American Gas - October 2010 - (Page 2)

President’s Message My ‘Lucky 13’ Years at aga Thanks to you and the aGa team, aGa has accomplished much, says soon-to-retire President and ceO dave Parker. It Is a medIcal fact that as you age your defense systems get weaker, which partly explains why yours truly is on the cover of this month’s American Gas magazine. After successfully fending off repeated requests by the magazine’s editors to be on their cover, I finally said yes, in great part because after 13 truly wonderful years as president and CEO of this association I expect to step down at the end of this year. What a ride it has been, and so the other reason I agreed to be on the cover was the opportunity to expand on my 13 terrific years at AGA in an interview starting on p. 24 of this issue. When I joined AGA in 1997 we were located in Rosslyn, Va., and we had 120 employees who worked on five different floors. Today we have 78 employees, we are located in the heart of Capitol Hill, and we all work on one floor in an open-space environment that not only enables us to afford office space in the nation’s capital, but also fosters enhanced communication and collaboration. Not incidentally, our location also allows us constant interaction with the legislators and regulators who oversee our industry. Not a week goes by without several meetings, presentations, fundraisers, breakfasts, lunches or dinners, or some other get-together with a group of elected officials, opinion leaders or other stakeholders with similar interests or concerns. The move to Washington is one of our proudest achievements at AGA, but it was only accomplished because of the commitment of the AGA team—a team that has truly been behind AGA’s success. Speaking of that staff team, they are as talented, hard-working, focused, member- DAviD n. PArker President and ceO dparker@aga.org responsive and just plain fun to be around as any group of professionals in my 40-year career in Washington. I always saw my role as being a player-coach on the AGA team, which allowed me to learn from my teammates while at the same time they may have learned a thing or two from me. Various team members have come and gone, but I am also proud that we have put a solid team in place that will continue to do a magnificent job representing our members in the decades ahead. Those members, of course, are the real key to AGA’s success, from company CEO, to operations vice president, to director of government relations, to manager of communications, to the meter reader in the field. Without their hard work, especially those who have participated in AGA’s committees, without their guidance and commitment—in sum their ongoing investment in this association—we would not exist, let alone succeed. Although this is not my last “President’s Message,” it is my most personal. I want to thank all of the AGA member company executives for their outstanding leadership, dedication and support, with a special thanks to the 14 AGA chairmen that I have had the pleasure and honor to serve. Most of all I want to thank all of you for the most rewarding, enjoyable and best years of my career. In sum, the luckiest 13 years I have ever spent. 2 october 2010 AmericAn GAs

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Gas - October 2010

American Gas - September 2010
Contents
President’s Message
We’ve Got Mail
Industry News
Safety First
To Be the Best
Reflections from AGA’s ‘Player-Coach’
2010 Buyer’s Guide
Marketplace
Advertisers’ Index
Places to Be
Noteworthies
Jobline
Facts on Gas

American Gas - October 2010