From: Bob & Anita Kefgen [rkefgen@zoomnet.net] Sent: Wednesday, March 13, 2002 12:35 AM To: SVS Members; SVS Associates Subject: THE SCIOTO VALLEY VOICE March 2002 THE SCIOTO VALLEY VOICE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR QUALITY SCIOTO VALLEY SECTION "ASQ's First Section of the New Millennium" March 2002 Volume 5, Number 3 Editor – Robert B. Kefgen (rkefgen@zoomnet.net) In this Issue: MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR MARCH MEETING – OPEN PLATFORM, OPEN MIKE, OPEN MENU - MARCH 26TH HOW TO MAKE SURE THAT STRATEGIC PLANNING FAILS ASQNet SIGN IN PROCESS CHANGED CERTIFICATION PREPARATORY COURSES SCHEDULE CHANGED EXAMINATION PROCTORS NEEDED COURSES / SEMINARS FROM OTHER SECTIONS PROGRAM SCHEDULE FOR 2002 **************************************************************************** MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR March 2002 Hello and Happy Spring…I think! With the howling winds of March and El Nino set to wreak havoc with our weather patterns again, I should probably hold my breath on that greeting. Like the weather, the employment and economic weather front within the Scioto Valley Section is turbulent at best. With that said, we plan on being rather low key this month with our approach to programming as well. The best laid plans often go amiss or changes arise that are as unpredictable as southern Ohio weather. We would like to invite all of you, our members and friends, to an “Open Platform, Open Mike, Open Menu” session at Hennessey’s Restaurant, in Chillicothe, Ohio. Mark your calendars for March 26, 2002, and plan to voice your concerns, meet with your Executive Committee, discuss future plans with our incoming EC elected officials and hear about future educational offerings, strategic planning for the future of the Section, learn about the value of Senior Membership, compiling and submitting certification journals and more. Registration and networking commences at 5:30 PM with Dinner and Conversation commencing at 6:15PM. Please call as you normally would to reserve your seating at regular program events. This will help Hennessey’s in seating arrangements for our group. EU’s can still be applied for this event. Please see reservation form elsewhere in this issue with Arrangement Chair telephone number and e-mail for your use. As always, any EC member can take your reservation as well. This is a rather unique opportunity as we usually have one dedicated topic and speaker at the monthly dinner/tour sessions. This platform of “Open Platform, Open Mike” affords you an opportunity to voice your concerns, look for help in a selected venue, network with the best and brightest your Section has to offer and learn more about the inner workings of the Scioto Valley Section Executive Committee. As always, the Scioto Valley Voice is chock full of informative articles, certified course offerings and more. We look forward to your continued support and let us know what we can do for you…our valued membership base. Hope to see you soon! Cynthia L. Davis ASQ/SVS #815 Section Chair 2001-2002 d2associates@earthlink.com MARCH MEETING – OPEN PLATFORM, OPEN MIKE, OPEN MENU - MARCH 26TH AGENDA: 5:30 p.m. Registration and networking 6:15 p.m. Dinner 7:00 p.m. Business meeting 7:16 p.m. Open forum Locations: Hennessey’s restaurant in Chillicothe Date: March 26, 2002 Open menu (order from Hennessey’s excellent menu) Please make reservations by contacting Sheryl Morris Meyer or any ASQ SVS officer or committee chair. Sheryl's telephone number is (304) 529-5018 and her E-mail address is Sheryl.L.Morrismeyer@usace.army.mil. Directions to Hennessey’s: The restaurant is located on north Bridge Street in Chillicothe. From the south proceed north on US 23 to the Bridge Street exit. This exit is about 2 miles north of the US23-US35 split. Turn left on Bridge Street (i.e. toward Chillicothe). Hennessey’s is on the left about .25 mile south of the exit. From the north, exit US23 at the first Chillicothe exit (Bridge Street). Go south on Bridge Street about .25 mile. Hennessey’s is on the left. How to Make Sure that Strategic Planning Fails (originally published in the January 2002 edition of the Pittsburgh section newsletter) Brien Palmer, Partner InterLINK Management Consulting A lot of us are involved in a ritual that comes around every year, just like Halloween: Strategic Planning. We don’t really believe in it, but if everyone else is getting dressed up, we might as well do it too. When you look at what really happens after all the hoopla, you would think that nobody wants it to work, anyway. You know, you go to a couple of off-site meetings, do some team-building exercises, and develop some strategies. Give them the official blessing and put them into a binder. (Make sure that the graphics, binders, and printing are all top-of-the-line.) Put the binder on the bookshelf and…well, that’s it. If you’re in this camp, here is some advice for you. Use these time-tested practices to make sure that strategic planning does not interfere with business as usual. Don’t Do it At All This is probably the best approach of all. After all, who has time for this? Everybody is already working as hard as they can now, doing what’s best for the company. Should they stop doing what they are doing for this? You might want to use these proven arguments to support your case. You can adapt them to your particular situation: We are on top of our game right now. Let’s just keep doing what we are doing. Are you kidding me? With the pace of change, strategic planning is dead. By the time we come up with a strategy, the whole business will have changed. Do it with managers (only) Take a group of top management off to a nice site for a couple of days. After all, they are paid to think. Do some ropes courses, and maybe some creative thinking sessions. “If you were an animal, what would you be?” If you involve other people, like using an employee survey as input, you will mess everything up. You will have to contend with input you cannot control. When we keep it just to management, everybody knows how to play the game: If I don’t comment on MIS’s poor service, they won’t take pot shots at me. Do not even think about having an outsider give input on the external and internal conditions. Stay Polite and don't rock the Boat This is an offshoot of the last item, and just plain common sense. If you keep your doubts to yourself, you will not be associated with a failure. Besides, you don’t want to upset anyone. Some companies, during the strategic planning process, appoint an official devil’s advocate, whose role is to challenge the emerging strategies. (The Catholic Church has used this method for centuries to scrutinize candidates for sainthood.) Avoid this role at all costs. Advocate Doing Everything This one is very effective. Everybody agrees that there are a lot of things to do, and we would be better off if they all got done. But—here’s the kicker—nobody wants to say what not to do. So lets just agree that we have to do everything. Put the strategies on a list, prioritize them, and then agree to do everything. Everybody gets assigned grandiose strategy two, nobody really finishes anything, and life goes on. Keep it Secret The competitive environment requires that we keep out strategic thinking under wraps. After all, we don’t want it to get out. Besides, what would the rest of the company do with it? We need to spoon feed them, break assignments down into bite sized pieces. They don’t really need to know the big picture—probably would not understand it anyway. Let it implement itself This one is a no-brainer. Everybody feels good after the planning sessions, even if a little bit tired. Nobody is going to object if we do not fill in all the implementation details. The responsible managers will take care of it themselves. If the strategies seem to move a little slowly, well, that is business. if we just let everybody responsible take care of their own area, we will keep our noses clean. The CEO will have to do all the follow-up, and that’s a tiring job. Don’t Measure It Another no-brainer - Some companies spell out their strategies all the way down to milestones, deliverables, resources, etc. Some even put this information right on big charts in plain sight of everyone and their brother! Avoid this at all costs. Use the previous arguments, plus these two if necessary: You can’t measure that. Our business is different. If you find yourself facing metrics on strategy implementation, you have obviously not been very politically adept in implementing the previous suggestions. Keep it Static You put a lot of effort into planning. Don’t blow it just because it is not working out like you thought. If you start measuring business strategies and modifying them just because they are not working out in the market place, you will always be planning, doing, checking, and adjusting…forever! Start Over Next Year from Scratch By now, you are no doubt getting the idea. When next year comes around, enjoy the shrimp cocktails, have fun on the rope course, and start all over. Forget about last year. After all, if you follow these principles, this is not going anywhere anyway. ASQNet SIGN IN PROCESS CHANGED Revision B is the second phase of the Sign in Module project. Revision A was launched in February 2001 and featured password reminders and temporary password expiry. Objective of Revision B is to reduce the number of members experiencing problems Sign in Module Revision B is targeted for launch on Wednesday, March 6. The launch is expected to occur during regular business hours with the specific time of launch dependent upon a number of factors. The following is a list of new features and enhancements to be introduced in Revision B. Please note that the feature content and availability listed at the time of publication of this document is subject to final revision 1. Remember Me. Members may choose this option to have their Web browser remember their ASQNet username and password so the information does not have to be entered manually. 2. Email My Password. Members can have their password automatically sent to their email address on record after entering their member number and last name. 3. Secure Connection. Members can choose between a standard and a secure connection. The secure option enables members to communicate with ASQNet via state-of-the-art SSL encryption, which protects confidential information from interception and hacking. ASQNet utilizes 128-bit SSL—the world's strongest SSL encryption—which is the standard for large-scale online merchants, banks, brokerages, health care organizations, and insurance companies worldwide. 4. Multimedia Help. ASQNet’s new Java based multimedia help will first be utilized for the new Sign in module. Members choosing “How do I Sign In” will be shown a short multimedia presentation on how to sign in to ASQNet. The presentation will be closed captioned for the hearing impaired and those using computers without sound capabilities. Enhancements Form based sign in- Member number and password fields will be integrated into new sign in screen, which replaces current pop-up box Sign out screen- a member may choose to sign out from the Web site to prevent others from utilizing their account information. A portion of the sign out screen will be allocated to advertisements. Members will not have to enter preceding zeros when entering their member number Passwords will no longer be case sensitive System Requirements Cookies must be enabled for members to access and utilize ASQNet Java Virtual Machine must be installed for members to utilize multimedia help options Members choosing a secure sign in must use an 128-bit SSL compatible Web browser such as Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 or later and Netscape Navigator 4.06 or later Development Notes With the launch of Revision B, the process of a member accessing ASQNet will be described as “sign in” and not “log in” Security default is standard, meaning that the connection between the member ’s computer and ASQ’s Web server is not encrypted Members may experience decreased performance when downloading large PDF documents over a secure connection Feedback To offer feedback about Sign in Module Revision B, please send email to asqnet@asq.org. Your feedback will be entered into our customer contact-tracking database, and will be utilized for future improvements. ASQNet is developed utilizing six sigma concepts. The development model begins by identifying what is critical to satisfaction (CTS). Information from three categories is utilized as input to CTS: 1. Voice of the Customer (contact tracking, market research data, user testing) 2. Human Behaviors (Web site usage data, heuristics) 3. Standards (ASQNet guidelines, Internet best practices, principles of Web usability) CERTIFICATION PREPARATORY COURSES ANNOUNCED The Education Chair of SVS # 815 is announcing that due to low response, the section will not be offering any certification courses for the June certification tests; CQA, CQE and CQIA. The following certification classes are planned through the section for the remainder of the year: Class Start Date* Test Date Location Register By** CQE Sept. 15, 2002 Dec. 7, 2002 TBD Aug. 30, 2002 CQA Sept. 15, 2002 Dec. 7, 2002 TBD Aug. 30, 2002 CQIA Sept. 15, 2002 Dec. 7, 2002 TBD Aug. 30, 2002 CQT August 4, 2002 Oct. 19, 2002 TBD July 19, 2002 CMI August 4, 2002 Oct. 19, 2002 TBD July 19, 2002 CQM August 4, 2002 Oct. 19, 2002 TBD July 19, 2002 * The week of this date. ** Last day to register for the class. Payment for students must be received by this date so