The CEO Roundtable for Cooperative Managers celebrated its 20th anniversary in March with another strong program. In 1995, then Arthur Capper Cooperative Center Director, David Barton (professor emeritus) was approached by local cooperative managers about creating a new educational program for cooperative CEOs. He saw this as an exciting opportunity and reached out to Russ Nelson of CoBank who agreed to partner, and the CEO Roundtable was launched in 1996. The focus of the program has remained on providing these CEOs an educational opportunity where they can learn from industry experts, learn from each other, network and further develop as leaders of progressive, successful local cooperatives.
The strength of the program lies in a group of actively engaged CEOs who help develop the program each year. To ensure the topics are timely and relevant, Brian Briggeman, ACCC Director and associate professor; and CoBank Regional Vice President, Alan Woodard; work closely with a planning committee comprised of CEOs who regularly attend the roundtable. Evidence of the CEO Roundtable’s success can be found in a few of the comments from the CEOs and Board Chairs who attended the 2015 CEO Roundtable:
“The CEO Conference is one of the highlights of the year. I always look forward to the conference, the program/speakers, and the discussions with fellow CEOs and Board leaders.”
“Fantastic conference and very well planned. It was my first year and really enjoyed the program. I see the networking benefit and idea sharing as a huge plus.”
“The best meeting I attend all year!”
Three other educational programs have evolved out of the CEO Roundtable and additional opportunities await. CoBank continues to be an outstanding partner as they value the impact of strong education on the cooperative system. The ACCC looks forward to providing effective and relevant cooperative education to help the cooperative community meet the challenges of the future.
More information about the ACCC is available on its website and Facebook or Twitter pages.
