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Jason Gutting joins the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast this week to talk about his role as director of MDOT's Bureau of Field Services.As talks heat up between Michigan lawmakers and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer over various road funding proposals, the discussion again turns to paving standards and practices.Gutting talks about standards and specifications for paving materials and how MDOT engineers confer with counterparts from across the country; innovations in road building, winter maintenance and operations; and ongoing challenges because of inflation and supply chain pressures since the pandemic began. Gutting was previously the administrator of the Construction Field Services (CFS) division. He also worked in Operations and was the construction contracts engineer for CFS as well as the construction engineer and an assistant construction engineer at the MDOT Lansing Transportation Service Center (TSC). Other references in the podcast: Gov. Whitmer's Rebuilding Michigan programwww.Michigan.gov/MDOT/Projects-Studies/Rebuilding-Michigan-ProjectsMDOT winter road maintenance www.Michigan.gov/MDOT/Travel/Safety/Road-Users/Winter-Safety
Our guest joining us today is Jared Lanier. Mr. Lanier serves as the Director of Field Services for Florida Farm Bureau. Our conversation today will detail how Mr. Lanier and the Field Services staff advance the Voice Of Ag in their roles at Florida Farm Bureau Federation. Visit FloridaFarmBureau.org to learn how you can get involved in Florida Agriculture.
In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Benoy sits down with Chris Grablutz, Principal and Co-founder of Tri-Force Energy—a leading Commercial & Utility Solar Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance company serving NJ, NY, and PA. Chris shares expert insights on optimizing solar project performance through effective O&M strategies, repowering aging assets, and emerging trends shaping the future of the solar industry. Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy and he is also an advisor for several solar startup companies. He has extensive project origination, development, and financial experience in the renewable energy industry and in the environmental commodities market. This includes initial site evaluation, permitting, financing, sourcing equipment, and negotiating the long-term energy and environmental commodities off-take agreements. He manages due diligence processes on land, permitting, and utility interconnection and is in charge of financing and structuring through Note to Proceed (“NTP”) to Commercial Operation Date (“COD”). Benoy composes teams suitable for all project development and construction tasks. He is also involved in project planning and pipeline financial modeling. He has been part of all sides of the transaction and this allows him to provide unique perspectives and value. Benoy has extensive experience in financial engineering to make solar projects profitable. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity which merged with Tesla in 2016. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity to move into the east coast markets. Benoy was the Vice President at Vanguard Energy Partners which is a national solar installer where he focused on project finance solutions for commercial scale solar projects. He also worked for Ridgewood Renewable Power, a private equity fund, where he analyzed potential investments in renewable energy projects and worked on maximizing the financial return of the projects in the portfolio. Benoy also worked on the sale of all of the renewable energy projects in Ridgewood's portfolio. He was in the Energy Structured Finance practice for Deloitte & Touche and in Financial Advisory Services practice at Ernst & Young. Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. He has a MBA in Finance from Rutgers University and a BS in Finance and Economics from the Stern School of Business at New York University. Benoy was an Alumni Scholar at the Stern School of Business. Chris Grablutz Chris Grablutz has worked in the solar industry since 2010 with a wide network of great solar professionals and deep roots in northeast solar markets. His work in commercial, industrial, and utility scale solar has been focused on the technical aspects such as design engineering, construction management, QA/QC, Testing, and Operations & Maintenance. With a degree in Applied Physics and engineering background, Chris is a very detailed, logical, and process driven leader. Chris was also a NCAA Division I wrestler and grew up working for a family-owned construction company, which has contributed to his work hard attitude. In 2010, he entered the solar industry as a Project Engineer at Pfister Energy, a New Jersey based EPC firm. Chris supported commercial PV designs. Project and construction management came naturally to Chris from his upbringing in a family-owned construction firm. Chris managed the solar installations on multiple school district portfolios, UPS distribution facility, Teterboro Airport hangers, low and moderate income (LMI) apartment complexes, and building-integrated PV (BIPV) and building-integrated solar thermal systems at Camp Lejeune Marine Base in North Carolina. As the Director of Field Services at PV Pros and Pure Power Engineering, he led the creation of a commercial PV installation division. Chris grew the team to over 30 in-house employees with Job Site Safety, Technical Training, Quality Control, Staffing, and Project Management under his purview. In 2016, he led a start-up effort to transition from regional commercial construction into a national technical services firm, providing Operations and Maintenance (O&M), Owner's Engineer, and Independent Engineering. As the Director of Business Development, Chris's team led the sales of over 1GW of Owner's Engineer, Independent