My name is Mary Rose Ruggles and I'm the Marketing Manager for the Chamber (for the Regina Chamber of Commerce) and I've been in this position for almost a year now. I have been with the Chamber for eight years. I completed my eighth year at the end of November. I started out as Administrative Assistant to the Executive Director and I was in that position for about five years. And then I moved into the Events Co-ordinator position for a couple of years. And as of February this year I was asked to take this position which I am enjoying very much.

I had been a stay at home mom for about nine years. I raised a family of three daughters and there was an ad in the paper, and I've always thought the Chamber of Commerce would be a great place to work with because I know that you work with a lot of people with a lot of inquiries, and I was lucky to be selected. Of course I completed my high school diploma and I went on to post-secondary education. I have two years of secretarial studies and just basically learning on the jobs as I went along. And of course best training you can find is on the job.

A positive attitude is very important to do this job. I really feel that integrity and honesty, humility is very important when you are dealing with people, especially when you are looking at gaining members for the Regina Chamber because they certainly look upon those qualities when you go and visit them. Then of course the company feels that this is a true representative of the organization and they'll feel more comfortable with that.

Team skills are very important in any job and of course I can see this in our position here at the Regina Chamber of Commerce very important. I sell memberships to prospects. The rest of the staff assist in delivering the services that is put together to comprise the value of membership in the Regina Chamber. So for example, our administrative assistant, she takes the first call from the member and it is important for her to be pleasant and to relay any messages to the right people in the organization. Course or Events Co-Ordinator, she oversees the organization of events. We work (she and I work) very closely together, and of course our accountant letting me know what accounts are outstanding or who has paid or who has not paid especially on the renewal side. So we all work together for the benefit of our members.

I have taken some training, especially since I have been in this position in firstly…in selling techniques which are important in my job. And then we, as an organization here with our Executive Director, do meet every six months or once a year to work together as teams to resolve any problems, to enhance any of the delivery of our programs to our members.

I have had three positions in the Chamber, so each position carrying different challenges. And so I had to adapt to the changes for each position and that's very key to any job today. Of course, I always read articles from our association newsletters about customer service, about membership in organizations similar to ours. I have just completed a selling techniques course. I will be attending our international convention for membership directors.

A typical day for me is one where I come in and the first thing I do in the morning is check my call back list because it is always important to keep track of the number of appointments that I've had and the people who have asked me to call them back after a week or so after the presentation has been delivered. I have contacts with our members, appointments with prospects on a daily basis. I insure that that's always on my agenda because that is important for membership growth. I do courtesy calls. You know when I'm out and about I always drop in to members, visit with them to insure that they're happy with what products, services the Chamber's delivering to insure that they're getting the mailings, and if they have any questions to insure that those questions are answered as well.

The most challenging aspect of my job is keeping in contact with our members. Once I sell a membership my challenge is to insure that that member seeks the value that we offer so that they will renew the following year.

The most satisfying part of my job is seeing growth in business and I have been here with the chamber for eight years. I have seen businesses grow in the sense that they have started out with the sole proprietor, they've expanded to more than one staff member and I've seen them grow through contacts that they have made.