Happy Holidays to Everyone!

Even though it’s the holiday season, the Chapter’s Executive Board is still hard at work planning valuable educational and networking activities for our membership. After putting together a fabulous 25th Anniversary Gala, Gretchen McGinn is hard at work again planning a special holiday networking event for December 18. I hope to see you there.

Michael Galliani, co-chair of the Education Committee and a team of our CFM’s (Erika Westgard Reilly, Jerry DiCola, Dave King, Pat Moonier, Wade Arnston and Mark Kischner) are busy creating the curriculum for the Northern Illinois University Facility Management Seminar Series and Certified Facility Manager Exam Review. This one-of-a-kind program is being designed for a broad range of students including entry level professionals, working fm’s who are seeking to learn more about the functional areas of facility management and those seeking to further their career by sitting for the CFM exam. IFMA’s recently published Profiles 2007 Salary Report indicates that individuals with the CFM designation earn 14% more than their non-CFM counterparts. Are you ready to take the next step in your professional development? The program will begin in March 2008 at the Naperville Campus of NIU.

The Community Service Committee has been organizing our participation in the Kohl’s Step up for Kids stair climb at the Aon Center. If your New Years resolutions include a healthier lifestyle and giving back, this event is a perfect way to get started.
The Membership Committee is getting ready to kick-off their new campaign, entitled “Cultivate FM Connections”. The member who recruits the most new members before our Annual Meeting in July will be eligible for a yet-to-be-announced grand prize.

Finally, our Chapter Administrator, Linda Failing, has been researching online registration systems. We hope to launch this capability early in 2008 to allow our members to register for chapter events online and pay with a credit card.
As all of our plans evolve we will, as always, keep you informed. Everything we do is intended to support you - you ARE the Chicago Chapter of IFMA.

I sincerely wish all our members a healthy, happy and prosperous New Year!

			President