The start of the New Year presents a good opportunity for us as an association and an industry to reflect on our strengths, challenges and opportunities for 2014.
There is no doubt that 2013 was a difficult year in a number of ways, both internally and externally. Starting with the FDA and ending with the CDC, our adversaries have been highly successful at using government as a weapon against us. On Capitol Hill, partisan skirmishes beyond our control have created an environment where little to nothing is being accomplished.
Within the industry last year, there was uncertainty about the long term health of the ITA and even its ability to survive. Divergent interests and conflicting views on strategy led to funding problems which have taken us many months to work through.
Nevertheless, seeds of opportunity lay amidst these challenges. For example, this current assault by the Federal government has allowed us to find new allies on Capitol Hill and build a strong cadre of very powerful elected officials committed to working with us to restore fairness to the process. Almost daily we are finding new supporters among policy makers, many of whom are offended by the imbalanced way this industry has been treated.
Industry-wide, there is a new willingness to work together to further a common mission, and that is a very positive development. In addition, the ITA Board has instituted a new dues structure that we are confident will provide the resources necessary to confront the Federal regulatory and legislative challenges we are facing.
We all know the challenges are serious; we also know that there is strength in numbers. The ITA Board is optimistic that this new sense of purpose will allow us to bring into the fight a number of important companies within the industry that sat on the sidelines for the past year.
So while the path to success will not be easy, that which is worth fighting for rarely is. It is also clear that we have the tools and the energy to meet the challenges. Get involved in 2014 and let’s succeed together.
Thanks,
John Overstreet
