By Sara Stromski, AEM Director of Membership and Customer Success —
Being an AEM service member means many things. From participating in the conversations that help shape the future of our industry to supporting the programs and offerings that help drive success for the wider association, service members play a crucial role in building momentum for AEM and the markets it serves.
More than anything else, however, being an AEM service member means speaking with one voice to help the association meet the needs and expectations of the 70-plus service member organizations who are part of the association today. With that being said, AEM is asking all its service member companies to weigh in and help guide us as we work to enhance one of our most valuable member offerings: the AEM Member Directory.
Available now, this online directory serves as a uniquely valuable tool for OEM member companies to seek out and find information on component and service members within the association in an interactive and informative format. However, as it is currently constructed, the AEM Member Directory relies heavily on what is best described as “product categories” in our database for AEM members to find peers among the membership who are uniquely capable of providing specific services or offering certain areas of expertise.
We regularly hear from many AEM service members how one main reason they join the association is to regularly network with, collaborate, and innovate with other companies. But, as many of us know, doing so can be a task easier said than done. That’s why we're investing the time, effort, and resources into making our online directory the best possible offering we can provide our members. AEM’s Service Member Executive Committee was recently tasked with determining the strategies and tactics to employ to improve the user experience of the directory, and we’ve decided to send out a survey to service members later this month. If you receive the survey, please respond and provide your honest feedback.
As a reminder:
- The directory is available for use by anyone, and it can be found on the association’s website – AEM.org.
- AEM member company representatives, when approached about other members who may or may not provide a certain service or product, are encouraged to share the link to the directory with one another.
- AEM member company representatives are encouraged to create a login to indicate interest in connecting with another member.
- AEM service member companies and components manufacturers have the opportunity to purchase upgraded directory listings.
AEM’s service membership possesses expertise in the fields of safety, technology, research, engineering, product support, finance, sales enablement, marketing and more. Because we specialize in these critical areas and often gain new perspective by working across industries, we can provide a wealth of services many manufacturers in the association may not have ready access to within their own organizations.
Because we come from such diverse backgrounds, work across businesses, and have service organization structures, our strength can also present challenges in connecting with other AEM members and in finding the right time and opportunities to contribute. That’s why we want to make sure we’re offering best-in-class products and services to help all AEM members to share information and insights regarding what they can offer one another.
Ultimately, however, we’re excited about what we will have to offer AEM through our enhanced AEM Member Directory. In harnessing our collective knowledge, we will be able to better engage with one another as members and help drive the success of our industry as a whole.
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