Breakout session titles and descriptions: Thursday
Board retreat planning in 7 easy steps
1. Attend this breakout session.
2. Review the fundamentals of retreat planning from A to Z.
3. Discuss with peers how to identify goals and organize sessions.
4. Learn from their successes, and their mistakes.
5. Gain new skills in managing group dynamics, team building and logistics.
6. Share your experiences and ask a ton of questions.
7. Get to work on planning your own board retreat.
Moderators: Amy Gustincic, Mike Joosse, Ron Leland
Events and programs
Are your chapter’s monthly programs innovative and diverse enough to capably reflect the needs of your membership? How do you measure the success of your events? What are the common challenges faced when conducting various events and what can be done to avoid them in the future?
Using these questions as a starting point, we’ll take an in-depth look at what makes successful programming possible, and make it relevant to your chapter’s size and point in its life cycle. Come prepared to share your ideas, success stories, and challenges in this truly collaborative session. Walk away with a fresh perspective, inspiring new ideas to explore, and the know-how to take your chapter’s programs to another level.
It’s time to roll up your sleeves and be prepared to sweat in the Miami heat! There’s no replacement for hard work and dedication when it comes to making an event a success, but this session’s moderators want you to “work smarter, not harder.” (Please come to this session prepared with a basic knowledge of chapter programming, reviewing the programming resource book prior to the session if needed.)
Moderators: Mira Azarm, Scott McClure, Don Savoie
Finance
One of the most difficult-to-manage concerns of a chapter is its finances. In this session, we’ll briefly review the important role of the chapter treasurer and the key issues addressed in the finance resource book. The discussion will also cover best practices, lessons learned and success stories. Bring your chapter’s stories and accomplishments to discuss in this valuable peer-counseling session!
Moderators: Errol Gerson, David Laufer, Jennifer Oliver
Membership: The value of membership/members feel value
How do we best express the benefits of membership to the chapter while addressing the issue of making more personal connections with individuals? A mix of approaches to outreach, volunteer opportunities, creating community and broadening connections will be discussed, using samples from small, medium and large chapter sizes.
Moderators: Vicki Crowley, Michael Jovel, Josh Silverman
Sustainability
Sustainability is a growing concern for many designers. The mission of AIGA’s Center for Sustainable Design (CFSD) is to inspire sustainable business practices in the design profession that reveal the value of sustainable design at every level, from designer to end user to the greater community.
The CFSD always seeks council from chapter leadership. How can we inspire, encourage and support designers as they incorporate sustainable thinking into their professional lives? Attend this session to share your best practices, success, challenges, ask questions and learn how to integrate sustainability at your chapter level and get involved at the national level.
Moderators: Marc Alt, Phil Hamlett
Sponsorship (basic)
A constant challenge for AIGA sponsorship chairs is how to reach outside of the traditional paper and printing sponsors when prospecting local support. This session will explore new sources of local support, as well as how to think outside the box when crafting sponsorship opportunities for local sponsors.
Moderators: Ryan Hirata, Tyrone Gibson