Corporate Ambassadors: Creating value for IR together

By Susan E. Sedory Holzer, MA, CAE
SIR Executive Director

SIR’s new brand was recently introduced to the readers of IR Quarterly. I hope you will resonate with the strategic imperative behind this effort as described in this feature article. I also hope you will see that this effort is not just about a new look, but is equally about the importance of actions and behaviors for strengthening the SIR brand.

When we explored the action side of branding with our industry partners, we learned that although they have enjoyed longstanding, productive relationships with the society and the foundation, there was room to improve.  We learned that supporters want to know exactly how their collaborations with and contributions to SIR and SIR Foundation are advancing the specialty and improving patients’ lives. They are seeking meaningful ways to dialogue with every IR, whether in SIR leadership or working in the trenches. And (not surprisingly), we heard how the new health care environment has caused introspection and driven their need for more agile business models.

The society recognized these insights from industry as an opportunity to change the way we approach corporate relations—for as the ground continues to shift under all our feet, there is strength and balance to be found in unity of voice and effort.

In fall of last year SIR introduced its new Corporate Ambassador Program (CAP). Through a CAP Physician Delegate Task Force led by James Benenati, M.D., FSIR, the program connects corporate supporters directly with delegates to create longer, stronger relationships and provides a high-impact, high-recognition path for companies that want to invest in IR. Through CAP, industry partners are afforded more insight into what their support of SIR and SIR Foundation accomplishes; faster, more direct communication with the IR community; and broader acknowledgment of the positive impact of their investment in IR.

CAP replaces the traditional corporate membership model with a consolidated, tiered approach, and draws across all of the society’s and foundation’s assets to increase industry’s access to and visibility among the IR community. It is predicated on the idea of creating value for IR together across the spectrum of education, advocacy, research, evidence building, and engagement—areas where our corporate supporters clearly share SIR and SIR Foundation’s interest in advancement.  

We are still in the early throes of introducing the program and will identify our 2015 supporters at SIR 2015 in Atlanta. However, several CAP commitments have already been made by many of the society’s longtime, top supporters who are enthusiastic about the transparency and ease of access and communication upon which the program is built. There is also ample opportunity within CAP for companies with whom we have newer relationships, or whose investment may be more limited.

SIR is responding to the health care marketplace’s need for more agility and value in IR. Just as IRs are advancing medical practice by developing, testing and implementing breakthrough treatments, SIR and SIR Foundation remain committed to partnerships that nurture innovative thinking and create a stronger sense of mutual engagement. We look forward to new horizons that come with the stable funding and direct dialogue that CAP affords. I hope you will visit sirweb.org/corporate or contact me sholzer@sirweb.org to learn more.