Annual Report to Members, Donors and Friends
of the Society of Critical Care Medicine
David Julian Martin, CAE
Chief Executive Officer/Executive Vice President
Society of Critical Care Medicine
It is my pleasure to report to you on the business affairs of the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM). In this year’s annual report, I will attempt a basic overview of SCCM’s significant business accomplishments and will provide information on its financial position.
Overall Improved Performance
The Society’s fiscal year ended on September 30, and 2007 proved a particularly strong year for the organization. While SCCM is organized as a not-for-profit corporation, it annually sets net revenue goals in hopes of accumulating funds to make certain larger (capital) purchases and to ensure the Society has adequate emergency reserve funds to support future operations should disaster strike. Total assets in 2007 grew to $15.9 million, of which $8.6 million constituted the net assets of the organization, taking into account payments due but not yet paid and revenues received in advance of next year (deferred revenues.) This was a healthy increase over prior years, significantly strengthening the organization’s balance sheet.
Total revenue from operations rose 7% over the prior year to $12.6 million, while expenses decreased by approximately $250,000 to $11 million. The result was a significant improvement in net operating revenue, which rose to nearly $1.6 million. Changes in net revenue largely were the result of strong attendance and increased industry support at the Society’s 36th Critical Care Congress in Orlando, Florida. Non-operating revenues and expenses were similar to the prior year, and included items such as earnings on investments, section activities and minor expenses related to planning for the SCCM headquarters relocation. In all, total corporate revenue rose to an all-time high of $13.2 million, and overall corporate net revenue increased to $1.8 million, or 13.6% of gross revenue. This net revenue will improve SCCM’s reserve funds significantly.
In 2007, the Society’s cornerstone activities all performed well. The 36th Critical Care Congress, noted above, realized increased revenues and benefited from reduced operating costs over the prior year when added expenditures were required to relocate the meeting from New Orleans to San Francisco. The Society’s journal, Critical Care Medicine, continued to perform strongly with net revenues of $1.3 million after allocations for SCCM staff and overhead costs. In addition, dues revenue increased with membership. Dues revenues rose to $1.2 million, and membership increased by 450 to 13,319.
Other key Society initiatives also were well received and contributed to the fiscal year’s strong performance. These included teleseminars, the Asian Forum, two Clinical Focus conferences, the Critical Care Academy and the Joint SCCM/European Society of Intensive Care Medicine Summer Conference.
Marking Great Achievements
While all of the above activities were under way, along with many others too numerous to mention, planning for a milestone in the Society’s history was about to come to fruition. After several years of investigating and planning, the Society invested in its first headquarters facility this year. This state-of-the art, 25,000-square-foot facility is located in Mount Prospect, Illinois. Purchasing and operating this facility marks a significant milestone in the Society’s evolution; it is a tribute to the financial stability and strength of SCCM’s organization and the growth of the critical care profession. The new headquarters gives SCCM’s 60 staff members the tools and resources needed to serve all its members in more than 80 countries better. The building also provides a convenient meeting place for SCCM committees and work groups.
In 2001, the SCCM Council undertook a disciplined approach to financial management that continues today. It was this responsible, fiscal approach that allowed SCCM to make a capital investment of this size, and this fully equipped, $5 million facility will prove to be a highly viable operations hub for many years into the future. With its close proximity to O’Hare International Airport, the city of Chicago and many nearby hotels, this facility is capable of hosting numerous meetings in state-of-the-art surroundings. The building boasts flexible meeting space for work groups of up to 50 people as well as the capabilities to handle additional participants via high-tech telephone and Web-based conference systems.
The Society’s staff and members will be able to work on a wide variety of projects to achieve the Society’s mission of improving the care of critically ill and injured patients.
The award-winning architecture, interior design and planning firm Solomon Cordwell Buenz (SCB) designed the building. SCB, which practices nationally with offices in Chicago and San Francisco, involved Society staff in all stages of the process to ensure they had comfortable, ergonomically sound workspaces that supported the Society’s new green initiatives.
Because of the increasing dependence on highly technological systems for everything from conference registration to worldwide disaster response, the new SCCM headquarters boasts a sophisticated, hardened data center. This “information hub” includes backup power generators, auxiliary air conditioning systems and a gas fire suppression system to ensure performance continues even under difficult situations. This information hub is connected via high-speed fiber optic cable and backed up with analog line support. With critical care practitioners worldwide counting on the Society for crucial information and resources, this modern data center ensures the Society’s technology systems perform uninterrupted in all conditions.
While the Society’s headquarters has relocated, careful planning has ensured that telephone numbers and email addresses remain unchanged. Continue to be sent registrations, membership applications and other payments to the lockbox address: 35083 Eagle Way, Chicago, Illinois 60678. Only the street address of the building has changed, making the move less disruptive to Society operations. The Society’s new street address is 500 Midway Drive, Mount Prospect, Illinois 60056.
Special Thanks
As you can see, 2007 was an exceptional year for SCCM financially, programmatically and operationally. The hard work and support of volunteers within the SCCM Creative Community and of the dedicated SCCM staff as well as the leadership of the elected Council, have made 2007 the Society’s best all-around year on record. Of course, none of this would have been possible without the continued support of the Society’s many members, donors and industry sponsors, and for this we are truly grateful. The Society is poised for continued growth and stands ready to address the many challenges its members face in providing sophisticated and compassionate care for the critically ill and injured worldwide.
