Matt Bradley, Ford Motor Company, President, ASEAN
2013 AMCHAM President
Dear AMCHAM Members,
I am honored to serve as the Chamber’s President for 2013 and I look forward to working with the 2013 Board of Governors, Committee leaders and members to make this year a success.
Many thanks to outgoing President Joe Mannix for his hard work and leadership in 2012. Under Joe’s stewardship, the Chamber finished 2012 with a record high membership of 713 companies and a very strong financial position (see below).
Joe has completed four years on the Board and due to term limits must step off the Board this year, but he will continue to provide his expertise and wisdom to the 2013 Board as an ex-officio officer.
The 2013 Board has reaffirmed that the Chamber’s primary mission for the year will be to:
1. Help increase Thailand’s competitiveness globally and within the region to benefit member businesses in Thailand and to advocate on behalf of U.S. business and citizens on U.S.-based issues.
2. Strive to ensure that all members are treated fairly and equally and that all member services, programs and benefits are of high quality and add value to our members. We will also continue to work to identify and strengthen opportunities for our members located in Greater Thailand, Laos and Myanmar.
3. Continue to promote Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) through our CSR Committee, annual CSR AMCHAM Excellence Awards and the AMCHAM Thailand Charitable Foundation.
Of special note, this year is the 180th Anniversary of Thailand - U.S. relations and the signing of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce in 1833. We will work alongside the U.S. Embassy to promote this important anniversary under the “Two Nations, One Friendship” logo, which is displayed on the AMCHAM homepage, along with a hisotry of Thai-U.S. relations.
To help celebrate this special occasion, the Board has already approved the awarding of 180 Student Scholarships for 2013 and a special Adopt-a-School matching program of 100% for donations up to Baht 100,000 for schools in the provinces surrounding Bangkok and the Eastern Seaboard and a special match of 100% up to Baht 180,000 for schools in the Greater Thailand region.
This matching program is a wonderful opportunity for members to extend their donations even further to help needy schools in Thailand. There are a number of other special events and programs currently under discussion to mark this anniversary and we will let you know as these develop.
FINANCIAL STABILITY
The audited financial statements for both AMCHAM and AMCHAM Thailand Charitable Foundation (ATCF) are available on the AMCHAM website and in the March issue of T-AB magazine, pages 32-35.
The Chamber had a strong financial year. Overall revenue was up slightly more than 10% from 2011, while expenses were up just under 2% (disregarding the gifts and donations to the ATCF). The Chamber was able to increase its donations to the Foundation by almost 75% from Baht 4.1 million to Baht 7.1 million and ended the year with a surplus of Baht 1.3 million. While 2012 reflects a decrease in surplus from 2011, this is due to the Chamber gifting the ATCF Baht 5.6 million at year-end 2012 vs. a gift of Baht 3 million given in 2011.
Primary reasons for the revenue rise were the increase in membership and the increase in Corporate Partnerships, which rose 24% from last year with the number of Corporate Partners going from 15 to 20 Partners. Other income, including Committee meetings, programs and special events (including the USA Fair and Government Appreciation Dinner), was up 8% from 2011 due to a higher number of meetings and events. The AMCHAM Thailand Charitable Foundation financial report can be found on the AMCHAM website and on page 36 of T-AB magazine.
Thank you to Harold Vickery, the ATCF Treasurer, for providing this report and for his fiduciary duties in overseeing the Foundation’s financials this year and over the past nine years that the Foundation has been in existence.
I also thank those who supported the Gala Installation Ball held on February 9th at the Dusit Thani Hotel, including the silent and live auction donors and lucky draw donors. The wonderful evening raised almost Baht two million for the ATCF and provided the Chamber an opportunity to socialize in New Orleans “Mardi Gras” style. Thank you to all who attended and generously bid on the many items available. Reflecting on Thailand’s economy, we are hopeful for another strong year.
There were a number of records set for the economy in 2012, like 22 million tourist arrivals, and my favorite – two million cars produced, which placed Thailand among the top 10 car producing nations in the world. To help celebrate this special milestone, this edition of T-AB Magazine is focused on the car industry in Thailand. Enjoy.
Lastly, I thank AMCHAM’s 2013 Corporate Partners, whose names and logos appear at the bottom of this page. This year we have 26 Corporate Partners up from 20 last year and are extremely pleased to announce that we had a 100% renewal rate of all of our 2012 Partners! We are pleased to welcome Philip Morris and McThai as Platinum Partners, General Motors and Pepsico as Gold Partners and PCS and Yum Restaurants as Silver Partners.
I look forward to meeting many of you at one of the upcoming AMCHAM events.
Best regards,
Matt Bradley
AMCHAM President