President's Message

In 1998, the Beta Gamma Sigma Board of Governors held a series of strategic planning sessions designed to provide a blueprint for the honor society’s future. As a member of the Board at that time, I can assure you the task at hand was difficult. How do you plot the course of an organization’s future, while at the same time protecting its core ideals? And aside from the organization itself, how do you balance the needs and goals of the Society’s more than 350,000 (at that time) members?

In his first “President’s Message” in the Summer 1998 issue of the BGS News (the Society’s publication at the time), Donald F. Parker suggested that it was time for Beta Gamma Sigma to make membership more valuable for everyone.

“Now we need to consider how we can best serve members throughout their lives,” he said. “Currently, we do a very good job serving the needs of our student members…Adding alumni chapters throughout the United States will help.”

Seven years later, most would agree that the time and effort put forth at that Strategic Planning Retreat have paid off handsomely. Adding alumni chapters was just a first step. The following is a short review of some of the progress made since then:

• In 1997, there was one alumni chapter (New York City) of Beta Gamma Sigma. In 2005, that number has grown to 18, including one in Hong Kong. Nearly half the Society’s members now live in areas supported by an alumni chapter.

• In 1998, BGS offered an affinity credit card and a car-rental discount through Avis. Now, in addition to those, a quick check of the BetaNet website shows valuable relationships with more than 15 corporate benefit partners, ranging from discounted magazine subscriptions to valuable discounts on insurance, moving services, test-preparation services, and much more.

• In addition to the benefits members receive from corporate partners, Beta Gamma Sigma now offers a line of services to make membership more valuable. Included are membership verification letters, BGS keys for resumes, on-line member directory, and much more. To see a complete list of member benefits, just visit BetaNet at http://www.betagammasigma.org/benefits.htm.

• In 1998, the Board had not even considered a tool as beneficial as BGS CareerCentral, the Society’s on-line job board. This is the place where employers who want to find “the best in business” go searching. Make sure you take advantage of BGS CareerCentral as part of your job search.

• During the 1997-98 academic year, 61 student members were assisted through the Beta Gamma Sigma Scholarship Program. In 2005, more than 100 student members will benefit from the program. Since the program’s inception, the Society and its member deans have awarded more than $1 million in scholarships.

As I said before, these are just a few of the initiatives that evolved – directly or indirectly – from the Board’s strategic planning in 1998.

Why am I mentioning this in 2005? Well, this summer the Board of Governors met in Chicago for another round of strategic planning. Board members were asked to think critically and creatively about ways to make membership more valuable for the more than 540,000 lifetime Beta Gamma Sigma members.

There was unanimous agreement that the Society must do a better job of building and informing others about the Beta Gamma Sigma brand. Among all the organization’s stakeholders, there must be a better awareness of the Society and its outstanding members. While it will be a difficult task, we must all do a better job educating others about Beta Gamma Sigma’s importance to business education and practice.

With your help and suggestions, the Board and its committees will continue the work of planning the Society’s future, but we need your input. If you would like to share your thoughts, email me at president@betagammasigma.org.

You should look forward to reading more about the Society's plans in the 2006 issues of the BGS International Exchange. More importantly, you should look forward to seeing the fruits of these planning efforts in the years to come. Much like those efforts in 1998, they are only worthwhile if they make your membership in Beta Gamma Sigma more valuable.

Sara M. Freedman
President, Beta Gamma Sigma
Dean, College of Business and Industry, Mississippi State University