Engineer, and commissioning agent. His team's O&M sales included over 200MW of long-term O&M agreements. The O&M division completed multiple large service projects including PV system removal & re-installations. He continued his career in technical sales as the Director of Business Development at Clean Energy Associates, a global leader in solar manufacturing quality assurance, supply chain management, engineering services, and supplier/market intelligence programs. Stay Connected: Benoy Thanjan Email: info@reneuenergy.com LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com Chris Grablutz Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cgrablutz/ Email: info@triforceenergy.com Website: https://triforceenergy.com/ Chris Grablutz's previous episodes on the Solar Maverick Podcast SMP 07-SMP 07: Getting down to Earth with Solar: Construction, quality control and O&M insights from Chris Grablutz https://solarmaverick.podbean.com/e/smp-07-getting-down-to-earth-with-solar-construction-quality-control-and-om-insights-from-chris-grablutz/ SMP 42-LIve How Solar Technology is Changing the world? https://solarmaverick.podbean.com/e/smp-42-live-event-how-solar-technology-is-changing-the-world/ The book that Chris spoke about during the podcast is Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business by Gino Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business. Two companies that Chris discusses in the podcast. Ecosuite https://ecosuite.io Solargrade https://solargrade.io Chris will be attending RE+ in Boston on Feb 12 to 13, 2025. If you want to meet with him at the conference, email him at info@triforceenergy.com. Thank you to Concentro for sponsoring this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast! Concentro's mission is to create and promote accessible financing mechanisms for distributed generation projects. As we work towards a cleaner, more reliable, and affordable energy system, they strive to empower developers with the financial tools they need to succeed. Below are the link to the podcast and the contact information of Iñigo and Tao who were on Episode 186. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/solar-maverick-podcast/id1441876259?i=1000679191495 Iñigo Rengifo Melia Email: inigo@concentro.io Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/inigo-rengifo-melia/ Website: https://www.concentro.io/ Tao Mantaras Email: tao@concentro.io Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/taomantaras/ Website: https://www.concentro.io/
Today’s guest is Mark Brown. He is the Director of Field Services with Plains Cotton Growers (PCG) in Lubbock, TX http://www.ParamountBroadcasting.com/audio/podcasts/2024/20241210ABR.mp3
Join Thomas Lah as he speaks with Andy Chinmulgund, CEO of Bruviti, to reveal how AI is transforming the operating models of field service organizations. In this episode, find out how AI-driven solutions like predictive analytics, parts prediction engines, and dynamic triage agents are revolutionizing field operations. From reducing truck rolls and optimizing spare parts management to enhancing technician expertise, the conversation unveils practical AI use cases that boost efficiency, customer satisfaction, and environmental impact.Also, hear how AI makes field service careers more accessible and appealing to new generations, uncovers insights for better product design, and bridges the gap between service and product teams. If you're in field services, this episode is your gateway to the future of innovation and excellence.
Kundenzufriedenheit ist der Schlüssel zum Erfolg – aber wie lässt sie sich definieren und noch wichtiger: Wie erreicht man sie? In diesem Video zeigen wir die wichtigsten Schritte, um Kunden/Kundinnen nicht nur zufrieden zu stellen, sondern zu begeistern. Kundenzufriedenheit ist dabei mehr als nur ein Schlagwort, sie ist der Schlüssel zum Erfolg eines jeden Unternehmens. Egal, ob Geschäftsführung, Servicetechnik, Innendienst oder Sales: Jeder/Jede im Unternehmen trägt auf seine Weise dazu bei, die Kundschaft mit den angebotenen Produkten, Dienstleistungen und Serviceleistungen zu überzeugen – und idealerweise zu begeistern. Dabei sind deine Produkte und dein Field Service gleichermaßen wichtig. Wir zeigen Dir nun, wie auch dein Service die Erwartungen deiner Kunden/Kundinnen übertreffen und nachhaltige Kundenbindung schaffen kann. Hier erfährst Du, welche Strategien und Best Practices angewendet werden können, um die Kundschaft zu begeistern und langfristigen Erfolg sicherzustellen. Freu Dich auf wertvolle Einblicke in die Welt der Kundenorientierung und des Field Services! Du möchtest mehr über L-mobile erfahren? Dann hier entlang: https://www.l-mobile.com/?utm_source=sm_podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organic_podcast-to-go-12-kundenzufriedenheit Du findest unseren Podcast auch auf Youtube: https://youtu.be/OdYLdvDGGWM/?utm_source=sm_podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organic_podcast-to-to-12-kundenzufriedenheit #fieldservice #kundenservice #kundenzufriedenheit #unternehmer #digitalisierung
Today's guest is Fabio Raffone, Vice President of Customer Service Operations for Americas at Tetra Pak. Tetra Pak is a Swedish multinational company specializing in food packaging and processing solutions. The company provides a range of offerings, including packaging materials, filling machines, and processing equipment for various products such as dairy, beverages, cheese, ice cream, and prepared foods. Fabio joins Emerj Senior Editor Matthew DeMello on the program today to discuss the pressing challenges faced by field service leaders and the growing relevance of AI in overcoming these hurdles. With a team of 700 field service professionals across the Americas, Tetra Pak is navigating complex market-specific challenges, from attracting and retaining talent in a growing U.S. economy to advancing competence development in other regions.
