Last month, I offered some perspective regarding our economic downtown (Economic Déjà Vu: We’ll Get through This Mess (Again)).  It must have struck a chord, because I got several dozen calls and emails, mostly offering support for trying to keep a positive tone through these times.  I think that pulling through this recession does indeed require a positive tone – it requires perspective, hope, and confidence for a better day, which was really the focus of last month’s column.

But to get out of this recession, I believe we also need effective leadership and engaged employees.  So this month I’d like to offer candid thoughts as to what leaders can do to guide organizations through this crisis, and what individual contributors can do in their daily jobs to help navigate through this proverbial storm.  As Minnesota columnist Ross Levin stated in a recent article: “If you keep feeding fear, it could grow big enough to devour you.  Focus on what you can do now to provide a better outcome.”  This column will provide an extensive list of ideas for taking action today to improve your tomorrow…

Times are indeed tough.  But we cannot stand still, paralyzed by fear or stunned by uncertainty.  Indeed, we must take action to manage and improve our organizations today, investing in initiatives that focus on improving our enterprises.  That is the only way that we will improve productivity, enhance value for stakeholders (customers, workers, and owners), and sustain performance in the long term.  We must take action as leaders and contributors.

The Role of Leaders

I know the challenges today emanate from broader macroeconomic issues, and I know that the solutions to our economic problems require extraordinarily strong leadership from our elected and appointed community leaders.  However, I’m focusing here only on organizational leadership – of what leaders can do today, given the circumstances, to improve their organizations and emerge stronger in the future.

Here are ideas to improve and sustain organizational performance today (in no order):

Listen and Be Honest.  Stevie Ray, the Minneapolis-based nationally recognized speaker and trainer – and founder of the Brave New Workshop comedy club – had a column in the Mpls-St. Paul Business Journal January 23 on leadership.  He said that tough economies like the one we’re in do a remarkable job at weeding out the good versus the bad leaders.  He says “…leadership is based almost solely on trust.  You can be the most brilliant thinker and planner in the world, but without the trust of your team, your ideas go nowhere.  Trust is not an intellectual exercise; it is a purely emotional response.  If you haven’t been fostering an atmosphere of trust in your workplace, you’ll…have to scramble…to catch up.”  He goes on to say something that I think is really insightful for leaders during these tough times… 

When leaders ask him ‘how can I regain morale in my group?’, his question in return is ‘what did you do to lose it in the first place?’  If their answer is ‘the economy went sour,’ then he suggests they look inward.  His belief is that marriages rarely end because of an affair – the affair is a symptom that there was something else wrong with the marriage.  “A bad economy doesn’t break up a good team; a bad economy illuminates problems that were underneath the surface all along.”

Stevie Ray’s advice for improving leadership?  Be honest.  But he believes American leaders are probably holding their cards closer to their chests these days out of fear and self-preservation.  They are becoming more guarded with data, more limited with their communications – just at the time that American employees need to hear more.  Ray says now is the time to sit down with your employees and say “I’m scared too” and tell them why.  Now is the time to listen to your people to hear about their fears and then try like hell to avoid that outcome.  Now is the time to have conversations with your people – not just about the problems, but about possible solutions.

Lead with Courage.  This month, the Council hosted two breakfast discussions on the importance of leadership in tough times.  The first was facilitated by Sandra Davis, Ph.D. and CEO of MDA Leadership Consulting (http://www.mdaleadership.com/).  Sandra had numerous insights about the role of leaders during tough times (slides can be found at http://www.councilforquality.org/performance_archive.cfm).  She advocates that leaders can do many things to lead with courage, including:

• Be deliberately visible.  Like Stevie Ray above, Davis says that during tough times, employees need re-assurances from their leaders.  “Your absence screams loudly,” she claims.  Make it a point to be visible.
• Recognize that you represent hope.
• Communicate as much as you can about reality, your business plans, and hope.
• Reach out to customers whether they are doing business with you or not.  I found this point insightful: whether or not customers are buying from you right now, they need to know that you are still there, that you care about their business, and that you can offer value to them today and in the future.
• Try to remove ambiguity for your people.  Sandra says that ambiguity always breeds anxiety, so as much as possible try to eliminate uncertainty – or at least be candid about which are the things you are certain.
• Maintain your own optimism – it’s a learned characteristic.
• Keep focused on helping your team learn and grow.  It’s always easy to inadvertently reduce your focus on employee development during hard times.  But you still need to invest in your people…perhaps even more so during crisis.
• Stay close to your strongest performers – they need to know you value them.

