The Early Years: 2009 - Holding Down the Fort
Coming out of 2008 with no elected board member replacements for the outgoing members, AUGI extended the terms of retiring board members until we could hold another round of elections. 2009 promised to be a year of dynamic change, but also a year of stability in the programs that members have come to know and love.
The beer mugs we passed out at AU 2008 were plastic with a “chilling liquid” that might help cool your beverage. The Venetian would not allow us to have glass beer mugs. Transporting them home proved to be a daunting effort for some with stories of airport security refusing to let people carry that much liquid on board. There were also growing reports of the mugs cracking or shattering after they have been frozen and then allowed to thaw at room temperature. We are hoping to return to glass mugs for 2009.
AUGI continued to publish AUGI HotNews with no interruption in services. We continued to have the full stable of writers working to provide the consistent high level articles that members have come to depend upon. We unified the separate issues into one global issue packed with every article for all industries. The AUGI Wish List continued and we sent out a special edition of AUGI HotNews spotlighting the results in May.
AUGIWORLD transitioned to a digital publication in February due to print costs and rising mailing prices. We took the opportunity and improved distribution to more members.
We introduced AUGI AEC Edge mid-year under the watchful eye and hard work of Steve Stafford and Extension Media. The content is focused for those that work in Architecture, Engineering, Civil and Construction industries as they design facilities and the built environment.
AUGI CAD Camp was stopped after the 2008 season. We entered contract negotiations with a provider to develop the spring season of CAD Camp in North America, but it did not pan out. We are listening to member’s requests and hope to have something in place for 2010.
A Special Election was held after AUGI conducted a survey about the Board of Directors election process to gather input so that we could make the proper progress and decisions. The Elections Committee reviewed the input and made recommendations to the Board of Directors on how we should proceed. The Board reduced the Board size to six persons and nominations were opened. The Nomination and Elections committee reviewed the nominations and developed the candidates list for approval by the Board. The Committee gathered nominations, interviewed the nominees, developed a slate of candidates and provided a forum for members to interact with them. The Board reviewed and defined the names of those nominees that were included on the ballot. Elections results provided for two members being elected to complete the terms that would have started in January 2009.
The Board created the AUGI Career Center – A major upgrade and expansion on our Career Corner Forum. Now we have a full feature job board and career center. Post your resume, search jobs, and find employment.
In September, we completed successful negotiations to reintroduce AUGI CAD Camps in 2010. AUGI teamed up with AMI/Burns to create a 28 event season for 2010 in response to AUGI member requests.
Our Social Media use has expanded to Twitter. AUGI has a few accounts… AUGI; AUGIatAU; BLAUGI; AUGIForums and AUGICADCamp. We create a Facebook group and also join in on LinkedIn.
Web Traffic was up 35 percent from 2008 with 11.5 million pageviews in 2009. About 300,000 of those returned to the site over 100 times and two thirds of those returned over 200 times. 27 percent of our visitors return to the site again in the same day.
AUGI ended 2009 stronger than it entered it. We expanded the Board to 10 members with a successful election at the end of the year. We ended on a high note with AU 2009 seeing over 60 percent of the presenters being AUGI members and about 54 percent of the attendees also being AUGI members. And we were able to provide glass beer mugs!
