I
take this opportunity to wish everyone a pleasant spring season
during this difficult and trying economy. It is often easier said
than done to wish that everyone’s challenges are met with success as
we continue to try and overcome the tremendous pressures in our
current business environment. There are many aspects that we don’t
know about the causes, but surely are feeling the effect.
During these times, there is an opportunity
to look around our daily routines and ask a few of the self
searching questions: “Am I doing what I was meant to do for a
living?” “Is there any room to develop myself for both my present
occupation and also to position for future opportunities?” and of
course, the one question that we all ask ourselves from time to time
– “Is what I am doing making a difference in the world?”
Philosophy has always been a fascination to
me and the reason is that there is nothing exact about it. You can
ask one question and depending on your situation, you may have
different answers to the same question at certain junctions in your
life. The mysteries are really summed up in the lack of control we
have in work situations. We can only command the way we react and
then how we plan for the next challenge that arises. We stay focused
by being prepared for anything – and in today’s very confusing
workplace environment – our preparation is vital not only to
survival, but the aftermath of a job or occupational change.
The MSMA has offered many mail related
activities through the years, and when the times provide many fast
paced challenges, we look for something out of the ordinary to in
some ways distract us from our stress related functions. In this
spirit, we are looking to retool our sights on remaining calendar
events.
During our planning for 2009 events, we had
reached out to many of you for site tours and items of interest to
provide a broader view of others’ approach to the industry. The
events did not pan out due to continued pressure on schedules,
resources to conduct tours, and last the climbing costs of
sponsoring events. We will be reaching out to some members who are
vendors to assist us in directing us to functions that can provide
the proper balance of value and also networking and learning
opportunities.
We are honored to be announcing a very
unique and value filled event for May 27th with a
breakfast “meet and greet” session and then a tour of the FedCap
facilities in mid-town Manhattan. Our tour will include seeing
“first-hand” the training and operations centers that FedCap houses
in the areas of Mail Center, Document Imaging and Fulfillment
Project operations. To those who are not familiar with FedCap, we
will place the link on our website and assure you that your time
will be well spent at this function.
In our challenging times, it is imperative
that we view all available resources that can assist our ability to
operate as budgets decrease and there is more pressure to employ new
and creative practices. FedCap will demonstrate a resource that you
will want to be considering in your plans.
Last, to those who have been long term
members of the MSMA, we will be working on renewing your memberships
in the next quarter and providing a more active and interactive
experience at
www.msmany.org. Our approach to the industry during the changing
environment will be to look to more accessible means to communicate,
and also provide some resource links to assist those who cannot
attend.
Please accept the Board’s most sincere wishes for a good year
and also our vow to press forward to assist our members in
navigating the turbulent waters of our industry and providing a
successful resource in moving forward.
Sincerely,
Joe Freeman
Joe Freeman – President GNY MSMA
