David J. Martin, CAE, is the chief executive officer and executive vice-president of the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM).

Since managing the relocation of the Society’s international headquarters to the Chicago area in 2001, SCCM’s growth has been impressive.  As a certified association executive (CAE), Martin has worked closely with society leadership to bring professional operating standards and principles to SCCM.  He instituted the concept of staff and volunteer partnership to develop and manage society programs better and played a leadership role in the strategic planning process responsible for instituting many new programs to serve the society’s multiprofessional membership.  This has proven a winning combination, with membership increasing by 40% to nearly 13,000 during his first four years at the SCCM helm, mirrored by similar increases in society revenues.

At SCCM he has sought to develop relationships with other medical and healthcare organizations, recently opening the door to a partnership with the Chinese Society of Critical Care Medicine and the International Health Exchange and Cooperation Center of the Chinese Ministry of Health.  Working closely with a cadre of dedicated staff and volunteers, he also sought to expand the society’s popular Fundamental Critical Care Support (FCCS) and Fundamentals of Disaster Management (FDM) programs around the globe.  With the first course recently held in Africa and plans for translation of the programs into Chinese, these cornerstone activities of the society will soon be accessible to members in six languages.

Martin also instituted the society’s first-ever eStrategy plan, which has provided the organization with an unprecedented level of communication and information management services.  Under Martin’s leadership, the society remains state-of-the-art providing members with unparalleled services and access to critical information.

Martin is a member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), The Council of Engineering and Scientific Society Executives (CESSE), American Association of Medical Society Executives (AAMSE) and Association Forum of Chicagoland.  He is regularly invited to speak and write on association management subjects, sharing his experiences and expertise.  Some of his recent presentations and publications include “Benchmarking Medical Association Governance & Operations Practices,” “Saving the Troubled Association,” “Successful Association Turnarounds: Tales from the Trenches,” “Hiring, Managing and Keeping High Technology Staff,” “Delivering Journals and other publications via the Internet,” and “Helping your Chapters Achieve Tax Compliance.”

Martin also participates on the ASAE volunteer leadership team as part of the newly created Medical and Health-Care Related Community of Interest Committee as well as on The Fairmont Hotels and Resorts Advisory Board.

Previously, he served as the executive director of the Urban and Regional Information Systems Association in Park Ridge, Illinois. He has accomplished an impressive array of advances for this association of government technology professionals, including an organization-wide restructuring to improve and expand member services and improve net operating results.

Prior to his appointment at URISA, Martin was the assistant executive director of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) where he served for nearly 10 years. While at the AANS, he instituted an award-winning Web site and received the ASAE Award of Excellence for Technology Applications.  Martin’s prior employment includes Bands of America, a not-for-profit organization of music instructors, as well as several positions in the for-profit sector where his formal education in accounting and business management were utilized.

David Martin can be contacted via email at: dmartin@sccm.org