New Year, New Leadership Structure

It’s a great time to be a young professional in Des Moines. A few weeks ago, Forbes ranked Des Moines the #1 City for Young Professionals for the second time in a row!

If you’re looking for ways to get involved and make an impact, the Young Professionals Connection (YPC) Board is a great way to do that. I hope you’ll consider applying for the 2015 YPC Board. It’s going to be a great year!

-Emilee Richardson, President

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Applications are now open for the 2015 YPC Board! We are looking for a motivated and committed team of aspiring leaders to help continue and expand our efforts to attract and retain young professionals to the Greater Des Moines (DSM).

This year, as always, we will work together to plan a solid calendar of events that provide YPs with unique opportunities to grow personally and professionally.

What's NEW in 2015

Following an organizational vision planning in late-2013 and a recommendation from that year’s board, the 2014 board decided to work toward restructuring with the goals of making decision-making more efficient and effective. This new structure was voted on and passed in June.

The new structure maintains the current number of positions — actually adding one — but creates more real structure.

We believe this structure will accomplish three things: (1) It will allow us to operate better and make quicker decision as a board by reducing the number of voting positions from 18 to 12, (2) it will let us have more flexibility to adapt to the needs of our growing and evolving organization by having coordinator positions that can be added and removed as needed, and (3) it will make the board more accessible by allowing more up-and-coming YPC members to volunteer for leadership roles within the organization.

Board Positions in 2015

• President
• President-Elect
• President Ex-Officio
• Treasurer/Secretary
• At-Large
• Professional Development Chair
• Charitable Chair
• Civic & Culture Chair
• Social Chair
• Community Relations Chair
• Diversity Chair
• Marketing Chair
• Membership Chair
• Athletics Coordinator
• Impact Downtown Coordinator
• Student Coordinator
• Business Relations Coordinator
• Social Media Coordinator
• Ambassador Coordinator
• Webmaster

Want to get involved? Apply by October 12!

To apply for the board, all you have to do is fill out an application, attach your resume and send those things to Andrea Jansa, 2015 Treasurer/Secretary, by October 12 at 11:59 p.m. Andrea’s email is treasurer@ypcDSM.com. You must be a paid member to be eligible.

Following the application deadline, the current YPC Board will review the applications and select each position based on a majority vote. The proposed slate will then be voted upon by the YPC membership via email. If approved, the current and incoming board chairs will begin transitioning in November, with the official transition of the Board taking place at the YPC Annual Event!

Have questions? Don’t know what position to apply for? Come learn more and meet current board members! We’re hosting these Board Interest Socials for people who are interested in learning more about getting involved with the YPC board.

Upcoming Events

• Tuesday, September 16, 5-6 p.m. at the Royal Mile (before the New Member Meeting)
• Friday, September 26, 8-9 a.m. at Java Joe’s on 4th
• Thursday, October 2, 5:30-7 p.m at Confluence Brewery

Don’t worry if you can’t make those events! Feel free to reach out to current board members to learn about their positions!

YPC President

You may know Emilee Richardson as the 2014 President, but she will be taking another term in 2015!

Kyle Oppenhuizen, the 2014 President-Elect slated to be President, has accepted a position as Communications Project Manager at the Greater Des Moines Partnership. YPC is an initiative of the Partnership, and as a Partnership employee, Kyle is no longer eligible to serve on the YPC board. It was no small decision for Kyle, but we wish him the best of luck in his new role! Don’t worry: Kyle will still be around so be sure to tell him congratulations the next time you run into him at a YPC event!

Emilee will continue in the role of President during this important time of transition to a new board structure. We look forward to another year of growth under her leadership!

YPC Annual Event

Mark your calendars and save the date for this year’s YPC Annual Event on Wednesday, December 3. More details will be coming soon!