The power of video to archive your organization’s history as a storytelling tool is timeless. It preserves your association’s mission and legacy for tomorrow’s leadership.
When the International Society of Transport Aircraft Trading (ISTAT) celebrated its 35th anniversary, it wanted to acknowledge its history through a video commemorating its beginnings. From an association standpoint, the founders understood that there was an opportunity to secure some historical knowledge on how ISTAT came to be. The genesis behind the effort was the desire to capture member footage with the aim of archiving the storytelling that makes ISTAT a unique organization. To understand how to soar into the future, it was important to tell the story of ISTAT’s humble beginnings.
From the “birth” of aviation in 1903 when the Wright brothers flew the first plane at Kittyhawk to present day, the aviation industry has been through years of additional invention, tremendous growth as well as crippling economic turmoil. It has flown through the unpredictable skies of global and regional conflicts, industry challenges as well as eras of great technological innovation. To navigate these winds of change, borne out of necessity was ISTAT.
Founded in 1983, ISTAT, a Smithbucklin client, is the premier international, not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing aviation professionals with forums for increased networking and educational opportunities. ISTAT currently represents more than 5,000 members worldwide who are involved in operating, manufacturing, maintaining, selling, purchasing, financing, leasing, appraising, insuring or other activities related to the commercial aviation sector.
ISTAT came together in the bar at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York after a conference, started by a small group of industry professionals with George “Bud” Dutton serving as first president. The objective was to create a place where professionals in the aviation industry could come together to discuss issues of common interest. Initially keeping membership lists on index cards, the association slowly grew its membership ranks over the years, eventually embarking in a strategic plan under Michael Platt, past President, to grow internationally.
Committed to providing its members with the highest quality and best-value networking and education opportunities in commercial aviation, ISTAT also became the gold standard in administering the industry’s leading appraiser program, and investing in the future through the ISTAT Foundation. The ISTAT Foundation was created in 1994 to support individuals and institutions that promote the advancement of commercial aviation and humanitarianism. The familiar expression, “building the plane as you fly” is appropriate to describe the rich history and accomplishments of ISTAT. It effectively captures the feelings of risk and uncertainty that accompany designing innovations in any industry, testing them in real time with actual participants, all while being responsible for keeping existing operations running.
Effectively capturing the rich history of ISTAT into a compelling video took place over the course of six months. According to Crystal Ligda, a Smithbucklin executive in the Marketing and Communications Services unit and Director of Marketing & Operations for ISTAT, the process began in Aug. 2021, with recorded footage from an in-person event in September. She comments, “We did an interview of the originators of the organization and what it has meant to them. Going forward we are looking to seize any opportunity to capture footage with members so that we can archive the storytelling that makes ISTAT a truly unique organization.” Featuring appearances from past presidents and founders of ISTAT, the video is a touching retrospective on the association, detailing key milestones in its history as well as introduction of new membership offerings and groups.
The efforts to create an impactful retrospective video on ISTAT culminated in its showing at the ISTAT Americas Annual Meeting Gala Event, where the reaction was overwhelmingly positive since it was the first showing of the history and making of the organization. The “goose bumps” moment arrived with a standing ovation of the members, resonating with everyone in the room. Adds Ligda, “The final video became this greater thing with the goal of teaching the next generation in the industry. With the 40th Anniversary approaching, the vision will be different and we will still be sharing the personalized stories of members talking about where we are going as an association.” The video, she added, was about securing those stories and effectively capturing the rich history of the organization and stories of the people.
What does the future look like for ISTAT? So much has changed within the industry the past several years, let alone navigation of a global pandemic when things came to a full ground stop. Now, the industry is seeing a resurgence in commercial aviation. More timely issues such as the importance of diversity and inclusion, as well as sustainability concerns will gain more prominence as the industry continues to evolve. But the future continues to look bright for ISTAT as an association.
Nothing but clear skies ahead. Get ready to buckle those seatbelts.