The SITE Member of the Year Award is presented to a volunteer who has left an indelible mark on SITE throughout the year.

Marina is the President of SITE Germany, and has put a massive amount of effort into her Chapter’s offerings. She kept the number of members steady during one of the most difficult times our industry has faced and fostered a strong, enthusiastic board. Marina helped create an incredible series of virtual events called “No PANE no Gain,” where the Chapter showcased suppliers and buyers, created great networking opportunities, and provided top-notch education. Marina is also especially involved in SITE Global events such as SITE NITE Frankfurt, and is extremely well-known throughout our Chapters.

SITE Texas targeted social channels and virtual events as a way to engage and support members, earning them this year’s award. The Chapter created a new board position specifically to enhance engagement across all social channels. They also updated sponsorship packages to include virtual engagement. Finally, the Chapter also created a cohesive online campaign to lead, shape and inspire its members, while also providing relevant data and trends. Five of six SITE Texas events included a virtual component, and the Chapter utilized various virtual platforms for each event to explore and share available technology. This virtual engagement led to an increase in new members and strong member retention.

SITE Poland implemented two key Young Leader initiatives. First, SITE Poland created a Group Action Learning program that brought Young Leaders together on a regular basis to learn, share, and become more familiar with SITE. Second, SITE Poland also implemented a mentoring program. To ensure its success, chapter leaders reached out to four other chapters with similar programs to gather best practices and help provide formal training for mentors. As a result, the Chapter saw strong engagement, with one of its Young Leaders appointed to the Chapter Board and another continuing to lead its YL programming. 

SITE Texas never waivered from its mission to deliver member value, and understood that members needed event solutions with both virtual and hybrid components. The Chapter designed a hybrid event in the early days of the pandemic, incorporating safe meeting practices for 33 live attendees and utilizing a never-before-used platform developed specifically for hybrid events that supported 500 virtual guests. Survey results indicated that the event met or exceeded expectations for 95% of attendees. Best of all, SITE Texas also leveraged relationships to make the event complimentary for all attendees.

Just as SITE Turkey was starting to rebuild after previous economic challenges, the pandemic hit. SITE Turkey, however, was not daunted. They responded with an even deeper focus on their members and our industry. Members were supported virtually through gatherings that included breakouts with board members for intimate chats and encouragement. Industry advocacy has also always been a priority for SITE Turkey. The Chapter joined with other industry groups to petition the government to extend tax relief and short-term working allowances to industry colleagues.

SITE Turkey also stands out as a shining example of giving back to the community. To ensure future generations can continue providing Turkey’s well-known traditional, warm hospitality, chapter members volunteer to tutor students in the English language and have supported 215 students to date.