Lead with Energy, Passion, and Urgency.  The other breakfast discussion was facilitated by Jeff Lavers, Vice President and General Manager of 3M ESPE (Dental) Division.  Jeff believes that during tough times leadership comes down to passion.  He claims that “…during a hurricane, people are searching for a tree to cling onto.”  He advocates that good leaders:

• Quickly respond to internal and external changing circumstances – they use “outside-in” thinking” to confront realities.
• Convey a sense of urgency – while avoiding a feeling of panic, they are action-oriented, creating an environment in which critical thinking is encouraged and rewarded.
• Create a vision of winning that captures the imagination of others – they help their people “connect the dots” by showing them where the dots are (but allowing them to do the connecting).
• Speak with energy and expression that engages others – they inspire achievement and provide a spark for action.
• Demonstrate confidence and relentless optimism – very similar to Davis’s advice, they keep perspective and help people move forward.
• Are passionate about supporting and leveraging change.

Manage the Organization as a System.  Organizations are highly complex systems, comprised of literally hundreds of processes and procedures.  I believe the role of leaders – during good times and bad – is to manage the overall system of processes so that it optimizes resources, reduces waste, leverages strengths, and improves outcomes and results.  How?  Here are some ways:

• Plan.  Create a vision and establish goals that sets a strategic course for the future.  Analyze your environment, set direction, create action plans to move in that direction, implement those plans, and adjust as new data become available.  Make planning systematic, dynamic, and real.
• Use data to make decisions.  Don’t rely only on intuition to make key decisions, but get in the habit of basing decisions on facts.  Your decisions will be more accurate, more consistent and predictable, and more accepted by your people.
• Never stop focusing on your people.  As Ray, Davis, and Lavers all imply: your workforce is your most valuable asset – they have knowledge, experience, relationships, and skills that allow the company to serve customers and achieve results.  Focus on their development, their satisfaction and well-being, and their engagement.
• Manage your cash.  Be cautious with capital spending, but don’t forget to invest in the “right” initiatives.  It’s easy to freeze all spending during difficult times, but you have to continue to invest in the future – where those investments have an anticipated positive return.
• Manage your processes.  Spend time investigating BETTER ways of doing things.  Eliminate waste (using Lean or other methods).  Focus on productivity – doing more with less (or doing less with less, as appropriate).  Improve cycle times; reduce inventories.  Simply put: manage your operations better.
• Focus on the customer.  We can’t lose sight of who buys our products or consumes our services; we can’t lose sight of who generates revenue for our organizations.  Today, more than ever, organizations need systematic ways to listen to customer requirements, develop offerings that satisfy customers’ needs in a differentiated way, and create value for the buyer.
• Build a culture of problem solving and innovation.  Get to the root cause of issues; use quality tools and data to make decisions and resolve problems.  Improve communication.  Consider new partnerships and collaborations, outsourcing areas that are not your core competency and focusing only on your strengths.

To me, the case for action is strong: now more than ever, leaders are compelled to more diligently and more systematically manage and improve their organizations.  William A. Foster once said “Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skillful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives.”  During challenging times, leaders must lead.

The Role of Employees

My final point today is what I believe to be the role of employees during these tough times.  Remember I said pulling through this recession requires hope and perspective, effective leadership, and engaged employees.  Well, that last point is up to ALL of us as individuals, regardless of our position or rank.

And as individual contributors, we all can spend a little time each day improving the work we do:

• Make suggestions; offer your improvement ideas; get involved in solving problems that you see at work.  This applies to all levels of contributors, from the CEO to the shop floor.  We all participate in daily activities, and we all know a better way to get work done.  Now is the time to offer suggestions for changing and improving the processes in which you operate.  No one knows better than those who are within the process.
• Keep focused on the customer.  We ALL deal with customers – either internal or external.  And as I mentioned above, more than ever, we need to focus on customer needs.  Why more than ever?  Because customers have a choice of buying from you, buying from your competitor, or not buying at all.  Customer service and customer relationships are paramount in tough economies.
• Stay positive.  As Levin said: “If you keep feeding fear, it could grow big enough to devour you.”  Be realistic, but keep optimistic.  Jeff Lavers says that too many employees (at all levels) are walking around each day looking at their shoes – there’s just a black cloud hanging over many organizations these days.  Well, it’s difficult to see where you’re going (or to navigate a new direction) if you’re head’s always pointed to the ground.  Keep confident.

