Daryl Muller joined ELFA in March as Chief Operating Officer and Corporate Secretary. As a key strategic partner to President and CEO Leigh Lytle, as well as the Board of Directors, Daryl’s role is all about enhancing ELFA’s internal operations, strengthening cross-functional collaboration, and ensuring the organization is positioned for long-term success.
Equipment Leasing & Finance Magazine sat down with Daryl in mid-June to learn more about him and discuss how things are going with 90 days now under his belt—as well as what his focus will be in the months ahead.
Q: Welcome, Daryl. Let’s start with you—can you tell us a bit about who you are?
I’m a Louisiana native but I’ve got a long history in Washington. My grandparents lived in the area and had the family over to visit often. They worked in public policy and encouraged us to follow a similar path. I moved to DC for college and have not left since. I’ve worked in a variety of different “sectors” in the public-policy sphere—from media companies like Politico and National Journal to consulting firms and trade associations—but the consistent focus of my career has always been on strategic operations, organizational leadership, and driving membership growth. Most recently, I served as Managing Vice President of Membership at the National Association of Manufacturers, where I helped spearhead an expansion of the association’s membership.
Q: This is a new role. Help us understand what it’s all about and where you fit in with Leigh and her leadership team.
Leigh has a major strategic vision for the future growth of the association. My role is to help her put those ideas into action—and to ensure we remain efficient, innovative, and member-focused at every step of the way. A big part of that is creating strong organizational management—from enhancing internal operations to strengthening cross-functional collaboration—with the goal of ensuring ELFA is always positioned to take advantage of opportunities for long-term growth.
Q: What are your top priorities, and where have you been able to make the most progress already?
Strong teams are necessary to get any job done, which is why Leigh and I have focused together on fortifying ELFA’s star players as well as bringing on new hires like our Vice President of Communications & Marketing and our Director of Strategic Initiatives. We’re focused on running a data-driven enterprise, which is why we moved quickly to implement Salesforce and identify insights and analysis to support our strategy. And, of course, ELFA’s programmatic work is critical when it comes to delivering the greatest possible value to our members. The most recent Member Survey underlined that ELFA continues to build on its own success year-over-year, but it also revealed new opportunities for member services.
Q: What are some of those opportunities, and where do you plan to turn your attention next?
You’ll soon be seeing us move forward with new initiatives in a variety of areas—and some of that work is already underway. Take events: we’re focused on elevating the member experience, and if you join us at the upcoming Power of People Summit (Jul 21-22, Baltimore) or Innovation Lab Conference (Sep 8-10, Denver) you’ll get a good idea of where things are headed. Communications is another big priority. We want to elevate the industry’s reach and brand image but also improve the way we communicate with our members. That means delivering more content in the ways members actually want to consume it: digitally, in real time, and in more digestible formats. Similarly, we’ve started working with the Foundation on ways to deliver insights and analyses that are even more relevant and actionable. Finally, Leigh and our Board Chair James Cress will be rolling out the next evolution of ELFA’s workforce initiatives at the Power of People Summit I mentioned a moment ago. I’ve been working closely with Eboni Preston-Laurent and several Board members to get that off the ground.
Q: Any parting messages to our readers?
When I first accepted this role I was really excited about the industry and the leadership opportunity. What I didn’t expect was for the industry, from our members to other associations, and from media companies and charities, to be so welcoming. I’ve really loved getting to meet so many people from different sectors and in different roles. I look forward to the months ahead - don’t hesitate to reach out on LinkedIn or via email (dmuller@elfaonline.org).
I want to again extend my thanks to Leigh for this opportunity. She has an impressive vision, and it’s exciting to work alongside her, our members, and the ELFA team at such a pivotal time for both the organization and the industry.