INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS
New England Chapter

Memo from the President

A New Year, A Fresh Perspective
January 2006 Letter from the President

Happy New Year! I hope 2005 was a fabulous year for you both personally and professionally and may 2006 outshine it. Here at IMCNE great things are what you can count on in 2006! We are focused on:

• Helping consultants grow their practices by integrating their needs into everything we do
• Providing professional development programs with excellent learning content
• Expanding our diverse network of experienced and professional consultants
• Offering unprecedented value to our members

I have had the pleasure to work with a highly responsive board of directors and numbers of volunteers who are proud of our 2006 roll-out which includes:

More Opportunities to Understand Your Wants and Needs

We have made getting your feedback on what you value most a priority. Since summer we have conducted six fast feedback surveys. This month for instance we are conducting a fast feedback survey to identify the Professional Emphasis Groups, groups formed for business development purposes, most in demand. We solicited your feedback on the evening programs you attended last fall. Each survey takes all of 2 to 3 minutes and may be done conveniently on-line. Your input makes a difference. Please keep the information flowing so that we may identify patterns and trends over time and let the insight serve as a basis for future IMCNE offerings.

Provocative Programs

The Programs Committee has been busy orchestrating a superb line up for 2006. We started the year with the insightful Derek Smith of Kennedy Information who shared the latest research on Management and IT consulting trends, industry growth prospects, pay rates of consultants and other interesting facts of which we should all be aware. Learn to draw media attention so clients recognize you as the expert through the engaging Fern Reiss of Expertizing.com in February. Our March program, with dynamic panelists Jack Derby of Derby Management and Nick Miller of Clarify Advantage, will share the do’s and don’ts of highly successful consultants. April’s Consultants Conference with Alan Weiss as our keynote speaker is an event not to be missed. Don’t worry; you will be hearing a lot more about this soon.

For a complete list of 2006 programs and the IMCNE Value Statement download this pdf file:
IMCNE_Value_WProgram06.pdf (92k)

A Growing Network of Diverse Professional Consultants

As you know from my fall message, building lasting relationships is a core value of IMCNE. Why? Because lasting relationships fosters personal learning and business development. That is why we integrate networking into all of our events. We want to make it easy for you to connect with your peers. Whether your goal is to establish new contacts, rekindle old ones, or contribute in valuable ways by volunteering for a committee, don’t miss out on the many opportunities to expand your personal network.

This year we will proactively grow the numbers of diverse professional consultants you network with. Thus we have embarked on a membership outreach campaign and are committed to forming strategic partnerships with other dynamic associations. We initiated 2 new strategic partnerships, with the WPI Venture Forum and the Merrimack Valley Venture Forum, thus raising the total number of strategic partners to 9. There is no doubt your input yields results, so please stay tuned on how you can help us help you in expanding your network.

Unprecedented Value to Members

Value to the members of IMCNE continues to grow and currently includes:

• Professional Development Programs: attend 30 IMCNE programs annually at a discount .
• People: opportunity to network and develop relationships with experienced and diverse members and guests for learning and building alliances.
• ProFile: searchable database of IMCNE consultants. Sort by expertise, client target or locale. (roll-out is imminent)
• Publications: Weekly Update on upcoming local events, News & Views a regular enewsletter with the latest information on consulting in New England, Consulting to Management®* a national journal that caters to the consulting profession.
• Participation: in the largest national consulting association (www.imcusa.org) with international affiliates* that sets the bar high with its rigorous Code of Ethics.
• Prestige: by earning the only internationally recognized consulting certification - Certified Management Consultant* (CMC).
• Preferred Pricing: discounts on products and services such as D&O and O&E insurance and overnight courier services*.

*National member benefit

I am proud to be part of a great group of folks at IMCNE who are committed to creating more and better value for members and the New England consulting community. This brief update simply highlights 2006 initiatives and is not all inclusive. Like any organization IMCNE will grow and evolve as its members wants and needs change. We will continue to solicit your input, experiment with new ideas, refine existing ones and suspend those no longer in high demand. I encourage you to keep the ideas flowing and become part of the vibrant IMCNE community. Getting actively involved is rewarding, provides great visibility, and benefits you and your peers.

Happy New Year!

Sincerely,

Carol Bergeron
IMCNE President