President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities
December 2009
It’s hard to believe this is my last message to the chapter in my role as president. I have great memories of the successful road we have traveled together in 2009. In November of 2008 the outgoing and incoming board members met in my home to discuss our strategic vision for 2009. They all had responded to a survey based on Leadership is W.A.R. by Herman Cain: What should we be working on; Ask the right questions; Remove obstacles. The team decided that we needed to focus on three measurable goals: improving our membership retention, growing new memberships, and improving meeting attendance. Our simple, sustainable, high-touch strategies that focused on these three measurable goals have enabled us to concentrate on two primary objectives: to provide a meeting experience you can feel good about, and to provide opportunities to create meaningful and lasting relationships with other learning and performance professionals. We were successful.
I want to thank some team members that will leave the board this year. Dr. Brent Stephens transformed our website and was always quick to respond to our needs. Mike Putnam did an outstanding job keeping board meeting minutes. Sam Palazzolo brought in speakers that helped us achieve record meeting attendance. Sharon Dera provided steady and reliable guidance as Past President. I’d like to thank those returning to serve again in 2009. Rhonda Wilson was an exceptional support to me and the team that really can’t be measured. Mary Coleson did an amazing job reinventing her role. Joseph Haynes and his family were a special part of every meeting. Rick Palmer has added a new dimension to our web presence and social networking capabilities. And what can be said about Larry Wilson? He is a legend and a real servant leader. Thanks to Rollie Merrick and Kevin Love for taking on their roles later in the year. Thanks to Angie Sanders and John Poe for leading their Professional Development Networks. Finally, I’d like to thank the members that have renewed their membership, those that have joined us this year, and all the members and guests that attended our meetings and made the first Thursday night of each month such a great experience! To the members that have not renewed, we hope to see you again soon.
The successes of 2009 are simply a foundation for an even brighter future. We are committed to exceeding your expectations and delivering an exceptional value in 2010. Lead by Rhonda Wilson as President and backed up by President- Elect Joseph Haynes and an exceptionally talented and committed board, I am excited about what the ASTD Fort Worth/Mid-Cities Chapter will achieve in 2010!
John Wright, CSL
President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities
November 2009
It’s hard to believe that my year as president is almost over. It has been a great year and I am looking forward to 2011 already! Rhonda Wilson steps into the role of President and will be supported by Joseph Haynes as President-Elect. Along with a very talented and dedicated board, they are committed to raise the bar in providing our members with the opportunity to “Listen, Share, Grow.” However the accomplishments of 2010 turn out, I promise you that the results our new team will deliver in 2011 will be even better!
They will continue to execute our simple, sustainable, and high-touch strategies designed to provide you with a meeting experience you can feel good about along with opportunities to build meaningful and lasting relationships with quality learning and performance professionals.
After another record attendance meeting for October, we had over 95% of the attendees stay for the Professional Development Networks right after the presentation. We had our second lunch meeting of the year in October, and VP Programs Sam Pallazzolo tells me it was an outstanding event.
Kyle Ann Poland is wrapping up the details on our first ever quarterly social. This is another opportunity to network and develop relationships. Check our website for the exact date and location.
We have five board members heading out on the 29th for the ASTD Leadership Conference in Virginia. They will return with new strategies to improve the value we offer members next year.
Please join us November 5th for “The Application of Game Theory to Strategic Issues” presented by Ken Stibler, President of SAVI Learning Inc. Ken is a great guy – and very talented. It’s going to be a great program. In December, Mary Kelly will speak on “The State of the Training Economy.” This is our year-end Christmas meeting/celebration and has been the highest attended event for the last two years. Don’t miss it!
Our new member survey has recently gone out to all members. It has been redesigned to capture all the critical data we need to respond to the issues that are most important to you. Thanks for taking time to complete that survey and letting us know what you think.
Our year-beginning planning meeting is scheduled for Saturday November 21 and you are invited. We had a number of non-board members attend our mid-year retreat and they made an invaluable contribution. Please let Rhonda Wilson know if you would like to attend.
