YPN, neXt to merge into one young professionals group

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By Jennifer DeWitt | Monday, December 17, 2007 |

Hoping to create a single regional effort to connect and engage the Quad-City area’s young professionals, the Young Professionals Network of the Quad-Cities, or YPN, and DavenportOne’s neXt Professionals are merging.

YPN, an initiative of the Illinois Quad-City Chamber of Commerce, and neXt will merge their boards and membership and unveil a new combined young professionals’ organization April 3. The groups already are hosting events jointly, but one of the first combined events will be Jan. 17 at Centre Station in downtown Moline.

Tiffany Williams, who will be the director of the merged organization, said strategic planning will be occurring over the next few months as the two groups consolidate.

“It will be interesting to see how we put the two together,” she said, adding that the idea for the merger came from the groups’ own young professionals. Many were members of both groups and attending functions with both.

“This is going to remove the duplication and have a more collaborative effort,” said Wil-liams, who has served as YPN’s director since July. “A merger of neXt and YPN of the Quad-Cities is exactly what is needed to truly showcase all that the Quad-City community can offer a young professional.”

Collectively, the two groups represent a network of more than 2,000 young people in the 20s and 30s. YPN, which began in 2002, counts about 1,670 in its membership, while neXt, which formed shortly thereafter, has about 800. Williams said the two groups have about 400 duplicate members.

In addition to providing a forum for networking, the two groups have helped young professionals explore the social, professional and cultural opportunities across the Quad-City region.

A few months away from unveiling the new organization, Williams said members of YPN’s Creative Council, and neXt’s Leadership Council are beginning the collaborative planning to determine how the merger will look and how the group will function. “We’ll also be going through rebranding. I don’t know if there will be a name change or not. The YPN (name) is so recognizable, that’s something we’ll have to take into consideration.”

Williams said the merger is part of a larger work force development plan by the Quad-City Chamber of Commerce Federation, which is made up of the area’s three chambers, Illinois Quad-Cities Chamber of Commerce, DavenportOne and the Bettendorf Chamber of Commerce. Through the federation, the chambers are tackling common business issues and working to heighten the Quad-City area’s image.

“The retention and attraction of young professionals to the area is vital to our region’s economic health and a top priority for the Chamber Federation,” said Caroline Ruhl, the federation’s board chair. “A unified young professionals group will help retain and attract people in their 20s and 30s to the Quad-Cities by offering more opportunities to build even deeper connections to the community among its members.”

Ruhl described the merger as a “wise decision,” applauding the young professional volunteers who helped push the idea forward. “Young professionals who feel a strong sense of community in the Quad-Cities are more likely to stay in the area,” she said.

Williams said both groups bring their own personalities to the marriage. YPN has established a strong evening program, while neXt members are coming out in droves for its luncheon program. YPN also has had a strong volunteer aspect, she said, adding that neXt has gotten more involved in the political arena.

“This will give us the best of both worlds,” she said.

The April 3 celebratory event is being referred to as a wedding.

Jennifer DeWitt can be contacted at (563) 383-2318 or jdewitt@qctimes.com. Comment on this story at qctimes.com.