Tom Magnussen's Final President's Message
After serving as BOMA San Diego's president for two years, Tom Magnussen is stepping down. Read on to hear his last president's message.
Two years ago, I inherited the trust of industry colleagues and friends with the objective of advancing an institution upon which we all respect. As I step aside, not away, I wish to reflect upon what we have accomplished together.
Starting with a comprehensive Strategic Long Range Plan, our Association has committed its purpose to a new guiding Mission Statement. Embracing the core pillars of industry advocacy, professional development, and peer-to-peer networking; our Board realigned the Association to focus critical leadership resources, refined its strategy of delivering programming under a unified theme, and reenvisioned the Association as a strategic business resource to its members. None of this could have been accomplished without the dedication of an invested membership, sponsors that sought elevation of a broad and diverse industry, and a cadre of Board of Directors and committee chairs whose commitment to BOMA San Diego’s success mirrors that of their own profession.
In 2018, BOMA San Diego had 17 committees, today we have ten. We had monthly luncheons, we now have six. These fundamental changes were not a retreat, rather a deliberate embrace of the tension between ever-impacted work schedules and increased expectations of how a trade association can deliver relevant offerings to its members.
Our Association sought resources broadly to align best practices while concurrently engaging local partners to define itself as the preeminent commercial real estate association in San Diego. Concentrating leadership resources has brought communities within BOMA closer, facilitated greater dissemination of core competencies, and established a framework that not only anticipates emerging industry trends but is also nimble enough to address the resulting pressures. We adopted a programmatic theme establishing a narrative throughout the year and built upon the association’s role in leadership development yielding greater member participation and satisfaction. We conclude the year with uniformly sold out luncheons, special events, and educational programs. As a result, following years of a challenging economy that required our Association rely on its reserves, I am proud to say, 2019’s financial performance outpaced those of greater than half a decade.
In Washington DC, our efforts to confront and disarm the threat of active shooters in the workplace, established BOMA San Diego as a critical resource to our federated associations at BOMA International. In Sacramento your efforts to preserve commercial real estate as the incubator for job creation has earned BOMA San Diego a position on BOMA California’s Executive Committee. And at home, our members’ generosity through community service projects, school supply and holiday drives, impacted the lives of thousands of our region’s most vulnerable. We have both done well and good.
Despite our advancements, our Association and industry continue to face targeted assaults. 2020 will usher in well-funded, dedicated, and direct aggressive legislation against commercial real estate. I pity those wishing to confront BOMA San Diego. They fail to understand the perseverance, grit, and resolve each of our members demonstrate independently let alone collectively. As our industry’s standard bearers, BOMA San Diego will we be at the front line of these fights. We will be challenged to affirm our Association’s integral role in our community through effective advocacy, partnership development, and raising significant funds. Bring on the fight, we shall prevail.
The only existential threat we face is a timid and disinterested membership. It is the only thing we cannot overcome. I encourage every member to deepen her/his engagement with BOMA. Assuredly, your professional development will accelerate, and in doing so you will enhance and challenge our Association. Shortly we will elect a Board of Directors who have broad perspectives on our industry and an acute dedication for the advancement of this association. Demanding that our leadership continues to critically evaluate our Association’s role relative to our industry and membership’s needs is a never-yielding charge. I have faith our Association is not only strong enough but prepared for that necessary pressure.
Starting with a comprehensive Strategic Long Range Plan, our Association has committed its purpose to a new guiding Mission Statement. Embracing the core pillars of industry advocacy, professional development, and peer-to-peer networking; our Board realigned the Association to focus critical leadership resources, refined its strategy of delivering programming under a unified theme, and reenvisioned the Association as a strategic business resource to its members. None of this could have been accomplished without the dedication of an invested membership, sponsors that sought elevation of a broad and diverse industry, and a cadre of Board of Directors and committee chairs whose commitment to BOMA San Diego’s success mirrors that of their own profession.
In 2018, BOMA San Diego had 17 committees, today we have ten. We had monthly luncheons, we now have six. These fundamental changes were not a retreat, rather a deliberate embrace of the tension between ever-impacted work schedules and increased expectations of how a trade association can deliver relevant offerings to its members.
Our Association sought resources broadly to align best practices while concurrently engaging local partners to define itself as the preeminent commercial real estate association in San Diego. Concentrating leadership resources has brought communities within BOMA closer, facilitated greater dissemination of core competencies, and established a framework that not only anticipates emerging industry trends but is also nimble enough to address the resulting pressures. We adopted a programmatic theme establishing a narrative throughout the year and built upon the association’s role in leadership development yielding greater member participation and satisfaction. We conclude the year with uniformly sold out luncheons, special events, and educational programs. As a result, following years of a challenging economy that required our Association rely on its reserves, I am proud to say, 2019’s financial performance outpaced those of greater than half a decade.
In Washington DC, our efforts to confront and disarm the threat of active shooters in the workplace, established BOMA San Diego as a critical resource to our federated associations at BOMA International. In Sacramento your efforts to preserve commercial real estate as the incubator for job creation has earned BOMA San Diego a position on BOMA California’s Executive Committee. And at home, our members’ generosity through community service projects, school supply and holiday drives, impacted the lives of thousands of our region’s most vulnerable. We have both done well and good.
Despite our advancements, our Association and industry continue to face targeted assaults. 2020 will usher in well-funded, dedicated, and direct aggressive legislation against commercial real estate. I pity those wishing to confront BOMA San Diego. They fail to understand the perseverance, grit, and resolve each of our members demonstrate independently let alone collectively. As our industry’s standard bearers, BOMA San Diego will we be at the front line of these fights. We will be challenged to affirm our Association’s integral role in our community through effective advocacy, partnership development, and raising significant funds. Bring on the fight, we shall prevail.
The only existential threat we face is a timid and disinterested membership. It is the only thing we cannot overcome. I encourage every member to deepen her/his engagement with BOMA. Assuredly, your professional development will accelerate, and in doing so you will enhance and challenge our Association. Shortly we will elect a Board of Directors who have broad perspectives on our industry and an acute dedication for the advancement of this association. Demanding that our leadership continues to critically evaluate our Association’s role relative to our industry and membership’s needs is a never-yielding charge. I have faith our Association is not only strong enough but prepared for that necessary pressure.
I want to offer my sincere appreciation for the incredible honor being your President. It has been a loan of your Trust, and I hope I have honored it well. Thank you.