KCEN President Letters
Letter from the KCEN President (August 16, 2010)
Greetings, from your new 2010-2011 Chapter President for the Kansas City Express Network Group. Recently I received a book from a good friend that many of you may have heard of….”Who Moved My Cheese?” by Spencer Johnson. It made me think in this ever changing economy that there are many changes that we are all having to experience in our professional and personal lives. How we handle those changes is really a reflection on our attitudes.
Within KCEN, we have embraced multiple changes within this previous year as well. We've changed our meeting time to the 3rd Tuesday of every month, we've moved to a beautiful new location to handle our growth for new members, and we have aligned our team with more of the benefits that the ABWA National Organization has to offer for all of us.
Your new board members are extremely excited about the opportunities to help each of us build our tool boxes for success. We each have our own definition of success, and each of us are looking for unique tools to help us achieve those goals and dreams. KCEN wants to help in building your business, gain more referrals, build better partnerships, provide fortune 500 web training on WIN & help to reimburse you for some of the cost for continuing education at accredited college level courses, and be able to reach out to other women to help them on their own paths to success. In addition, our group of professional women is the best resource of all to ask for advice and develop greater friendships.
Our challenge this year is to help provide more tools to you for your success in these changing times. And, I challenge each of you in this next year to meet with members outside of our “scheduled” meeting time to get to know each other more, take a class on WIN, and get more involved on the team by joining a committee.
We have an amazing group, and I am honored to be a part of it.
Looking forward to another successful year,
Stephanie Cachero-Henry
Letter from the KCEN President (May 19, 2010)
Greetings, ABWA Kansas City Express Network Members!
I hope that this message finds you in good spirits. In case you haven’t seen the Evite invitation to our May meeting, we are pleased to announce that we have found a new home for our monthly meetings!
Beginning this May, we will be meeting at the Deer Creek Golf Club located at the Northeast corner of 135th Street and Metcalf in Overland Park, KS. We’re pleased to say that we have a contract with Deer Creek Golf Club, and that our costs for lunches will remain the same. I want to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of our members for your continued commitment to the KC Express Network (KCEN) this year as we have worked diligently to find the optimum meeting location. Thank you for all of the ideas, feedback, and suggestions you’ve provided to make this move possible.
To keep the costs the same for lunch at our new venue, we have committed to having a minimum of 30 guests at each of our events. Right now we average 27 people per meeting. Knowing that we have such a strong group of members and the space to grow, we believe this commitment was worth it.
The May meeting is a particularly important meeting for the future of our Express Network, and I strongly urge you to attend. At this meeting we will be voting for our 2010-2011 officers, forming Membership and Fundraising Committees, and announcing and recognizing our ABWA KCEN Woman of the Year and our nominee for the ABWA Top Ten Award. After the business portion of the meeting concludes we will offer open networking and a chance to tour our new meeting location. You may be surprised to know that this is a great meeting for guests to attend. It provides insight as to how our Express Network operates, gives guests opportunities to get involved, demonstrates some of the ways we recognize our members, and includes plenty of time for networking.
Speaking of how and where our Network operates, we would like to check with you on when we meet. We are aware that the E-Women’s Network is regrouping and will be meeting the same 4th Tuesday of the month as we are meeting. We would like to know if you are interested and willing to change our KCEN meetings to the 3rd Tuesday of the month. If our Network were to change meeting dates to the 3rd Tuesday of the month, the change would become effective in August, but the meeting time (11:30am-1pm) would remain the same. Thank you in advance for your help. For your vote to count, please follow this link to answer our 1 question simple and anonymous survey by Tuesday, May 25th: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NHHKRLN.
Please RSVP in advance to attend the meetings (by 9am this Friday). Beginning with the May meetings, those members and guests who attend the event without having responded to the invitation will be charged $20 at the door. One of the benefits of our KC Express Network is that the local dues and lunch prices have remained the same for more than 10 years now. Considering the state of the economy, and the annual rate of inflation, it is an amazing feat, and I greatly appreciate the efforts of past and present KCEN Executive Board Members for making it happen. While we have kept the prices the same, we have increasingly maintained and improved the quality of the food, service, venue, accessibility, parking, and presentations for our Kansas City Express Network members and their guests.
