What an interesting 2009 first quarter for all of us! Perhaps running against the trend at World Services Group, we have had a very active and positive first three months. Our "World Bank Project" is under way, our Latin American, European and US Regional Councils have been established and our Task Forces on the accountancy and investment banking membership are engaged in the process of broadening our membership base in these professions. We are also addressing another of my priorities namely extending our membership in the Middle East and Africa beyond the thirteen jurisdictions currently represented. We continue to attract new members worldwide and there are several further potential candidates under consideration.

We have held various member events over the period and as I write this note, I am looking forward to the 2009 European Regional Meeting in Madrid which will attract over 50 delegates from our legal and investment banking members in the region.

I have had the pleasure of meeting member firms in Latin America, the Middle East and Europe over the last couple of months, and between us, WSG President, Steve McGarry, and I have travelled to five continents on behalf of WSG in Q1 2009. I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at our various events scheduled throughout the year. Please go to www.worldservicesgroup.com and click on Meetings/Events to see what is planned.

These testing times that many of us are experiencing are times of opportunity of which we must not loose sight. The principal reason that most of us join a network like WSG is to increase the flow of business into our firms. For many of us, referrals are a vital part of our business development. We should use this time to reach out and foster our WSG relationships and develop new ones. WSG provides the ideal environment in which to do this in a very targeted and cost efficient way. In the next edition of NetworkWire, I shall outline some of the tips that can help you and your firm enrich your membership of WSG.

Yours sincerely,

Michael Greene
Chairman, World Services Group