Once again, I’d like to extend my sincere thanks to an exceptional board and to our members. It is a pleasure to be a part of ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities.
John Wright, CSL
President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities
October 2009
Thanks to all the members that attended Dianna Booher’s presentation on “Creating an Executive Presence” last month. Once again, your support and commitment lead to a record attendance for a September meeting. Our decision to reverse the order of our networking time and our Professional Development Networks was well received. (We now network from 6 to 6:30 and our PDNs are from 8 to 8:30.) We had record attendance at our five PDNs as well.
In October, we have two meetings: a dinner meeting on the 1st and a lunch meeting on the 8th. This is the second time we are offering a lunch option. This idea came from the membership. We welcome all your suggestions for improving our offerings. Our first lunch meeting several months ago on Fort Worth’s “Best Place to Learn” was very well attended. Both of these meetings offer a valuable learning opportunity for our members and guests as well as a great opportunity to meet quality workplace learning professionals.
Our board is investing in the leadership development of five of your board members that will be serving you in 2010. They will be travelling to Alexandria, Virginia to attend the ASTD Leaders Conference on the last weekend in October. They are committed to learning new and better ways to provide our members and guests with an experience that will exceed their expectations.
For those of you that have yet to renew your membership for next year, let me remind you that the board has voted to reward those members that renew 60 days prior to their expiration date with a free dinner meeting. That saves you 30% - $20 – reducing your real cost to renew down to only $45. What a value!! Also remember, that if you are unemployed, the cost of membership – both for new members and renewals – is half price.
One more reminder – any member that attends 12 consecutive chapter meetings will receive an “I’m Perfect!” (as in perfect attendance) ASTD shirt.
Thanks to the board and the other volunteers that serve the chapter so well. Thanks to you for making this a record attendance year for us. It is a pleasure serving you and I really enjoy getting to know you better at the meetings. I look forward to seeing you at our dinner meeting on the 1st.
John Wright, CSL
President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities
September 2009
Our August meeting on Second Life was our highest attended August meeting since our chapter manager Larry Wilson has been keeping records. It’s likely the intense interest in this subject will lead to a new Professional Development Network. Speaking of PDNs, we have moved them to the 8pm slot after the meeting from the 6pm slot before the meeting. We will network at 6pm. This should allow more members to attend. We have five PDNs. Please see our website for details.
In August our chapter hosted the Western Regional Conference where board members from other ASTD chapters came together to share best practices. Identifying a “Best Place to Learn” award winner is one of several ideas we will be implementing next year.
President-Elect Rhonda Wilson has done an outstanding job identifying talented people who will serve on our board next year. They are going to do an excellent job serving you.
Regarding programs, we have Dianna Booher speaking at our chapter meeting in September. You do NOT want to miss this world renowned speaker. On September 16 and 17, we are presenting Creating Leadership Development Programs. In October, we are having our second luncheon meeting. We will also have our regular evening meeting.
Thanks again to the board for their hard work, and thank you for your commitment to the learning and performance industry and your local ASTD chapter. I hope to see you on September 3rd.
John Wright, CSL
President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth – Mid Cities
August 2009
With the greatest respect I paraphrase what is arguably President Kennedy’s most famous quote: “ And so, my fellow ASTD Fort Worth members, ask not, what your chapter can do for you, ask what you can do for your chapter.” It was in this spirit that your board and five other members gathered together the third weekend in July for our first ever mid-year board retreat. We gathered to assess how well we have served you in the first six months of this year, and made commitments to raise the bar on how we can serve you even better in the last six months.
We have repeatedly stressed that our simple goals are to provide you with a meeting experience you will feel good about and the opportunity to create lasting and meaningful relationships with other learning and performance professionals. We measure our success by membership retention, membership growth, and meeting attendance.
Our relentless focus is on providing you, our members, with a value that exceeds your expectations. We understand that especially in this economic environment, you have choices regarding how you spend your time and money. Many excellent ideas were brought up at our retreat.
I would like to thank all our board members and give a special thanks to the five members that attended with the intention of being of service in some capacity going forward: Kevin Love, Rollie Merrick, Dean Trautman, Kyle Polland, and Sandy Valliere.
