Kevin Davis - Fall 2007<span style='color:#fff'> (NP4L)</span>

The Fall 2007 semester began where Spring left off. Coming off a windfall semester with over 70 projects and an increasing number of services, TBP was primed to continue to excel in even more areas. Questions remained,however, as to where to focus our efforts and what exactly was the appropriate level of activity for the chapter. With a summer of planning, an experienced officer corps and a plan to revamp the candidate semester, the Fall 2007 semester was set to continue a renaissance in our chapter that had been brewing for the last few years.

A fun filled TBP summer and a great deal of forum discussion helped to define our goals for the following semester. Our chapter serves many groups of people and upon inspecting where we could improve, we decided to try to focus on improving the candidate semester, adding to the member experience and following our highly successful 100 Years' Anniversary, expanding our connections with alumni. Additionally, in order to continue to strive for ever larger projects, it was necessary to improve our financial stability. Following the ending of our own career fair, we needed to polish the industrial services we already offered and increase their appeal. Lastly, the great expansion of services was taking a toll on the health of the officer corps so we had to look carefully at what the chapter could do and what it should do. Striking a good balance became an important consideration in all projects.

At the end of Spring, a candidate had spoken about the lack of small group interaction within the candidate class. The large number of candidates each semester left something lacking for people wishing to get to know people on a more intimate level. With this in mind, the House system was devised as a means to split the candidate class into smaller groups where candidates could get to know each other on a more personal level. While not without its hiccups, the House System was a marvelous success. Many of the candidates commented that it didn't seem like something new and must have always been a part of the candidate semester. There was a great deal of house loyalty and people really got into it. The problems, few they were, mostly revolved around the types of house events and house challenges. These problems will be easily remedied in the future as we continue to perfect the experience for the candidates. Additionally, the House System offered an excellent opportunity for those officers considering the position of VP by allowing them to interact with and lead a small group of candidates. This opportunity to be House Leader further adds to our ability to train officers in leadership/management and offers a larger number of officers the chance to interact with candidates. The House System may be the most important thing to come out of Fall 2007 in terms of a project that will make a difference for a long time to come and that has fundamentally altered the candidate experience.

Additionally, our great number of projects required a consistent source of income now that our own career fair was no longer being held. Industrial Relations thus became a spot where we had to execute flawlessly to accrue sufficient income. In addition to running 10 infosessions and selling a number of resume books, the sponsorship program was finally enacted and over $4000 in donations were secured in just one semester. The hard work and dedication of Indrel helped to ensure the continued success of our chapter by solidifying our financial foundation. Furthermore, a new and improved resume database was unveiled that allowed companies to get the most updated versions of everyone's resume. Additionally, the Indrel website was set apart from the rest of the website to provide a professional setting for companies to interact with TBP and have their needs specifically met.

In promoting member, alumni and officer participation, several activities were tried. A members meeting was scheduled early in the semester which was met with mixed results and an alumni/member barbeque was planned mid-semester. Both activities failed to truly energize the member or alumni base to further participate in additional events. The main problem with member participation results from a lack of proper welcoming on the part of the officers. A great deal of emphasis is placed on being friendly and welcoming to the candidates however this does not happen for members. This must be emphasized for members to truly feel welcomed and like they are an important part of TBP. Only through a change in the attitude of the officer corps can we expect to improve member participation in the semesters to come. An attempt was made to create an alumni mentoring database however the project lacked proper definition. To better serve the alumni, additional care must be taken to define the Alumni Relations position and find out what the the alumni would find enjoyable. Increased collaboration with the SFBAAC can help to increase alumni turnout and improve events however we failed to fully utilize their connections. The health of the officer corps was also of concern and outside TBP events were planned such as a Halloween party to try and improve officer bonding. By strengthening ties within the officer corps, we can expect improved chapter work to be done in the future. It is important to remember that we are friends first, above all else. This is a family. And no one fucks with my family.

All in all, Fall 2007 continued in a sequence of balla semesters as the officer corps continued to take on challenging and exciting projects. Improvements were made to the candidate semester, the financial base of the chapter was fortified, and a new, excited officer corps is now ready to take the reigns. I look forward to the bright future of TBP as our chapter grows and improves with each passing semester.

Continue to strive for no stationary goal.