A message from the president.

• Author: Rossi, Raymond G.
• Position: 2004 Annual Report

Dear Colleague:

Reminiscing is something that often comes with the time of year. June graduations and commencements are typically a time to look both forward and backward, and the 60th anniversary of D-Day and the death of Ronald Reagan this summer inspired a rush of memories across the nation and around the world. Preparing an annual report of the Institute's activities and accomplishments during the last year also prompts a look backward--and then to the future.

TEI was founded six decades ago, a little more than two months after the Allies' landing on Omaha Beach. The vision of TEI's founders--to create an environment within which in-house tax professionals can network, educate, and collaborate with their confreres--has only grown more vital with the passage of time. Thus, 42 years after the Institute's founding, I joined the Institute's Santa Clara Valley Chapter, and immediately learned of TEI's efforts on the Tax Reform Act of 1986, which was wending its way through Congress. Following the enactment of the legislation, I became active in the International Tax Committee's project to prepare pre-regulation comments on the bill's myriad and monumental international tax provisions. The collaborative nature of the process spurred me to remain active in TEI's advocacy activities.

Of course, many problems that the Institute addressed in 1986 still haunt tax executives, and while some progress has been made to "reform the reforms" in the ensuing 18 years, much remains to be done. Indeed, many of the provisions in pending FSC/ETI legislation (or advanced in the TEI's submissions on the bill) are the outgrowth of work begun in 1986, first to identify potential problems with the legislation and then to temper and ameliorate their harsh effects.

Communication and Member Service as TEI's Overarching Goals

It is not just the tax reform efforts of nearly two decades ago that, like a madeleine, unleash memories as I look back on my year as TEI President. It is also the legacy of tax reform's most important political champion--President Reagan--as the Great Communicator. Effective communication is the key to success in any field, and that is why effective communication was one of the Institute's two overarching goals this past year. Specifically, TEI undertook to promote our advocacy, networking, and educational accomplishments more effectively and to strengthen our unwavering commitment to high professional standards. Our other goal was to significantly improve member service--to equip TEI's members with the information and tools they need to be effective and to promote good tax policy and administration.

To advance the twin themes of communication and member service, TEI established three working groups to bring focus to its activities. I am gratified by the work of each of the groups.

Engaging Members

The principal focus of the Engaging Members Working Group was enticing more members to become involved in the Institute's far-flung activities. Led by Bob McDonough of the New England Chapter, the group aimed its efforts at expanding and enhancing the diversity of the Institute's membership in all respects. Specific activities of the Engaging Members Working Group included the following:

* Solidifying the link between TEI and its members, and between the chapters and the regions. While we can always do more, we made clear progress on this objective, for example, by sending monthly "blast emails" to the membership and periodic advocacy alerts to chapter leaders.

* Expanding the membership, especially in Asia and other under-served areas. Five years ago, TEI reached beyond North America by chartering a chapter in Europe. With membership in the European Chapter now approaching the 200 member mark, the Institute has turned its attention to Asia, where an energetic group of members and potential members have been meeting informally and will likely move toward requesting a charter within the next year. (In Asia, much more than Europe, the geographical distance between tax professionals in, say, Hong Kong, Singapore, Sidney, and Jakarta can be a challenge, but with e-mail and other tools, the group is dedicated to building a strong, interactive network.) A fledgling group is also at work in respect of Latin America. Building upon on our success throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe, it is quite possible that, within a few years, we will have additional chapters spanning the globe.

* Holding a conference targeted at the needs and special interests of senior tax executives. This high-level, high-quality program--held in Scottsdale in May-was both an experiment and an...