Message from National BDPA President

Greetings BDPA Family!

It’s been a few months since my last report to you. We are halfway through the 2014 BDPA year and the leadership team has been busy at work. I wanted to stop and share with you a few highlights of what has been happening thus far. The following are a list of initiatives, requests and accomplishments that the team is very proud of. We are continuously moving forward and the organization is already showing favor based on these items.

1. The leadership team has been asked to review and update all of the Standard Operating Procedures of the organization. This is important because most of these documents have not been updated since 2005. This means that the organization has been operating following the same procedures for almost 10 years! By updating these procedures, we can incorporate more efficient ways of providing better services to our local chapter leadership and membership.
   
   
2. The decision has been made to reorganize the National Office. The objectives of this reorganization is to identify areas where improvements can be made to accomplish the following:
   
   • Better support a Volunteer Leadership Team
   • Generate data that can be used long term to maintain quality control
   • Improve efficiency of day-to-day operations
   • Improve overall customer service (internally and externally)
   • Lower costs wherever possible
   
   
3. The CIO has been reviewing the organization’s technological needs and looking for solutions to balance workloads and increase productivity/efficiency. The following solutions have been implemented and are being rolled out for utilization:
   
   
   • Bizzabo Event Mobile Application (www.bizzabo.com) – This technology will make BDPA events and networking even better than before. It offers a wide range of configurable components that will help to captivate, motivate and inspire BDPA conference attendees like never before when it is launched at the 2014 National Conference! The following are a few benefits that will be available:
   • Conference agenda will be at the participant’s fingertips throughout the conference.
   • Conference attendees will be able to network and interact with each other through the app (shared feedback) and via social media.
   • Conference attendees will have access to venue maps and location finders at all times.
   • Conference speaker profiles will be available for review 24x7.
   • Smart Sheets (www.smartsheet.com) – This is a collaboration tool that will assist the leadership team with improving its management responsibilities.
   
   
4. During this year’s national conference, in addition to the High School Computer Competition (HSCC) program that showcases the talents of our students so successfully, students will have the opportunity to compete in a Mobile App Showcase sponsored by State Farm. This year’s showcase will act as a pilot and will be conducted with a small group of students. The results will help the leadership team determine the best way to implement the program full-scale during future conferences.
   
   
5. The leadership team is working towards building strategic partnerships with other organizations to help strengthen the BDPA programs and member services, bringing a stronger value proposition to its members. Partnerships with the following organizations are being considered:
   • BEYA
   • CODE2040
   • HBCU Career Development Marketplace
   • ITSMF
   • MainStreet Inclusion Advisors
   • NSBE
   • PEM
   • TechGirlz
   
   
6. The leadership team is looking for ways to increase the awareness of BDPA member services, attacking the 'best kept secret' scenario that has existed for many, many years. The team is looking into ways to:
   
   • Increase collaboration with similar organizations (Strategic Partnerships)
   • Increase use of social media
   • Re-brand the organization (coming /soon)
   • Improve the BDPA Website
   
   
7. The leadership team has developed and implemented a new BDPA Social Media Strategy and Policy that is currently available for chapters to implement locally. It was created to increase the organization’s social media presence and promote its messages. Analytics already show that interest in BDPA has increased.

RECRUITMENT of volunteers has been the key to success within BDPA. As a team, recruiting volunteers with the skill sets needed to keep progress going has made all the difference. Stay tuned for more information on how to recruit for success within BDPA! I am writing a series of documents that will show you how this can work on the chapter level.

We all have a responsibility to increase awareness of the BDPA Brand. The benefits are wide spread. We can vastly improve the BDPA member value proposition through improved services, stronger programs and collaborative initiatives.

Please visit the BDPA website (www.bdpa.org) and meet the National Leadership Team. Thanks for your support and it continues to be a pleasure to serve as your National President!

Sincerely,
Craig Brown, PhD, President
National BDPA