July 29, 2023
Welcome Cindy!
This was the first week for MDA’s new Finance Manager, Cindy DuCoulombier. She comes to us with a wealth of experience in financial administration. Now she just has to learn the systems and culture that are unique to the MDA. So far, she’s doing great, drinking from the fire hydrant and managing all the new terms and faces. Cindy has two daughters, four grandchildren and an adorable dog. Her training is going well, but she has lots of people to meet so next time you’re on the phone or here at the MDA be sure to introduce yourself and welcome Cindy.
All Strategy, All the Time
Often when I say it’s been a normal week, it’s because many weeks don’t have travel and special events to report. But they are important weeks. Lately it feels like a treadmill of strategy sessions. We have advocacy and communication proposals developed by key business partners to evaluate and synthesize, we have internal staffing sessions to assign projects, we wait and interact with the ADA on their strategy efforts, we take valuable input from MDA’s Re-Envisioning Committee. And then we try to bring it all together in a productive way for the members’ best interest. The pace feels fast but without good strategy, we are just running endlessly. Strategy helps us define what personnel we need. It helps us develop timelines that are aggressive but essential. It helps us be stewards of members’ dues as we seek revenue streams to efficiently deliver plans. “Regular duties” are gone with the wind. We are all working to make sure our work advances the ever-evolving needs of the association.
Missouri Dental Board Meeting
This afternoon MDA board members, Dr. Jeremy Bowen, Dr. Ron Wilkerson, Dr. Philip Batson, Dr. Lisa Bosch and Dr. Jon Reagan will join MDA staff, Vicki Wilbers, Olivia Wilson and Halie Payne as they monitor the virtual Missouri Dental Board meeting to follow the latest developments and accurately represent our members’ needs. The agenda is complex and if anything of note occurs, you will be sure to hear of it through MDA channels. Kudos to this crew for their Friday afternoon duty.
The Week Ahead
Glamourous travel returns with trips to Joplin, Chillicothe and Kirksville on tap. Stay tuned for photos and reports.
Quote of the Week
“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin
