Update from the President & CEO

January 30, 2018 – I hope that everyone has enjoyed a great start to 2018. A new year always brings with it some optimism about what’s ahead of us and on behalf of everyone at FEC I wish you all a fulfilling year for your families and your business.

Since we announced our new membership model and fee structure in December we have been receiving feedback and questions from our members about the changes. We have been responding directly to every member that contacts us, however, we felt it would be helpful to share some of that feedback and responses with everyone.

Some of our members interpreted the December announcement as a notice for all membership renewals to occur on January 1st, 2018. We apologize for any confusion, that isn’t our intent. If your membership renewal date is in January, you will have received a dedicated email & renewal invoice in the mail. All FEC Membership renewals in 2018 will fall on your normal membership anniversary date. Unless you have received a personalized renewal notice, there is no need to renew now. Rest assured, we will continue to notify you personally with your renewal notice at the appropriate time. If you have any questions about your membership renewal, please contact us memberships@familyenterprise.ca and we will be happy to help you.

The main theme being raised by our members, relates to membership value. More specifically, what changes can members expect to see to justify the increase in their fees. I believe we made great progress in 2017, however, much of the work was really behind the scenes and not visible from a member perspective. We understand that some members feel they have not yet seen tangible improvements from FEX. Without a doubt, we could have been more effective throughout the year in our communications and sharing information with you, our members. We recognize this as a significant gap for us and we are committed to being much better at member communications going forward.

Back to the question of increasing member value, the good news is that we have already started implementing changes and improvements and members will begin to experience the additional value in the coming months. All of our plans for 2018 are based on the ideas provided by members during our Town Hall events as well as other input received throughout the year. For a complete summary of the FEC Town Hall feedback, please click here.

The input received from our family members clearly identified our PAG Program as the most valued program and top area for improvement for FEX. To make sure we focus on what’s most important to members we have formed a national Committee of the PAG Chairs from across the country to guide our improvements. The first meeting of the group is scheduled for January 30th and we will work together to identify and refine the planned enhancements that will guide the actual implementation in our chapters. Some of the specific changes contemplated for the Program include:

• Professional facilitation for new PAGs, for PAG retreats, and as support for existing PAGs that need help keeping on track and remaining effective
• Additional and more regular training for moderators to ensure they can be as effective as possible in their role
• Improved access to resources, tools, and presenters for PAGs to effectively fulfil the knowledge sharing and learning aspect of their PAG experience
• New PAG Fundamentals – program designed to introduce, integrate, and act as a bridging program for new members waiting for PAG placement
• A National PAG Manager who will be a full time dedicated resource for the Program working directly with PAG Chairs and Groups across the country, connecting the whole PAG community and proactively supporting their activities

And the input received from advisor members identified several areas where we can deliver greater value. In addition to being more closely connected in to the family enterprise community, advisors want greater support in the form of access to high calibre resources and programs. Some of the specific plans we have for delivering greater value include:

• Development of an FEA resource centre, an online portal, where advisors can access tools, templates, videos and articles as well as share content – high calibre resources to support them in serving their clients and with ongoing learning
• Development of new programs and continuing education opportunities including advanced workshops and a new webinar series. An example of this is the two in-person or live-streaming events featuring Jim Grubman scheduled for February 21st
• Creating FEA alumni groups across the country where advisors can come together to collaborate, network, and share experiences and knowledge with each other

We are committed to keeping you, our members, informed and engaged every step of the way. Stay tuned for regular updates on the details and progress being made at FEX.

Bill
President & CEO
Family Enterprise Canada