A Professional Staff for a Professional Trade Association

A Professional Staff for a Professional Trade Association

You may think of that one person you email or talk to on the phone when it gets to be dues time, but a professional association is much more than that. It is several people in numerous departments working with you, for you and on your behalf. In this issue you will see photos of the ASHI staff that works to serve you in your home inspection needs.

The frontline of service many of you deal with is our membership department. They do much more than remind you when it’s time for you to renew. They are the experts on the many benefits you receive for being part of ASHI. They can help you update your profile to get more leads. They send out your membership kits when you join. They do report verification and Continuing Education renewals/audits. And these are just a few of the things that Russell Daniels, Janet George, Mark Lester and Bonnie Bruno do on a daily basis.

And speaking of Continuing Education, where would members be without Michele George providing information regarding available educational programs and the administration of ASHI CE credit approval? She provides support to members and chapters concerning ASHI online-education resources, the Smart Track Program and ASHI e-Learning Catalog. She also oversees InspectionWorld and pulls it together with the help of Dave Kogan, who also stays busy with the endorsed programs and marketing.

There is also Belienda Schultz and Beverly Canham who work to keep ASHI running by overseeing the financial aspects of running a professional trade association and keeping its board informed.

Arlene Zapata and I work on getting the ASHI Reporter out every month, which is a tremendous undertaking for just two people. We also oversee all communications that concern ASHI such as the look, messaging and social media, along with helping members with logo and marketing questions.

The ASHI School with Jack McGraw, Steve Reilly and Kendra Eiermann is now the main avenue for bringing in new members to the association. Jack and Steve’s many years of experience as home inspectors gives them the ability to answer any potential student’s question about the industry and ASHI.

Outside the office, there are several individuals and companies working hard for ASHI and its membership. ASHI is the only home inspection association with a lobbyist (Randall Pence) in Washington, D.C., overseeing the interests of its membership. PCI, our marketing and public relations firm, is constantly keeping the ASHI name out there on a national level. YourMembership will soon be the new database company for the ASHI website, making it easier to update your profiles. And AnswersMedia in Chicago is busy creating the new ASHI website. One of the great benefits of the new site will be that it will help consumers locate ASHI inspectors better in their “Find an Inspector” searches and provide more leads.

And finally, there is our executive staff of Frank Lesh and Virginia Baker, Frank’s administrative assistant. Frank oversees everything, and it’s helpful that he is a past president of ASHI with over 20 years of experience in home inspection. He answers questions from members and the national media. He visits chapters. He even changes light bulbs around the office. ASHI members are fortunate to have an experienced home inspector leading the way.

We’re not a large staff. We’re nothing like some huge associations with their hundreds of employees. But that can be a strength. Here you have names you can call and not just an anonymous phone number or email. We’re a brick-and-mortar building with a professional staff and not a storefront or PO Box. ASHI is interested in helping you, the membership, and not just collecting your credit card information. It’s what a true, professional trade association does.