Becoming Emeritus
At the gala celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the founding of the Society for Marketing Professional Services, our group of longtime members, all dear friends—Randy Pollock, Laurin McCracken, Howard Wolff, Janet Goodman Aubry and I—were seated together. Laughing and talking like children at the kids table on Thanksgiving, together we were representatives from the early years acting like our younger selves.
Fittingly, Janet, one of my very best friends, was seated next to me. In the late 70's in Houston, I was sent to a SMPS luncheon meeting by my boss at a local design/dealership, where I was working in business development. As I had few qualifications for the job and no training, my employer hoped I might learn something. Listening to the program and watching Janet in action, I was in awe. She was going to be my new friend she just didn't know it yet. I followed her to the ladies' room after the meeting and suggested that we get together again, maybe over lunch. It was one of my best decisions ever.
Over the next few years, we worked with a core group of the like-minded to create meaningful programs that attracted a cross section of AEC marketers as well as firm leaders. We earned the support of our firms and a reputation for knowing how to build a chapter. With Janet at my side, I attended SMPS conventions in New Orleans, Las Vegas and Toronto, meeting remarkable, inspiring marketers from around the country. A few years later, when I was serving as the president of the Houston Chapter, Janet convinced me to run for national president. Of course, she was the likely candidate with more experience and recognition, but she preferred to orchestrate behind the scenes. No one was more surprised than me when I won.
And a the winner is…SMPS Election at the Hotel del Coronado 1982
Friends at the SMPS Gala in Washington DC in 1983. Janet and I, side by side, front and center.
Since it has been several years since I last attended a meeting, taught a seminar, or wrote an article, I was flattered by the generous recognition we received that night as we shared our stories with the members. All of us at our table—past presidents, Marketing Achievement Award winners, Fellows of the Society—contributed in multiple ways to the success of SMPS. We hadn't done it for praise or honor but for the chance to contribute. While we worked hard it was the organization that gave us a profession, a platform for our ideas and the opportunity to serve something far bigger than the last project or the next assignment. And SMPS continues to do the same for its now nearly 7,500 members.
Best friends sharing stories with the crowd at the SMPS Gala.
The next day as we walked the halls of the J.W. Marriott, we were thanked and hugged by friends and strangers. Celebrated! Who knew it would be so rewarding to be emeritus?
