Shaping the Future of the BBF

Orchestrating the progress of the BBF as usual, the Board of Directors met on the 22nd of September 2023, in the first in-person session since 2019. It was the first of many future third-quarter face-to-face board meetings. The meeting format was scheduled where the board of directors met in the morning half of the session. Then, the afternoon session was open to all members. It was a pretty good turnout for the open session, with many of the BBF’s top business brokers in attendance, asking questions and providing welcomed suggestions.

We had a full slate of items that needed to be discussed. Some of these items spun off into committees and task forces requiring further in-depth review and discussions to bring back to the board. Beyond the usual financial and Executive Director reports, we had a few items of note. Still, the one that stands out the most is the approval of the agreement and the funding for next year‘s BBF conference at the Caribe Royale in Orlando on August 24 and 25. Many exciting things are happening in the BBF that will soon be announced, so I encourage you to watch for communications through our newsletters and emails.

One item brought up for discussion and unanimously approved by the board was to re-classify/re-name our organization and the wording and acronym that we use to describe our association’s functions from an MLS to the BLS. For many years, we have been utilizing the URL BBFMLS.com. However, MLS or “multiple listing service” is something that typically represents residential or commercial real estate. The BBF, owning the BBFBLS.com, makes it official that we are a Business Listing Service. We start BBF down the path once again as a leader in the industry with the first official BLS in the world.

During the open session of this meeting, we took nominations from across the state district by district. As it was ratified a few years ago in our bylaws, the election process for the BBF Board of Directors and District Advisory Committees now would be conducted by a nomination by individuals across the state for each district. When we implemented this change, we voted as a board to allow any BBF member to sit on the Board of Directors, not just a broker of record. This change allows many more individuals to step up and get on the ballot this year. I’m excited to see this year‘s nominations go out for a vote. You’re going to see a lot of great brokers. Step up into leadership positions to help shape the future of the BBF. So, watch for the election ballot for your state board of directors and district advisory committees over the next few weeks.

What I truly love about being a part of leadership in the BBF is working with such great minds and experienced Brokers. I have built a strong relationship with each individual on the board for the past several years, and it’s good to know that we don’t always see eye to eye. It’s good that we challenge each other and our traditional thoughts so we can introduce fresh ideas. Even though we get along in many different ways, aligning our morals, ethics, and business attitude is critical. We continue to share insight with each other of our personal experiences and ideas to safeguard the future of the BBF and to put it in a stronger position for future leadership to maintain.

I couldn’t be prouder to be a part of laying out the plans for a better, much stronger BBF. I hope that at least one or two of you who read this decide you want to be a part of what makes our association the best. An individual can help out in many ways, even if it’s sitting in on a committee or a task force or dedicating a little bit more time and getting involved in leadership. I hope it encourages several of you to step up and be a part of the leadership and help shape the future of the BBF.