Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to complete the monthly meeting evaluations. Our Programs committee reviews your comments each month and we take them very seriously. Please continue to provide valuable feedback on how we are doing. We want to give you some background on how and why decisions are made concerning our monthly meetings and on what it takes to produce each meeting, as well as answer some of the many suggestions and comments received from those evaluations.

Dallas HR charges $30 per member to attend each meeting and this revenue is offset by the costs we incur. Our average charge is $24 per person for the meal and service charge leaving us only $6.00 per person to cover A/V equipment (microphones, screens, projectors), speaker fees or gifts, name tag expense, etc. Dallas HR staff members’ salary for the meeting preparation time is not included in these numbers. As you can see, there is very little, if any, profit associated with the monthly meetings. Without many volunteers helping our staff coordinate our meetings, top-notch speakers willing to waive their fees and travel costs, and our sponsors, we would be unable to produce the high quality meetings you have grown to expect.

We receive many comments regarding the meeting locations and food quality. Because of the size of our monthly meetings, there are only a few hotels that can accommodate our group. The size of the group requires that we use at least a portion of the ballroom. Hotels prefer to book groups that will use the ballroom as well as sleeping rooms. Since we do not book sleeping rooms, few hotels will confirm a location more than 30 days out and could “bump” us if a conference comes in and requests that date.

The incredible challenge is to do all of this at the best possible price in order for Dallas HR to sustain the current $30 member price. Many hotels far exceed the $30 per person charge in food, parking and service charge alone. The entire Board is unanimous that our mission for the meetings is to provide a high quality education, in a suitable location with a meal, at the best possible price.

The next time a volunteer assists you at check-in, or you hear an outstanding speaker, or you receive some great information from a sponsor, please take a moment to thank them for donating their time and helping us keep down the meeting costs for you and Dallas HR.

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer for Dallas HR, please contact a Board member and they would be more than happy to assist you. You can also call the Dallas HR offices at 214-631-8775 and speak to any of our staff.

We hope this helps you understand what goes on “behind the scenes” at our meetings and why we make certain decisions. Please feel free to offer any suggestions you may have and continue to complete the evaluations at each meeting. We are anxious to hear from you and assure you that decisions are made with those comments in mind.

Diane McClendon
Executive Director
Dallas Human Resource Management Association, Inc.

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