Last Friday, the IHAF Board of Directorsgathered to formally kick-off our 2015 program and to begin laying the groundwork for 2016. Now, I know what you must be thinking, “You’re focusing on 2016 already?” Well no, actually, we’re focusing on YOU. You see, at the close of each year, we survey our members to find out what’s working and what more we can do to deliver increased value and advance the in-house community.

In 2014, IHAF experienced record-breaking growth along with a 96% member satisfaction rate. (Not too shabby.) Though in last week’s Board meeting, we challenged ourselves by asking how to boost our grade from an A to an A+. The answer comes in the feedback you provided.

With what are you most satisfied when it comes to your IHAF membership?

˗ The growing number of great companies and diverse array of members. 
˗ The IHAF Annual Conference was/is outstanding, from the openness of the community to thequality of the speakers. 
˗ IHAF’s members-only LinkedIn community and collection of benchmarking data are definite pluses for me. 
˗ The IHAF Brief is packed with industry insights, making it easy for me to stay plugged in. 
˗ IHAF keeps me connected to my peers which gives me validation that we’re not as crazy as management seems to think we are! 
- The sense of community is incredible at IHAF, online and in-person. Glad I'm a member!

As we’ve always said, people come to IHAF for the content and stay for the community—and your feedback is proof of that. In terms of improvement opportunities, our direction is equally informed by you.

What would you like to see enhanced or improved in the coming year?

˗ More opportunities to network with IHAF members in my local area. 
˗ Engagement on LinkedIn—it’s a great place for even more people to participate and stay connected instead of being part of the silent majority. 
˗ I’d like to see more information on job descriptions and pay rates. 
˗ More best practices; would like to see more case histories about in-house agencies that have overcomes challenges similar to ours. 
˗ Varied pricing for non-profit organizations. 
˗ I wish even more companies knew about IHAF.

Your thoughtful remarks have opened the door to an expanded number of locations for our Pop-Up Breakfast series—enabling you to connect with other in-house professionals in your local area. We’re also building a new salary comparison chart which will be added to our library ofbenchmarking data in Q1. The IHAF Huddle will be all about best practices, with five different cases presented in five different cities as we put our heads together to discuss internal/external agency collaboration. And finally, we’re pleased to offer a new category of membership to our non-profit brethren because we want IHAF to be affordable to all types of companies.

Beyond the enhancements we’re making in 2015, the IHAF Board is working hard to build the preeminent membership organization for internal agencies, fostering growth of the in-house model. Our multi-year plan is well underway and YOU are our focus—our members always are.Join us.