Sometimes it’s easier said that done.  As Ferdinand Porsche, founder of Porsche cars, once said “to change is easy; to improve is hard.”  But we must try.  We must experiment, adapt, react, and persevere.  Just like there’s not one solution to helping this country’s overall economy, there’s not one solution to helping an individual organization grow and succeed in the future.  But the only way we’ll get out of this crisis is to take action.

Dale Carnegie wrote his classic book “How to Stop Worrying and Start Living” in 1944, at the end of the worst 15-year period for stock market returns in history.  His advice rings true today: “The best possible way to prepare for tomorrow is to concentrate with all your intelligence, all your enthusiasm, on doing today’s work superbly today.”

So as a leader or a contributor, figure out what you do well and do it well.  As Levin said “…focus on your own piece to create your own peace.”  Sounds like sound advice.

*****

And here’s a post script on keeping perspective, hope, and optimism…The Twin Cities Business Journal ran a special report in their Feb 20 edition profiling Minnesota companies that were created during previous recessions.  I think you’ll find the list quite compelling: Cargill, General Mills, SuperValu, Hormel, Jostens, 3M, Target, Andersen, Toro, Federated Insurance, Ecolab, TCF, Land O’Lakes, CHS, Carlson Companies, Medtronic, United Health Group, and many others.  An impressive list.  And proof that – even in tough times – entrepreneurs still take risks, companies can (and should) still remain innovative.

Julian Shuster of Hamline was quoted in the article: “Usually in the tough times, we feel the necessity for change or to do something about the crisis.  There’s a sense of urgency to do something.  If the old adage [necessity is the mother of invention] is true, then this is exactly the right time to reinvent concepts and be innovative.” 

Keep the faith.

Yours in Improvement,

Brian S. Lassiter

President, Minnesota Council for Quality

 Are you interested in learning from and networking with organizations on the journey to performance excellence?  Would your organization benefit from hearing how businesses, schools, and healthcare providers are integrating Baldrige, Six Sigma, Lean, Scorecard, and other tools to improve outcomes and results during these tough times?

You are invited to the 18th annual Minnesota Quality Award event Thursday, April 30.  Hear best practices from 12 organizations, including eight recipients of the 2008 MN Quality Award.

The half-day event will include the following:

• a luncheon, featuring Alan Willits (president of Cargill Corn Milling, recipient of the 2008 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award); Governor Pawlenty also invited.
• an afternoon of break-out workshops, featuring the eight 2008 MN Quality Award recipients, each sharing some aspect of how they are improving their outcomes and processes; and
• an evening reception and celebration, featuring Javon Bea (CEO of Mercy Health System, Janesville WI, recipient of the 2007 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award); the evening will also feature the recipient organizations’ accomplishments, will thank our Board of Evaluators and other key volunteers, and will promote networking with leaders and professionals interested in performance excellence.

Come hear how organizations – such as Academy of Holy Angels School, Albert Lea Medical Center, Cargill,  Forthright, Immanuel St. Joseph, Mayo Cardiovascular Diseases Division, Mayo Health System, Memorial Blood Centers, US Bank Client Services Group, and others – are achieving excellence during these tough times.

The event will be held at the Crowne Plaza St. Paul Riverfront, and we expect 250-300 leaders and professionals to attend; the event is open to the public.

Workshop Cost: $99 for members ($75 early bird before April 9); $199 non-members ($149 before April 9); Award recipients should inquire about complimentary passes.

Reception/Celebration Event Cost: Free for employees of 2008 Award recipients and 2008 Evaluators; $25 for Council members and Award recipient guests; $40 for Council partners; $50 for the public; $175 for a group of 8 registering together.

Who Should Attend: Anyone interested in learning more about organizational improvement (and networking with a community interested in the same); current, past, and prospective Award recipients; current, past, and prospective Evaluators; current and prospective Council members.

