A Message from the President
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am honored to serve as your president for 2011. My predecessors are a hard act to follow, but I promise that we will continue to build on all the great work of the previous Board Members, Committee Volunteers, and Members at Large, and make this year better than ever. I was greatly encouraged by the enthusiasm I saw at our Board retreat in December, and the Committee retreats I have attended thus far through the year. We have more volunteers than ever, and all appear ready to pour energy into moving New Orleans CREW forward.
I think most of us will agree that 2010 and 2009 were difficult years for businesses throughout the United States and the world, especially those related to Commercial Real Estate. I am cautiously optimistic for 2011. We are starting to see some signs of movement in the local and regional market. More than ever, the value proposition of an organization like New Orleans CREW is clear to me. We need each other to survive these difficult times. My personal goal, as president of New Orleans CREW in 2011, is to increase member to member referrals and job opportunities for those who have been laid off. In order to achieve that, we also need to increase membership and sponsorship. Education and mentoring will continue to be important parts of the mission of New Orleans CREW.
I encourage all of you to attend the local member events, get involved on committees, get to know each other better, make new friends, consider serving on the Board of Directors, and attend the national CREW Network meetings during the year. The national CREW Network annual convention will be held in Washington, D.C. on September 14 -16, 2011. Please make every effort to attend this excellent event that will provide educational and networking opportunities for all attendees– access to close to 2,000 CREW members from all over the country.  These members are the movers and shakers in Commercial Real Estate in their communities—a truly inspiring group.
We completed the recent survey of our members. Please take a few minutes to review the results of our survey and know that we are working hard to improve our benefits to the members. New Orleans CREW is all about you! If we serve you, we will grow stronger, so we need to hear from you. Please contact me if I can assist you in any way, answering questions, or providing support.
Sincerely,
Angela O’Byrne, AIA
President 2011