Member Spotlight | Cheryl Vancil
Posted by [email protected] on Sep. 11, 2023 / Subscribe 0
Cheryl joined Oates Associates in 2008 as a one-person marketing department. As many know, being a solo marketer comes with its challenges – but presents just as many opportunities. Because of those opportunities, I am now the Director of Marketing, where I collaborate with everyone at Oates Associates and oversee market strategy, company culture, and recruitment. What kind of marketer would I be if I did not mention that Oates Associates is a civil and structural engineering and surveying firm focused on enhancing our local community? From transportation to building infrastructure, our team designs solutions that positively impact our region.
Through the support of Oates Associates and SMPS, I have taken on new avenues for growth – including becoming SMPS St. Louis chapter president. In 2006 I joined SMPS St. Louis, which is when I first stepped into the AEC industry. I learned so much from this organization, but the true value has been the friendships, that I would not have been able to deepen if I had not become more involved. After attending some programs, I was encouraged to join a committee – and that is where it all started. After serving on the programs and education committee I joined the board, and have served as programs director, education director, secretary, and president.
1) What are your thoughts about being president this year? What do you think was one of the most outstanding things about this year?
I feel like there is so much more to accomplish as president, but now my term is over! For 2023-2024 we have both seasoned and new board members – bringing a great mix of knowledge and new perspectives to continue to build upon chapter initiatives with Courtney Dickerson at the helm!
- Courtney Dickerson with Horner & Shifrin | President-Elect – Courtney effortlessly plugged into the leadership team and led our mentorship program with 5 mentor/mentee pairings. She has brought so many great ideas to benefit our members, including putting the wheels in motion for a welcome committee to help new members meet others at our programs.
- Megan Hinrichsen with Development Strategies | Treasurer – On top of being a walking SMPS knowledge manual to answer all the questions, Megan helped keep our chapter financially sound. With her assistance, we have been able to offer select events at zero cost to our members and provide more membership and conference scholarship opportunities.
- Ashley Jenkins with Kirkegaard | Secretary – Secretary is a time-consuming position. Ashley managed event emails, surveys, info blasts and our Weekly Wednesday newsletter to help keep members informed.
- Kelli Manegre with McCarthy | Communications Director – Our social media followers continue to grow as Kelli curates content and creates graphics. She has refreshed our social channels and maintained the demanding posting calendar to keep members in the know and aware of upcoming events.
- Alec Gleason with TOKY | Membership Director – Alec helped our chapter reach the 140-member mark in February. It is an outstanding achievement to bring in new members and retain existing ones.
- Loren Boyd with Faith Group | Education Director – Loren facilitated some new and engaging educational sessions for our members and was a resource for those pursuing their CPSM. With her help, the chapter offered 18.5 continuing education units and welcomed 4 new CPSMs.
- Luke Ducey with WSP | Programs Director – Luke planned an extraordinary 20 events for our chapter. Pickleball tournaments, happy hours, project tours and educational programming – there were events for every member including marketing, business development and technical professionals.
- Melissa Bednarz with icon Mechanical | Sponsorship Director – Melissa has been a lifeline for our chapter, having generated revenue that helped provide experiences and scholarships to our members. We now have 30 sponsors, including 7 DBE sponsors, with new sponsorship opportunities on the forefront.
- Julia Pluff with Farnsworth Group | Director at Large – Julia organized specialized programs for the chapter and has been instrumental in planning SMPS/SAME Industry Day for many years. This two-day conference connects the AEC industry to federal prospects through briefings, roundtables and networking.
The board, our members and our sponsors have been key players in all the opportunities the chapter has offered. To learn more about this year's Board of Directors, click here.
2) What do you think makes this chapter outstanding?
3) Since joining the chapter 17 years ago this month, what reasons would you give someone thinking about joining SMPS?
SMPS has given me resources, mentorship, friendships and growth. You get the most from your membership by plugging yourself into all that SMPS has to offer. Attend the events; join a committee; join the board; attend a regional or national conference (MVRC is in Omaha and Amplify is in Salt Lake City in 2024!); become a mentor or mentee; explore mysmps.org and all the listservs, articles, example documents and learning labs; reach out to the board if you are in search of a resource or need help. Do you need to know the appropriate marketing-to-technical staff ratio to help bring balance to your firm? Are you in search of example go/no-go forms? Are you looking for direct access to prospective clients? Do you want to socialize with like-minded peers to help you along your journey? SMPS can help with all of that and more. If you have joined but you are not sure where to start – or if you are an existing member in search of resources, anyone on the board can help point you in the right direction!
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