This “door charge” measure is taken to address a long standing issue, while still being welcoming and inviting to all those who attend our meetings. As mentioned earlier in this message, we have committed to having at least 30 guests per meeting, and the door charge for drop in attendees could help off-set the minimum should we have a slower month than usual. This Considering that many lunch groups charge a standard minimum of $25 to attend any of their functions, we consider this very reasonable. By the way, eventually the KCEN may charge people who RSVP and then do not attend the event, because we are responsible for food costs related to “no-shows”. Please attend the events you RSVP to, and we won’t even need to address it. If you are not receiving the Evite, please contact Nancy Miller directly at nmiller55@kk.rr.com to be added to the list and to RSVP. Thank you!
Details regarding the May meeting are below. If you have any questions, please let me or the Board know. Thank you!
Elections: Our Nominating Committee, led by Debi Kunz, has created the following slate of proposed officers for the 2010-2011 year, which will begin in August. The board currently meets on the 1st Tuesday of each month from 11:30am to 1pm. If you are interested in being added to the slate please contact Debi at dkkunz@earthlink.net no later than Monday, May 24th by 5pm. Currently there is only one candidate listed per position, but there can be more. Please note that the candidate elected to President Elect serves as the Vice President for 2010-2011 and then becomes the President the following year in 2011-2012. This helps to ensure a proper succession plan and smooth transition of leadership for our Express Network.
Slate of Proposed Officers for the KCEN Executive Board:
- President: Stephanie Cachero-Henry
- President Elect: Sheril Herman
- VP of Finance: Judy Bond
- VP of Membership Co-Chair: Nancy Miller
- VP of Membership Co-Chair: Sherry McCale
- VP of Marketing: Beth Dawson
- VP of Programming: Susan Ashley
- Secretary/ Newsletter: Jennifer Matascik
Now Forming! Membership Committee: The board has voted to create a Membership Committee, because we are continuously growing our membership and our Network needs to continuously recruit, educate, connect, and retain members. Sponsored by the Co-Chairs of Membership, this standing (on-going) committee keeps the Co-Chairs of Membership in the loop on all communication. The Co-Chairs of Membership then report to the Executive Board as needed. While occasional meetings may be necessary, they are infrequent. The committee will connect mostly through email, and may decide to arrive early at the regular monthly luncheon events to touch base with one another. We do ask that standing committee members remain on the committee for a full term (August 2010 through July 2011).
The Membership Committee:
- Promotes membership growth
- Strategically reaches out to target markets to increase membership
- Works as a team to greet and welcome all persons attending the events
- Assists KCEN events as hostesses and table hostesses
- Consistently attends KCEN monthly events
- Helps to keep members informed of opportunities for professional growth locally and nationally
- Reaches out to members who we haven’t seen recently
- Provides end of year written summary of activities and accomplishments to Executive Board for inclusion in the Best Practices notebook
Now Forming! Fundraising Committee: The Standing (on-going) Fundraising Committee, sponsored by the President Elect, keeps the President Elect in the loop on all communication. This committee will meet together infrequently, and will communicate mostly through email. Committee members need to be prepared to meet occasionally in September through November (one-two times per month) as we prepare for our main annual fundraising event. We do ask that standing committee members remain on the committee for a full term (August 2010 through July 2011).
The Fundraising Committee:
- Identifies opportunities for local business sponsorships
- Plans fundraising projects as a means of supporting the KCEN goals
- Presents all fundraising recommendations to the Executive Board for a majority vote
- Implements all approved fundraising projects
- Monitors progress on assigned initiatives and reports status to Executive Board
- Maintains compliance with operating budget
- Provides end of year written summary of activities and accomplishments to Executive Board for inclusion in the Best Practices notebook.
Why raise funds for the KCEN? In order to operate and meet the requirements of an ABWA Express Network in good standing as recognized by ABWA National, we need to have funds available for use in our Network. Here are some ways in which the money is used:
Scholarships - Mentioned in my previous letter, scholarships are available to degree seeking and non-degree seeking students.
Representation at National and District Conferences - The KCEN pays for the equivalent of 3 registration fees for members to attend national and/or district conferences as part of Best Practices.
