James Baty jbaty@cfaconcretepros.org

As your executive director now for the past decade and having participated in your journey since 2001, I have experienced some wonderful examples of this Association taking calculated risks that pay great dividends. In this rich history, planning a summer convention in the remote parts of northwest Oregon was quite challenging. Committing to an extensive research effort to determine the precise behavior of concrete in cold and frozen settings on behalf of an entire industry was a lofty vision. Hosting the first completely virtual convention in a new and engaging platform during COVID, when gathering in person was not possible, was pioneering. Each of these is just a snapshot of the commitment I have seen over and over from this Association’s leadership—commitment to maintaining  an organization that always challenges and supports you.

Hosting this most recent convention offshore was the next big, calculated risk, and I am thrilled at the response received. We gave up keeping track of the number of properties and locations considered for CFACON24, and then Puerto Rico was mentioned. Would members attend? Would we need passports? Would there be an Atlantic storm? These and many more questions were considered, some easy to answer (U.S. Territories don’t require U.S. citizens to have passports) and some that simply required us to accept some uncertainty. In the end, attendance at this convention continued the post-COVID trend of outpacing the preceding year’s event. Even more importantly, the energetic responses we received from surveys prove that this event remains the signature reason #CFAConcretePros are at an advantage in the marketplace—you have each other.

As I reflect on the takeaways from this event, one of my main ones is how valuable networking is. This year we added an entire session devoted to contractors meeting one-on-one for ten-minute conversations. These meetings were electric. Another key takeaway is that you need an opportunity to learn about market changes. The presentation and discussion regarding the largely silent change to Type IL cement confirmed how abruptly this change came for many and how much it matters for most.  Antarctic Mike and Chris Coghlan gave a motivational talk encouraging listeners to face adversity and persevere by clarifying goals—they encouraged us to “let go!” It is never tiring to hear how openly members share and how impactful learning from each other becomes. As presenters, Doug Herbert, Russ Talpey, Nate Salters, Mike Kana, and Jason Ells all proved once more that the heart of CFACON24 is found in the collective wisdom and experience that comes from the risks you each take and your willingness to help others walk paths less traveled.

This July began our journey of celebrating 50 years of the Concrete Foundations Association. How will you do more with the powerful tool of membership?