Partnering for Success

Mergers, Joint Ventures, and Partnerships

What a great year this has been! It seems only a brief time ago that I wrote my first “Chair Report” column, and already the year is over. Sounds like our elected leaders, doesn’t it? Leading this great association— or any part of it—is definitely an honor and a privilege, and I hope this has been a year our leaders will remember forever. Thanks for the opportunity to work with all of you as AEC chair; you are absolutely the best. More at the end, but for now . . . the topic of mergers.

From a personal perspective, the Miami and Miami Beach merger three years ago was one of the best things to ever happen to both associations. It had to be one of the easiest, fastest, most productive
REALTOR® association mergers in history. The key to our success was having one objective: serving our members.

Two association executives worked together to make it happen— beautifully! My personal thanks to Maureen Levine, RCE , CIPS , who led the way. The result has been better than anyone could ever have imagined, and our members continue to benefit.

When it comes to joint venture opportunities with other associations, I’d like to give thanks to the outstanding REALTOR® Association of Greater Fort Lauderdale and its leadership with whom we share programs, products, and services. We have just entered into a new phase of cooperation whereby we will even share some staff resources, cosponsor seminars and events, and collectively provide services to our members. This is an exciting time for organizations and leaders willing to share and reinvent themselves.

The partnership opportunities are endless! The number of reciprocal memberships (free or exchange) we have with community organizations grows each year, and so does the base from which to build coalitions. It is one of the simplest, most beneficial, and exciting things the association has ever done—and it’s easy. We now do cooperative events, cross promotional programs, and exchange information, which benefits our collective memberships and the community at large.

What a great year this has been . . . from the Institute in Boston to the Midyear Meetings in Washington to the Leadership Summit in Chicago to the REALTORS® Conference in San Francisco! The opportunity to serve as emcee for Richard Mendenhall’s Leadership Summit in Chicago was a major highlight of my 28 years of REALTOR® association management. Richard quoted Sir Isaac Newton: “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Our thanks to all the giants who have gone before and to all those who will follow to make this association the best it can be at every level of the organization.

—Teresa King Kinney, 2000 AEC Chair

(Teresa King Kinney will pass the AEC chair baton to Benny McMahan, executive vice president, Texas Association of REALTORS®, who will take over this column with the Winter 2001 issue.)