hackney, Member & Event System Administrator, shared her accomplishments regarding support for the convention, the use of Wild Apricot to streamline event registration, and communications with the membership. She reminded participants to work with their regional coordinators to support local events with a broader audience reach.

Business Meeting Wrap-Up

• Phil Peterson, President, closed the annual business meeting by thanking the judges, volunteers, and members who continued their memberships in IPMS/USA.

Q&A / General Comments

• Comments:
  • The vendor registration process worked great. Kudos to the team for this significant improvement.
  • Spoke with vendors regarding their interest in tiered sponsorship - don’t forget the smaller vendors who would like to participate.
  • Encouraged existing members to sponsor Junior memberships. The low cost would be a good investment for transitioning to adult memberships.
  • Appreciated the effort on social media and targeting specific content to grow membership.
  • An interest in hosting another convention in Las Vegas was expressed; however, there was concern over cost. It was suggested that items such as registration fees and vendor table costs be reviewed for incremental adjustments, keeping in mind that IPMS/USA has limited planning resources.
• Questions:
  • Around convention time, we often see a surge in memberships, and it’s been observed that retention can drop off after a year or so. How can we manage this over a longer period?
  • Is it possible to have a link connection between the IPMS/USA “Gallery” and the “Discussion Forum”?
  • Does a “recruitment” information packet exist? If so, can we download it? What can we use during chapter recruitment efforts?
    • IPMS/USA is expecting to redesign its existing recruitment trifold and can provide issues of the IPMS/USA Journal for chapter use.
  • Is it possible for “Paper” builds to have their own competition category?
    • IPMS/USA recently updated the competition handbook for the 2024 convention and modified several categories. The NCC expects to review this handbook regularly and will review and consider a paper-build category.

Adjournment

• The meeting was adjourned at 10:50 AM (CDT) by Phil Peterson.

National Convention Updates

National Convention Chairpersons presented information on upcoming events:

• 2025 National Convention Status —Tom Jett, Convention Chair, gave an update on the progress of the 2025 National Convention, which will be held in Hampton, Virginia, August 6-9, 2025. Highlights included the hosting chapters (Region 2), photos of the convention facility, tours, local attractions, and the competition theme: Cradle of Innovation. (In progress and going well)
• 2026 National Convention Bid – John Figueroa, Convention Chair, presented the 2026 National Convention bid to be held in Fort Wayne, Indiana, August 5-8, 2026. Highlights included 11 IPMS/USA host chapters (Region 4), photos of the convention facility, potential tours, and the convention theme: US Semi-Quincentennial.  (Eboard Approval completed on 7/20/2024)

 

These meeting minutes are submitted on 7/28/2024 by Jessica Ivancso, IPMS/USA EBoard, Secretary.