PREFACE
The Bulletin
A 5-Year Strategy BRIAN YOUNG Director-General
Reflecting on what the BFFF has achieved over recent years, I decided that now is a very good time to think about where we are today, where we may want to be in the future and then prepare and plan for it.
BFFF TODAY BFFF is now a company limited by guarantee although our rules, governance and how we are organised are pretty much the same as always. Our product offer, our communication, our networking, our commercial activities and our financial performance have all been markedly improved and continue to develop.
A consequence of the more proactive approach taken has been the perception that the traditional contribution of the committee structure has been impacted and to some extent marginalised.
n Providing membership benefits - a mixed bag with the energy scheme working well but other initiatives failing. An obvious area for improvement
If we examine our current strategic pillars I would offer the following assessment of where we are today:
n Providing networking opportunities our major events perform very well and the addition of the business conference, regional and supplier seminars and the marketing, health & safety seminars has greatly improved our reach with members both regionally and by functional disciplines.
n Promoting the interests of our members this area has improved enormously and is now recognised as being a vital part of what BFFF has to offer. n Protecting our members interests - our health and safety service has developed significantly whilst our technical and legislative service has subtly changed emphasis to much more actively engage in influencing and lobbying with real success. n Addressing industry key issues - current projects include considering being the first Trade Association to enter into a Primary Authority arrangement, exploring better provision of foodservice market data, promoting increased use of bar codes in foodservice and agreeing with industry guidelines on working at height on refrigerated vehicles and trailers.
n Generating sufficient financial income through increased membership, reduced establishment costs, improved sponsorship and new activities, we have significantly improved the underlying profit ability of BFFF. The surplus is being invested in very strong PR activity which then creates a virtuous circle as our members see the results of the PR activity, which is readily available for members’ use, as being a very significant membership benefit. This helps gain and retain members. Overall significant progress has been made and feedback from our members either through our annual survey or through direct contact has been extremely positive.
CONTINUED OVER THE BULLETIN I JULY/AUGUST 2013 05