The Council would like to thank its sponsors for this event: 3M (Gold); Benedictine Health System, Cargill Children’s Hospitals & Clinics of Minnesota, Olmsted Medical Center, Padilla Speer Beardsley, and University of Phoenix (all Silver); BlueCross BlueShield of Minnesota, Hoglund Coaching, MN Healthcare Quality Professionals, Pillsbury United Communities, Reller Consulting, Rochester Community and Technical College, and Stratis Health (all Bronze) for their generous contribution to our mission of advancing excellence in Minnesota.  If your organization is interested in learning more about sponsorship opportunities, please email brian.lassiter@councilforquality.org.

In today's world, nearly all organizations are trying to do more work with fewer people.  This results in most managers having a serious problem keeping up with the flood of e-mails, letters, faxes, phone calls, messages, voice mails, meetings, reports, articles, piles of paper, and task lists that far exceed their mental and emotional capacity.  As a result of this flood, most managers are spending more time "firefighting" and less time managing the truly important.  As a result of this poor "personal operations management," managers are stressed out and less productive than they need to be -- and their organizations are less successful than they need to be.

The MN Council for Quality is pleased to announce a special 3-hour workshop "Lean Principles for Getting Good Things Done" on Tuesday, March 31 from 1:00-4:00 PM (hosted by US Bank, St. Paul).  The workshop is facilitated by Dr. Art Hill, the John and Nancy Lindahl Professor for Excellence in Business Education in the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota.

Most organizations are sitting on a goldmine.  Not literally, of course, but in the wealth of data they have available for planning and decision making.  Few organizations, however, are fully aware of what data they have, let alone how to integrate it and make it accessible.

The Minnesota Council for Quality is pleased to welcome Dennis Cheesebrow, founder and principal of TeamWorks International, to our April 2 PIN meeting. Dennis will share how synthesis and analysis of data can illuminate both challenges and opportunities to inform strategic decision making. He will be joined by Ann McCully, Executive Director of the Minnesota Child Care Resource and Referral Network, who worked with TeamWorks to integrate a series of relevant datasets into a geo-spatial mapping application that significantly increased productivity and communications among their 60 regional managers.   

The discussion is from 8:00-9:00 a.m. on April 2 (networking and continental breakfast begin at 7:30 a.m.) at the Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MCTC), 1501 Hennepin (15th and Hennepin), downtown Minneapolis, Room L3000 (Wheelock-Whitney Library). 

Admission to PIN is FREE for Council members; $10 for partner organizations; $20 for the public.

Innovation, risk, creative ingenuity, and cross-functional understanding are essential elements in any organization – especially in a very uncertain world.  Perhaps surprisingly, the interactive dynamics of the jazz ensemble have much in common with any business organization that must remain innovative in order to survive.

The Minnesota Council for Quality is pleased to welcome Michael Gold PhD, founder of Jazz Impact to our April 8 PIN meeting.  Michael’s presentation will introduce you to the use of the arts (in this case the music and performance of jazz) as an experiential platform for learning in organizational development.  Michael’s interactive program is designed to share some of the best practices used by jazz musicians in order to inspire you ask new questions about what is possible, to consider new approaches to your most significant challenges and opportunities, and to enable you to “listen” to the world in a more effective manner.

Michael has lectured at the University of Chicago Graduate School Of Business and is currently working on the development of arts-based learning modules for The Executive MBA and Leadership Development Programs at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.  Since 2000, Michael has provided keynote talks for top organizations such as Cargill, Carlson, Best Buy, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota, Fairview, Starbucks, McGraw-Hill, The Hay Group International, and the United Nations.

The discussion is from 8:00-9:00 a.m. on April 8 (networking and continental breakfast begin at 7:30 a.m.) at Metro State University, 700 E 7th Street, downtown St. Paul. 

Admission to PIN is FREE for Council members; $10 for partner organizations; $20 for the public.

The Rochester Area Quality Council, an affiliate of the Minnesota Council for Quality, is pleased to announce a special program April 9: "Toyota Talent," featuring David Meier of Lean Associates (formerly of Toyota and author of "The Toyota Way Fieldbook" and "Toyota Talent").

In addition, RAQC is pleased to announce a very special invitation-only full-day workshop, “The Toyota Way,” on Wednesday, April 8.  The session focuses on Toyota’s methods for improving process performance and eliminating waste (using Lean and other methods), and is only open to teams. 

