Message from the President
Serving Members Remotely
It's a Catch 22. The Consulting Alliance is an organization of some of the region's most successful consultants. If you are busy serving clients you may not have time to attend many of our meetings. We've been spending a lot of time talking about this paradox to determine how to be a vital resource
for professional development and business relationship development even for members who cannot participate frequently. Here are some of the ways you can take advantage of your Alliance membership remotely.
This Newsletter. Once a month our newsletter editor allows us to share all of the key information in one place. Be sure to submit your news and to read it in its entirety!
Remote Meeting Access. For the last six months we have been providing on-line access to our Member Only meetings. Watch your email inbox for our final call for registration e-mail blast, which contains instructions for logging in to Go-To-Meeting.
Pod Casts. We are exploring the possibility of recording pod casts of particularly pertinent topics.
On Line Discussions. We are ramping up the activity you will see in our private and public discussion environments. Private discussions for members only will take place on the Member Forum on our web site. These discussions will include sharing business prospects and leads, so be sure you are subscribed. If you are not receiving e-mail notifications about Member Forum discussions log into the Members Only area on www.consultingalliance.org, go to Member Forum and click to subscribe. Be sure to post as well!
We also want to create an environment for outsiders to see the depth and breadth of skills we have at the Alliance. For public discussions we will use our LinkedIn group. You need to subscribe to participate. We are setting up a number of topics related to our members practice areas as well as pertinent topics that may draw the interest of prospective members and clients. For example, if you submit an article about your business in the newsletter, you should also post it on our LinkedIn group to give it increased visibility. You should also suggest that influential outsiders subscribe to the group.
To suggest other ways we can serve our members remotely please contact Nancy Schultz. Also, keep in mind your remote participation will be even more effective if you attend as frequently as you can to get to know other members personally.
Upcoming Programs
May Luncheon: Turning Life Into a Business
Friday, May 11th, 11:30 am to 1:30 pm
Wolferts Roost Country Club, Albany
Click here to register
Julie DeFruscio, Entrepreneur and Co-Owner of Pump Wear, Inc., will share her personal story of creating a successful business out of a family health crisis, building the business through social media and sustaining the business by giving back to the community.
Member Presentations & News
Steve Egna, CBA, ABAR, CM&AA, Director of Business Advisory Services at Teal, Becker & Chiaramonte, CPAs, P.C. presented at the American Business Appraisers (ABA) annual conference in Seattle, Washington on May 4, 2012. His presentation titled “Is the Price Right?,” is a discussion of the methods used to ensure that the estimated value of your business is reasonable.
Consulting Alliance member
Lauren Payne, Principal/Co-founder of Spiral Design Studio, is being honored as an Albany-Colonie Chamber of Commerce Woman of Excellence for 2012 in the Excellence in Business category. The chamber selects the honorees based on their professional success and dedication to community service. The winners will be honored at the
annual luncheon June 13. We congratulate Lauren on this impressive honor.
Joan Heffler Photography -- Pictures with Personality! was chosen by Wellpoint, the largest managed health care company in the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, as their Upstate, NY photographer for National Community Service Day. This is the fourth consecutive year Joan will be photographing for the national company. Joan has also been hired by the International clothing manufacturer, Carhartt, to photograph their grand opening in Crossgates Mall, and by Maria College for all their strategic marketing photography as they transition to a new school president.
Pauline Bartel of Bartel Communications, Inc. will teach two of her popular adult education courses at Hudson Valley Community College’s new TEC-Smart Center in Malta in June 2012. “Writing Fiction For Kids” is a three-session course (June 13, 20 & 27, 2012) for those interested in writing short stories, picture books and novels for kids. “Frankly, My Dear: The Reel Story Behind Gone With the Wind” is a one-session course (June 21, 2012) that explores Gone With the Wind’s intriguing history, including the endless trouble and months of behind-the-scenes turmoil that almost doomed the film to not being made at all. Find course descriptions and registration information
here.
Dr. Tom Denham of Careers in Transition recently had an Internet radio show on W4CRADIO.com on “Key Issues in Career Development.” His January webinar on CareerCenterToolBox.com was entitled, “Work/Life Balance: Screw You I’m Going Home.” Since January, he has been doing a weekly series of shows on WHAZ 97.3FM on such topics as “Dr. Tom’s Career Tips A-Z,” “How to Choose a College Major,” “Office Etiquette,” “Money or Meaning" and "Employers' Worst Fears." His latest WAMC Northeast Public Radio show explored the topic, “Never Ever Lie On Your Resume.” He also appeared on BlogTalkRadio.com with Robert Braathe on the subject “Capital District Profiles,” and was quoted in the Examiner.com.
