Associations can become comfortable doing what they have always done. Programs become familiar. Members know what to expect.

But comfort is not much of a strategy when the environment around your members is changing. Over the past several years, NAFTZ has deliberately looked beyond what members need today to invest in what the U.S. FTZ community will need tomorrow.

The clearest example has been advocacy.

Rather than approaching advocacy as a series of individual issues, NAFTZ developed a five-year vision and built the relationships, resources and capabilities to execute it. That work has changed how we engage in Washington and strengthened our ability to represent the U.S. FTZ community as trade issues have become increasingly prominent.

Our membership growth has not happened by accident. The external trade environment has caused more companies to discover the U.S. FTZ program or take a closer look at how it may fit into their operations. At the same time, NAFTZ has invested in our ability to advocate for the program, support the U.S. FTZ community and demonstrate the value of strong national representation.

Advocacy, however, is only one part of that evolution.

Internally, we have invested in technology and process improvement. For a staff of five, efficiency matters. We use technology where it can do the work effectively so our people can focus on judgment, relationships and expertise.

Our programming is evolving as well. The strong response to the new Z-Tech sessions at our Spring Seminar — particularly the AI and technology sessions — showed that members want education that reflects how U.S. FTZ operations are changing. We followed with additional AI-focused programming and will continue offering technology-related education.

We are also beginning the next phase of our credentialing work and we have modernized elements of our governance, including nominations and elections, because the association’s infrastructure must evolve too.

One lesson I have learned throughout my association career is that national reach alone does not maximize member impact. An association’s work ultimately has to make a difference where its members live and work — for their employers, communities, states and regions.

For NAFTZ, that means strengthening our national voice while looking for appropriate ways to bring the association closer to our members. Our regional Fundamentals programs are our first effort in this area. NAFTZ will always be the national voice of the U.S. Foreign-Trade Zones program, but being national should never mean being distant.

As we prepare to gather in San Diego this October, we celebrate both the new members joining the U.S. FTZ community and the longtime members and leaders who built the close-knit community it is today. What connects us is a belief in what the U.S. FTZ program makes possible for U.S. businesses, jobs and communities.

1,000+ strong.  100% U.S. FTZ.