New chapter focus Dallas.

• Author: Westfall, Christopher
• Position: FEI NEWS

In this revamp of the Chapter Focus department, we highlight activities and best practices of the chapters of Financial Executives International.

In this issue, the spotlight is on FEI's Dallas Chapter, which puts the focus on robust professional development and high-profile speakers to create a vibrant, member-driven agenda.

We invite participation of chapters for this section. To have your chapter profiled, contact Managing Editor Christopher Westfall (cwestfall@financialexecutives.org) or call 973.765.1095.

Area Covered

Dallas Metroplex, which includes North Texas and the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.

Year Founded

1945

Number of Members

Approximately 700 members

Member Companies

To name a few: Southwest Airlines Co., AT&T Inc., ExxonMobil Corp., Neiman Marcus Inc., Hunt Consolidated Inc., J.C. Penney Co. Inc. and Lennox International Inc.

Annual Dues

Dallas Chapter clues are $250; National's dues are $495 for Executive Level membership.

Meeting Schedule

Dallas meets year-round, including seven chapter meetings from September through April but not including December. The meetings are comprised of professional development (PD) sessions, networking receptions and dinner meetings with programs.

During the summer months (June through August) we present the Summer PD Series for earning extra continuing professional educational (CPE) credit and to help members stay plugged in during the break.

Members' financial staff may attend free. Two of these programs are traditionally developed by our major university partners and held on university grounds. Recent special events include:

* Tap In to Treasure--Diversity/Inclusion series: Two to three events per year that are dinner programs with a cultural theme presented by distinguished business leaders in a venue of cultural significance. (The first two were held at museums with exhibits tied to the programs.)

* November--Lunch with a program on Private Company Standards presented by the president of the Financial Accounting Foundation and a Federal Accounting Standards Board representative. (This was a joint event with the Dallas CPA Society.)

* December--Fourth year of our Annual Technology program.

* Annual Winter Social--This year was hosted at the new Perot Museum of Nature and Science.

Among the special programs planned for 2013:

* Annual Spring Social--Traditionally a golf outing, and we added a wine tasting competition to broaden the audience for this event.

* June--Professional Development...