Dr. Tom Denham of Careers in Transition is still seeking contributors for his July>charity climb of the infamous Devils Tower, a 5,112 foot volcanic rock summit in the Black Hills of Wyoming. His goal is to raise $3,000 to benefit the Alport Syndrome Foundation, which is seeking cures for Alport Syndrome, a very rare and progressive kidney disease that can impact hearing and eye loss and eventually result in kidney failure in teenagers and early adults. Tom's daughter has the disease and he would be grateful for your tax deductible donation in any amount.
To make a donation, please go to the description of Tom's climb at the bottom of this page: it links to the donation form.
Passings
We were very sorry to learn of the passing of Ruth Walters’ father, Roy W. Walters Jr., in Sarasota, FL, on April 11.
On Sunday April 15 member Debra Howard lost her father, Dr. Robert K. Heineman Jr. of Delmar, to pancreatic cancer. Dr. Heineman was a well known orthopedic surgeon in the area.
We extend our sincere sympathy to Ruth, Debra and their families.
Committee News
Your Profile Keywords
Thanks to everyone who cleaned up their member profiles on the Consulting Alliance web site and posted their portraits. On the 'Find A Consultant' menu item people can locate a specific specialty by entering a search word. If the word is used anywhere in a member's profile summary their profile summary will appear on the response list. The other day I searched on the words 'information technology' and guess what? There were no results even though we have half a dozen members who work in that area. Please go to the web site and search for your practice by the search words you think your prospects may use. If you are not appearing, add those words to your profile summary to make sure you can be found.
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Program Committee Seeks Suggestions for Members-Only Topics!
The Program Committee is looking for your input. Our monthly "Members Only Meeting" provides presentations that help develop your ability to grow your consulting practice. We want to know what topics you would like presented later this year and suggestions for speakers to address those topics. Upcoming programs are designed to help you grow your business. We welcome your thoughts and ideas. Please email today!
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Please Share Contacts from Organizations that Seek Speakers
Many of our members have listed topics they can speak about on the Consulting Alliance 'Find A Speaker' page. We intend to promote this list to organizations potentially seeking speakers. So far we have listed program chairs within a 2-hour driving distance from Albany for:
- ASQ - The American Society for Quality
- APICS - The Society for Resource Management
- ASTD - American Society for Training & Development
- SHRM - The Society for Human Resource Management
Speakers, if you want to help promote yourselves, please send the e-mail addresses for more contacts to Nancy Reilly! Even if you have chosen not to list yourself on the 'Find A Speaker' page, please help your fellow consultants by providing Nancy Reilly with more e-mail contacts!
Albany Visitors & Convention Bureau Sales Meetings
The next monthly Director of Sales Meetings of the Albany Visitors and Convention Bureau will be held on June 12th at Albany County CVB, and July 10th at Courtyard by Marriott. Networking 11:30 am and session until about 1:00 pm. There is no charge to attend this luncheon, but we are limited to a maximum of three CA members on a first come first serve basis. Please email Alan Krieger’s Office Manager, Pam Fenoff if you're interested and she'll send you further details.
Claim Your 7 Minutes of Fame
If you did not receive an e-mail message about this topic from the Consulting Alliance, log into the CA Members Only area and select Member Forum>Subscribe. I and others will be posting more business related Forum>topics here in the future. As consultants, we all appreciate the opportunity to answer the question, “What do you do?” At most Consulting Alliance breakfasts, one member has the privilege of responding to this question in front of everyone else. Known as our “Member Spotlight,” this opportunity is one of the greatest privileges of membership in the Alliance. If you haven’t ever done a Spotlight, or did one a long time ago, you are eligible to sign up. If your schedule is too volatile to commit to a future date, join the wait list. Cancellations are inevitable. Contact Susanna Opper to claim your spot.
Submit Your News for the June Newsletter
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: May 20
SUBMIT VIA EMAIL TO: Newsletter Editor
- Works in Progress - consulting assignments, especially collaborations with other Consulting Alliance members
- Committee Updates - from committee chairs
- Member News - awards, designations, trainings, professional and personal accomplishments
- Shared Resources - information, reviews, resources, workshops, or specials offered by members to other members
- Member Publication - announcements of books, articles, or other publication credits
- Member Presentations - news about upcoming presentations and workshops by members