b'oundOff Op-EdIContractor Ad,ocacy D Overlook the Role of on\'tRegional Associations ( especially MRCA) By Kevin Gwaltney, DiamondCity, Kansas Rooting, Dodge matterTo paraphr Mark Twain,theUnfortunately,theneighbors onjob supporting the industry, but the ase Nowhat rumorofourdemisehasbeeneithersideof youare WhiteSoxfact is that they don always sup\'t other groups yougreatly exaggerated.Quite simply,fan Now they throw eggs at yourportneeds of ONLY the roofing s.the regionalassociations aren\'t goinghouse and pul pranks on you. T contractor. belong to, y can beIhe ou away.,associations,groupchanged- thedynamicMRCA onlyroofing contracIn fact regionalhas confident that M and MRCA in par are fillingchanged - andif things don\'t gettors as members.there is an issue RCAticular,If an even greater support role inout of hand,football season itin the indu that isfavorable thenextstrynot is looking outday-to-dayoperationsofprofes to the roofing contr , you can actorsionalcontractors.MRCAgo the roofing for your needs as abet thatising to tackle Let\'s start at the beginning. Whyissuebehalf of thecontractoonr. roofing contractor.do we form gr at all? ScientistsMRCA only focuses on one thing -oups tell us that cooperative interactionssu the roofingcontractor. pporting lead to good outcomes - basically,That\'s w t advocacy is all about. hathata groupismoresuccessfulI\'m notagainstanyonejoining working together thanindividualsNRCA- I\'ma membermyself. acting alone. Now comes the hardBecausethegroupsaredifferent, part- howdoyoudefinethetheycomplementeachotherin grou T stroublem ways. p?hat\' wherestarts.any Putpeopleintodifferent groups,Regionalassociations,bei, call them red and blue,n andwill be you andneighbor backMRCA, N or, all play orthyourERCAWSRCAsouth,orwhatever,anda biasagainstother neighbor.animportantroleintheroofing the wi auto dynamicsts towards one\'s own groupllGroupisn\'t just spor industrybecausetheyfocuson matically emerge.Now here\'sthe- it can includer ion, politics,specificto form elig geographic regions really hard part - webelong to ageography, m and on and.grou of like-min ding prooralityon psde roofb of different groups and ourIt also applies to business - andfessionalsoffer strength inunchtonumloyaltiesshiftaccordingtothethis is where MR comes in.bers,but keepthe flexibilityand CA group we perceive ourselves to beMRCA isassociationroof support at alevel. anoflocal atbyassoinany given time.ing contractors,roofing contrac Joining your state or local Here\'s anexample - whenit\'stors,forroofingcontractors.ciationat idea too. A st / isgrea atefootballseason, youmaybeaEverything MRCA does isnedlocal associationa desig servesvaluable G Bay P fan. You defineto benefit you - theprofessionalpurpose as well, andrecomreenackersMRCA yo self as a. You wearroofing contractor. As aofmends you join all th . Joining ur Packer fan memberreewholean cheese on your head - theMRCA, youc beassuredthat,MRCA is important because it fills nineyards.Youmakesure thatunlike thesportsexam above,an important niche. MRCA is large ple everyone knows how you feelMRCAneverchangesfocus.enough to offer progr and aboutamsservthe P r The neighbor on yourMR only concern is to meet theices that benefit the,is acke s.CA\'sindustry but right isarguysn of roofing contractors. Mem small enough to be r nsiveto alsoPacke fan. Youeedsespoget together and watch the gamesbership in the national associationthe n of its roofing contractor eeds and have atime. The neighboris important. NRCA offers definitemembers. great Bearsuringofbackmomeon your left is afan. D benefitsmembership and worksThinkfor ant to the football season you and your otherhard to representroofing indus story of Goldilocks and theThree the ne eggs at his housetrybefo CongressandvariousBears.T storyteachesustwo ighbor throwrehat andother funpranks. T twoofregulatoryagencies.However,things.F that\'b and heirst,reaking youareina group against him.NRCA accepts manu , dis e is u ceptable eventj") facturers ntering\'nac in T passes and now it\'s baseballtributorscontractorsmemimeandas season.You area big Cubsfan.bers. Overall, NRCA does a greatContinued on nexte pag'