Embracing change, respecting tradition - crossing my TEI finish line....

• Author: Wielenga, Terilea J.
• Position: Tax Executives Institute - President's page

It is so hard to believe that I am writing my final column as TEI President. Where did the time go? A year is still only a year, but it certainly seems to have flashed by--literally in the blink of an eye. But indeed, the TEI presidency is really the culmination of a ten to fifteen year professional journey, when you include service at the chapter and regional levels and then, four additional years should you be fortunate to be selected to enter the Institute's national queue.

I want to take some time here to review some of the progress made during the year just completed and then offer some observations about the road ahead.

When we formulated the over-arching theme of "Embracing Change, Building on Tradition," we were especially mindful about the impact (or the perception) it might (or could) have on the membership, especially for those who have observed the organization over the years, and have come to appreciate TEI's "staying power" as the preeminent association of in-house professionals. A status achieved and sustained despite numerous market and demographic changes.

Recognizing these risks demanded that we take special care to explain at key turns that our efforts were being undertaken to build on and strengthen TEI's foundation while at the same time position us for future growth and continuing relevance.

Few topics raise more passion among our members than our membership criteria. Set in place almost 70 years ago, they have remained largely the same since that time--in-house tax professionals only with a minimum of five years of tax experience. Yet, the roles and responsibilities of the in-house community around the world continue to change. In-house tax professionals are now being called on to perform different functions within the tax department --and sooner. In the latter regard, the in-house tax community has--as a general proposition--gotten substantially younger. How is TEI responding to these demographic realities? Put another way, is TEI--the preeminent association of in-house tax professionals --as relevant to these emerging tax professionals as it has been to almost three generations of professionals who have preceded them? And, if not, what steps must TEI consider undertaking to meet the professional development, education and networking needs of these professionals? What must we do to be attractive to these generations of tax professionals? Put most starkly, if we stand pat, are we missing an opportunity to broaden the...