The Board of L&D Philly has spent the better part of this year meeting with our most active members, volunteers and partners to chart the future of the organization. We are ready to share the results of our assessment with you.

The reality is that since the start of the pandemic our organization has continued to pivot to try to meet the needs of the community. There have been highs and lows with that. One of the highs was matching the high water mark for members a few years ago after losing 25% of them at the start of the pandemic. The lows have been trying to get people to actively participate and attend events both in-person and virtually. This is true of many, if not all, professional groups as the world has changed dramatically in the last few years. So many of us are working at home and venture out less in part because we are sick of virtual meetings after attending them all day.

When I helped found L&D Philly almost 10 years ago, I never expected it would continue operating for this long. I figured that the ATD Greater Philadelphia chapter would eventually come back to its roots and meet the needs of our community that we have fulfilled. It never did... until now. I have had a few conversations with the President-elect and VP Membership-elect. They have some great ideas, a robust membership and the backing of a national organization. Along with the challenges we have faced recently in attracting people to events, my personal health and the fact that I have not been able to recruit a successor to become president, has led to a decision. L&D Philly needs to change.

The long-term plan is to transition the organization to more of a networking group. We started this organization as a meetup group and are going to return to a similar format.

What does that mean for all of you?

• Free Membership (effective immediately)
• Regularly scheduled networking events and special events
• • We are moving away from monthly workshops but may still host occasional educational sessions or certifications as opportunities arise
• A new website -- Coming late December
• • You'll still be able to find us at ldphilly.com
  • The current website is used for advertising, event registration and email. The new website will focus on just advertising the organization and links to upcoming events
• Emails will come from a different service -- Coming late December
• • Messages will still be from info@ldphilly.com
• The current board is remaining in place. 
• • Myself, Erin Dischinger (Vice President) & Vickie McDevitt (Secretary)
• We still have volunteer opportunities. Send an email to info@ldphilly.com, if you are interested. Options include:
• • Event Hosts
  • Communications
  • Sponsorships

Like myself, some of you have been active ATD Greater Philadelphia chapter members or volunteers over the years. I encourage all of you to go to tdphl.org and consider attending their events. For those of you that are not current members of that group, their leadership is offering a discount on membership. Look for a separate email with those details.

Thank you all for your support over the years! This is not a time of sadness. I'm very proud of this organization and all it has done to support our community. Change is inevitable and I know this is the time.