Ron Hutchinson was sworn in as the 2007–2008 president of AEMP at the record-breaking 25th Annual Management Conference. Equipment Manager had a chance to talk to Ron about his goals for the 2007–2008 year and what AEMP has meant to him.
EM: Congratulations on becoming the 2007–2008 AEMP president. What are your goals for the coming year?
RH: I am really committed to seeing the Certified Equipment Manager (CEM) program gain accreditation. We have a full and active committee of dedicated professionals from the equipment-management industry and academic community. And now, thanks to the great efforts of the AEMP Foundation, International, and our other generous supporters, we have resources to move forward.
I also want to reach out to our Allied organizations to better understand what it is that AEMP can do to provide better value to Allied members so that they will be motivated to join AEMP national. We need to continue improving member value.
Finally, I'm really impressed by how far AEMP has come over the past few years, and we're seeing better membership involvement at the committee level. I would like to continue this trend and get more members involved with AEMP.
EM: What is your history with AEMP?
RH: I joined the organization in 2000. AEMP was meeting in Cincinnati, and I found out about the meeting the day before it started and checked it out. I was really impressed with the educational content and the opportunity to visit with my peers from all over the country. I went on to get my CEM the next year, and I've been involved ever since.
EM: I know you're busy. Any final thoughts?
RH: I am really fortunate to be following Marilyn Rawlings, Greg Kittle, Bob Decker, Dave Markey and the other dedicated leaders of AEMP. My Board and the great leadership that has preceded me set the bar for performance very high, and I look forward to the challenge.
