Strong IP Drives The Bottom Line

By Peter Hess, President, LES International

Dear Members of the  Licensing Executives Society International,

On April 23, 2017, I formally took over the Presidency of our wonderful Society from my predecessor Ms. Patricia Bunye from the Philippines. Patricia served LESI as President with great enthusiasm, sympathy, and the typical Asian energy. For her restless efforts to promote the society, and for her friendship, I am cordially saying, “Thank you, Patricia!”

At the same time, it is also my privilege to say “Thank you” to the outgoing Board, the various Committee Chairs and Vice-Chairs, the LES Secretariat, and the Organizing Committee for the LESI Conference in Paris, which was a highlight of the past society year. You will appreciate that LES is a volunteer organization, which works only if all involved persons act together with the typical LES spirit: Well done, my friends, and thank you again!

The theme of my Society year will be “Strong IP Drives the Bottom Line.” With this theme, we want to address the fact that the IP System worldwide is under an ongoing pressure driven by various organizations and individuals. We want to collect and present carefully investigated IP success stories evidencing the role and the value of IP in our knowledge society. I ask you all, members, national society officers and LES Committees to help in the collection of such IP success stories!

During the up-coming year, LESI will continue to support its national societies. In this respect, we will continue to work on a “Best Practices Manual” for our national societies, in which we will share certain “recipes” for how to make societies successful in increasing membership.

Long live LES!

Peter K. Hess, 
President of LES International