Board Meeting Highlights at IES25

Board Meeting Highlights at IES25

IES Board Meeting Highlights at IES25 (Anaheim)

Your humble editor attended the IES Board of Directors meeting at IES25: The Lighting Conference in Anaheim. The Board met in executive session earlier in the day, then opened the meeting to guests and media in the afternoon. They have instituted an invite policy, which is fair to all. Vice President Jared Smith began with the strategic objectives, noting very ambitious goals.

Strategic Objectives

  • 7,500 total members by 2030
  • Stabilize revenue
  • Increase global reach
  • Continued EP engagement
  • Focus on win-back campaigns and member retention

Key Actions for 2025–2030

  • Interview industry leaders
  • Boost social media presence—Colleen cautions about being intentional when this is launched for virtual conversations
  • Continued win-back campaigns
  • Leverage ongoing membership initiatives
  • Explore partner discounts
  • Expand EP programs
  • Continued global expansion
  • Establish International RD for 2027
  • Enhance onboarding experience
  • Regular KPI reporting

Membership Initiatives

During the membership initiative discussion, Past President Billy Tubb suggested funding a marketing campaign. As Billy put it, “We haven’t had a true marketing campaign for membership in a long time and think we are overdue.”

Colleen reported success with win-backs, aiming to reach out to expired members. She said automatic reminders have produced a very good response. The win-back campaign is working because it starts a dialogue with members. There was also discussion about auto-renewals.

Ambassador Program & Rules Update

Billy talked about an ambassador program to reach out to new members and get them excited and ensure they understand all that IES has to offer. (I think this could be an excellent program for Past Presidents.)

At-Large Director Carla Bukalski, on behalf of the IES Rules Committee, announced the committee’s recommendation to update Emeritus Membership eligibility: the qualifying age is increasing from 60 to 62. Members must also have 30 years of continuous service, including at least 15 years as an IES member or Fellow. The Board approved their recommendation unanimously, and this will now go to the membership for a vote (along with the slate for the new 2026 Board of Directors members).

Philanthropy Committee

Ira Rothman, Northeast Regional Director, delivered a Philanthropy Committee update. The committee is building a prospect list and assigning outreach. A consultant has trained committee members on how to ask effective questions and how to follow up tactfully. Rothman encourages board members to approach potential donors if they have personal relationships. This topic has been discussed on and off for over 20 years with almost no success. This is the first formal, professionalized program—positioning the committee for success.

Education & Standards: NEMRA Stepped Education

Brienne Willcock, Director of Education and Standards, discussed NEMRA’s Stepped Education curriculum (which we covered earlier in the week). The program offers four certifications—Lighting Trained, Lighting Educated, Lighting Specialized, and Lighting Professional—built largely from reorganized IES content. Advancement to Levels 3 and 4 requires IES membership. This could be an effective tool for getting new members. Level 1 launched on Monday and already has eight registrants.

Global Lighting Community (GLC)

At-Large Director Amardeep Dugar previewed Thursday’s Global Lighting Summit. CIE President Jennifer Veitch and Women in Lighting India Ambassador Surbhi Jindal will give a brief project overview. Additionally, the concept of a Global Lighting Community will be discussed, the goal of which is unite major lighting organizations under a collaborative, member-led structure.

Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 2:54 p.m., and President Wilson Dau thanked the Board, the staff and the guests for attending.

 

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