XC Summary

The Executive Committee (XC) was called to order at 1:00 p.m. at Century House. Fourteen of the 15 members were present, including 11 of the 12 voting members.

Joint Engineer Training Conference & Expo (JETC) Planning. The Executive Director (XD) briefed the results of JETC 2007. Overall, the technical sessions were well attended and received high marks. Rear Adm. Gary Engle, USN (Ret.), briefed the preliminary plan for JETC 2008 technical sessions, including possible keynote speakers. New for JETC 2008 is the addition of a Water Resources track and combination of the Military Professional Development and the Professional Development tracks into one.

Roles, Responsibilities and Profit Sharing for Future JETCs. Maj. Gen. Robert Griffin, USA (Ret.), CH2M Hill, Chair of the Joint Engineer Training Conference Advisory Committee, briefed the XC on its analysis and recommendations, noting that the proposed change is “An Idea Whose Time Has Come.” The Advisory Committee worked to develop a consensus and was pleasantly surprised that the affected Posts and the Advisory Committee were able to reach agreement. The detailed role matrix that has been developed for national conferences will become the basis for a work breakdown structure that will better define required tasks and resources. Discussions on profit sharing were more diverse, with the Posts not wanting to give up revenue from the conference, which they use to grow their scholarship funds. Gen. Griffin indicated that the Advisory Committee decided to make a recommendation on profit sharing for 2009–2014 and beyond, as follows:Host Post SAME HQ Post

The XC voted to concur in the recommendations including the role matrix and proposed profit sharing, for review by Regions and Posts and subsequent presentation to the Board for approval at the October meeting.

Process to Renew Executive Director. The XD has requested another three-year term from May 2008–May 2011. The XC agreed to establish a Task Force to review the XD’s position description, which has been in existence for more than 10 years, and to have SAME President Gen. Eulberg solicit feedback from Board members. The extension of the incumbent for another three-year term will be on the Fall Board meeting agenda.

2007 Budget Approval and Mid-Year Results. The XD presented the proposed 2007 Budget and the results of SAME operations for the period Jan. 1–June 30, 2007. The XD noted that the increase in advertising revenue is due to the strength of the DOD market and the quality of the publications.

The SAME Directory of Member Companies and Public Agencies is a strong revenue generator and provides a major benefit to SAME Sustaining Members. While SAME HQ will publish a Directory in 2008, the delayed transition of Sustaining Members to the new Association Management System (AMS) has made the publication more difficult than in prior years. SAME’s affinity programs are not producing much revenue, but they are important to members and represent opportunities for growth in the future.

The XD presented the balances on SAME investment and operating accounts, showing growth in the first six months of more than $150,000, recouping much of the investment cost of the AMS that was taken from the General Reserves. The question arose related to the use of funds raised for the Century House renovations. The XD stated that no progress has been made and that he would begin to work on the planning, design and construction in 2008, following implementation of the AMS, which is demanding a substantial amount of staff time.

The XD discussed SAME HQ’s expenses. These are in balance with the expected revenue and with staffing costs, which increased by $100,000 due to hiring at higher salary levels, adding one staff position, and increases in employee benefits. Professional fees increased as a result of the initiation of the Continuing Education Program and the outsourcing of the headquarters’ IT position. Conference expenses increased substantially commensurate with the substantial increase in revenue from hosting the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Infrastructure Systems Conference. Finally, SAME taxes increased by $40,000 due to the fact that carryover losses from prior years were used up in 2005 and that SAME pays taxes on advertising revenue not offset by advertising-related expenses.

The XD presented the current status of the SAME General Reserves. The XC had previously agreed to maintain the General Reserves at least 30 percent of the estimated current year expenses. This was reduced from 50 percent to fund the acquisition of the AMS from the General Reserves; however, it was noted that the level would increase back to the original 50 percent in future years through additional deposits from operating funds. The XD expressed concern that the 50 percent policy would be unattainable in the near-term because of increases in conference revenue—and associated expenses—and the substantial increase (expected) from JETC 2009. The XC agreed to have the XD present at its next meeting an analysis of what would be considered “core” operating costs that would be the basis for calculating the required level of General Reserves.

SAME Treasurer Vince Laino reported the results of the Audit Committee’s review of the 2006 Audit, including three management recommendations to enhance internal controls. The XD has agreed to the recommendations and has begun to implement corrective actions. Overall, the auditors have given SAME an unqualified opinion for 2006. The XC voted unanimously to approve the budget as presented.

Academy of Fellows (AOF) Report. Rear Adm. Bob Williams, F.SAME, USPHS, AOF Chair, summarized the purpose, goals and activities of the AOF.

Non-Commissioned Officers (NCO) Council Report. CMSgt. Ken Miller, USAF (Ret.), NCO Council Chair, pointed out opportunities for SAME to link with a university to assist enlisted members in getting an engineering technical degree, which is not currently offered at military bases. He provided near-term, mid-term and long-term benefits to the enlisted force. He also requested support from the engineering services for the NCO Symposium to be held at Port Hueneme, Calif., in February, with a goal to have approximately 25 NCOs from each service in attendance.

Small Business Council (SBC) Report. Mercedes Enrique, SBC Chair, noted that the SBC now has one public sector member on its leadership team. She emphasized the desire of SBC to continue to support the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army Small Business Conferences. SBC has established a council listserve that will enable it to better communicate with SBC members. The XD also mentioned the progress SAME has made in offering discounted prices for Small Businesses at SAME activities. The President complimented SBC on its enthusiasm and energy.

Young Member Council (YMC) Report. Maj. Pat Miller, USAF, YMC Chair, communicated the YMC’s desire have a Young Member (YM) liaison for each SAME committee and council. YMC developed a YM National Conference Guide that details how YMs can get the most out of attending a national conference and will use it to help promote the conference to YMs. YMC plans to create a task force to determine the reasons for a recent drop in YMs, with the goal of turning this trend around. The President complimented YMC on its continuity of leadership through excellent succession planning.

XD Report. The XD reported that the significant drop in Individual Members (IM) is a result of the first year that all IMs were sent renewal notices in January, so there is still an opportunity for the 19 percent gap to be closed through further renewals and new
members. However, the XD noted that SAME’s 77 percent retention rate is not where SAME wants it to be and he estimates that SAME may finish the year with a slight loss in IMs. Sustaining Membership is doing well, with 1 percent growth in 2007 to date, but renewal notices have been delayed due to the delays in the AMS. A larger growth in Sustaining Memberships is expected by the end of the year.

The XD requested and received confirmation on the SAME HQ strategy to withhold dues from Posts that have not completed their updated bylaws or submitted a financial report for 2006. The XD recommended that the criteria for Distinguished Post in 2007 be changed to add the requirement for updated governance documents to have been submitted to SAME HQ. An XC member suggested that the Distinguished Post criteria for 2008 include that a Post must send at least one Post Leader (defined as a member of Post Board of Directors) to one of the two SAME Post Leaders Workshops. The XC concurred in these changes to the Distinguished Post criteria.

The XD discussed the options being considered for continuing education courses and workshops in 2008, particularly one on Project Management in Contingency Operations, which has been suggested by the Army Engineer School, and other possible topics, such as readiness training and building information modeling.

Adjournment. SAME President Gen. Eulberg thanked XC members for their participation and adjourned the meeting at 6:00 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted:
Robert D. Wolff, Ph.D., P.E., F.SAME
Executive Director