course materials can be purchased. The cost for each course is: $350.00 for ASQ members, $450.00 for non-ASQ members and $400.00 for non-SVS ASQ members. The cost covers the instructor fees and the course book, any other reference material is at the student’s expense (refer to the Education web page of the SVS home page for more information). Specific locations and instructors for the courses will be established on the basis of geographic location of the student core and the type of certification. The Section has established a cadre of Certified Instructors for these courses. A desired minimum of five (5) students is usually required for a class to be scheduled, however, it is left to the discretion of the instructor if he/she will instruct fewer. It is possible that if a company decides to train near or above the minimum, the course could be offered at that facility as long as the instructor is willing and the facility has an adequate training facility. The instructors, with input from the students, will determine the days and times for each course. The section is also developing seminars conducted by certified professionals on such topics as SPC, ISO 9000, FMEA, PPAP and others. These seminars will be announced in the SVS Newsletter and on the SVS web site Education page. Please contact John E. Nemeth, SVS # 815 Education Chair, for enrollment or questions at: jenemeth@ra.rockwell.com; nbconst@adelphia.net; or days 740-441-6288; eves 740-772-4660 John E. Nemeth SVS # 815 Education Chair APPLICATION CUT-OFF DATE: CERTIFICATION JANUARY 11, APRIL 4, AUGUST 23, OCTOBER 4, EXAMINATIONS 2002 2002 2002 2002 SIX SIGMA BLACKBELT XXX XXX CERT. RELIABILITY ENG. XXX XXX CERT. QUALITY TECH. XXX XXX CERT. MECHANICAL INSP. XXX XXX CERT. QUALITY MGR. XXX XXX CQA- BIOMEDICAL XXX XXX CQA-HAACP XXX XXX CSQE XXX XXX CQE XXX XXX CQA XXX XXX CQIA XXX XXX RECOMMENDED TRAINING COURSES : CERTIFICATION MARCH JULY SEPTEMBER DECEMBER EXAMINATIONS 2002 (1) 2002(1) 2002(1) 2002(1) CERT. QUALITY MGR. XXX(2) XXX CQE XXX (3) XXX CQA XXX (2) XXX CQIA XXX (4) XXX CQT XXX(2) CMI XXX(2) NOTES: (1). 4 WEEKS PRIOR TO APPLICATION CUT-OFF DATE (2). NEED 4 QUALIFIED INSTRUCTORS, 2 FOR NORTHERN PART AND 2 FOR SOUTHERN PART (3). HAVE 3 QUALIFIED INSTRUCTORS, NEED 1 FOR SOUTHERN PART (4). HAVE 1 QUALIFIED INSTRUCTOR, NEED 1 FOR NORTHERN PART AND 2 FOR SOUTHERN PART Cost for the courses are as follows: SVS 815 members - $ 350.00 Non-SVS ASQ members - $ 400.00 Non-ASQ members - $ 450.00 EXAMINATION PROCTORS NEEDED In order to provide improved service to all of our members, taking future certification examinations, we are expanding the number of examination centers from one to four over the next 12 months. Our plans are to have centers in the Chillicothe, Portsmouth, Jackson and Ashland/Huntington areas. To accomplish this plan, we need to expand the number of qualified examination proctors we have from three to 5 or more. Top serve as a proctor, you have to possess a current ASQ certification in any area, and be willing to work approximately 4-5 hours each quarter. Proctors receive .5 RU for each examination they participate in, and 1.5 RU for being an active member of the SVS Certification Committee. The only limitation being, that you may not sit for any exam within 12 months of proctoring that specific exam. For example an individual planning to sit for the CQE examination may not proctor the CQE exam for 12 months prior to sitting for the examination. Examination dates for CY 2002 are: March 2, 2002 June 1, 2002 October 19, 2002 December 7, 2002 If you are interested in volunteering to become an examination proctor, please contact George Smith at gw1smith@bright.net or John Nemeth at jenemeth@ra.rockwell.com or nbsoncst@adelphia.net. COURSES / SEMINARS FROM OTHER SECTIONS Attached to this newsletter in both WORD and RTF formats are listings and descriptions of the courses and seminars available from the Columbus section. PROGRAM SCHEDULE FOR 2002 The SVS program schedule for 2002 is January 15, 2002 –Army Corp of Engineers, Huntington, West Virginia (Annual section meeting) February 7, 2002 – Dinner Meeting in Gallipolis, Ohio (Quality in Food Service Industry) March 26, 2002 – Dinner meeting at Hennessey’s with Open Forum April 18, 2002 – Tour of Southern Ohio Medical Facility May 14, 2002 – Dinner Meeting at Moyer’s Winery (speaker Dr. Cordela Detmer, Mayor of Manchester Ohio) June 18, 2002 – Tour Army Corp of Engineers site Mark your calendars. Each of these meetings and tours promise to be both interesting and educational.