Category: AGRICULTURE

           EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR         Professional Summary    An accomplished, skilled  leader  bringing 28 years of management experience and a willingness to take on added responsibility to meet tight deadlines. Enthusiastic team player with a strong work ethic and advanced complex problem solving skills.  Proven success in Association Management, including all business skills necessary in leading a small business.  Excellent communicator in both written and verbal form with successful track records acting as both a direct supervisor and as a liaison between staff and Association Board of Directors.  Consistently meets or exceeds both short and long term corporate goals for growth.  Proven leader in conference and meeting management including all aspects from meeting space and hotel negotiations, to speaker travel and networking, to attendee registration. Successful track record as a grant writer for projects for non-profit organizations.      Skills          Effective leader  Consistently meet goals  Project management  Experienced in legislative processes  Customer service-oriented  Exceptional interpersonal communication  Budget development  Accounting software  Long-term business planning and execution  Negotiation  Effective communication  Staff training/development   Executive presentation development        Constant Contact  Print advertising  Public relations  Special events planning  Accomplished manager  Public speaking talent  Non-profit management  Contract negotiations  Excellent planner and coordinator  Accurate and detailed  Advanced MS Office Suite knowledge  Conference planning   Project planning              Work History      Executive Director  ,     07/2012   to   02/2015     Company Name   –   City  ,   State      Created new revenue streams through  addition of two new fundraising events including a gala/dinner and 5K run .  Exceeded company objectives in selling exhibitor booths and in attendance at the annual convention.  Exhibitor booths increased from 2%-8% yearly through the drought years of 2006-2008 and similarly in economic downturn for horticulture in 2009-2012 while other industry tradeshows and conferences experienced declines nation wide.  Prepared in-house databases to process conference and training session registration and annual conference registration.  Largest number of attendees was 3,199 for annual conference; however, most annual conferences served 2,200 attendees.   Managed projects for 36 volunteer Board of Director members, 6 committees and 5 regional chapters.   Prepared and distributed payroll for staff of  three  direct reports.  Complied annual recommendations for end of fiscal year budgets.  Prepared meeting minutes and developed action lists for staff.  Oversaw daily office operations for staff of three employees.  Planned and conducted  industry training meetings and Association Chapter meetings up to two per month, including handling all meeting details and registration processes.   Negotiated prices and terms of sales for all meeting space, food and beverage purchases and hotel contracts.    Launched new website in October 2014 to enhance on-line presence of Association.   Networked and interacted with other professionals through the Nursery and Landscape Association Executives of North America to optimize industry connections.  Prepared income statements and balance sheets and projected cash flow.  Managed business finances, including paying vendors and suppliers for products services rendered.  Directed planning, budgeting, vendor selection and quality assurance efforts.  Represented the organization to customers, the public, government officials and other external sources.  Developed legislative policy with Director of Public Affairs and managed implementation of policy.  Wrote and edited articles, web content, advertising copy, periodicals and publications for internal and external audiences.  Wrote press materials and made presentations to media representatives.  Attended  3-5 external  trade shows each year to preserve company relations with distributors, customers and media personnel.  Planned and organized seminars, meetings and annual planning retreats.  Created messages, position statements and other corporate communications based on company's objectives.  Created new revenue streams through  grant writing with both the State of Georgia and the United States Department of Agriculture.  Successful in adding over $250,000 in grant revenues for the Association.          President, Owner  ,     06/1998   to   07/2012     Company Name   –   City  ,   State    Provided Association Management, meeting planning, conference planning and in-house registration processes for various associations including National Association of Pond Professionals, Georgia Green Industry Association, Georgia Turfgrass Association, Georgia Turfgrass Foundation Trust, Georgia Vegetation Management Association as well as providing only registration services to several other organizations.  Responsible for all aspects of Association Management including staffing, budgets, AP/AR, public relations and public affairs, to include lobbying at both the state and national level.       Executive Director  ,     08/1986   to   06/1998     Company Name   –   City  ,   State    Association management as outlined in GGIA position from 2012-2015.       Statistician  ,     04/1983   to   06/1988     Company Name   –   City  ,   State    Managed state database of over 150,000 agricultural professionals.  Prepared programming through Martin Marietta Data Services to select survey respondents for agricultural production services in Georgia that would ensure mathematically accurate survey results.  Prepared quarterly Consumer Report Index that calculates pricing increases/decreases in consumer goods such as dairy products, meat products, etc.       Education      Bachelor of Science  :   Marketing Education with Business Electives  ,   1985     The University of Georgia   -   City  ,   State      Recipient of  Ty Cobb  Scholarship  Graduated Magna Cum Laude  President of the Distributive Education Clubs of America         Associate of Science  :   Core Curriculum with Business Electives  ,   1982     Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College   -   City  ,   State       Recipient of   George and Annie Sosebee   Scholarship    Served on newspaper staff  First ABAC student inducted into Phi Theta Kappa National Honor Fraternity Hall of Fame  Recipient of the ABAC Student of Distinction in Business  Recipient of the ABAC Student of Distinction in English  President of Phi Theta Kappa National Honor Fraternity