It is hard to believe that the year is more than half over. This feeling is, in part, due to the intensity of holding January’s European Meeting, which was quickly followed by May’s Annual Meeting. As you also know, we are busy preparing for the upcoming Asia Pacific Meeting on September 5, in Tokyo. This is in addition to many other exciting projects underway that consume both staff and volunteers’ time.
In this Message from Our Leadership, however, I want to share with you some of the work underway by the ISMPP Board of Trustees, which will help to drive our Society’s path forward. The Board recently held a two-day in-person meeting in New Jersey. The first day was dedicated to looking at our strategic imperatives and direction, in addition to assessing the status of our “Future Vision: 2020 Project.” All 10 Board members were in attendance, and key agenda topics included:
- Update on the status of our “Future Vision: 2020 Project”
- Review of the Society’s five key strategic imperatives
- Validation of several scenarios exploring the future direction for the Society
- Input into the current vision, mission, and SWOT analysis
- Board presentations providing insights into trends and likely future events that will impact our profession and the wider industry
- A presentation on the Open Pharma project
There was agreement that a Strategic Workgroup will convene offline and incorporate the Board’s feedback into a longer-term vision plan with specific recommendations.
The second day was dedicated to a series of updates by ISMPP staff and select Board members on issues ranging from Membership, Sponsorship, Financial, Asia Pacific, European and Annual Meeting planning, Communications, and the Certified Medical Publication Professional™ (CMPP™) program. The purpose of these updates was not only to update the Board on the status of the Society’s activities, but to engage them in providing input into areas of improvement or new opportunities.
I believe it is important to let you know that these two days were very intense, and every individual on the Board demonstrated a strong conviction about where we need to go as an organization and how else we might realize success in our mission.
In closing, I want to emphasize that we have a bright future ahead and much important work to do. In addition to the Board of Trustees, there are many people who put effort into progressing the Society. I want to thank you for serving as volunteers, and remind you that ISMPP is your organization. We need your involvement in order for the Society to grow and remain successful.
If you have any questions I can answer or concerns to raise, please call or email me.
ISMPP greatly appreciates your membership and support. Thank you!!!
With very best wishes,
Al Weigel, ISMPP President and CEO