Team up for better chapter meetings.

Looking for a new twist on the same old chapter meetings? Try scheduling a joint meeting with other local business groups or even nearby FEI chapters. It's a great way to network with businesspeople who have similar interests, especially if some of your chapter members also belong to their organization. And you can use joint meetings to attract high-profile speakers that otherwise might be beyond your reach.

James Rutledge, vice president and treasurer of the Witco Corp. and president of the New Jersey Chapter, says his chapter schedules joint meetings often "because they're a good forum for getting to know the financial organizations in the area." In fact, about two out of seven chapter dinner meetings are joint meetings. The most recent was in late November, when the chapter sponsored aprogram on developments in the accounting profession with the New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants Education Foundation. The organizations were particularly well-matched because about half the New Jersey Chapter members are CPAs, and because "With some topics, it's good to have people in the room who are dealing with these issues every day," Rutledge points out. The chapter is exploring the possibility of conducting another joint meeting with the Financial Woman's Association of New York in the spring. Of course, "we don't want to do too many joint meetings," he says, "because you want to hit on some topics with your members only."

The Arizona Chapter will be co-hosting a joint meeting with the Association for Corporate Growth in early February, says Thomas Schaeffer, executive vice president of United Planners Financial Services and president of the chapter. While he'd had offers from other organizations before, he turned them down because he didn't think they were of the same caliber as FEI. "It's important for the organizations to be equally sophisticated and professional, because otherwise the two groups don't mix very well," he explains. He was much more comfortable with the Association for Corporate Growth because several of its members were also FEI chapter members. Also, the organization contained a good cross-section of businesspeople, so it was able to attract a high-quality speaker, Schaeffer says.

In sponsoring a joint meeting with the Oklahoma City Chapter, the Tulsa Chapter is actually keeping a bit of its history alive, according to John Shearing, senior vice president and CFO of Hilti, Inc., and Tulsa Chapter president. Years ago, the two groups were one chapter, which met alternately in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. The two chapters maintain cordial relations, and the president of the Oklahoma City Chapter, Gary Roush, is an ex-Tulsan, Shearing says. Like the New Jersey and Arizona chapters, Tulsa also sponsors joint meetings with local business organizations, particularly in months when the chapter doesn't have a regularly scheduled meeting.

The key to a successful joint meeting is early planning, all three chapter presidents advise. Rutledge points out that some organizations send their members pre-printed calendars at the beginning of the year that list all the organization's events, so the preceding summer or even spring isn't too early to start making arrangements. Shearing recommends making a list of alternate dates and programs, in case you run into scheduling difficulties, speaker cancellations or disagreements with the other group on your preferred topic.

And W. Thad Holt, director-administration for Brown McCarrol & Oaks Hartline and president of the Austin Chapter, which has also sponsored some joint meetings, suggests that chapter presidents and other chapter members involved in the planning discuss registration and fee issues as soon as possible. Remember that other organizations may have different ways of conducting their meetings, so good communication about the meeting agenda is essential, he advises. For the most part, these chapter presidents report that members typically give the joint meetings a solid thumbs up. Also, don't overlook other possibilities for joint meetings within FEI, such as meetings with an FEI committee that is exploring issues of interest to your group. You might just find your inactive members coming out of the woodwork.