The April 9 2-hour “Toyota Talent” breakfast seminar is excellent for anyone in a leadership position who has responsibility for developing people and improving processes. It is also beneficial to anyone charged with leading the lean transformation such as lean coaches, industrial engineers, or any managers or business owners.

If your company is involved in a lean effort, or is considering implementing lean, this seminar is a must!  Learn how to create a solid foundation for continuous improvement and avoid many of the mistakes commonly made.

In this program, you will learn:

• how to define organizational needs and objectives
• how to identify workforce development needs
• how to create an organizational structure for developing people
• the four stages of organizational development
• how to effectively educate non-manufacturing employees
  steps for implementing talent development in your organization

Speaker: David Meier
Date: Thursday, April 9, 2009 (note date)
Time: 7:30 Registration, continental breakfast, networking; 7:45 announcements; 10:00 adjourn
Location: Mayo Civic Center
Cost: $40 members; $45 partners/Chamber members; $50 non-members

The MN OD Network, an alliance partner of the MN Council for Quality, is please to announce is April 7 program: “Human Capital Challenges in Turbulent Times” in a World Café format.

World Café is flexible, progressive conversation format that encourages collaboration and sharing from all persons about topics that matter to identify constructive possibilities for action. World Café encourages everyone’s participation for diversity of thought, and the café ends with large group sharing of learnings, themes, and patterns.  The session will be facilitated by Victoria Frank and Sheila Hines Edmonson.

Explore the meaning of employee engagement and consider what the new employee value proposition means today.  Discuss how you and your organization align your human capital to the business strategy and whether or not to keep your high-potential employees in tough times. Share an angle on this topic with us to add to the World Café conversations.

To thrive in challenging times requires rethinking assumptions, being inspired to adopt new approaches and being equipped to achieve results some would think are impossible.  It also doesn't hurt to have your own stimulus package.  The Minnesota Council for Quality is sad to say we're not offering billions of dollars just today.  But, we are bringing you an outstanding program that will help you stimulate customer satisfaction, employee innovation and your leadership success.  View this as your personal stimulus package that includes the following:

• The last of a 3-part interactive Excellence and Innovation webinar series on customer focus in the widget-free knowledge world
• An unconventional approach with easy to understand tools you can immediately apply to dramatically stimulate both employee productivity and customer excitement
• An entertaining, content-rich and interactive program, delivered by Robin Lawton, best-selling author, recently rated #1 of 88 speakers by an international organization
• A close to "free" price of $50/person for Early Bird teams (a 75% discount)

Yes, there is a catch.  You must go to http://www.imtc3.com/events/UpcomingEvents.cfm to register to get the best deal and full program details on the last of three 11 AM-1 PM (CT) webinar  events:

• 3/20: "Customer-Centered Innovation: mousetraps, iTunes and the Roadmap to WOW!"

Learn how Presidential-Award winning organizations improve performance and sustainability.  Attend the 21st Annual “Quest for Excellence Conference” April 20-22 in Washington, DC, and be a part of a movement that is making America better by making organizations better. 

Learn Best Management Practices -- Connect with Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipients as they share best management practices in areas such as: Leadership, Strategic Planning, Customer Focus, Measurement and Analysis, Workforce Focus, Process Management, and Results.

Speakers and Keynotes -- Presentations will be given by leaders from the 2008 Baldrige Award Recipients: Cargill Corn Milling North America (manufacturing), Iredell-Statesville Schools (education), and Poudre Valley Health System (health care).  They will be joined by Simon Cooper, President of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC, Terry May, President of Mesa Products, Inc. and other former Baldrige Award Recipients. 

Register by March 20 for best rates: https://secure.asq.org/conferences/quest-for-excellence/2009/registration.html.  To learn more about the conference visit: http://www.baldrige.nist.gov/Quest_for_Excellence.htm

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the original speaker for ASP’s March program had to cancel.  However, they have found an excellent speaker and program that you won't want to miss!

The Association for Strategic Planning-Minnesota Chapter, an alliance partner of the MN Council for Quality, is pleased to announce its next meeting: “Leveraging the Strategic Planning Process to Increase the Effectiveness of Digital Campaigns.”  With a relatively new and fast changing medium like digital, there tends to be an acceptance of shooting from the hip.  Scheduled for March 24, Dane Hartzell, president of Bolin Marketing, will discuss how bringing sound strategic planning principles into digital campaigns can improve performance and outcomes of this work.

