After ASSE Safety 2016 came to a close, ASSE's 2016-17 President Tom Cecich, CSP, CIH, shared his first message with ASSE members. He said he wants to focus on making meaningful connections through ASSE, which is timely as many professionals likely did just that in Atlanta.

In his message, Cecich said, “As OSH professionals and members of ASSE, we form a dedicated, passionate community that shares a mission to protect others. ASSE has been a vital partner in my professional development and career progression. My ASSE network has yielded lifelong friends, provided career mentors and introduced professional colleagues who have freely shared their knowledge and lessons learned.”

He said one of his goals for the coming year is to ensure that future ASSE members have access to many and diverse networking opportunities. “Changes in the world and society are transforming how people network. For many long-term members, local chapter meetings and activities have historically been a primary networking opportunity. Today, however, social networking has created many channels in which ASSE members can interact,” Cecich said. “While some members continue to embrace monthly chapter gatherings, others prefer more virtual connections that overcome time and geographic limitations. Still others prefer to engage with their peers based on their technical specialties or their common interests.”

He said ASSE’s board of directors has identified member communities as a strategic focus and will continue to identify ways to improve ASSE processes to enable the more than 37,000 members to engage within ASSE in ways that best meet their needs.