Pest Management Professional, May 2016

46 May 2016 Pest Management Professional mypmp net Photos WILL NEPPER I n 1989 Bob Rosenberg was downsized from his job via pay phone He was of out of résumés and out of money He found himself applying to be a manager of state government affairs for an association of professional bug killers It wasnt exactly in Rosenbergs wheelhouse but he could stick it out for a year right Twenty seven years muses the Pest Management Professional Hall of Famer and as of March 15 newly retired CEO of the National Pest Management Association NPMA This industry is strangely addictive Rosenberg was promoted to director of government affairs in 1991 and to senior vice president in 2003 He was appointed acting CEO in October 2012 signing a contract that expired in December 2015 But replacing him was not going to be an easy task As the interviews for his successor continued Rosenberg agreed to remain at the helm There were several good candidates Rosenberg confirms but the NPMAs then chief operating officer Dominique Stumpf CAE CMP emerged as the correct choice I couldnt imagine a smoother transition as Dominique knows the ins and outs of this organization so well he says of the time period of Feb 16 when Stumpf was confirmed by the board of directors to her first official day as CEO March 16 But then again whats characterized this group overall is like no other organization Ive ever seen There is no drama no politics Its a happy place Maybe its something in the drinking water Regardless its been a pleasure helping her transition from COO to CEO Rosenberg points to three recent changes the NPMA implemented that will continue to guide the association in its success 1The NPMA developed the infrastructure needed to be successful going forward We put into place audits committees and controls We repealed and replaced old bylaws and constitutions with more modern ones We reorganized staff including transforming the Government Affairs department into a Public Policy department Thats more than semantics its a different outlook on how to approach regulatory issues on both state and federal levels 2In the past 18 months the NPMA has concentrated on offering more tangible benefits to members We needed to take a step back and analyze the different needs of our 7000 member companies Some are 100000 companies others are worth 1 billion We want to provide benefits that are meaningful and viable to them all not just public policy or PR advice but online training human resources safety considerations 3The NPMA finally updated its internal computer systems A lot of things we did were on a software platform created in the 1970s We invested a lot of money in a 21st century solution to operate much more efficiently provide true e commerce as opposed to generating an email to someone who had to manually process the order and improve the member experience giving them more control over their relationship with us With typical modesty Rosenberg doesnt rule out a behind the scenes role or consultations with the association from time to time but for now hes just looking forward to enjoying his retirement At the end of the day I think were in a very good place to move forward he says Its nice to have been a part of it PMP You can reach GOOCH at hgooch@ northcoastmedia net or 330 321 9754 A farewell Bob Rosenberg caps off 27 years with the NPMA The future looks bright for them both BY HeATHer GoocH Editor The NPMA Legislative Day in March was Bob Rosenbergs last official event as CEO See more of our coverage on p 32 A New Era for NPMA fond