What do you get when you blend the responsibilities of a project manager (PM) and a business analyst (BA) into one individual? A mess!

The Minnesota Chapter of Project Management Institute (PMI), an alliance partner of the Council, is pleased to announced its next breakfast session: “Separation of Duties: Why a Project Deserves a Project Manager and a Business Analyst.”  The session will be held April 14, and will be facilitated by Linda Finley, who has over 25 years of experience in working in organizations as a team member, individual contributor, mentor, leader, manager, consultant and executive.

Many organizations have one person performing both jobs on projects because they don't understand the unique skill sets and basic differences these roles require. Ideally your PM is a big picture thinker who knows how to execute on a plan and drive completion of defined scope.  A good BA is inquisitive, detail-oriented and focused on supporting critical business needs while balancing various stakeholder concerns.

Enterprise Minnesota, formerly Minnesota Technology, Inc. (MTI) and a partner of the MN Council for Quality, is pleased to present several events, all focused on using Lean or other methods to improve organizational performance:

• Apr 22: Creating Growth Opportunities Through Lean, Twin Cities
• May 20: Idea Generation for Success in Manufacturing, Twin Cities
• Jun 24: Supply Chain: Strategies to Drive Performance, Twin Cities
• Jul 22: Finding New Revenue Streams in Sales, Marketing, and Product Development, Twin Cities
• Aug 19: Boost Work Performance Through New Safety Solutions, Twin Cities

For more information on these programs, visit http://www.enterpriseminnesota.org/. 

Imagine your organization without quality.  Imagine your life without quality.  Because of the importance of quality in every aspect of your life, the focus of ASQ’s 2009 World Conference on Quality and Improvement is to create, promote, and grow the culture of quality on a global scale.

• Learn new and classic quality tools, methodologies, and techniques.
• Make an immediate impact on your organization’s bottom line.
• Attend in-depth breakout sessions.
• Network with more than 2000 attendees and exhibitors.
• Benchmark best practices in the International Team Excellence Award Process.
• Gain inspiration to take back to your workplace.

The American Society for Quality (ASQ) is pleased to announce that the World Conference on Quality and Improvement – “The Culture of Quality: Serving Customers, Organizations, and Communities"—will be in Minneapolis May 18-20.  For more information, visit http://wcqi.asq.org/. 

In addition, the Minnesota Section of the American Society for Quality (ASQ), an alliance partner of the Council, is pleased to announce its next monthly program on April 14 focusing on Lean Innovation.  When the economy tightens, we all feel the stress. But the solution isn't to simply work harder and hope for the best. The imperative is to find ways to improve the way we do business and do our jobs. We need to get creative and innovative. While it takes courage and insight, it not only helps us survive, but to continue to find our work fulfilling. Tough times can even be opportunities to enhance work processes and working relationships, when we know how to approach those challenges effectively.

Discover some strategies you can use immediately to:

• Adapt to new challenges, as a project team or as an organization
• Keep everyone engaged in their work and in finding solutions
• Enhance collaboration and reduce conflict
• Successfully weather the storm

The pre-dinner speaker is Dennis Stauffer, president of InsightFusion.  The post-dinner topic is “Filmmaking as a Business Model for Lean Innovation,” featuring Cat Thompson, CEO of Emotional Technologies. 

The meeting is 5:00-8:45 at the Tri-City American Legion, 400 Old Highway #8 N.W., New Brighton, MN 55112.  Cost is $20 for ASQ members and $25 for non-members. 

With the changing demographics, women’s leadership has never been as important as it is now!  Women’s Trust is pleased to present its annual program Thursday, April 2 “The Importance of Resiliency in Women’s Leadership.”  The session will be lead by JoAnn Heisen, former Corporate Vice President and Chief Global Diversity Officer Johnson & Johnson, who will discuss the importance of women’s networks and how this impacts women’s individual leadership style.  The session will be from 5:00-8:00PM April 2 at the Metropolitan Ballroom, 5418 Wayzata Blvd, Golden Valley.  Cost is $50 for Women’s Trust members; $60 for non-members.

The LaCrosse/Winona Section of ASQ (Section 1216) is pleased to announce its spring conference “Quality Keeps the Boat Afloat” on April 2 from 2:30-7:30 PM at the Winona State University Kryzsko Commons, Winona, MN.

