Thank you Mr.B.G.Kodandaram, I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank you for your dedication, leadership and guidance this past two years. There is truth in Newton's quote about standing on the shoulders of giants . You and the other leaders at WACIA/GBIA have generated the momentum to keep moving this great organisation forward and the wisdom to keep it moving in the right direction. We all benefit from your contributions and volunteerism.

To step into this role feels a little like steering a train, batting after Sachin Tendulkar's double century. The association operates under a strategic plan which sets our direction and controls how the changing succession of leaders navigates. This plan is critical to helping us maintain focus, direction and purpose. It is crucial that while we focus on our strategic direction, we continue to monitor the environment around us. We must recognise the changing influences so that we can respond appropriately. The state of the economy is affecting all of our members and your employers in one way or another. We are all asked to do more with less, and sometimes the financial crunch means you have fewer resources available to d the same job, and sometimes more. At the same time, we have changing demographics among our members. This means that the needs and wants of the organisation are going to change.

Our challenge this year will be to find new, more cost effective ways of serving our member's needs. We will find new ways to encourage networking, professional developments, sharing of ideas, communicating and collaborating, and advancing our profession. We will use technology in new and innovative ways. And we will touch More OF OUR MEMBERS WITH MORE SERVICES, NOT LESS.

As we bring the members of our organisation closer together, we need to also look at ways in which we can work together with other organisations. This includes not only better communications, but actually leveraging our collective power to affect change. As we look to operate more efficiently, there may be some things we do that we would be better off deferring to others. This will allow us to better focus our limited resources on other areas of opportunity.

Tremendous work has taken place this year to gain better understanding of the relationships and perceptions between Members, Various State Holders, Government Organisation & WACIA. The knowledge gained through this work will help us advance our concern and raise awareness about what we do at WACIA.

This year, I will also open up the lines of communication. I hope that you will take advantage of that opportunity and participate. By sharing your ideas with me, we can lead WACIA together. Only through this collaboration can we remain the premier organisation.

This is an exciting time. Not just for me, as the new leader of this Association but for all of us. The opportunities are endless. I will work to ensure that when my year is done, and Prabhu steps into this role, that he can see even farther down the tracks. The goal is to help usher the WACIA to a new place; not because we changed direction, but because we moved forward even faster.

Thank you again for this opportunity to serve you as president of WACIA. I appreciate your faith and promise. I will do all I can to make this a successful year.

R.N.Hegde-President