President’s Message on… WBN’s fiscal year-end

Oh, what a night…I’m still excited and inspired from the 30th Anniversary of the Businesswoman of the Year Awards Gala. Congratulations to the Gala Committee for a job well done! And, of course, congratulations again to the recipients!

If you missed the event, the recipients are:

Corporate Category: Shannon Lambert, Veritaaq

Entrepreneur Category: Rebecca Page, Concierge Home Services

Professional Category: Kimothy Walker, CTV

Click here for the detailed 2012 BYA webpage.

The Board has also been hard at work these last few months. May 31st marks the fiscal year-end of the WBN, and we have been busy setting the priorities for the next year and the budget to go with it. In keeping with that, there are two items I want to highlight.

1. Executive Director
In May 2010, the WBN undertook a strategic planning initiative to evaluate the core purpose, core values and vision of the organization. From that initiative, it was determined that for the organization to grow and to continue to provide the services to its members that are required, and desired, that the WBN would have to move to a different governance model, including the hiring of an executive director. Since then, we have been making various changes to move towards this goal including adopting a “results-based” governance model. The next step in this journey is to hire an Executive Director.

I am excited to announce that the Board has approved in the budget for 2013-2014 provision for a part-time Executive Director. The role of the ED is to take WBN to its next level – reduce potential for volunteer burnout, increase retention of volunteers, increase membership and increase sponsors. This will allow greater focus on growth strategies and a sustainable leadership model for the organization – a continuous face for the WBN.

Step 1 in this process is to establish an Executive Director Search Committee. Click here to get more information if you are interested in being a part of this and respond by May 10th.

2. Membership Renewals
The new fiscal year means time to renew your membership and I am happy to announce that the budget for 2013-2014 includes no membership fee increases. We will be continuing with the new categories of membership that were announced last year. The categories and fee structure is as follows:

$299 – General Membership
$149 – Young Entrepreneur (for members 28yrs old or younger)
$99 – Gold Executive (New members that are retired or existing members that cease working and wish to remain part of the network)
$499 – Corporate Membership for two (for two women from the same organization)
$749 – Corporate Membership for three (for three women from the same organization)

All members should have received their membership renewal letter on May 1st. The deadline for renewal is May 31st. If you have not received it, please email memberships@womensbusinessnetwork.ca or click here to access the renewal membership form.

There is an early bird prize! If your renewal is received by May 21st, you will be entered into a draw to receive your membership free. The winner will have their membership fee reimbursed.

I challenge you all to share our newsletter, and think if any of your friends or colleagues would benefit from becoming a member. Think back to the various member benefits we have talked about over the last several months and consider who else could take advantage of those benefits.

On a personal note, I have been a member of the WBN for 7 years now. It is a delight to give back through volunteering while at the same time developing a network of incredible women. The business relationships and personal relationships are truly valued and I can only hope that each of you are having the same experience.

And if I can make one last pitch, the Sponsorship Committee is in need of new members. If you are interested in this, please contact Tracey Pagé at tpage@collinsbarrow.com Chair of the Sponsorship Committee.

April showers bring May flowers – hope to see those flowers soon!