The following programs will be featured: 

2:30 pm – Keep Quality at the Helm With Corrective And Preventive Action; Chris Parker, Supplier Development Manager, Benchmark Electronics

3:30 pm – TRIZ is an Innovation and Problem-Solving Lifesaver; Mark Reeves, Owner, Inventive Solutions, Inc.

4:30 pm – Anchor Your Profitability in a Green Business Environment; Kim Brown, Director of Distribution, Quality Bicycle Products

5:30 pm – Dinner:  Mexican Buffet

6:30 pm - KEYNOTE ADDRESS:  What Would Deming Say? 

Mike Micklewright, President, QualityQuest, Inc.

The increasingly complex challenges that leaders face today have caused a major change in how leadership is defined.  These challenges demand more innovative solutions and require more collaborative approaches.  Leaders must also change if they are going to lead their organization to productivity, profitability, and customer loyalty.  How have you changed?

The Strategic Leadership Insights breakfast series from the U of M College of Continuing Education, a member and partner of the MN Council for Quality, is an engaging forum geared toward Twin Cities area upper-management professionals.  Each session offers an opportunity to hear from nationally recognized business experts on key workforce trends, and then opens the floor for a moderated discussion on how to address these important issues.

The April 9 session, “Economic Development in the 21st Century:
Shifting the Paradigm,” features St .Paul Mayor Chris Coleman and Art Rolnick, SVP, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.

To learn more about the Strategic Leadership Insights 2008-09 season, including complete speaker list and registration details, visit the series Web site or call
612-624-4000 today!

In addition, the Universty of Minnesota’s College of Continuing Education, an alliance partner of the Council, is pleased to announce their spring improvement and business courses.  Council members receive a 10% discount on all CCE courses.

