Annual Report from Carl Tannenbaum

Groucho Marx famously said that he would not want to be part of an association that would have him as a member.  His implicit objection was that in accepting him, the organization would be revealing low standards.

I had a similar kind of trepidation when I became a member of NABE.  I was terribly worried that the organization had lowered itself to accept me, given my tendency to confuse supply and demand curves.
This anxiety was magnified many times when I was asked to serve as your president, given the high standards set by the men and women who have held this position in the past.  Fortunately, I am happy to say that the lights are still on in the NABE offices, and that the organization does not seem overly worse for the wear of my tenure.

In fact, I think it has been a pretty good year at your association.  As I prepare to hand over the figurative gavel to Ellen Hughes-Cromwick, I thought I would take a moment to reflect on some highlights of our efforts.

New Alliances Initiated

Membership in NABE has stabilized somewhat, at slightly below 2,400.  We’ve been enduring a decline for a number of years, which the board has attributed largely to industry consolidation and the dispersion of economic professionals to areas such as planning, risk management, and finance.
In an effort to reach those who have moved into more applied areas of economics, Ellen and I sought to identify associations that serve these communities and lay the groundwork for NABE alliances with those organizations.  We have had some nice initial exchanges with the CFA Institute (formerly AMIR) and the Risk Management Association (RMA) that call for cross-listing programs and sharing resources.  We’ll hope to further these efforts in the years ahead.

On another track, Chris Swann worked toward improving the participation of new entrants to our organization, and I appreciate his efforts.  I wish I had his talent for appealing to the young.
Roundtables Host 18 Teleconferences

There is renewed vigor among the NABE roundtables, and Rich Brown deserves a lot of credit for creating it.  By the time our program year closes in September, we will have conducted 18 teleconferences, up from 10 last year.  Leadership of the roundtables has been reinforced, so that they should be well positioned to provide value to their members.

We also took the step of conducting several general NABE teleconferences around breaking topics such as the sub-prime mortgage correction and gasoline prices, the latter arranged with the help of the Regional-Utility Roundtable.  These were exceptionally well-attended by both members and media.
Kathy Camilli deserves our thanks for her coordination of our chapters.  I had the pleasure of visiting with five of our regional affiliates during the course of the year and was very impressed with their energy.  Kathy has also been a champion of our high school economics clubs, which now operate in five cities with the cooperation of local Federal Reserve banks.  We’re hoping to expand this program further in the years to come.

Foundation Fundraiser Begins, Sponsorship Expands

The NABE Foundation received a good deal of attention over the past year.  The board approved the inception of an annual fundraising appeal last fall, which has raised $24,000 to date.  We’ve also more clearly defined the Foundation’s mission and its relationship to NABE.  Jack Kleinhenz, the chair of the NABE Foundation, continues to give liberally of his time and energy as we plan for success in the years ahead.  We all owe a great debt of gratitude for all that Jack has done for the Foundation.

NABE’s programs continue to provide outstanding content. John Silvia, Rich Wobbekind, and their colleagues on the planning team produced an outstanding Policy Conference last spring, and we are all looking forward to our Annual Meeting in San Francisco.  Cathy Mann leads the group that has assembled a great program, and we are hoping that you will be able to join us there.

We also conducted our fourth annual professional development seminar, moving the event to the west coast for the first time.  Thanks are due to Duncan Meldrum and Rosemary Marcuss, among others, for sustaining this event.  Appreciation is also in order for Stuart Hoffman, who organized a second economic statistics seminar for the media this past spring.

While content is always the most important aspect of our programs, I am also pleased to say that the combination of attendance and sponsorship at our meetings allowed us to exceed our financial expectations.  Our great thanks go to the organizations that support these events so generously.

Surveys Make Headlines

Our surveys remain interesting and newsworthy.  I know that many of you use the results of our macro survey in helping to plan your activities, and I know that economic leaders have a high regard for our policy survey.  Our industry survey has also been exceptionally relevant this year, serving as an early identifier of trends in the housing industry and commodities prices.
The robustness of our survey outcomes has been helped by an expanding list of contributors.  And their usefulness has been aided by the interpretive skills of our survey leadership: Ken Simonson, John Silvia, and Cathy Mann. 

The placement of the surveys in the media continues to “make NABE a player.”  For this, kudos go out to Melissa Golding, the NABE press officer.  Melissa did a great job while balancing the demand of a new addition to her family; I suppose dealing with me and dealing with the new baby are really not that different.

NABE’s flagship publication, Business Economics, continues to earn strong reviews for its content.  Bob Crow and the editorial staff maintain high standards, and we are looking into plans to leverage this very significant NABE asset.  Charles Steindel has taken the lead in performing a strategic review of BE, which the board will be discussing in the months to come.

We hope that our communication during this year has supported your activities.  Our website contains a number of great resources, including NABE News and an increasing collection of podcasts containing the content of our teleconferences.  Pam Ginsbach, editor of NABE News, and Bruce Kratofil, our webmaster, do very fine work on our behalf.

NABE’s finances are in excellent condition.  We are on track to exceed our budget expectations once again, and the value of NABE’s investments has grown by 22 percent over the past three years.

I’d like to express special thanks to three people for their all-around support this year.  Susan Doolittle, our executive director, always amazes me with her command of NABE business and her ability to cover so many bases so well.  Stuart Hoffman, my predecessor, left NABE in terrific condition and provided valuable advice.  I hope I have not sullied his legacy.

And Ellen-Hughes Cromwick, our vice president, has been a valued consigliere on matters ranging from NABE business to college admissions for my daughter.  I’d have been lost without her wisdom and partnership, and our organization is fortunate to have her as our incoming leader.

I hope you will agree that the body of work produced by your board this year is an impressive one.  As I transition away, I want to thank the membership for the opportunity to serve this year.  It has been a tremendously rewarding experience.

Carl Tannenbaum
NABE (soon to be past) President