We would like to invite all members to serve. The more you put into our chapter, the more you will get out. We will have numerous opportunities to serve as board members, committee chairs, and committee members. Whatever your talent and passion is, I’m sure there is an opportunity for you - with surprisingly little time commitment in many cases. Please speak with any board member about your interest and help us make ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities a chapter that delivers an excellent value.
I hope to see you on the first Thursday of August for Larry Wilson’s presentation on 2nd Life.
John Wright, CSL
President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth – Mid Cities
July 2009
The Godfather: Part 2 was the biggest movie of the year, Barbara Striesand’s “The Way We Were” was the best-selling record, and All in the Family was television’s top show. The year was 1974 and the ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities chapter was born. This year we celebrate our 35th birthday! The official party is Thursday July 2nd and you’re invited. Help us celebrate our commitment to 35 years of service to local learning and performance professionals.
Our goal is to provide an opportunity for members and guests to “Listen, Share, Grow.” Our July meeting will provide an exceptional opportunity to do just that as we present ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities Best T&D PRACTICES, and YOU are the guest presenter! This open forum will provide a great opportunity to advance our two primary focuses this year – a meeting experience that you will feel good about, and an opportunity to develop lasting and meaningful relationships with other professionals that share your passion and commitment to learning and performance.
We had a very successful meeting and workshop with Dr. James Kirkpatrick in June. We have more great programs coming up. Later this month, chapter manager Larry Wilson has arranged for three ASTD Certification programs to be presented locally: Coaching, July 13-14; Training, July 15 – 17 and HPI in the Workplace, July 15 -17. In August, past president Sharon Dera will give a demonstration on a cutting edge virtual training program – 2nd Life. In September, communications expert Dianna Booher will present “Creating an Executive Presence.”
We are experiencing record growth this year and I’d like to welcome new members Paul Turner, Christy Lynn Atkins, Casey Smith, Pete Sorensen, Yvonne Serl, Jim Dunn, Candy Baptist, Sushma Aggarwal, Stephen Brewer, and Dianne Kelly. Thanks for joining and we look forward to getting to know you better and the contribution each of you will make. Casey Smith has stepped up and taken the open VP of Marketing position. He is going to make a big difference. Thanks, Casey!
I’d like to thank the following loyal members for renewing their membership: Rod Ackley, Mellissa Bowden, Terri Pitts, Nick Dell, and Theresa Tune.
For the first half of 2009, our meeting attendance is up almost 100%! We’d like to recognize regular attendees that attend twelve consecutive monthly meetings with a quality ASTD shirt that says “I’m Perfect,” in recognition for perfect attendance. We are researching our attendance records to determine who will be eligible for this recognition. This recognition will be for any consecutive twelve month period and not limited to a calendar year.
My thanks to the board for all their hard work and to you for making our 35th year our best year ever!
John Wright
President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth – Mid Cities
June 2009
We had another successful month at ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities! Our May meeting with Leadership expert James M Strock resulted in meeting attendance of more than double last May’s attendance. The ASTD Best Lunch and Learn was a very successful event as well. Thanks to loyal member John Shearer of Bam Learning Network and the talented panel at Carter-Burgess (Jim Garman, Lori Partain, and DeDe Watkins) for sharing their best practices with our members – practices that earned them a 2008 ASTD BEST Award. The event was so successful, we may make a lunch meeting a quarterly event. Let us know what you think.
We continue to grow and added seven new members this month! Welcome: David Shafer, Jeff Icenhower, Dena Crecy, Denise Philpot, Pamela McNatt, Mathew Mooneyham, and Sandra Valliere. Don’t forget our new member orientation at 8 pm after our June 10th meeting.
Loyal members are the backbone of every successful organization and retaining members is our number one priority this year. I’d like to thank the following members for renewing their membership this month: Dr Brent Stephens, Decho Bailey, Jamil Dallal, and Ken Kolsti.
