PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Towering Above the Competition

By Isidora K. Lagos
President, BMA/Chicago

It is hard to believe that the 2007-2008 program year is drawing to a close. We have all enjoyed a hugely successful year, thanks to the participation of the Chicago b-to-b community.

We appreciate everyone’s attendance and active support of the great programs this year. Before everyone disperses for the summer, we have four more terrific events to present. Please mark your calendars now—between May 6 and June 5.

We start with the 25th Annual BMATower Awards Ceremony and Gala! The Tower Awards ceremony will take place Wednesday, May 7, from 6 to 9 p.m. at Germania Place.

The awards recognize outstanding creative work in a wide range of categories, including Advertising, Web Design, Literature, Direct Mail, Public Relations, Special Events, Audio, Video, Trade Shows and more. And as anyone who has attended will tell you, you won’t want to miss this chance to see work from some of the most outstanding b-to-b marketing campaigns of the year on display!

Emceeing the awards again this year will be Rick Kean, managing director of the Business Marketing Institute . I would also like to thank Aquent Marketing Staffing and Getty Images for sponsoring the event. To register, go here.

Another exciting spring event to mark on your calendar is quickly approaching. Our 7th Annual “Party with a Purpose”—the Windy City Biz Bash—will take place on Thursday, June 5, at the Ivy Room at Tree Studios. Come out and enjoy cocktails, heavy hors d’oeuvres , silent and live auctions , and networking opportunities, all for a great cause, at the newly refurbished Tree Studios.

The Biz Bash helps to raise funds for Literacy Chicago and BMA/Chicago Chapter operations, programs, benefits , and events like our monthly MarketingMasters Luncheonsand Breakfast RoundTables. To register for this event, go here.

As we all know, executing successfu l marketing campaigns in today’s ever-changing business environment is no laughing matter. But Tom Yorton, advertising veteran and president and chief operating officer of Second City, might help you see the humor in the situation after all.

At BMA’s next Breakfast RoundTable on Tuesday, May 6, at IIT’s Stuart School of Business , Yorton will explore what Second City’s nearly 50 years of groundbreaking improvisation experience can teach about meeting marketing and brand challenges in a business world fixated on innovation, fast-moving markets and Web 2.0. Come learn some improv fundamentals that can help you with your marketing campaign more than you might think! To register, go here.

While we are on the subject of our intriguing event speakers, I would like to thank Richard Edelman for a fantastic and enlightening presentation about the findings of the 2008 Edelman Trust Barometer at our April MarketingMasters luncheon.

And you won’t want to miss our final MarketingMasters luncheon of the season when speaker Mark Gambill, chief marketing officer at CDW, will give us his perspective on the technology industry on Thursday, May 15, at the Mid-America Club. To register, go here.

Later this month, on Tuesday, May 20, our president-elect, Gary Slack , will sit on a panel at the Financial Marketers Alliance Event “ Chicago: Creativity in Financial B2B Advertising,” sponsored by The Deal. Also sitting on the panel will be William Parke, director, corporate marketing and financial communications at CME Group . During the breakfast, which will take place at the Metropolitan Club in Chicago, panelists will discuss the state of creative services in financial advertising. For more information on the event, go here .

Finally, the election process for the chapter’s 2008-2009 board of directors is almost complete. Please look for your 2008 electronic ballot to cast your vote. Election results will be announced at our May luncheon. To learn more about the nomination process, go here. 

If you are not already a member of BMA, please consider joining today. You can join or register for BMA programs through the BMA Web site .

BMA members get the exclusive ability to download the PowerPoint deck and/or an audiocast from our monthly luncheon seminars in the first BMAIL of the following month.

Other exclusive members-only benefits include:

• The BMA/Chicago Directory
• Publications and white papers from the national BMA
• Eligibility for professional Marketing Skills Certification
• Member rates for guests joining you at BMA events
• Free postings to BMA/Chicago CareerLink listings

I look forward to seeing you at our next MarketingMasters luncheon on Thursday, May 15, at the Mid-America Club.

All the best,

Isidora K. Lagos
President, BMA/Chicago