2021 CEO Report focuses on the challenges, triumphs and long-term success of the association

Looking back on a solid foundation of progress and success during 2020 and 2021, International Code Council Chief Executive Officer Dominic Sims, CBO, told Annual Business Meeting attendees that the association can go boldly and confidently into 2021 and beyond as he presented the annual CEO Report. “The world has faced major challenges in the past year that have drastically impacted the ways in which we live and work. But the building safety industry has remained steadfast during these tough circumstances,” said Sims while giving the annual CEO Report. “We have all stood strong to show our communities the importance of a robust built environment – and the world heard us.”

“We’ve worked hard to ensure the Code Council remains well-positioned for long-term success. While this has been a tough few years, our commitment to our mission has kept us focused. The Code Council remains financially stable and strong and positioned for the future.”

Below are Sims’s full remarks during the Annual Business Meeting on Sept. 20, 2021, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

I want to start off by saying that I am thankful for the health and safety of all our members, our staff and this organization throughout these unprecedented times.

The world has faced major challenges in the past year that have drastically impacted the ways in which we live and work. But the building safety industry has remained steadfast during these tough circumstances.

Day after day, we are seeing instances that showcase the importance of keeping our buildings safe.

Throughout the pandemic, the Code Council made a concerted effort to shine a spotlight on the importance of building codes and standards to protect the health and safety of the public.

And, from this, we have seen Code Council members step up as building safety champions in their communities.

We advocated for building safety professionals to be considered essential personnel during the pandemic.

We pushed for media, policymakers and consumers to understand the important connection between COVID recovery and building safety — especially as temporary structures were quickly built to house everything from hospitals to outdoor dining.

Through it all, the building safety industry has shown adaptability and resiliency. It has been truly humbling to watch you in action.

The obstacles we’ve faced this year have also confirmed the immense value of digitization. The investments our members have made to improve their virtual capabilities have helped to mitigate delays, keep the economy afloat and produce lasting reductions in operational costs.

The Code Council is dedicated to providing new digital solutions for building safety professionals as outlined in our 2025 Strategic Plan.

Across our industry, as building safety professionals have shifted to digital operations, the Code Council has provided the necessary tools, resources and knowledge to streamline essential functions.

Over the past year, we’ve published guidelines for remote virtual inspections, which helped to make them accessible to jurisdictions of all sizes.

We improved Digital Codes Premium to ensure stakeholders have code requirements at their fingertips.

We hosted ICC Learn Live in the fall and the spring, completely virtually. Through these events, we addressed important issues of today and provided an online venue for our members and stakeholders to earn their educational credits.

Additionally, we recognized off-site construction as one of the fastest-growing segments of the construction market. As such, we expanded our support through the acquisition of Progressive Engineering Incorporated, a product testing, evaluation and inspection agency, which expanded our capabilities for the commercial off-site construction market.

Thanks to the hard work of our staff, we have continued to provide our members with the timely services, solutions and resources they need.

Our efforts have become more visible. We’ve captured the attention of policymakers and media this past year as we’ve continued to drive home the importance of building safety and code adoption.

For example, Code Council members were front and center when we saw the two largest wildfires in the U.S. burn land nearly the size of New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago combined.

We saw the immense devastation of the Surfside building collapse and witnessed a brutal Atlantic hurricane season, which generated the highest number of named storms on record.

But, we also saw our organization and industry come together to host a vital panel discussion on the safety of existing buildings, and how future catastrophic events can be avoided.

We partnered with RESNET to develop HERSH2O, a system for rating whole-house water efficiency, including both indoor and outdoor use.

We have all stood strong to show our communities the importance of a robust built environment — and the world heard us.

We’ve worked hard to ensure the Code Council remains well-positioned for long-term success. While this has been a tough few years, our commitment to our mission has kept us focused. The Code Council remains financially stable and strong and positioned for the future.

We have faced and triumphed over new challenges while upholding our mission to provide the tools and resources members rely on, building safety professionals turn to, and manufacturers and the public trust.

We never know what the future holds. But one thing is certain: we can work together to prepare for challenges, focus on prevention and rebuild stronger to protect our communities throughout the world as we continue to advocate for the importance of building safety.

Thank you for your continued support of our association.

You should all be proud to know that you are helping make the world a safer place for our families, our friends and our communities. And we are proud to join you in that effort. We will always continue to support building safety professionals like you.

We look forward to continuing to serve you in 2022 and beyond.