Letter from the ADME President

It is a great honor to be elected to the Presidency of the Association for Destination Management Executives. I am humbled to be allowed to carry on the rich tradition of leadership of our organization.   In New Orleans, I announced the theme for my presidency, puzzles.  Like pieces of a puzzle, we are all different, yet each of us is An Essential Piece with strengths and skills to share.  When we link our individual strengths, we’re invincible.

The annual meeting remains the heart of ADME and the 2008 Annual Meeting in New Orleans was a great success.  This year’s program continued the high standards we have come to expect at our meeting.  Excellent educational programs and camaraderie are the hallmarks that make the annual meeting a favorite among ADME members. We experienced record breaking attendance and the quality of the educational programs was enhanced by the warm weather and social activities. 

ADME remains devoted to its members, and education has always been a main focus. The quality of sessions, high meeting attendance, and applications for membership attest to the importance of ADME. However, the real strength of our organization lies in the energy and loyalty of the membership. Many thanks and gratitude go out to the sponsors, volunteers and ADME staff who each represent An Essential Piece in having made the 13th Annual Meeting a success!

Let us celebrate some of this year’s successes:

• 2008 conference was our best attended ever, with a 25% increase in attendance over 2007
• The first "class" of Accredited Destination Management Companies includes 24 companies with 34 locations. The enrollment deadlines for 2008 are March 31 and August 31. Go to the Accredited DMC tab on this website for more information.
• Before a company can be accredited, they must have a DMCP in each office location. The Destination Management Certified Professional (DMCP) program now has over 100 DMCPs, and we have recertified our second class of DMCPs. Go to the DMCP tab on this website for more information. A free webinar, How to Obtain your DMCP, is offered on March 19 and again in the fall, prior to the enrollment deadlines for the Summer 2008 and Winter 2009 exams.
• Thethird annual ADME Achievement Awards recognized outstanding programs in9 different categories of DMC services as well as the Rising Star and Destination Management Professional of the Year. Winners can be found under the Achievement Awards tab on the website.
• The DMC Institute, which features an intensive one-day course which covers best practices in marketing, operations and finance continues to be popular. This program is offered in a webinar each summer and is available to be held in locations where there is sufficient demand. Contact the ADME office at 937.586.3720 for more information or write to info@adme.org.

Our hard working volunteer board members and committee members, who are all An Essential Piece of ADME and unselfishly donate their valuable time, have accomplished several goals this past year, including:

• A Members Only section on the website to share accepted practices and templates.
• Our membership, which has grown to over 250 DMC professionals and international members, is on the rise and this year's total represents an increase of 12%.
• Our Marketing Committee is continuing to improve the visibility of ADME and enhance the value DMCs deliver to meeting planners.
• The Sponsorship Committee is creating opportunities for suppliers to introduce their products and interact with members. We welcomed four new Gold Sponsors this year.
• Our Education Committee is already planning our 2009 Annual Conference to be held at the Westin San Antonio Riverwalk Hotel February 11 - 14. In addition, webinars will be offered throughout the year to bring top quality professional education to each DMC.
• The Awards Committee is working to top their spectacular awards event and we anticipate even more entries this year.
• In New Orleans we announced the formation of an ADME Task Force to focus on the design of accepted practices and guidelines for DMCs.  The Task Force plans to meet in June.

I would like to congratulate Ilene Reinhart for her superb leadership over the past year. We welcome our new Officers and Board of Directors and encourage each of our members to support them when called upon to assist.  All of us are proud of our membership in ADME and represent An Essential Piece of the organization.

In closing, I would ask all of you to frequently visit our website. ADME has developed an outstanding site that is both educational and functional.

Under the stewardship of our Board of Directors and Executive Vice President, Fran Rickenbach and her staff, the membership continues to grow, the organization is financially sound, and recent attendance at the annual meetings is the highest in the history of the Association.  I look forward to a great year for ADME and once again thank the membership for your support and confidence in electing me to the presidency.