
Three
Priorities
Set
for 2007-2008
by James D. Morinec, PE
President of ACEC of Tennessee
July 1 marks the start of the new term of office for the 2007-08
Officers, Board of Directors and Committee Chairs. As the new
President, I want to thank all those who served last year, in
particular Past President Bill Johnson.
ACEC of TN promotes the interests of engineering companies
through education, legislative oversight, lobbying and partnering
with major government agencies. To provide focus for the coming
year, the new board held a planning retreat in April. After much
discussion, it was agreed our efforts in the coming year should
stress
1) energizing the local chapters;
2) developing programs to help member firms recruit, hire,
retain and develop professionals for our industry; and
3) being more effective at proactively influencing legislation.
The local chapters have historically operated independently while
sharing the same goal to help promote the business of engineering in
Tennessee. By developing a consistent agenda, we hope to increase
program attendance and services provided.
The lifeblood of our industry is an adequate supply of qualified
engineers to allow our businesses to grow and expand services
offered. I recently heard that of all the engineers and scientists
that have ever lived, 80 % are alive today. That population is
aging and the difficulty firms are having nationwide to find
qualified staff is an indication we need to do more to attract
students to engineering and to help them get a quality education.
People entering the profession today have different values and
expectations than those of 20 to 30 years ago. We need to
understand and embrace these differences to assure we will be able
to serve our clients in the future.
ACEC of TN has been growing its influence to represent the
interests of engineering companies in Tennessee for several years.
By educating our member firms on issues that can affect the industry
and providing tools to help them become more involved in the
legislative process, we can be more effective at proactively
influencing legislation beneficial to the industry.
The next year will be full of many challenges. By accomplishing
positive changes in these three areas, I expect it will also be a
successful year.