Leadership Lens

WE ARE NOT YOUR MAMA’S MEMBERSHIP ORGANIZATION:

Amanda O’Rourke

How many of your friends/family/colleagues have recently left the state of Washington for somewhere with less traffic and less growing pains? Personally, there have been so many within my personal circle that I have lost count. The change our state has experienced in the last decade has been significant.

Despite the number of goodbye parties I have attended in recent years, (according to the US Census Bureau) the population of Washington has grown 13.2 percent during the last decade. Nationwide, the growth rates slowed across the country, but our state was the exception. Nine hundred thousand residents moved here in the last 10 years.

As our state population grows, so does our profession. I, like everyone, dislike traffic, but I love the new energy, talent, and opportunities that the growth brings. CPAs are making a difference at big firms, small firms, tech firms or no firms, and we are thriving.

Just as the CPA profession is rapidly changing, the WSCPA is adapting to meet the needs of our state. This is not your mama’s membership organization any longer. Are you tapping in to all the WSCPA offers? Here are some ways to get the most of your WSCPA membership:

Once we are able to move beyond the current coronavirus crisis, how do you get out and meet one of the 900,000 new faces in Washington? Try attending a chapter event. Chapters across the state host day of service volunteer activities and various networking events. Seattle will be hosting a group at a Seattle Sounders FC game in the fall. Find all chapter and networking events on the WSCPA’s brand new website and click on ”CPE & Events”, then go to the “Chapter & Special Events” tab.

In addition to meeting new faces at chapter events, you can also join a WSCPA resource group and be matched with like-minded Washingtonians that like to talk GAAC, AARS, NFP or PFP. Only a group of CPAs could create this many acronym groups. Find a resource group to join on Connect, the new private community for WSCPA members, at wscpa.org/connect. If you’re already a member of a resource group, you will still want to go to wscpa.org/connect to join in on the conversations that are happening there.

Now that the Washington State Board of Accountancy has approved nano learning CPE, you can learn something new in only 10 minutes with WSCPA nano CPE. See page 27 for details on nano CPE and how to find the WSCPA’s new nano learning courses.

The WSCPA advocacy team is working hard to monitor proposals that impact our profession, our clients and our futures. During the 2020 legislative session, we monitored various proposals including taxes, consumer privacy, contractor transparency, certification and occupational licensing, and changes to the Workforce Education Investment

Act (E2SHB 2158). Read the latest advocacy news on the All Things Advocacy blog at wscpa.org/advocacy-blog.

As this will be my final column as chair of the WSCPA Board of Directors, I want to wrap up by imploring you to talk about being a WSCPA member with others. Share why you are a member with your colleagues and friends. Invite them to attend an event with you as a guest and experience what it’s like to be a member.