Looking forward, we have an exceptional program lined up for June. Dr Jim Kirkpatrick will speak at our monthly event on Wednesday evening the 10th and he will do a half-day workshop on Thursday the 11th. You have the option of attending a morning or afternoon session. You can invite your friends wherever they are because this event will also be offered virtually through Second Life. See our website or speak with Sharon Dera for more information about Second Life. This workshop represents an exceptional value for our members.
Larry Wilson and I had the privilege of visiting with member Paula Yoder – Director of Executive Education at the MJ Neely School of Business at Texas Christian University. We are researching ways to partner with TCU to present a program that would provide value to ASTD Fort Worth and TCU. We appreciate Paula and the leadership she showed in reaching out to us and suggesting collaboration. We are looking forward to a successful partnership.
Please keep in mind The Hope Center and their need for volunteer trainers. Just a few hours would be appreciated. Please see Mike Putnam – VP Records - for details
Again, let me thank the hard-working members of our board. I’d like to give a special thanks to Mary Coleson – VP Communications. She has gone above and beyond the call of duty.
John Wright, CSL
President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth – Mid Cities
May 2009
With four months of activity already passed, it may be a good time to take a look at where we’ve been and where we’re going. The board planning meeting last November resulted in a commitment to a “Simple, Sustainable, High-Touch” strategy that would provide our members with an improved value and a better opportunity to “Listen, Share, Grow.”
This focus resulted in three critical measurements: membership retention, membership growth, and meeting attendance.
Our first measurable goal this year is to retain 70% of our members. How have we done? We have retained 62% of the members that have come up for renewal so far this year. I’d like to thank these loyal members for renewing: Mary Coleson, Sue Newman, Brock Skaggs, Michelle Brackett, Dani Fiderick, Dorothy Anderson, Gary Dickson, Janice Gentsch, Bryce Backers, Sharon Dera, Rhonda Wilson, Martha Parker, John Muller, Larry Wison, Mike Putnam, Wanda Burghart, John Shearer, Mary Ann Kennedy, Chad Bettis, Jeannette Johnson, and Ellen Crowell. We appreciate you!
Our second measurable goal is to attract 50 new members. After four months we would have expected to add about 16 new members. That is exactly how many new members have joined. Please help me welcome our new members in April: Carol Henry-Crowell, Wendy Tilley, Ricardo Hernandez, and Dean Trautmann. In June, we will be having a new member orientation after the meeting at 8 pm. We hope to see all new members then. If you joined late last year and have never attended an orientation, please join us.
Our third measurable goal was to grow monthly attendance at our chapter meetings to 35 members and guests. We have averaged 34 so far this year. Thanks to many of you who have been regular attendees. If you have not had the opportunity to attend any meetings so far this year, we have some great programs coming up that you will not want to miss. Please visit our website for details.
Our high-touch strategy is designed to reach out to our members through personal calls, cards, and emails as a way to get to know them better and to show our appreciation to them for their support of our chapter and industry.
Speaking of appreciation, at our May chapter meeting, we will be recognizing Ellen Crowell as our first Member Emeritus for her years of dedicated service to our chapter. Thanks Ellen!
Also at that meeting on May 7th, James Strock, author of Reagan on Leadership and Roosevelt on Leadership will speak on 21st Century Leadership. This will be a joint meeting with the American Society for Quality, a professional organization that we have partnered with several times in the past that also meet at Diamond Oaks Country Club on the same evening we meet. They are very friendly professionals and this will allow an even greater opportunity to network with other professionals committed to excellence in their profession. We will also continue to hold our four Professional Development Network meetings at 6 pm, so show up early to get even more value from the meeting. By the way, we are looking for a volunteer to host a new PDN – one that would encourage and support our members that are looking for new career opportunities.
Once again, I encourage you to reach out and get to know someone you meet at one of our meetings. After his excellent presentation last month on making your T&D Healthy, Larry Wilson and I had the opportunity to visit Dr. Jim Dunn and his team at Texas Health Resources. We had a great lunch together and had the opportunity to meet and learn from some outstanding learning and performance professionals.
