New Event Model – Rationale for Change Basil Hassan Vice President for Technical Activities 8 January 2012

2 The Need for Change … Our profession is evolving and AIAA must change with it  More emphasis in the industry on integrating systems and disciplines. AIAA must be in a position to support these growth areas  Our membership numbers are in slow decline and we are not retaining membership in the young professional ranks  Our conferences have evolved to more focused events that only attract a portion of the aerospace community  Many in our profession, primarily those in industry (who make up nearly half our membership), do not find our current conference offerings relevant to their jobs

What would you like to see changed…? (Top 3 responses) 3 Feedback from Surveys: Past Attendees

What would you like to see at AIAA events? (Top 4 responses) 4 Feedback from Surveys: Non-Attendees

5 The Need for Change … … and at the same time  Recent attendance at conferences is either down or stagnant. No significant growth!  Government funded R&D (in academia, government labs, and industry) is also in decline due to cuts in federal spending.  Discretionary dollars used for travel are at a premium. It is no longer feasible to attend 3-4 focused conferences a year. Some organizations have a hard time justifying going to a single conference!

6 Exercise What was your first job as an aerospace professional? What was the first AIAA conference you attended? Which conference(s) (AIAA or non-AIAA) is the most relevant to your current job? Will AIAA’s current set conferences address your needs as you grow as an aerospace professional?

7 Our Goals for Today’s Workshop Ensure our Institute is relevant to aerospace professionals Ensure our conferences integrate a spectrum of topics of interest to the profession (technical disciplines, systems, policy, operations, etc.) Ensure our overall events provide meaningful professional development and interaction opportunities to the broad aerospace community (conference papers/presentations, networking, education, etc.) Ensure our events are financially viable (both for the attendee and for the Institute) Ensure that our conferences are “must attend” events for all those in our profession and can accommodate expansion into new technology and program areas

8 A Message from Our President-Elect “Hi. I wish I could be with you for this Technical Activities Committee (TAC) Workshop, but that’s not possible on this occasion. AIAA presidents come and go, but TAC is an enduring feature of our Institute. What I would ask of you is the recognition that, if AIAA itself is to endure, we must adapt to the times and to the needs of the aerospace profession as it is today, not as it was when we were all younger. The TAC leadership and others have ideas on how we might go about this, but they need not just your support, but your active support and your own ideas on how to make it better. Please let that be your goal for the day, and the future.” Mike Griffin, AIAA President-Elect

9 Your Participation is Critical Be a part of the process Keep an open mind Focus on the broader picture Think about our future, not just our past Help the AIAA leadership decide the best path forward to make our Institute the best we can be for our profession

10 Path Forward after the Workshop Tiger Team will …  Collect the feedback from the workshop and other interested parties  Refine the best conference models, ensuring they have the desired characteristics and can integrate with other activities of the Institute  Recommend a desired conference model and develop a transition plan for implementation  Get concurrence from stakeholders

11 Backup Charts with Data

Membership Trends NOTE: FY02 and FY10 dues increase years

Member Breakdown by Age NOTES: Median age = 51 17% of the members are young professionals (age 35 and younger)

Attendance Trends for TC Events 14 NOTES: Used annual conferences to normalize for variance in number of events organized per year. Gold line represents trend.

Attendance Trends by Event 15

Attendance Trends by Event 16 NOTES: Many small events are on a non-annual schedule. Co-locations of small events have been variable over the years (e.g., LTA has met with ADS and ATIO at different times)

17 Exhibit Trends by Event

TAC’s Financial Contribution: To Institute 18 NOTES: Technical Activities is a profit center for the Institute, providing additional funds to cover other services to our members. Institute includes Aerospace America, Corporate Membership, Communications (branding, advertising, web), and Awards Gala.

TAC’s Financial Contribution: By Product 19 NOTES: Events consist of the revenue and expenses associated with the meeting, papers, and exhibits for that event. “Papers Products” consists of Subscriptions and Archive sales that are not tied to a specific event and are marketed as a separate product. “TC Events” are AIAA events where TCs and PCs develop program. “Vended Events” are those that AIAA organizes on behalf of a government client such as NASA, FAA, and Missile Defense Agency.

TAC’s Financial Contribution: By Component 20 NOTES: Overall Meetings break even or lose money. Positive net from some larger meetings compensates negative net from other meetings. TC Events positive net relies on associated products. Registration fees cover costs of meeting and papers but sponsorship and exhibits are separate budgets.

FY11 Net Margin by Event: Meeting Only 21 NOTES: Net Margin includes only the meeting component of the event, and excludes papers, sponsorship, and exhibits. Asterisks indicate meetings not held during the fiscal year but had labor and allocation charges.

Registration Fee Comparison 22 OrganizationRegistration Fee Range Registration Structure IEEE$ tier structure, includes 3-5 lunches and 1-2 dinners ASME$ tier rate structure, includes 2 lunches and 2 receptions ASCE$ tier structure, includes 1-2 receptions and 1-2 dinners AICHE$ tier structure AIAA$ tier structure, Includes 1-3 lunches and 1 reception SAE$ Includes 2-3 lunches and 1-2 receptions Space Foundation$ tier structure, catered functions not included NOTES: All organizations have different business models, which impact registration fees Most organizations include proceedings in full paid registrations if a papered conference AIAA offers very low student rates compared to other organizations AIAA provides access to catered events to Retired Members who register All AIAA conferences are planned by professional staff Some organizations rely on volunteer labor to organize events Not all organizations include membership in non-member fees

Impact of Event Size 23 NOTE: Solid lines represent real data from FY11; dashed lines represent estimated data. Cost Breakdown Per Attendee Labor/attendee Direct cost/attendee Net margin/attendee Number of Full Paid Attendees $500 $400 $300 $200 $100 $0 ($100) ($200) ($300)

24 The top 3 aspects of events most valuable to you (Top 3 responses) Feedback from Surveys: Past Attendees

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