Special Events - The annual spring social, like our Past Presidents event on May 11th, was free for members. We try to offer at least one free member event per year, as a membership benefit.
Special Programming - Most of our speakers generously present to our group for free. Additional funding provides the opportunity to occasionally bring in paid speakers, specialized training presentations, and attract members and guests.
Operating Expenses - This include marketing/advertising, welcome bags, speaker/presenter lunches, name tags, credit card processing fees, and so on. Additional funds would allow us to upgrade our website and eventually allow people to RSVP and pay online at the same time; these are both unfunded projects at the moment, but would be beneficial to our members and guests.
Woman of the Year Award Description: This award is a local level award, meaning that it pertains specifically to our KC Express Network. The Woman of the Year is chosen for her commitment to promoting the ABWA and the KC Express Network though her support of current members, recruiting new members, serving as a resource and mentor to our Network, her regular attendance and involvement with the Network functions.
Nomination for the ABWA Top Ten Award: Each year only ten women out of the entire ABWA National Organization are selected as a Top Ten Winner. The woman nominated from our chapter to represent our KC Express Network must have served on the board, been an active member of our chapter for at least 3 years, and submits an extensive application about her contributions to ABWA National, the KC Express Network, and her work history among other criteria. In many ways this is seen as a lifetime achievement award that recognizes professional excellence. At the May meeting we will be recognizing our KCEN nominee for this national competition.
If you have missed previous letters from the KCEN President, you can view them on our Network’s website at: http://www.abwakcexpress.org/. Any questions? Feel free to contact me or catch me at the meeting. See you on Tuesday!
Thank you, again!
Best Regards,
Jennifer Matascik
Kansas City Express Network President
Letter from the KCEN President (May 7, 2010)
Greetings, ABWA KC Express Network Members!
- Your National Dues and part of your local dues help pay the salaries of the women who run this national business league. At one time there were 55 people on staff. Now there are only 10 paid staff members, and many, many dedicated volunteers, such as your elected officers who help run the organization.
- To legally operate our ABWA Chapters and Networks (also referred to as teams) we’re required to carry liability insurance, which your dues help to cover.
- The Women’s Instructional Network (WIN) is an online porthole that connects you with your membership roster, your district and national organization, members from across the country, professional training opportunities, webinars, and networking opportunities. WIN’s first birthday is celebrated on Wednesday, April 21st at 6pm. Login to get involved.
- Express Network Members get 10 online professional development courses that are the same courses offered by Fortune 100 Companies. MTV, American Airlines, Bowing, and several other companies pay lots of money to send their employees through this same training available to you. These courses offer you an opportunity to learn at your own pace at your own time. Not only are you learning important business skills, you can use your initiative as a resume builder or an example of continuing education to help you stand out at work. A new online resume course with a Strong Inventory Assessment is coming your way too, as a part of your membership.
- Scholarship opportunities are available through the Stephan Bufton Memorial Education Foundation (SBMEF). There are two types of scholarships available. One is for up to $250 for members taking continuing education classes. This scholarship money can also be used toward some of the programming offered by the ABWA National and District Conferences. The other scholarship is for a degree seeking student. This second scholarship is $1,500 to $2,000 for tuition. This scholarships are a great way for us to recognize members as well as attract new members to our group and build community relationships. For more visit: http://www.sbmef.org/.
- New Members have an option of receiving an ABWA pin, or they can get a $10 coupon to use toward an ABWA product, like a business card holder.
- Tools necessary to run our Network are now available on WIN. These tools were previously only given to the Chapter or Network President, but now all ABWA members have access to these tools. This means you have an opportunity to familiarize yourself with how business is done in the ABWA, and you can apply what you learn to your business. For example, learn how to organize committees, or how to conduct a professional business meeting, and survey your customers.
- Women In Business Magazine is a quarterly publication designed to offer you insightful articles to help you advance your career and business skills, find a job, and connect you with ABWA National information. This magazine is also online.
- District Newsletters are also published twice a year to help you keep connected with what is happening in your district. (These are emailed and published on WIN.