In closing, let me invite you to help make this chapter continue to improve our service and value by helping our board members on a committee. They work hard for you. I appreciate their commitment to serve you and to exceed your expectations. Please feel free to reach out to any board member with your ideas and suggestions.
See you on May 7th.
John Wright, CSL
President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth – Mid Cities
April 2009
What a great first quarter we have had at ASTD Fort Worth-Mid-Cities! I’m not near as stressed as I might have been, (January program –“ Put on That Clown Nose and Reduce Your Stress” ) my training workshops are more fun, (February program– “Add Comedy/Fun to Your Training”) and I even dress better when I do a training session! (March program – “You’re Professional Presence as a Leader”)
Our VP of Programs – Sam Pallazollo – is doing a great job! Thanks Sam! This month Dr. Jim Dunn – Chief Learning Officer of Texas Health Recourses will help us insure our T&D is healthy in this economy. In May, Transformational Leadership Expert and Author James M. Strock will fly in from Phoenix to speak to us about 21st Century Leadership. Mr. Strock spoke to our chapter several years ago and it was our most-attended event of that year! In June, Dr. Jim Kirkpatrick will speak about hope and the new generation of training that is here. There will also be a workshop the next day by Dr Kirkpatrick and Wendy Kirkpatrick: Wet Cement – Our Unique Opportunity to Forge a Training Legacy.
These great programs, combined with our four Professional Development Networks that we have been having before each meeting, have resulted in a 48% increase in attendance! I’d like to thank the entire board and the many members that have helped make these meetings a success.
With the increased attendance comes the opportunity to meet some outstanding people. In January I had the opportunity to meet member Ben Muro – VP of Human Resources at Acme Brick Company. In February I met members Martha Parker and John Muller – Training Specialists at NCA National Patient Account Services. Last month I met Dr Eugenia Andrews – of Andrews Hypnosis and Coaching. Great people!!
Our chapter is growing! New members that have joined in the first quarter are: Telisha Poston, Beth Zemkoski, Ken Stibler, Patricia Abernathy, Takita Jones, Lorene Purcy, Esmerelda Siva, Michelle Stone, Kyle Poland, Mariya Gavrilova, and Edwin Buckley. Welcome once again and thank you for your commitment to the learning and performance industry and to your professional colleagues.
With your help, we are helping change lives through our partnership with The Hope Center. VP of Records – Mike Putnam has done an excellent job as our point man for this project. He recently reported at our board meeting that twelve members have volunteered to provide training for the people that The Hope Center is helping to become more productive members of our communities. Our thanks to all of you!
The board and I look forward to meeting and serving more of you as the year progresses. If you would like to do a short presentation at one of our PDNs we would appreciate that. You can also help one of our board members with their responsibilities in as little as one hour per month.
John Wright, CSL
President’s Message
ASTD Fort Worth – Mid Cities
March 2009
What an outstanding meeting we had in February! I’d like to thank the board for a great team effort. One of our simple strategies for 2009 was to create a better monthly meeting “experience” by improving the location, adding Professional Development Networks before the meeting, providing a networking time after the meeting, a focus on programs that support ASTD competencies, and a “high-touch” friendly environment. It seems to be working.
I’d like to give a special thanks to those that led our PDNs : Angie Sanders for hosting and Sue Newman from Wells Fargo for presenting at our Corporate PDN; Sam Pallazolla for heading our Consultant PDN; Mary Coleson for heading our CPLP Prep PDN; and Rhonda Wilson for heading up our Instructional Design PDN. If you would like to share your talent and experience by presenting at one of these PDNs, please let us know.
The 46 members and guests we had in attendance was a 77% increase from the February meeting in 2008. Thanks to the 31 members that took time out of their busy schedules to support the chapter.
If you have an hour a week that you could volunteer and help support our board members, it would be appreciated.
Looking forward, we have some great programs lined up. Please see our website for details as some of the upcoming programs fall on different nights than our usual first Thursday.
This year we are celebrating our 35th anniversary as a chapter! Thanks to all that have served and supported our efforts to be a resource to the learning and performance profession.