03/24, Legal Issues in Human Resources and Management, $395

03/24, Implementing Process Change, $995

03/25, Developing Leadership Skills, $750

03/26, Increasing Power and Influence through Listening, $395

03/26, Workforce Development Planning, $395

03/27, Project Risk Management, $395

04/01, Interviewing and Selection Processes for Supervisors, $395

04/01, Data and Process Modeling, $750

04/01, American Accent Improvement or Modification, $750

04/01, Successful Manager’s Leadership Program, $2,995

04/02, Writing Correspondence for Internal and External Audiences, $395

04/02, Successfully Leading Enterprise-Wide Change Management, $750

04/03, Project Execution, $395

04/07, High Impact Presentations, $395

04/07, Employee Benefit Practices and Trends, $395

04/15, Managing Virtual and Remote Teams, $395

04/16, Financial Intelligence, $395

04/16, Documenting Employee Performance, $395

04/16, Job Descriptions, Analysis, and Evaluation, $395

04/17, Project Control and Closure, $395

04/18, Certified Internal Auditors (CIA) Test Preparation- Part 3, $750

04/21, Principles of Employee Compensation, $395

04/21, Problem Solving and Decision Making, $395

04/21, Successful Manager’s Leadership Program, $2,995

04/22, Managing Performance and Developing Talent, $395

04/22, Measuring and Improving Processes, $995

04/23, Introduction to E-Learning and Webinars, $495

04/24, How to Deal with Difficult People, $395

04/24, Project Procurement Management, $395

05/01, Project Leadership, $395

05/05, Exercising Organizational Influence, $395

05/05, Employee and Labor Relations, $395

05/06, Professional Writing, $750

05/07, Project Management and New Product Development, $395

05/12, Business Process Management and the Balanced Scorecard, $995

05/13, Strategic Planning and Measurement, $750

05/13, Leading Through Change, $395

05/14, Talent Acquisition: Recruiter as Talent Advisor, $395

05/15, Project Negotiation and Conflict Resolution, $395

05/15, Advanced Editing and Proofreading Strategies, $395

05/16, Certified Internal Auditors (CIA) Test Preparation – Part 4, $750

05/19, Performance Management Process, $395

05/19, Handling People with Tact and Diplomacy, $395

05/20, Integrated Management, $395

05/21, Supply Chain Management, $395

05/21, Eight Steps of Instructional Design, $990

05/22, Project Management for IT Professionals, $395

05/29, Project Management and Chaos Theory, $395

06/02, Writing Business Reports, $395

06/02, Creative Training Techniques, $1,485

06/03, Legal Issues for Managers and Supervisors, $395

06/03, Small Group Professional Communication, $750

06/04, Applied Project Management, $395

06/04, Enterprise Process Management, $995

06/09, Successfully Dealing with Conflict at Work, $395

06/09, Organizational Training and Development, $395

06/10, Coaching for Excellence, $395

06/11, Human Resource Management, $395

06/12, Project Management Foundations, $395

06/16, Business Acumen for Human Resource Professionals, $395

06/19, Project Initiation, $395

06/19, Writing for the Web, $395

06/23, Strategic Human Resource Planning, $395

06/24, Building Teamwork and Commitment, $395

06/25, Project Planning, $750

06/25, Verbal and Nonverbal Communication Skills, $395

For more information on any of these courses or a complete listing of coursework, visit the University of Minnesota’s College of Continuing Education’s website at http://www.cce.umn.edu/councilforquality.  To register, visit http://register.cce.umn.edu or call 612-624-4000.

South Central College is pleased to announce their spring quality and performance improvement curriculum.  Council members are entitled to a 10% discount.

The following courses will be held at the Faribault campus (prices before member discount):

3/25: Lean Application for Job Shops, $235

4/9: Supplier Quality Management & Improvement, $235

4/29: Certified Quality Auditor (CQA) Review, $250

4/30: Certified Quality Technician (CQT) Review, $300

5/5: Certified Quality Improvement Associate (CQIA) Review, $250

5/5: Understanding & Implementing ISO 9001:2000, $235

5/6: Internal Auditor Skills, $235

5/27: 8-Discipline Problem Solving Tools & Methods, $235

The following courses will be held at Mankato campus (prices before member discount):

4/1: Project Management, $235

5/13: Supplier Quality Management & Improvement, $235

Normandale Community College, an alliance partner of the Council, is pleased to announce upcoming spring programs.  Council members receive a 15% discount.  The programs are as follows:

3/30-3/31             Certified Scum Product Owner, $1260 (15% off for MCQ)

5/4-5/5                  ScrumMaster Certification, $1260 (15% off for MCQ)

5/6-6/4                  Six Sigma for Healthcare (8 sessions), $3355 (15% off for MCQ)

Six Sigma is a customer-driven approach that provides an overall framework for quality improvement.  The methodology follows a disciplined problem solving approach.  The goal of a six sigma program is to improve customer satisfaction through reduction and elimination of nonconformities.  It is achieved, not through increased inspection activities which only add cost, but through breakthrough process improvement and the reduction in variation.  The results are increased customer satisfaction, product and service reliability, and improved company financial performance.

All three Six Sigma sessions facilitated by Dale K. Mize, the lead Six Sigma Instructor and Program Coordinator for Six Sigma at Normandale.  He is also president of Advanced Quality Engineering, which co-markets Six Sigma classes with Normandale.  He has more than 19 years of consulting and training experience and 21 years of technical and managerial experience comprised of customer service, product engineering, and manufacturing as a quality engineer, quality manager, and corporate director of quality assurance, and 17 years teaching experience as an adjunct faculty member for a private university. Dale is the He is co-author of the SPC training workbook, “An Ounce of Prevention.”

The MN Healthcare Quality Professionals, an alliance partner of the MN Council for Quality, is pleased to host a (free) monthly webinar seminar series.  The series, hosted by MHQP and HealthForce Minnesota, is a monthly "quality in the trenches" brownbag education series.  The objective of these sessions is to provide a healthcare quality "survey course" using selected materials from the National Association of Healthcare Quality (NAHQ)'s Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) preparation materials. 

Upcoming webinars include (all over the lunch hour):

2/26        About the CPHQ: Test taking tips and practice questions

3/14-15   Weekend CPHQ Exam Preparation Course

4/23        Lean & Six-Sigma

5/28        It’s Overwhelming !   Where/How do you start? (Panel Discussion)

The intended audience includes healthcare quality professionals who want a re-grounding in the breadth of their profession, and clinicians who want to learn more to become champions of change.  MHQP especially wants to reach out to healthcare professionals in rural/outstate Minnesota who don't get many quality education opportunities.

For more information (and previous slides) are posted at:   http://www.healthforceminnesota.org/pages/Programs/courses.html.

.