G U E S T EDITORIAL Nonprofit Profits – The Value of Professional Societies Mary Ellen Large, P.E., D.GE, director of technical activities for DFI, gave a TED-style talk in the GEO-PIT at Geo-Congress on March 27, 2019, in Philadelphia. Her talk, Nonprofit Profits – The Value of Professional Societies, discusses the tangible and measurable benefits for companies when employees are involved in professional societies. How many of us recall the images of the executives from The Big Three auto manufacturers arriving in corporate jets in Washington, D.C. for their congressional bailout testimony? The media coverage focused on the extravagance of their private planes — describing their use as outrageous, excessive and elitist; fat cats zipping around in fancy planes squan- dering corporate resources. Despite the intense scrutiny and questioning from Congress, none agreed to sell their planes and fly back home commercial. These images punctuated a longer conversation about the use of corporate jets stemming back several years. Even notoriously frugal Omaha businessman, Warren Buffet, had bought a private jet. His purchase was criticized by his business partner, and the investment questioned by the media. “How do you justify the expense?” Buffet said candidly that he couldn’t and, in his acceptance, that the expense was an indulgence; he christened the plane the “The Indefensible.” While the cost of operating and maintaining a corporate jet is much larger than joining and participating in a pro- fessional society, one could argue that the decision process may be similar: the deci- sion to invest resources where there may be prestige, but where it may be hard to mea- sure the benefits…the profit in nonprofits. Have you been challenged — even by your own business associates — on the value and cost of professional society involvement? Membership fees, attending events, time spent serving on technical and organizing committees for events, the significant commitment of serving in society leadership positions, preparing papers and presentations, travel time out of the office, being possibly inaccessible to project teams, decreased utilization rates; all set against the backdrop of leisurely golf outings, nice dinners or resort locations – how do you defend those optics? Does it feel indefensible? Many of these suggestions of profits, gains and benefits may sound like just com- mon sense but, perhaps packaged together, they could present a case for your company’s active involvement in nonprofit societies, and help you defend your investments. I suggest five main areas of benefits: • Projecting your corporate image • Generating business • Cultivating technical expertise • Contributing to the greater good • Providing professional development Projecting Your Corporate Image Through your presence and involvement in societies, you can project your corporate image and value system. The visibility of your employees presenting at conferences and engaging in networking opportunities shows that you place a value on professional development and that you employ a diverse team. Collaboration demonstrates that your company is innovative, forward-thinking and a team player. Involvement also indicates that you seek to build strong industry relationships. Active involvement in societies is both a recruitment tool and a marketing tool for employers and clients who are seeking what you are offering. Generating Business Involvement in societies is a great opportunity to develop new business and stay competitive. When you present your well-earned successes and innovative projects — where you overcame challenges and pushed the envelope — you are Mary Ellen Bruce Large, P.E., D.GE Director of Technical Activities [email protected] positioning yourself as a leader and a specialist. Presenting the strength of your capabilities and the breadth of your team can generate inquiries. As professional societies recognize the need to involve the entire project team — including owners and structural engineers — you are reaching a larger audience. While you are at events touting your successful projects, so are your competi- tors. Learning what your competitors are doing is an opportunity to better under- stand your relevance, market share and value. Where are competitors working, who are they working for and what solutions are they providing? What’s more, being involved in societies provides information for you to gauge industry trends, developing markets and new opportunities. Where could the next innovation be taking you and where should you invest to develop plans for expansion and growth? Cultivating Technical Expertise Professional societies offer a wide range of educational offerings, which supplement corporate training programs. Courses on detailed engineering design, construction methods, new technologies all enhance the technical expertise of employees and broaden companies’ service profiles. While presentations of case histories highlighting innovations, creative thinking and lessons learned can spark an idea that can improve and expand your solutions and services. Case histories are one of our favorite types of presentations. We are especially fans of case histories that discuss lessons learned. Without fail, I hear, “I learn so much from presentations that talk about mistakes, I love them.” And also, without fail, I hear, “But unfortunately people are DEEP FOUNDATIONS • JULY/AUG 2019 • 99
