The Contract Packaging Association’s (CPA) annual meeting will be Thursday-Sunday, Feb. 18-21, 2010, at the Naples Grande Beach Resort, The Waldorf Astoria Collection in Naples, FL . The event has been moved to a Thursday-Sunday arrangement for 2010 after requests from association members to end the annual meeting on a Sunday and allow attendees to return to work Monday.
Attendees at the 2009 annual meeting in Braselton, GA, also expressed a desire to hold future meetings in a guaranteed warm-weather location. The association was asked to look at the third week in February to avoid holidays, spring breaks, and family vacations, as well as to provide a break from the cruelest stretch of winter weather in much of the country.
The theme of the 2010 meeting will be “Riding Out the Storm: Lessons from Survival Masters.” Here is what you can expect at the 2010 annual meeting:
• Share experiences and exchange ideas and concepts.
• Develop and strengthen relationships with peers.
• Examine how contract packaging impacts business and drives success.
• Meet and network with a meaningful presence of consumer packaged goods companies.
• Participate in a dynamic legal panel presentation and get your packaging and warehousing law questions answered.
• Participate in a food safety panel and interact with experts.
• Process the advice of a distinguished panel and share secrets on riding out the storm as the contract packaging industry works its way through current economic challenges.
Please visit www.contractpackaging.org/annualmeeting for details on hotel registration, full and a la carte (spouse or guest) event registration, the golf tournament, sponsorships, tabletop exhibits, and additional program details on the annual meeting. The lineup of speakers appears on page 15.
Nonmembers may attend the annual meeting, and exhibit with a tabletop, at a premium charge. If a nonmember visitor becomes a member or associate member within 30 days after the annual meeting, most or all of the premium charge will be applied to the new membership fee.
Long-range planning
The association’s board of directors and committee chairs participated in long-range planning meetings Sept. 29-30 at the association offices in Naperville, IL. Eight CPA board and committee members joined seven staff members working together to move the association to the next logical level in its current growth cycle. According to John Riley, CPA president, “Great strides were made in laying an organizational foundation and a common understanding of the tools required to grow. The interactive conversation made the meeting most productive and resulted in some excellent suggestions and ideas.
“I believe that sorting out primary and secondary roles for the various association activities and committees will be a valuable reference when discussing what the organization will be in three to five years. The committees, now very active, are the engine we need to fuel this significant growth and expansion.”
Among subjects, activities, and initiatives discussed were an advisory council, an honorary individual membership, expanded educational programs, various cooperative efforts with other organizations, the continuation of unique surveys and reports for both internal use and external distribution, financial refinements, and proactive investments that would provide both member and associate member additional benefits. Full membership involvement and voting are required with some proposals, as well as modifications in bylaws.
