PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Survey Says...
Adam Heft CPG-10265
Adam.Heft@wsp.com
Why do members join AIPG, and why do they remain members?
The easy answer is for the Certified Professional Geologist (CPG) credential. The CPG credential represents a high stan- dard of ethics, professionalism and expertise. The credential is recognized by some organizations as a requirement for professionals signing off on work products, and people hiring geologists look for it as a way to identify competent geologists.
The more complex answer comes with responses from the survey I sent out to all of the sections asking our members why they joined AIPG followed up by a series of questions regarding the value of the organization, level of participa- tion by members, and what would members add or change about the organization to make it more valuable. The reason I asked these questions was to help the National Executive Committee gain an understanding of how the members feel about the organization and how to keep the organization rel- evant into the future. Your feedback is vital for the Executive Committee to guide the direction of the organization into the future, address issues that concern the members, and improve member benefits.
Five percent of the members (406 geologists) responded to the nine question survey, completing some or all of the questions. I discovered that approximately 20 percent of the membership do not have working emails on record and did not receive the survey. Out of AIPG’s 38 sections, a response was given by at least one individual from each with the exception of Mississippi.
The first question I asked was why they joined AIPG. While the majority gave the obvious answer of wanting the CPG credential, there were other answers providing insight. Our members indicated that they value the networking opportuni- ties, the professionalism, and career opportunities offered by being a member. The graph to the right shows the breakdown of the responses and their relative proportions.
The members were asked about participation in AIPG sponsored events and approximately two-thirds indicated that they do not participate. For me, I have discovered one of the most rewarding and enjoyable aspects of being a member is the networking and participating in the events both at the section and national level. Members indicated that they do not partici- pate for many reasons, and the most commonly cited reasons for their lack of participation include event costs, schedule conflicts, and long travel distances. Some Sections hold most of their meetings/events in the same location (presumably close to many of their members), and those who may be farther away typically do not attend. Another interesting group of responses was for members indicating that they were not interested in participating – either the topics don’t interest them, or they simply don’t want to attend. Some individuals said that the event programs didn’t include topics related to their field of interest including mining, petroleum, or economic geology; they perceived that the events were all about environmental geology; while others gave the opposite response claiming that none pertained to environmental geology!
Nearly one-quarter of members reiterated that the certifi- cation was most important or relevant about AIPG to them. Networking, professionalism, the high ethical standards of AIPG, and industry news provided to members were other important aspects.
Field trips are a great way to enjoy AIPG events and meet other geologists! 34 TPG •
Jul.Aug.Sep 2017
www.aipg.org
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