FCICA held its Mid-Year Meeting last week in Hershey, Pa., with a focus on business-building, recruiting and retaining qualified employees.

Mike Newberry, chairman of FCICA, was excited by the growth of the organization, which continues to attract new members through the association’s Successors program. The program, which was recently rebranded as LINC (Lead, Inform, Network, Community) is aimed at industry professionals age 40 and younger.

“This is the first Mid-Year event in several years where we haven’t had a plant tour,” Newberry said to the attendees on hand. “Yet we still have a good turnout here.”

Added Pat Kelly, FCICA membership chairman, “We have [been enjoying] unprecedented growth. We are growing at a rate of 20 to 30% a year.”

Also discussed during the opening session was the continued success of the Certified Installation Manager (CIM) program. The association recently held an intensive three-day program to train nine members to the CIM protocol. Amy Johnston, who oversees the program, called the event “a success.”

Presentations at the Mid-Year Meeting included “Recruit, Motivate and Retain Top Talent”; an overview of the ASTM standard for rigid-core flooring; business succession planning from a legal standpoint; and “Communicating from the Field to the Office.”

Look for our full report later this week. For more information on FCICA, visit fcica.com.