Dear ILEA Members,
It has been my honor to serve as your international president for the past 12 months. As the new year approaches, it’s time to reflect on the incredible milestones achieved by our amazing global association. The past year has been an exceptionally busy one, providing me with the opportunity to connect with many of you. With each interaction, we have connected cultures, sparked innovation, and created unforgettable experiences and memories. The dedication and creativity of this vibrant community have truly set the stage for an even more spectacular year ahead.
At the start of last year, I stated that during the 2023-2024 year I wanted to focus on our people, partnerships, and the available possibilities for ILEA. We were able to accomplish so much in each of these areas. A few of this year’s accomplishments include:
Undertaking new and innovative methods to expand our membership, resulting in a 2.1% growth in our community over the past year;
providing better resources and user experience for members by enhancing the ILEA headquarters and chapter websites with updated content, improved navigation, and ensuring accessibility;
and working with our international chapter leaders to make our presence stronger through our three US Regions (Eastern, Midwest and Western), and by renewing our affiliate agreement with ILEA Canada and introducing new agreements with Asia and Nigeria through 2027.
Our international committees have been essential to our success. They have worked alongside one another – and with our strategic partners to engage new benefits, educational and networking opportunities, and programming for our global audience. We also know that our community thrives when we can get together in a shared experience, so we were thrilled to host three successful in-person member meetups at Catersource + The Special Event in Austin, during the ADMEI Annual Conference in Atlanta, and most recently at IMEX Frankfurt. These meetups allowed our members to connect, socialize, and to nurture existing relationships and create new connections.
So as our fiscal year ends, I want to say thank you. Thank you to our membership and volunteer leaders for your continued support of this wonderful community. Your amazing work continues to help us move the association forward through your dedication, innovation, creativity, and collaboration. It has been a privilege to serve as your international president and lead such an engaged and dynamic group of people.
Together, we have achieved remarkable milestones and set the stage for an even brighter future. Here’s to the accomplishments we’ve shared and the exciting undertakings that await us in the coming year. I look forward to continuing to support the ILEA international leadership, and in particular our incoming president, Melissa Jurcan, CSEP as she continues to chart ILEA’s future path. I hope that you will join me in supporting Melissa at ILEA’s upcoming I-24 Conference in Seattle (August 12-14, 2024) and hearing her vision firsthand. I am proud of the progress we made during the year, and I have no doubt that our efforts will only accelerate in the coming year.
Best Regards,
Gwendolyn McNutt, CSEP
President, International Live Events Association
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