CEO Search Update

*Update as of 08.26.22

In the absence of a CEO, the work of the association continues through the strong collaborative efforts of the Board and our HQ staff. The search process is on-going as there has been a tremendous amount of interest since being posted on June 20th. Candidate screening began immediately to identify the very best candidates for the job. The pool is being narrowed to begin the interview process very soon. The Board feels confident that the search firm and task group will identify a great candidate to lead the association into our future for years to come!

*Update as of 6.21.22

Dear SFMA Members –

We hope this letter finds you well. Per our recent communications, we wanted to provide an update on the hiring process related to the search for our new CEO.

The team at Kittleman & Associates, a highly respected executive recruitment firm, has assisted in drafting the official job posting, which is now live on their website. To view, please visit https://bit.ly/3HEev7b.

We encourage you to share the link with any potential candidates you feel might be a great fit to lead our organization into the next chapter. As a quick refresher, the Board of Directors is looking for a candidate that will implement our strategic plan and grow the organization. That desired growth will result from expanded educational opportunities and new partnerships, diversifying revenue, programmatic offerings that promote long-term member value and enhancing the existing networking platform.

A strong, forward thinking focus on business development is going to be key to the future success of the organization. Working directly with the Board of Directors, the new CEO will be responsible for enhancing SFMA’s role and profile as an advocate and positioning the Association as the leader in the field for the years ahead.

As previously relayed, the Board implemented a succession plan back in January to guide the association through the next few months without a CEO. Actions from this plan are underway to ensure all bases are covered and all association operations will run smoothly and effectively through the culmination of the search and hiring process.

We greatly appreciate your support during this exciting time. Please direct SFMA Operations questions to President James Bergdoll at jbergdoll@chattanooga.gov and inquires about the CEO position or posting to Megan Lewis with Kittleman & Associates at mlewis@kittlemansearch.com.

Best Regards,
SFMA Board of Directors

*Update as of 4.29.22

Your Board and the Transition Task Group have been working hard on the replacement of our CEO. I am pleased to report that we have signed a contract with a highly regarded search firm, Kittleman and Associates, LLC (headquartered in Chicago with offices in Philadelphia, Boston and Denver). They are quickly mobilizing to implement their search process, and in early May we will have a comprehensive kick-off meeting with them. In addition, your Board has had a CEO succession plan in place for many years as part of our business continuity plan. That plan has undergone periodic review and walk-through to help prepare us for this situation. We are utilizing the succession plan to ensure our search processes are sound and that we have coverage of essential responsibilities if a gap between an on-staff CEO should occur.

There will be more information in the coming weeks when the search is launched. Please know when we are at that point, we will provide you with the Position Guide (position description) and the contact information for the consultant with whom we are working. In the meantime, we invite you to think about who you feel might be a good match for the position or a good source to help identify qualified candidates.

Thank you,
SFMA President James Bergdoll, CSFM