Volunteer

• Be an FICP meetings professional member in good standing for two continuous years or more.
• Be able to maintain their company responsibilities as well as their FICP Director responsibilities.
• Have the full support of their company's management, since Board service requires additional work and occasional travel.
• Have at least five years of experience working in the meetings and events profession.
• Have not served on the FICP Board of Directors in the previous two years.

• An engaged FICP member. Examples include service on an FICP committee, event team or working group; event attendance; activity in TheNetwork online community; or referring others to the association.
• Recognized leader in the meetings and events community. Examples include sharing thought leadership through a blog, with the trade press or as a speaker; serving as a volunteer with other organizations; and/or demonstrated leadership within one’s own company or community.
• Ability, interest and commitment to participate in three in-person meetings a year, virtual meetings as needed, and serve as a board liaison to a committee or event team. Directors are expected to attend the Annual Conference and have the option of attending the Education Forum or other association event(s).
• Commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion within all aspects of the association, including membership, committees, staffing, education and events (in person and online).
• Positive leadership attributes, including emotional intelligence, ability to work collaboratively, comfort with expressing their beliefs and participating in healthy debate, and willingness to wear their FICP hat and represent the organization and its best interests.
• Visionary and strategic thinker who has demonstrated an ability to engage in new and innovative programs within their sphere of influence (e.g., incorporating strategy, leadership, future focus, risk-taking, entrepreneurial spirit).

• Have been an FICP hospitality partner in good standing for five cumulative years or more.
• Have attended at least four in-person FICP events, two of which have been the Annual Conference.
• Have direct responsibility for sales efforts within the insurance and financial services market.
• Have their company’s financial support to attend and participate in Board and HPAC meetings (two-to-three per year), as well as the Annual Conference, and pay sponsorship and registration fees.
• Have not served on the HPAC in the previous five years.

The HPAC exists to listen to the needs of FICP’s hospitality partners and represent their interests to the Board of Directors. The committee provides advice and guidance on planner member needs; monitors hospitality partner and sponsor needs and trends; provides input regarding sponsorship and advertising program effectiveness; and hosts a hospitality partner session at each of the following: Annual Conference, Education Forum and Winter Symposium.

• Open to all meetings professional members and hospitality partners in good standing.
• Terms are for one calendar year and are renewable for another year.
• Call for volunteers for the standing committees open in the summer of each year.

• Meetings professional members (hospitality partner spots are predetermined).
• Service period ranges from 1-1.5 years, depending on the event.
• Event team members are selected by the Event Team Chair and confirmed by the Governance Committee.

• Position your company as an industry leader. Serving FICP positions your company as supporting the meetings and events industry and the work you do, develops its people to be leaders and endorses their volunteer efforts for the good of the profession.
• Demonstrate your value to your company. As an industry, serving FICP and its mission presents a macro view of the insurance and financial sectors as well as the meeting planning profession – a view beyond your current perspective from within your company or that of a meetings professional. Previous FICP volunteers often mention that serving the association helped them broaden their understanding of the business and improved their effectiveness within their company.
   

• Expand your network. Opportunities abound to build your visibility within the profession. FICP volunteers meet new business contacts, deepen existing relationships and gain exposure to influential executives with whom they might not ordinarily have the opportunity to meet.
• Operate at an elite level. Work closely with the most respected professionals in the business. Working with colleagues that have similar roles and responsibilities in other companies will introduce you to different approaches to business challenges and opportunities. Be a thought leader. Exchange your viewpoints, perspectives and beliefs. Swap stories. Share tools and proven techniques that will improve your efficiency. Learning how other companies address similar situations will also benefit your employer. 
• Gain credibility and respect from industry peers, company colleagues, suppliers and others. Become part of a distinguished group that is respected by your peers. Company colleagues will note that you rank among the top professionals in your field. Hospitality partners will notice your position and realize that you have your company’s support.
• Serve as a voice to effect change. Be on the forefront of change and how change may impact the association and its members. Provide vehicles in which change can be presented to members. Serving as an FICP Volunteer challenges you to "think differently" and to collaborate.
• Build your personal brand. Serving FICP will give you the exposure necessary to extend your personal brand and enhance your reputation. This visibility provides a platform to demonstrate what makes you unique: who you are, what you do and what separates you from others within the profession. Boost your public profile and set yourself apart from others within the business. 
   

• Enhance your strengths and learn new skills. Gain exposure to other skills and disciplines that may not be offered in your current position. 
  • Collaboration. Learn how to work more effectively in a group, build consensus, make decisions as a cohesive and diverse unit, and act in a manner that is accountable to the meetings community.
  • Public speaking. Hone your presentation skills, whether by serving on a committee, making a recommendation to the board, or presenting an education session. Serving FICP will help you to organize your thoughts, sell ideas and make persuasive arguments.
  • Finance. As a volunteer, you will gain insight into how the association operates. 
  • Strategic planning. Foresee the future and the broad outcomes the association will need to achieve. Be part of a continuous and dynamic organizational planning process from the highest level.
  • Marketing. Share your event marketing expertise and learn about industry research practices – how new data and trends can affect event and business strategies.
  • Leadership. Demonstrate and hone your leadership skills. As a volunteer and leader, serving FICP provides hands-on leadership training, both in practice and through formal education.
• Improve your communications effectiveness. Serving FICP will introduce you to different ways of communicating, whether in person, virtually, by email, or through social media. Working with various audiences, you will have opportunities to practice speaking, writing, listening and observing non-verbal communication. 
• Build self-confidence and self-awareness. By the end of their terms, FICP Volunteers usually show more confidence and awareness compared to when they began. Serving FICP will challenge you to learn about your values, beliefs, strengths and weaknesses. Most leave with improved executive presence.
   

Share your expertise and make a difference. Some people serve FICP for altruistic reasons – in other words, to give back to the profession in which they work. Sometimes the desire to serve comes from a passion to share knowledge and talents with others and enable them to grow. At the highest level, serving as an FICP Volunteer offers a way to gain meaning in one’s career – or at least a sense of personal pride and satisfaction. Ultimately, serving FICP provides the chance to make a difference to your profession and leave a legacy.