In our first episode we interview Liz Ruf, current president of AMA Triangle. We'll find out what AMA membership means to Liz both professionally and personally. We also talk to her about some of her foreign travel, favorite sports teams and well as her perspective on marketing personalization, a few marketing hacks and favorite marketers.

You can connect with Liz on

LinkedIn & Twitter

(but, don't try and Facebook friend her, she's never there)

Podcast Episode Transacript

Rob (00:01):

AMA voices captures conversations about marketing diversity and more impacting our community in the triangle. I'm Rob Ainbinder VP of external communications for AMA triangle and your host. And this is the first episode of our new show today. We welcome Liz Ruf chapter president. Welcome Liz.

Liz (00:21):

Thanks Rob. It is a long time coming, but I'm so glad that we're here.

Rob (00:25):

Yeah, I'm really glad to get this underway for the chapter, we've got lots of interesting conversations planned.

Liz (00:32):

Yeah.

Rob (00:32):

So sadly, you're moving on next year.

Liz (00:36):

I am, I am. But you know what? We've got a great team in place that is gonna roll over and I have every faith in Hank Hoffmier, my president elect who will be taking over in July. For those of you who don't know, AMA Triangle is a 100% volunteer run nonprofit organization here in Raleigh Durham, Chapel Hill, Greensboro, Burlington area, and our board cycles over every year and it cycles over on July one. So my time as president is coming to a close, but I know great year so far.

Rob (01:11):

Yeah. So we'll just roll into a few questions. How did you find the AMA to begin with?

Liz (01:18):

Oh my gosh. This was years ago, Rob. So, a past president and national volunteer of the year named Evan Carroll is a friend of mine from college. I moved back to the area and he said, "hey, I've got this great group of crazy marketers". And he invited me to be his guest at one of what we called back then, luncheons. But now we call them our signature speaker series events and I drank the Kool-Aid. I was caught hook line and sinker. I love the community. I love the people I met and immediately got involved as a volunteer.

Rob (01:59):

What do you like best about our chapter?

Liz (02:06):

Everything. Can I answer? Can I say everything?

Rob (02:10):

If you had to pick one thing about our chapter, what do you like about it?

Liz (02:14):

See, there's not just one thing. If I boiled it down, I would say communityAMA Triangle has been one of the greatest blessings of my life.It has brought me so many of my closest and dearest friends. It has brought me my partner. It has brought me leadership experience that I never would've gotten at such a young age and everything, I mean just everything

Rob (02:46):

I'm just coming to understand that about, about this opportunity and it's, it's really wonderful to experience with such a great, all volunteer board and such a wonderful mission. What advice do you have for anyone in chapter leadership?

Liz (03:08):

Don't try to do it all. You know, we as leaders and, and I certainly fall victim to this of like, okay, it's easier if I just do it myself. And that is not what servant leadership is about. Yes. Servant leadership is about rolling up your sleeves and getting your hands dirty alongside your, your colleagues your fellow volunteers, but it's about trust. It's about making sure...