I again encourage you to reach out to someone new and begin a new relationship. I did that myself recently when I reached out to Ken Stibler, CEO of SAVI Learning. He is now a member of our chapter and will be the host of our Corporate PDN this month. He has already proven to be a support to me and our chapter. There are many great people like Ken in our chapter. I hope you get to know one better this month!
I look forward to meeting more of you at our meeting on the 5th. I welcome all of your ideas and suggestions to help us meet and exceed your expectations.
John Wright, CSL
President's Message
ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities
February 2009
The economic news continues to paint a bleaker picture with every headline. Two of our members have informed me in the last two weeks that they have lost their jobs. We are committed to be a resource to every member that is being impacted by this serious downturn.
Our simple focus this year is to provide programs that will help members continue to increase their knowledge and sharpen their skills as well as provide an environment to build meaningful and lasting relationships. It is this second focus that can and will provide support and encouragement to members that are looking for new opportunities to use their talents to serve the learning and performance industry.
I hope to see those that are seeking new opportunities at our meeting on February 5. Perhaps someone will volunteer to begin a Professional Development Network specifically to help the members facing this challenge.
Speaking of PDNs, we are up to four now. In addition to the two for corporate trainers and Independents, Rhonda Wilson begins a new one for Instructional Designers and Mary Coleson will begin one for those committed to earning their CPLP credentials. Both of these new PDNs begin this month.
Regarding regular monthly meeting programs, in addition to Bob Pike, we will have Transformational Leadership expert James M. Strock in May and Dianna Booher in the fall. Both of these individuals are highly respected authors and international speakers and will bring tremendous value to the Fort Worth chapter.
Once again, the greatest value to your membership is in the relationships. Make attendance a priority. In addition, make a commitment to leave with at least one new business card and invite that person out for a cup of coffee.
I’ll close with one of my favorite quotes. It comes from Mr. Zig Ziglar: “You get what you want by helping enough people get what they want.”
Have a great February and I will see you on February 5th.
John Wright
President's Message
ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities
January 2009
I am very excited to have the opportunity to serve our chapter as president in 2009. I am grateful to Sharon Dera for all the hours and hard work she put in to make our chapter better in 08 and very well positioned for continued growth and improvement in 09. I am counting on her heavily as Past President to help me serve as successfully as she did.
I also want to thank the board for their dedication and unselfish service to our chapter, both those that served in 08 that will not be returning to the board in 09: Debra McTaggart, Linda Berman, Brian Singleton, and Decho Bailey and to those returning: Rhonda Wilson, Brent Stephens, Larry Wilson, Mike Putnam, and Sam Palazzolo. I would like to give a special thank you to past presidents Rusty Lewis and Karen Underwood for their work last year and their continued commitment to helping make 09 our most successful year ever.
While I am giving special thanks out, let me thank Larry Wilson for going above and beyond the call of duty this year - as he does every year. He is moving into a new position, Chapter Manager, to better enable the chapter to take advantage of his talent and dedication to serving our chapter.
One more special thanks to Rhonda Wilson for accepting the President-Elect position. We appreciate you!
I would also like to say welcome to new board members Joseph Haynes, Mary Coleson, and Alia Selim, all of whom unselfishly gave up their week-end and attended ALC in October to better prepare themselves to serve you in 09.
We have in place some simple and sustainable strategies that will provide exceptional value to our members and industry.
Our primary goal is to increase the number of members that renew their membership in 09 by exceeding their expectations in our two core offerings: the quality of our programs and the opportunity to create meaningful and lasting relationships with other learning and performance professionals. We are more committed than ever to provide our members and guests with opportunities to Listen, Share, Grow.
From our new location and meeting format to a renewed commitment to an expanded program offering, we believe that every ASTD Fort Worth Mid-Cities event will be an experience you will feel good about.
We also commit to a high-touch strategy. You will experience a chapter that truly cares about you personally and professionally. We want to get to know each member, why they joined and what their needs are, and we want to adapt to exceed your expectations.
Have a great January. I hope to see you at our first chapter meeting on Thursday January 8th.
John Wright
