Dear Members,
 
I hope you all enjoyed your time with family and friends over the holidays! Happy 2019! 
It is my pleasure to share some thoughts for your consideration, along with several updates from the ACPO Council.

Firstly, please let me acknowledge that this report is long overdue with respect to the status of our recent activities, thank you for your patience.
 
Before we wrapped up 2018, we approved and started implementing the 2019 strategic plan, which now equips the ACPO Council to respond to member requests more quickly while also increasing our presence in both the public eye and that of our peers. We want you, our members to experience a new ACPO, one that enriches your professional life.
 
Consequently, we need to implement our new strategy swiftly and efficiently. To truly transform the ACPO, we must make adjustments and be open to change. The first major decision was to sign a contract with ManageWise, a Canadian company located in Edmonton that provides association management services. ManageWise stood out between the other competitors through their passion and knowledge and just as importantly – their willingness to accommodate the unique needs of our organization. 
Coming back to the strategic plan, five key area were identified as strategic priorities: Management, Administration, Membership, Communications, and Professional Affairs, Governance.
 
By the time you read this message, the first few changes should already have been implemented and are visible: our info@acpo.on.ca email address is being responded to promptly and both the online membership payment system and new members applications are running smoothly. The 2019 invoices should also be in your inbox by now. 

We will be making further improvements on the already updated ACPO website. Another major task underway is to create the ACPO registry, our Registrar, Roch Marion, made this his top priority.
 
As we work through these positive changes, I am optimistic for the future of ACPO because of our profession's unique attributes, as we deal with materials that are highly complex, with their applications across all industries.
 
I would like to mention that three members joined the Council: Eric de Silva – as Councilor for District 6, Jason Oatley – as Councilor for District 14 and Nick Battram – as Councilor for District 3. Welcome and thank - you for joining us!

I am happy to report that all members of the Executive will continue to support the Council and be at your disposal as follows:
 
  • Iain McNab – Vice President
  • Robert Johnson - Past President
  • Doug Beswick – Treasurer
  • Horace Faulknor - Secretary
  • Roch Marion - Registrar
 
Subhash Mojumdar will continue to chair the Board of Examiners and Terry Obal and David Naranjit act as advisors to the President in addition to their current duties in the Council.
 
For many of you, Tulika Mojumdar was the first person you spoke to, when preparing your application for ACPO membership. I am sure that her welcoming nature and supportive guidance were really appreciated.

This month we are saying goodbye to Tulika, wishing her all the best, both, professionally and personally. Please join me in thanking Tulika for her hard work and dedication to ACPO, throughout the last 10 years.
 
Lastly, for my colleagues in the Council, I would like to thank you all for your extensive contributions to the ACPO and I also invite you to recognize our mutually agreed upon sense of urgency for following through with our strategic plan. – Thank you for all your hard work, and let's keep up the momentum.
 
I hope that we all take on 2019 with optimism and a fresh perspective with empowerment to drive new, innovative ideas. I wish you a safe, healthy and successful year!

 
Sincerely,

Liliana Cretu
President