In Memoriam
Henry Ernstthal, CAE, FASAE
NYSAE mourns the passing extends condolences to the family and friends of Henry Ernstthal, CAE, FASAE, who served as chairman of the NYSAE Board of Directors from 1987-88. At the time, he was the executive director of the Society of Nuclear Medicine. He had also served as director of the Master of Association Management degree program at George Washington University in Washington, DC, from 1989 to 1995, and as the executive director of the California Dental Association.
He wrote the current edition of Principles of Association Management, the primary text in the field, and dozens of articles on association issues. Ernstthal served on nine different ASAE committees, several task forces, and was a member of the ASAE and ASAE Foundation Board including vice chairman in 1988. In 1988, he was inducted as an ASAE Fellow.
"Henry was inspirational and was noted for his quick wit and dry sense of humor," said Joel A. Dolci, CAE, NYSAE president. "We lost a real jewl of the association community. He was an innovator and very inspiring individual. At the stage of NYSAE’s growth, he took us to another level in our growth plan that not even I realized we could reach. I have an extremely high regard for Henry," added Dolci.
"ASAE and the association community will sorely miss Henry Ernsthhal, FASAE," said ASAE president and CEO John H. Graham IV, CAE. "He was a well known speaker, consultant, strategic leader, an advocate, and committed to advancing the industry. His contributions left a lasting impression."
Jeffrey Fagan, Director, National Accounts, Marriott Hotels, announced that Marriott is introducing Red Coat Direct—a first-of-its-kind app that allows meeting planners to adjust and edit their meeting requests. Red Coat Direct is the first branded hotel app to grant any meeting wish (within reason) from room temperature adjustments, to coffee refills or having lunch served earlier with an additional vegetarian dish. Rolled out at 350 Marriott Hotel properties in the US in May, the Red Coat Direct app will be expanded to the brand’s entire global portfolio of 500 hotels by the end of 2014. The app is personalized to the each organizer’s specific meeting. Requests can be made up to three days before the meeting and then throughout the meeting. Once the request is made, it is routed to the event manager and the department that can fulfill the request. The app is available for all internet-enabled devices including iPhone, iPad, Android phones, Kindle Fire and laptops and will be available in 19 languages by 2014’s global rollout.
Michael Cummings, vice president of marketing for Kellen Company, along with representatives from the National Association of Home Builders and the Greater Kansas City Medical Society lead a discussion on Repositioning Your Brand at ASAE’s Marketing, Membership & Communications Conference in Washington, DC. Cummings noted that the Produce Marketing Association (PMA) identified a brand guru on its board, who helped champion the year-long process of launching a new brand. PMA’s board champion create a Brand Steering Committee, composed of the board member, Kelley Koczak, PMA’s vice president of marketing, and various PMA members with marketing backgrounds across geographies, generations and the supply chain. "PMA was then able to approach the board with our decisions as opposed to soliciting opinions," said Cummings. Everyone agreed that if you are able to work with a consultant or branding firm, it is essential to select a partner that understands the association business. Angela Broderick-Bedell, executive director of the Greater Kansas City Medical Society, reminded attendees that: "We rebrand for the future. Remind staff and leadership of this often, as there will be a tendency to react with resistance to a logo change." Meg Meyer, vice president of marketing, National Association of Homebuilders, was tasked with distilling her then 53 brand logos down to three critical brands. Combining that with a logo review process before a board of 2200 made the ultimate logo choice that much sweeter. Cummings marveled that "While everyone from leadership to membership to staff has an opinion on a logo, most drift away when it come to the actual messaging." All presenters admitted that repositioning is difficult to measure, and that they rely heavily on anecdotal evidence. Cummings said that, "PMA went from being known primarily for Fresh Summit, its annual show, to being known as a relevant, collaborative and visionary trade association speaks volumes to the benefits of a repositioning."
Peter Rush
The Executives’ Association of New York City (EANYC) has chosen Kellen Company to provide association management services, announced Peter Rush, chairman and CEO, Kellen Company. Kellen will provide strategic counsel to advance EANYC’s goals for growth, member retention and engagement; guidance on strategic partnership cultivation; operational, board and committee management; membership database management; and event planning. Members of EANYC include business owners, partners and decision makers from private and public companies with average annual revenues from $3 million to $150 million. Among the business sectors represented by EANYC membership are professional services, real estate and construction, facility services, marketing and technology.Holly Koenig, Kellen vice president, will serve EANYC in the capacity of director, Strategic Growth.
Nicole Millman-Falk, CAE, Millman-Falk Communications, LLC, has been retained by Apogee Publications to serve as the editorial coordinator of New York County Lawyer, a 10-time a year tabloid published by the 100+ year-old New York County Lawyers’ Association.