Julie Brown Pflueger, CPCE
Owner/Event Planner
Check It DONE Events
Phoenix, Arizona
Candidate for At-Large Director
From your own perspective, what are two key emerging opportunities/challenges that our association faces and how can NACE best be prepared to address them?
Our industry has been turned upside down! We are doing more with less and short-term events have no end in sight. The workplace has changed. Technology has made interaction and communication more difficult. Creating connections and building relationships are strained. True professionals, we trudge on! Our association and industry are facing generational diversity, as well as communication via technology disconnect.
Today we have a diverse multi-generational workforce and NACE association. From the Traditionalists who are returning to work part time, to the Baby Boomers looking at exit strategies, the Gen Xs sandwiched in the middle, the Millennials who make up 35 percent of our workforce and by 2025 will corner 75%, and finally the Gen Zs trying to figure out how they fit in. We need to create a purpose driven organization where everyone understands the connection between their role and the overall strategy. We need to communicate, listen, and treat individuals as they wish to be treated not the same across the board.
While we communicate and listen, we need to conquer the challenge of getting heard, to engage and truly connect. We need your input and feedback from your chapter. I am listening.
What specific talents do you possess that would affect the association on advancing our mission?
As a second-generation hotelier, with over 35 years industry experience in hotels, on and off premise catering and now, an independent event planner and marketing consultant…our industry will be back! We need to know what others are doing, stay educated, increase our connections, build relationships, build bigger dreams and goals to keep us focused and excited. We need to Fall in Love with Events all over again!
As an Event Planner, I am passionate about NACE and our world of Events. As a Marketing Consultant, I listen and utilize my industry expertise in logistics to design a feasible plan. As a Project Manager, I think outside the box, set goals, create achievable action plans, follow up and report results. I critique and offer solutions. As an Entrepreneur, I juggle well. Picture winning, put in the work, then we will celebrate successes.
I bring to NACE almost 30 years of a NACE journey including small chapters, struggling chapters and winning chapters. I created our first student chapter back in 1998 and in 2004 was part of our National Board setting our goal to 4000 members. We will get there again…Let’s Fall in Love with NACE, together, all over again.
How can NACE best support its members and the catering and events industry?
Our NACE Chapters and members are our heart! Each chapter is a little bit different, and we need to listen for that whisper of a difference. NACE is like magic…. when you combine education, networking, connections, and relationships we all win!
As your 2022 Director at Large candidate I believe in strengthening our Chapters Leaders Council, our CLC mentors and staff, that listen to and guide our leaders. We need to increase the chapter support before they need help. Getting back to the basics, phone calls, personal touches, follow up, inspiration, all with a touch of entertainment and NACE pizzaz.
I look forward to an interactive directory to support business connections and client searches to help small businesses grow. We have amazing website resources and training available but need to listen to our members to ensure our topics are addressing today’s challenges. Are we? What is your biggest problem?
Nationally, NACE is highly respected and plays nice in the industry sandbox, but we need to be a bigger player at national conferences. I look forward to the day when we say “NACE”, everyone knows and respects who we are. What do you think? I am listening.