ExCom 2023-24: Gretchen Renz, CDFA, Treasurer

At the 2023 SDA Annual Business Meeting in Tampa, Florida, Gretchen Renz, CDFA, was elected and sworn in as the SDA National Vice President. Renz returns to SDA's Executive Committee (ExCom) member, having served the past term as National Secretary. She is an active member of the SDA Seattle chapter, where she served on the board for nine years. She also served on the SDA National By-Laws committee for two years. 

Renz's vision Gretchen's vision encompasses promoting membership and raising awareness of SDA within the industry are also key priorities. She wants to prioritize creating "opportunities for short-term volunteers, and helping members find time to commit to SDA are priorities, as is promoting membership and SDA to the industry. No longer should we be AEC’s best-kept secret," says Renz. 

ExCom will benefit significantly from Renz's experience. She is the managing director of operations and finances at Bernardo Wills in Spokane, Washington, where she has been employed for over 31 years.  She has a bachelor of science degree in Accounting focused on Accounting, Project Management from Western Governor University. 

Says Renz, "The duties of the Treasurer are a good match for my experience and natural tendencies. (My co-workers recently voted me “Most Likely to Solve a Problem Using a Spreadsheet.”) I like order, tidy records, checklists, and, of course, spreadsheets. I am looking forward to the opportunity to improve my presentation, writing, and public speaking skills."

ExCom 2023-24: Vincent Lafitte, CDFA National Vice President

At the 2023 SDA Annual Business Meeting in Tampa, Florida, Vincent Lafitte, CDFA, was elected and sworn in as the SDA National Vice President. Lafitte is a new SDA's Executive Committee (ExCom) member, having served on the National Certification Committee since 2014. He has been an active member of the Atlanta chapter, where he was elected president for three terms and gained six years of valuable board experience. 

Lafitte brings to ExCom his extensive experience in organizational development. Lafitte confidently has over 15 years in the field of human resources, with a strong understanding of various aspects such as organizational behavior, interpersonal connections, and relations. He values continuous improvement and seeks various perspectives before making decisions. “I like to look at things from 5-10 different viewpoints, not just one, and am very vocal in bringing new ideas and thoughts to the fore. I also have no problem challenging “how it’s always done” which means progress quite frankly doesn’t happen, but with the mindset of continuous improvement.”

Lafitte is an HR Analyst and Senior Associate at SSOE in Atlanta. His responsibilities include overseeing system administration and innovation for all HR-related systems, such as iCIMS, Microsoft Dynamics, and ADP's HR areas. Additionally, he compiles, organizes, analyzes, and provides recommendations based on all HR data.