Journal of
Corporate
Renewal
Sept
2016
REFLECTIONS
foundation for building and maintaining
solid business relationships. According
to our recent survey, networking is the
number one reason most of us joined
TMA in the first place, and face-to-face
participation in our national, regional,
and chapter conferences, seminars,
and other events is a key to realizing
that objective. In-person contact is
critical to forming and maintaining
the relationships that sustain and
grow our businesses. Spending time
with someone at a conference can
be the next best thing to working
together on a deal for developing
a mutually beneficial relationship.
Being “pen pals” doesn’t cut it.
The 2016 Annual, November 2-4 at
Disney’s Yacht Club Resort in Lake
Buena Vista, Florida, offers attendees
myriad opportunities for face-to-face
contact to strengthen existing business
relationships and expand each of
their networks. The many receptions,
coffee breaks, and informal gatherings
during the conference are fertile
grounds for networking. In addition,
this year’s Annual also features a golf
tournament and a 5k run/walk, where
you can meet more potential clients or
referral sources. And, of course, strong
business friendships often grow out
of after-hours informal encounters
with other conference attendees in
the hallways or lounges of the hotel.
The Annual offers impressive value.
More than 100 turnaround consultants
from 24 states and 64 firms attended
The 2015 Annual. More than 100
attorneys from 30 states and 80 firms
were there as well, along with more
than 100 lenders and investor/capital
providers from more than 30 states and
35 firms. Even if it could be arranged on
a one-by-one basis, can you imagine
having to travel to meet all those people
in their home states? How much time
and money is saved by meeting with
even a handful of these individuals
at The Annual rather than traveling
to meet them? It is not hard to justify
the expense or time for attending
the conference if you consider
the alternative means of meeting
prospects. The TMA conference app
includes a continuously updated
registration list and a messaging
feature that makes it exceedingly easy
to reach out to individuals before
and during The Annual to schedule
that critical face-to-face meeting.
TMA is a “watering hole” organization:
that is, it is the only association in our
industry that by the very nature of its
multidisciplinary membership brings
together the professionals and investors
involved under a single banner. That’s
why The Annual includes a host of
multidisciplinary education sessions
offering CPE and CLE credits. We
wholeheartedly invite you to come
and explore topics of interest in your
own profession and avail yourself of
opportunities to learn more about
topics of importance to professionals
and investors from other disciplines.
As I close, I want to pause and offer my
respects and those of the entire TMA
community on the recent passing of
Peter J. Tourtellot, CTP, (see page 26) a
former TMA president and chairman.
Peter was one of the key founders
behind and proponents of TMA, and he
exemplified its community spirit. One
of my earliest experiences at a TMA
Global event so many years ago was
Peter walking over to me and taking the
time to introduce himself. He waxed
eloquently on the virtues of being a
TMA member. He “made it personal”
every day and became a friend to more
members then I can recount here. My
condolences are extended to Peter's
family and friends. He is missed. J
TMA Global:
Making It Personal
BY DAVID F.W. COHEN, TMA GLOBAL PRESIDENT
When we think about the impact of technology on our client interactions, we have been
here before. With only a couple of
minor tweaks to reflect advances in
technology, a United Airlines television
ad that debuted in 1989 could just as
easily be run today. In the spot, a boss
named Ben walks into a conference
room and informs the assembled
employees that one of the company’s
oldest customers “fired us” after 20 years.
“He said he didn’t know us anymore,”
Ben explains. “I think I know why.
We used to do business with a
handshake, face-to-face. Now it’s a
phone call and a fax, ‘Get back to you
later.’ With another fax, probably.”
Ben tells his staff that something has
to change. He begins handing out
airline tickets, putting everyone on
his team on the road for “a little face-to-face chat with every customer we
have.” (The ad is available on You Tube;
search “United Airlines old friend.”)
The ad underscores a timeless
truth: face-to-face interaction is the