Dear SIM NJ Members,
It was wonderful to see so many of you at our summer events. Our Tri-State Happy Hour in NYC and Summer BBQ in Clark were both well attended, and the SIMNJ Foundation Annual Charity Golf Outing and IT Expo raised more than $80,000 to support scholarships for New Jersey students and grants to New Jersey charities. Thank you to everyone who participated, volunteered, sponsored, or otherwise helped make these events successful.
We have an exciting program year underway. Our first regular meeting is September 10, featuring futurist and author Frank Diana speaking on “Inside the Next Transition: Seeing Systemic Change Before Pathways Harden.” Frank will explore how recognizing present pressures can give us greater visibility into the futures beginning to take shape. Then, at our October 8 meeting, we are planning to launch SIM Women NJ, our chapter of SIM Women. Both meetings will be held at the Madison Hotel in Morristown, and I hope to see many of you there.
Our Programs Committee is also exploring new venues for future meetings. We know our members come from throughout New Jersey, and we hope that adding geographic diversity to our meeting locations will make SIMNJ events more accessible to more of our members. More to come on that.
As we begin the new program year, we are also addressing some financial challenges. Meeting costs have risen significantly, and our Executive Committee took those increases into account when it approved SIMNJ’s 2026–27 operating budget in August. Our goal is to manage these costs while continuing to provide the high-quality meetings, networking opportunities, and member services that make SIMNJ valuable.
Sponsorship is an important part of that effort. Our sponsors help make it possible for SIMNJ to offer excellent meetings and social events while keeping costs reasonable for our members. This year, we are offering an incentive to members who help us identify new sponsors. A member who refers a sponsor who completes a contract for a regular meeting will receive a $200 Visa gift card, while a referral resulting in a completed Happy Hour sponsorship will receive a $100 gift card. Please contact our Sponsorship Committee at sponsorship@simnj.org for more information.
And speaking of sponsorship, I want to recognize Pasquale Cirullo, our VP of Sponsorship, who was named a SIM National Chapter Leader of the Year in May for his work launching SIMNJ’s sponsorship program. Please join me in congratulating Pasquale on this well-deserved recognition.
We have also made some adjustments to dues and fees for the coming year. Vendor Members are important contributors to SIMNJ—as sponsors, committee members, volunteers, and active participants in our community. Vendor Members also benefit from a unique opportunity to network with local IT leaders and decision makers. Beginning in 2027, Vendor Member dues will increase to $745, and the cost of Guest tickets for regular meetings will increase to $150. Together with the support of our sponsors, these changes will allow us to keep member ticket prices unchanged from last year, despite significantly higher meeting costs. We believe maintaining that value for our members is important.
Finally, I want to thank all of you for your continued support of SIMNJ.
SIMNJ is its members. We are an all-volunteer organization, and virtually everything we do—our regular meetings, Happy Hours, CIO Roundtables, bi-weekly Members in Transition calls, Winter Social, charity golf outing, and other programs—is made possible by members who give their time and talents.
And volunteering does not have to mean making a major time commitment. It might mean spending 20 minutes helping at the registration table, referring a prospective member or sponsor, joining a committee, or helping organize an event. Every contribution makes SIMNJ stronger. If you would like to become more involved, please contact me at slandry@simnj.org. I would be delighted to help you find a way to participate that fits your interests and availability.
Thank you for being part of SIMNJ. I look forward to seeing you at an upcoming event.
Steve Landry
President, SIMNJ