Hope your personal summer season went well and your fall business season has started successfully. For me and Parksite, I’ve always loved this time of year. Our business, though seasonal, is usually quite strong and we are sprinting to an exciting finish. Planning meetings for the coming year are in full swing, supplier sessions, trade associations and conferences bring an air of excitement thinking about growth strategies and developing our company and associates.
NAW is no different, Board of Directors meetings, business roundtables for members and the NAW Institute just to name a few activities for them and connected members. I hope you’ve had the opportunity to attend and get involved…great ideas for growing companies. It’s why you are a member! I’d encourage you to get active in YOUR association!
During the last few months, NAW has done amazing work with political and regulatory activities. Are you current with all of them? As members, it’s a benefit we receive that is sometime overlooked. We always think of the NAW Executive Summit, Billion Dollar Company and Large Company Business Roundtables, publications like Facing the Forces of Change, educational programs at Texas A&M University and Ohio State University, but a significant piece of NAW’s value proposition is what they do when “no one is watching”!
Dirk, Jade and the entire NAW staff are committed to our success and provide the voice in Washington on issues that affect our business in the short and long term. Quarterly they post on the website Legislative Issue Briefs and NAW Advisories of all the activities, while also sending emails on up-to-the-minute breaking news activities and changes on the regulatory and political events.
Parksite and I find great value in these efforts, as should all members of NAW. Each of our companies have different things that affect us in many ways. A few issues that we at Parksite pay particular attention to are:
- As an ESOP, equitable treatment for pass-throughs
- Organized labor’s effort to pass legislation removing the secret ballot from union certification elections
- Cadillac Tax
- Procurement through Commercial e-commerce portals
- Transportation and Infrastructure including modifications of existing hours of service rules
- All the meetings with members of the House and Senate communicating the message for us
What are you concerned about at your business? When you get a moment, check out what NAW does for you on their website and informative emails! I do and it’s invaluable.
I’ve enjoyed serving as your NAW Chairman this year. Have a strong finish to 2019, best wishes for a safe Holiday season, and we hope to see all of you at the NAW Executive Summit in Washington, DC, January 28–30, 2020!
All the best.
