By Jay Vance, CMT
Director, District 1
AHDI National Leadership Board

It is with a mixture of profound humility and great excitement that I officially step into the role of District 1 Director on the National Leadership Board of AHDI as of September 1, 2011. Again I want to thank all the members in District 1 for allowing me the privilege of representing you at the national level, and I’m going to do my very best to conduct myself in a manner that is worthy of your trust. There’s no question that we have a lot of work to do, but I have every confidence that the members of the NLB, our new CEO, and the hard-working AHDI staff will be able to work cooperatively with our component leaders and the membership at large to accomplish great things in the coming months and years.

I’m still savoring the sights and sounds of ACE 2011 at the gorgeous JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort in Phoenix. If you weren’t able to attend and haven’t seen my blog posts from the conference, I hope you’ll check them out at the AHDI Lounge. There’s also a wonderful photo gallery of images of the resort taken by Christine Tyrrell, of Tyrrell Software, Winner of the Technology Innovation Award. For me the entire conference experience was extremely rewarding and worthwhile, especially from a networking perspective, as I had multiple opportunities to sit down and chat with attendees from District 1 throughout the week. Although the tone of many of the sessions was cautionary in light of the uncertain future our profession faces, I came away with a renewed sense of optimism about what lies before us. I highly encourage everyone who possibly can to start planning and saving for ACE 2012 in Indianopolis, as I’m confident you’ll find the experience both fun and rewarding, both personally and professionally.

Of course, after the conference is over, the real work begins, and I’m ready to roll up my sleeves on behalf of District 1 and our association as a whole. I’ll be participating in regular NLB meetings at least monthly as we tackle some tough issues, including our financial concerns, the need to put our Strategic Initiatives into action, and the future of our relationship with CDIA, just to name a few. I’m also eager to visit as many venues within District 1 as possible during the coming year. It’s my goal to work with the local, state and regional components within District 1 to find ways for me to get out and meet as many of our members as I can. I also intend to hold frequent online webinar meetings where District 1 members and I can hang out and talk about what’s on our minds and stay abreast of what’s happening in the association and the industry on a national level. Also as part of my commitment to being accessible to the members of District 1, please note the email address and phone number I’ve provided below, and don’t hesitate to contact me by either method at any time. I also welcome your friend requests on Facebook.

Finally, I want to let you know about a new resource that’s available on the AHDI website. Each of the district directors now have dedicated web pages to be used to stay in touch with their members, and the District 1 page can be found at http://www.ahdionline.org/tabid/633/Default.aspx. While still a work in progress, our district web page already offers a great deal of useful information and links to other relevant sites. I hope you’ll make a habit of dropping in from time to time to stay up to date on what’s happening in our district. You can also check out the other district web pages and clicking on any of the other districts on the map.

Have a great September, and hope to see you–virtually or in person–very soon!

Jay Vance, CMT

Director, District 1

AHDI National Leadership Board

928-275-1535