- National Recognition is available through the Woman of the Year Award, Protégé Award, and the Top Ten Business Women’s Award. All of these awards are recognized on a local level by your Express Network, and then are shared nationally. Not only does it feel good to be recognized for your growth and dedication to excellence, these awards are another opportunity to build your resume and keep you highly marketable. The Woman of the Year Award is designed to recognize our member who has volunteered and served the team throughout the year, and who has also made many efforts in attracting and retaining members. The Top Ten award is based on a member’s entire career as well as how that person has used her experience to benefit the team through shared knowledge, dedication, and mentoring. The Protégé Award is for first year members who are highly and involved and committed to excellence, personal, and professional growth.
- National Leadership Opportunities are also available to our members, and we encourage you to run for district and national representative offices.
- National and District Conferences give you the opportunity to meet with and learn from professional business women in person. At these conferences you also gain a better understanding of the organization itself, tips and tricks to successful fundraising, member recruitment and retention, program planning and more. These conferences also offer business relevant courses and continuing education courses. The KU MBA program course are also offered at National Conference. Each course gets you a partial credit hour from the University of Kansas. By attending the conferences and taking the KU MBA learning track, you can actually earn a KU MBA Essentials.
- Company Connections is one way to promote your business online with the ABWA. Because we’re a business league, it’s set-up as a subscriber based program that allows you to offer your business services throughout the entire ABWA network.
- Discounts and member incentives are available to ABWA members. While I hope you didn’t join the ABWA for a Gecio Auto Insurance Discount, an ABWA Visa Card, or a Hertz Rental car discount, they are just a few perks of membership. You also get a discount on ABWA merchandise.
We’ve covered on other occasions the benefits specific to your Express Network Chapter membership, and will revisit them again later this year.
Letter from the KCEN President (April 13, 2010)
Greetings, ABWA KC Express Network Members and Friends!
Thank you for visiting our website. At our March meeting we mentioned that we would begin to utilize our website for updates about our group and individual announcements. Here we are, only weeks later, bringing you this new online newsletter to help keep you current and in touch with your Express Network.
Speaking of online, we’re excited to bring to you this April, our very own Chris Nastav, of KC Web Specialists who is doing a presentation on social media and how to use it for your business needs. Members, please watch for your Evite to the event and be sure to RSVP. This is a meeting you won’t want to miss!
Something else you will want to consider is joining ABWA National as they celebrate the 1st birthday of the Women’s Instructional network on April 21st, 2010 at 6pm. This amazing online network is a benefit of your national membership. During the event you’ll have a chance to network openly with ABWA members across the nation in real-time, promote your business, have a chance to win prizes, and learn of new ways to get connected with WIN. For more check your email, and visit abwa.org.
Your board has been working hard this year to present to you as much value from your membership as possible. As we’ve mentioned, part of that value comes from involvement with ABWA National. This week three of your board members: Stephanie Cachero-Henry, President Elect; Sheril Herman, VP of Marketing; and I, Jennifer Matascik, your KC Express Network President; will be traveling to Chicago to the ABWA National Spring Conference.
The conference taking place April 16th and 17th is designed to help us continue moving the KC Express Network forward. By attending this event we hope to learn even more ways to bring value to our members. We will gather ideas from other ABWA Chapters and bring them back to you. We’re looking forward to the experience and are pleased to be representing the KC Express Network.
One of the things we are looking for at the conference is a way to successful position our Express Network for growth, knowing that our members come together to expand their professional network. As mentioned last month, we’re considering changing meeting locations. While we greatly appreciate the food, service, and atmosphere of the Hereford House, we clearly need more meeting space.
Last but not least, I’m excited to announce that we are planning an exciting after hours event for members on Tuesday, May 11th from 4:30pm to 6pm. More details to come, but mark it on your calendar now!
It’s a pleasure to serve our ABWA KC Express Network, and I thank you for the opportunity to do so. Have a wonderful week!
Best Regards,
Jennifer Matascik
Letter from the KCEN President (March 9, 2010)
- Seeking a new meeting location to accommodate more people at our events.
- Using Linked-In and Evites to reach members, attract visitors, and stay connected.
- Identifying ways to attract guests and retain members.
- Increasing the usage of our website, abwakcexpress.org.
- Providing on-going opportunities for involvement, growth, and leadership.
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