The beginning of each new year presents an opportunity for reflection, realignment and resolution. These tasks often get reprioritized as deadlines loom, schedules fill and commitments build. The Tampa Bay IIBA Chapter has been working hard to serve the BA community and is proud to revisit the highlights of 2017, share its vision for 2018 and commit to increasing its engagement with the Tampa Bay IT community.
 
2017 was a rewarding year for the Tampa Bay IIBA. The year started with acquiring several new board members, including our immediate past President Hoi Lo, who brought new life into the chapter. From social hours and campfire sessions, to BA toolkit demonstrations, the chapter began to revamp and intimately connect with the community.
 
We partnered with WITI, Tampa Bay Agile and KForce to host perhaps our largest event ever, ‘CREATING USER STORIES THAT ARE 'READY' TO BE 'DONE'!’ with Ellen Gottesdiener. In addition, we hosted local leaders from KForce, Cardinal Solutions Group, Nielsen and USF for a widely successful panel discussion surrounding ‘The Future of IT in Tampa Bay’! Branching out from the traditional chapter event style, Angelique Robateau and Mandy Eyrich held TB IIBA’s first-ever virtual Lunch & Learn event on Facebook Live which received over 300 views! Near the end of the year, Hoi shifted into a new position in her career and is now our VP of Professional Development. Hoi transitioned her Presidential duties to both Mandy Eyrich and AJ Hawley who together serve as Chapter Co-Presidents, which we celebrated during our end of year social hour at c.1949.  Thank you to our many sponsors and community partners who helped make 2017 an amazing year!
 
2018 is off to a productive start for the Tampa Bay IIBA! The board is excited to share its plans for the new year and has already pledged to being even more involved and dedicated than last year. By adding Committee Officers to our Board and committing to new goals, we are looking forward to increasing our engagement with you! We have additional openings for committee members to help us cultivate content, connect with our membership and conduct study groups so please be sure to reach out if you are interested. We have committed to conducting at least 1 community event per month, alternating between social events, virtual lunch and learns and formal presentations. We are also looking to deliver more content as it applies to the BABOK. We are thrilled to have this opportunity to serve the Tampa Bay BA community. Our goal is to make this a dedicated, transparent organization who provides you with the resources and tools you need to succeed and advocates for you at the IIBA National level.
 
We look forward to connecting with each one of you over the course of this year and learning from you! Please share with us any topics of interest, new developments in the IT industry or areas that may help us better serve you. Be sure to connect with us on Meetup, LinkedIn and Facebook to stay up-to-date! When we help each other, we all benefit!
 
Cheers to the year ahead!
 
Your Tampa Bay IIBA Chapter Leaders