President's Perspective

In Search of Leadership

By Leonard L. Loeb

Now that we've made the transition safely into year 2000, our association faces new issues and challenges. How should we address new issues? How do we overcome obstacles and challenges? How can we restore public confidence in our profession? Perhaps the most important issue with which we are faced, however, is the question of who will lead us, as our new executive director, into the next millennium?

The State Bar's Executive Director Search Committee, chaired by Frank Gimbel, Milwaukee, is in the process of screening and interviewing the best candidates for the position. The committee has retained the services of a professional executive search firm - Gielow Associates Inc., Milwaukee - to ensure that we attract the most qualified and talented slate of candidates possible. In the 20-plus years since our association hired its last executive director, the issues facing our profession have changed significantly.

Our new executive director must not only ensure the continued financial health of the association, but also must understand technology and the delivery of information, and the roles they play in today's practice of law and commerce. Our new executive must be attuned to our diverse membership with its wide range of needs. And our new executive must understand the importance of outreach, not only to our membership, but to the public as well. We must retain a person in whom our trust is implicit, as he or she will serve - along with the president - as our spokesperson on all issues pertinent to our profession and organization.

Some of you have shared with the Search Committee your thoughts about the background, experience, qualifications, and traits our new executive director should bring to the position. We thank you for your input, and we assure you that as we go through the final selection process, we will assess each candidate with your thoughts and suggestions "front and center" in our minds. We pledge to you to do our best to secure the most outstanding candidate to serve and to lead us into the next century.

If you have any questions about the search, please do not hesitate to contact either Betty Braden at (800) 444-9404, ext. 6104, or Deb Tobin at (800) 444-9404, ext. 6177, at the State Bar of Wisconsin. To share your thoughts or comments regarding the qualifications of our new executive director, write to Atty. Franklyn Gimbel, State Bar of Wisconsin, P.O. Box 7158, Madison, WI 53707-7158. If you have any suggestions on this or other concerns, please contact me by email or by fax at (414) 272-7918.