Promotional Products Association International (PPAI), Irving, Texas, announced on Aug. 12, during its North American Leadership Conference in Nashville, it will induct Steve Slagle, CAE, former president and CEO of PPAI, into its Hall of Fame. Slagle will be honored at the Chairman’s Leadership Dinner during the PPAI Expo, January 10 to 14, 2016, at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas.
“This is a wonderful and well-deserved honor for Steve,” said Paul Bellantone, president and CEO of PPAI. “We are extremely fortunate and proud to have had such a passionate visionary leading the PPAI team for over 16 years. During his tenure as PPAI’s president and CEO, he worked tirelessly as an advocate, counsel and mentor to so many. Steve is deeply respected throughout our industry, and we are pleased to recognize his contributions as the 2016 inductee to the PPAI Hall of Fame.”
During his tenure at PPAI—1996 to 2012—Slagle oversaw many refinements, expansions and additions to PPAI’s organization and programs, and his legacy reflects and recognizes the impact his achievements continue to have at the association today. During this time, PPAI successfully relocated the PPAI Expo to Las Vegas after 26 consecutive years in Dallas, Texas; it accelerated the association’s efforts in public policy advocacy to represent the industry’s positions at the state and federal levels; and established the resources and guidance necessary to help members manage complex and difficult government manufacturing quality and safety regulations, among numerous other milestones and accomplishments.
In his role as PPAI’s president and CEO, Slagle represented the association in meetings with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Occupational Health & Safety Administration, and the U.S. Postal Service, and he met with members of the U.S. Congress and their staffs to seek cooperation and action on a variety of issues pertinent to PPAI’s members. He has also served as a keynote speaker or educational presenter at more than 200 regional association meetings, PPAI professional educational conferences, incentive and recognition industry organization conferences, PPAI member-sponsored sales meetings, PPAI trade show education days, and international promotional products association conferences in Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Mexico, France, Germany and Hong Kong.
Slagle’s volunteer engagement inside and outside the industry includes serving as a director on the Small Business Legislative Council from 1997 to 2012, including a term as chairman in 2008; serving on the Promotional Products Education Foundation Board of Trustees from 1996 to 2012; on the Incentive Industry Federation Board of Directors from 1996 to 2012, and chairing the organization from 1999 to 2001; founding the International Federation of Promotional Products Associations and serving from 1999 to 2012; and serving on the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau’s Board of Directors from 2001 to 2003.
Since 1977, the PPAI Hall of Fame has been honoring leaders in the promotional products industry who have had an impact in the industry and their communities. Induction into the PPAI Hall of Fame gives permanent recognition to individuals whose efforts and devotion to the promotional products industry are monumental.
For more information on PPAI, visit www.ppai.org.
