Looking Ahead to 2008

The sleigh is parked and the ball has dropped, but the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and the 20/20 Leadership Alliance are in full swing for an active 2008. The Chamber's young professionals initiatives achieved many successes in 2007, with the first-ever NELAs (Nashville Emerging Leader Awards) celebrating the accomplishments of 12 young professionals and awarding two individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the development of Nashville's YPs. November brought the third annual Nashville Young Professionals Day, with more panelists and speakers discussing critical topics to the development of our area's YPs.

While you start working diligently on your New Year's resolutions, don't miss out on the opportunity to be a 2008 NELA recipient. NELA applications will be available at www.thenelas.com in mid-January, with a submission deadline of Wednesday, Feb. 27. The NELAs ceremony will take place in July 2008, so be sure to nominate yourself or someone you know for this exciting award. All award categories, industry descriptions, application information and the applications themselves will only be available online at www.thenelas.com.

Have you met our new mayor? If not, here's your opportunity. On Wednesday, Feb. 20, the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and the 20/20 Leadership Alliance will host a "Meet Your New Mayor" forum for area YPs. At this forum, Mayor Karl Dean will speak to YPs directly about his plans for Nashville during his term as mayor. YPs will also be able to address additional topics with Mayor Dean at a question-and-answer session. Registration will be available soon on www.nashvillechamber.com.

Continue to check our events page on www.ypnashville.org, as well as the "20/20 Happenings" section of our YPNashville Monthly e-newsletter, for more networking and professional development opportunities. For more information on the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce's YP initiatives, please contact Searcy Yoder at syoder@nashvillechamber.com.