Letter from the President - December 2016
MY FAREWELL
This will be my final letter to you as your AUGI president. It is time for me to concentrate on other endeavors and seek out brave new worlds (I couldn’t resist).
I am leaving the role of president in the capable hands of Kate Morrical. I feel that her experience as a former Autodesk employee and skilled presenter are going to be extremely valuable to the organization in the years ahead. Please join me in welcoming her to this new role. But enough about her, this is my swan song! ;-) I hope that my letters have inspired you and opened your horizons. It has been a pleasure to cover topics about which I am passionate.
I see three primary themes when I look back over my previous letters.
• Training
• Conferences
• Collaboration
Training is the foundation for success. Yes, there are other factors, but success rarely happens when someone is given an unfamiliar task with no training. A well-educated person, or someone with innate talents, might be able to tackle an unfamiliar task and succeed. Yet I’m sure that they would have appreciated training in that task instead of starting with none. If you are in a position where you work with new people, then provide them with the training they need to be successful. If you are starting at a new company or taking on a new role or task, don’t tolerate a lack of training.
Conferences are a great way to get some additional education. But I think they are even more important as networking opportunities and inspirational sources. Attend at least one conference each year. It is even better to attend different conferences for fresh perspectives and new faces. Seek out conversations with people you don’t know. You might be amazed at what you learn from them. Don’t just find people who are like-minded—get to know someone with an opposing viewpoint. Reach out to people in other trades that touch on your own. This will help you understand how the things you do and the decisions you make will affect them.
Collaboration is becoming ever more important in our industries. We should not be afraid to pick up the phone or send a message to someone in another company about issues on a common project. Too many decisions are still made in a vacuum. What seems to make sense in a single office may have negative implications beyond the office. A lack of real collaboration (not just treating the word as a marketing bullet item) will cause problems in today’s working environment. Don’t let the sins of the industry’s past affect its future.
