11 September 2019
’’And now, the end is near’’…………….
So, this is my final column as president of the IACDS and it’s been an amazing four years that I have thoroughly enjoyed. I am proud of what we have achieved and look forward to working on the board as a past president.
We will have a very strong and safe pair of hands in Michael as he has been a great pushing force and been with me on the hard but enjoyable journey - I have taught him all I know – BUT don’t tell him that!
As all of you already know, I am a big believer in this industry and I am a passionate advocate of this association. The past four years have made that even stronger.
When I took on the role, I wanted to inject my own personality into the IACDS. In my very first column, I referenced the role my dad played in the association so I had both personal and professional reasons for wanting to make a success of being president.
We had strong foundations to build on but we have used the past four years to really cut and carve (excuse the pun!!) ourselves an identity.
It was important to me – and to all of us – that we attracted more associations and companies from around the world to join us. Some, maybe, hadn’t really understood the benefits of being part of this global network and it was our job to show them why it was worth giving up their time to get involved.
I believe the industry has evolved to the point where companies will not give up their hard earned money and time unless they can see very real and tangible benefits to their business. That’s something that has changed even more rapidly in recent years.
So we had to ensure that we used this association to the benefit of all of those organisations worldwide, for proper networking, more visibility and to learn from one another.
If we work as one, we don’t need to reinvent the wheel. One country might face an issue which gets solved and then another country might face it a couple of years down the line. Rather than starting again and coming up with a solution, we can follow what has already been done to save time and money.
We have drafted in new blood and we have grown our reach into new territories. We have brought more contractors and suppliers together. We have seen a dramatic rise in the number of entries for the Diamond Awards – with more companies from more countries showcasing their amazing work from all over the world.
One matter that has been talked about at length is a global accreditation to align standards and to help those nations that don’t have the same guidelines for construction that many others do.
We are not there yet as this will be a long, long term project but we have made dramatic progress with many issues and we know what & for what, we stand for in the industry over the past four years, which is something I am extremely pleased to have pushed and been part of.
I have achieved what I set out to achieve in seeing numbers grow and a renewed energy and vigour about the association.
As I said at the top, I will be staying on the board to support the new president. So unlike the UK in Europe, I will be remaining and will be only too happy to serve our new German president!
Seriously, Michael has been a big help to me over the past few years – like so many of you have America and Worldwide – and it’s been a real team effort to move the IACDS forward in the way we have.
I will be pleased and proud to support the board & the CSDA with my continued effort to keep moving forward and I am sure you would all agree that during my time as president of this fantastic international association………..’’ I did it My Way’’……….…
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