Capturing the spirit of the slogan “ALA Reimagined,” president & CEO Larry Lauck, membership director Carrie Kolles, and chair of ALA’s board of directors Rick Seidman, participated in a group conversation on stage during last month’s Conference that outlined ALA’s achievements in 2024 and previewed new benefits for 2025.
“For the past 11 months, I have been leading a refresh of the membership department and bringing fresh eyes to the organization,” Kolles stated. “My focus has been on how we can best enhance the member experience, provide the value of a membership, and how we can regrow the organization and gain more support. ALA’s vision is to create a better lit world — and that entails supporting all aspects of the lighting industry, from individuals to all sizes and types of showrooms and rep agencies. We are grateful for every member that has stood with us as we reimagined ALA.”
Among the accomplishments in 2024 is the addition of 42 new members to the association. “Our robust community of members is the purpose and drive of ALA. We want to stand alongside you in navigating government regulations, and we want to be the educational hub that continues to develop you and your team professionally. We want to provide a space to bond, share, and brainstorm with your counterparts,” Kolles said.
Expanded educational opportunities, more ways to network, and an overall enhanced member experience are some of the changes coming next year. “We’ll be rolling out a member platform as well as member message boards. We want you to communicate with each other and have conversations. We hope that you will see and feel the fresh momentum of ALA today,” Kolles remarked.
Seidman recalled how his first ALA Conference, which he attended at age 24 when he entered the lighting industry as a sales representative for Quoizel, has had a significant impact on the success of his career.
“Lighting was entirely new to me then and I made the [personal] investment to join ALA and attend Conference — and it became a critical moment in my career,” Seidman said. “On the first day of my first Conference, I was able to sit next to Troy Lee, Fred Lee, Harry Gilliam, Otis Reed — top customers of mine in a territory that I wasn’t familiar with yet. To have that amount of time to spend with top customers as a sales rep was awesome. I was a new employee and I got face time with the owners of Quoizel, who were then looking at me differently because I made an investment on my own to come to the ALA Conference.”
While at that first Conference as a newcomer to the industry, Seidman made the most of the opportunities the event presented. “I sought out the [leaders] in the industry. I introduced myself and said, ‘I’m new to the industry, what does it take to be a great sales rep?’ I came back from that Conference with much more than just what the valuable educational seminars taught me.,” he said. “Differentiating myself is what ALA gave me as a young man. I gained a whole different respect for my customers, for my employees, and for the industry as a whole.”
Now at the helm of the lighting manufacturer he represented all those years ago and possessing a vast knowledge of the industry, Seidman explained that he remains an active member today for one reason: ROI. “First off, networking never stops; there will always be new buyers, new owners, and new companies. We can never stop networking, and that’s a big part of what this organization offers,” he stated. “There is the engineering expertise and the education, but there is also the involvement in governmental affairs. When we have issues that affect the industry, for us to be able to reach out to ALA and get a group of us together and address these issues is of real value to me.”
When Lauck took over as president and CEO in 2023, he immediately dove into the particulars of the organization. “We knew we had lots of work to do, but it was an opportunity and a challenge,” he said. “The first thing we wanted to do was increase membership engagement. We needed to offer more networking opportunities and develop new programs.”
To that end, next year ALA will be releasing a new database that will increase membership engagement. “We’ve got a lot of exciting things that we’re planning to roll out in 2025,” Lauck commented, adding that the creation of a strategic plan in 2024 has been equally important.
“You could consider 2024 to be a year of refreshment, rejuvenation, and realignment,” he said. “I think the members have seen this happen as we released new programs and tried new things, such as a group healthcare plan. So far, we have approximately 80 companies that have signed up. Many members have told me how much money they are saving, some in the tens of thousands of dollars.”
Members don’t need to wait until 2025 to be able to enjoy some of the benefits that debuted this year, such as the quarterly membership forums, conducted via Zoom. “This is a free member benefit that I encourage you to take full advantage of,” Lauck said. “Plus, you can take our monthly webinars for free. If you have new employees or a staff member you need to bring up to speed, have them take one of the free webinars — and then, if you want to advance them to a higher certification higher level, we have that available as well.”
Members were also encouraged to join one of the ALA committees. The meetings are held online and are a good way for members to expand their network as well as hear and develop ideas.
“We are an association to support you, the lighting industry, and we need to know how we can better support you,” Kolles said. “We’re taking a very proactive approach with our members. We want you to be happy, we want you to be satisfied, and we want to help you grow your business.”
To learn more about ALA membership, getting involved in a committee, or how you can take advantage of the programs and benefits offered, contact Kolles.