Dear Industry Colleagues,
Coming off two consecutive years of net membership growth, a milestone not previously reached in decades, the number of firms joining ASA continues to grow at a rapid pace for a third year in a row and the trend shows no signs of slowing down.
Continued tremendous financial health, improved program and service offerings connecting all levels of the PHCP and PVF industry, extremely capable association leadership, and a robust industry outlook are just a few of the reasons for this continued upward trend.
Why become an ASA member? As I mentioned in last month’s letter, personal relationships formed through an ASA membership, beginning at the Young Executives Division level, are invaluable. Many of these relationships not only last throughout a career in our industry, but also for a lifetime. A return on an ASA membership investment cannot be calculated. The various networking opportunities provided by ASA — which represents $14.5 billion in annual distributor sales — are key contributors in allowing those relationships to flourish. This includes the annual NetworkASA event (to be held this year Sept. 9-11 in Las Vegas).
Another great reason to be a member is the programs and services offered through the ASA Education Foundation and ASA University. Program offerings are as solid as they’ve been in years. Within the last year, ASA University completely rolled out its five colleges, each with a very thorough curriculum and behavioral performance measures. The five colleges, offered through both online and traditional means, include: the College of Leadership (targeted toward branch managers), College of Sales, College of Warehouse Operations, College of Purchasing and College of General Business.
Perhaps the most exciting offering currently available through the ASA Education Foundation is the ASAU Advisory Service, a program where staff meets directly with members and their key employees to implement company-wide personalized training programs. The Advisory Service has taken off over the last several months and continues to receive great feedback.
ASA’s industry-leading advocacy efforts on topics such as marketplace fairness, water efficiency, regulatory reform and tax reform, and regular business intelligence reports such as the ASA Advisor forecasting update and the Monthly Pulse Report round out just a few of the top reasons to be an ASA member. These items alone are worth the cost of an annual dues investment.
Long story short, if you are not currently an ASA member, there is no better time to join than now. You owe it to your firm to see why the industry is buzzing about the “new ASA.” Visit www.asa.net/Membership or contact Chris Murin at cmurin@asa.net or 630/467-0000, ext. 204 for more details.
In closing, I would like to personally congratulate the ASA members listed among the Premier 150 PHCP wholesaler-distributors featured in this issue of Supply House Times. As evidenced in the information on those pages, our association and industry’s “strength in numbers” is quite evident. I look forward to being a part of this continued growth for a long time to come.
