FICP新任主席Jamie Murdock谈有意识的联结与增长

Skift Take

Just a couple of weeks into the job, Jamie Murdock already has a strong grasp of what makes this association different from others and how to introduce change.

Jamie Murdock remembers the first time he attended an FICP event in 2003, when he was working in hotel sales in the insurance market and the association was known as ICPA. 

“I will never forget when Shirley Mertz, who was the VP of meetings for Nationwide Insurance and the annual chair that year, took me around the ballroom and introduced me to all these professionals, and said, ‘These are going to be your people.’ And I still stay in contact with some of the professionals I met that day.

“It made a huge impact," he said. "I realized that this organization is something special.”

The former managing vice president of sales & Industry presence at Maritz, Murdock recently stepped into his new role as president of FICP, following in the footsteps of longtime leader Steve Bova. Skift Meetings sat down with Murdock to see what he has in store.

How is FICP different from other industry associations?

With the regulatory issues and other things that our members have to deal with, they need that sense of camaraderie to help each other navigate through it. Peer-to-peer learning is vital to them. 

What do you think you bring to FICP?

My passion for the industry hopefully is a given. I pride myself on building community and teams, and I've done that throughout my career.

I'm a lifelong learner, and part of the value of FICP is producing best-in-class content and learning. This audience is hungry for inspiration and knowledge-sharing.

With my background working with Gaylord, Hyatt, Disney, and Maritz, I also bring a balance of meeting professional and hospitality partner (HP). I understand both sides of the fence. Our hospitality partners have goals to meet, as do our professionals. I speak their language. I know why they are investing in this community and what they want to get out of it, and I'm going to represent both sides. 

What are your short-term priorities in this role?

Right now, I'm calling it the listening tour. I’m listening and learning. Our annual meeting is six weeks away, so I’m rolling up my sleeves and working with the team to ensure that it is going to be phenomenal. And it's my first one, so I'm very passionate.

Do you think HPs can have a hard time connecting with the planners at FICP events?

The hospitality partners come to the meeting and they probably have their lists of people they want to meet. I think there are some things we can do to ensure that those HPs feel good and they meet those people. It may not happen serendipitously. Let's be more intentional about it. 

My mission is that we're all in this together. Let's lean into the first-timers. Let's make sure that nobody's sitting alone. There are some things we can do to be gracious hosts and to welcome everyone to the community.

Not everyone in our industry is an extrovert. There are people who are overwhelmed when they walk into an event. We need to be cognizant of that. 

Planners have so many options for F2F events they can attend. How do you plan to keep attendance up?

Time is the biggest barrier for people, and priorities shift so fast. I think we all just have to over-forecast and over-invite, because that slippage is not going away. 

What are your plans for growth, and do they include young professionals?

I have been struck by the members I've met with large teams who are teaching early-career members the value of building your network.

We are going to work hard to make sure that these people who are early on in their careers know who we are, and that we become a resource for them. It's all about awareness and education. 

As far as growth goes, I want to grow intentionally. Part of the value of FICP is the intimacy. I'm all about quality over quantity and making sure that we maintain what FICP has built. That’s what’s important — not just growth for growth’s sake.