Brian describes how Racetrac has evolved to fill the needs of the modern consumer. He and Sid discuss the importance of technology in maintaining operational efficiency, and how to deliver a consistent customer experience.Welcome to Elevating Brick and Mortar. A podcast about how operations and facilities drive brand performance.On today's episode, we talk with Brian Nay, Director of Field Services at RaceTrac. Racetrac, a family-owned company, owns and operates more than 550 RaceTrac gas and convenience store locations across seven southern states, and more than 200 RaceWay stores in 12 states across the Southeast.Guest Bio:After starting his Racetrac career in the stores, Brian worked his way up through the operations arm of the business before moving to the corporate office in the support center. There he ensured the success of the work order management system, and looked for new features to roll out. He now works in the Director position to work closely with store support teams to make sure brick and mortar maintenance runs smoothly.Timestamps:00:26 - All about Racetrac01:31 - Brian's journey03:14 - Maintaining a brand promise05:13 - Building customer loyalty10:40 - How operations ensure consistency17:31 - How to manage cost, but have quality19:21 - Attracting skilled technicians22:45 - The importance of evolving 33:07 - Brian's advice for the industry36:14 - Where to find Brian36:33 - Sid's takeawaysSPONSOR:ServiceChannel brings you peace of mind through peak facilities performance.Rest easy knowing your locations are:Offering the best possible guest experienceLiving up to brand standardsOperating with minimal downtimeServiceChannel partners with more than 500 leading brands globally to provide visibility across operations, the flexibility to grow and adapt to consumer expectations, and accelerated performance from their asset fleet and service providers.Links:Connect with Brian on LinkedInConnect with Sid Shetty on LinkedinCheck out the ServiceChannel Website
Meet Shawn Prince, President of Field Services at Attentive.ai. With over 17 years of experience in the field services industry, Shawn began his journey at Brickman/BrightView and has since played a pivotal role in driving revenue and exceeding sales targets for multiple landscaping businesses. Now, at Attentive.ai, Shawn is leading the charge in transforming the field services industry by helping companies seamlessly integrate AI into their workflows. His expertise and vision are changing the way businesses operate, making them more efficient and competitive than ever before.
Tim Freeman, VP of Field Services and Manufacturing at CANDU Energy Inc joins me to discuss the 3rd most widely deployed reactor technology in the world, Canada's Heavy Pressurized Water Reactor the CANDU. Note this conversation was recorded in March of 2024.
Industrial Talk is onsite at DistribuTech and talking to Bill Cappel and Kyle Slagle with Cross Discipline Engineering about "In a rapidly changing utility market, listening and driving to a solution is key". Scott MacKenzie hosts an industrial podcast from Distribute Tech in Orlando, highlighting the importance of innovation and problem-solving in the utility and power industries. Bill Cappel and Kyle Slagle from Cross Discipline Engineering discuss their roles in addressing complex challenges such as achieving carbon neutrality without sacrificing reliability. They emphasize the need for prioritizing goals, understanding client needs, and staying updated with regulatory changes. They also stress the importance of standardization and updating outdated standards. Bill and Kyle share their backgrounds in military and utility operations, respectively, and offer their services through Cross Discipline Engineering, encouraging listeners to reach out for solutions. Action Items [ ] Reach out to Cross Discipline Engineering through their website at crossdiscipline.com or on LinkedIn. [ ] Contact Scott MacKenzie on the Industrial Talk podcast platform to promote technologies, solutions, or events. [ ] Attend conferences like Distributech and PowerGen to see innovations and network with others in the utility and energy industries. Outline Introduction and Conference Overview Scott MacKenzie welcomes listeners to the Industrial Talk Podcast, highlighting the focus on industry professionals and innovations. Scott MacKenzie mentions the current location at Distribute Tech in Orlando, Florida, and introduces the guests, Bill Cappel and Kyle Slagle. Bill and Kyle discuss their experiences at the conference, emphasizing the importance of networking and innovation. Scott MacKenzie shares a conversation with a fellow attendee, Jim, about the rapid pace of technological advancements in the industry. Kyle Slagle's Background and Role Kyle Slagle introduces himself as a Solutions Expert, focusing on partnering with clients to find solutions to their problems in the power industry. Kyle explains his background in the power industry, including his 14 years with an IOU and his role as Director of Engineering. Scott MacKenzie and Kyle discuss the evolving nature of the utility industry, particularly in grid management and matching supply and demand. Bill Cappel shares his background, detailing his 21 years in the military and his current role as Director of Field Services at Cross Discipline Engineering. Challenges in Achieving Carbon Neutrality Scott MacKenzie and Kyle discuss the challenges of achieving carbon neutrality while maintaining reliability and avoiding excessive costs. Kyle emphasizes the importance of prioritizing goals and addressing them progressively to avoid overwhelming clients. Bill Cappel highlights the need for utilities to identify their main problems and work towards solving them without sacrificing reliability. Scott MacKenzie and Kyle agree on the importance of understanding market demands and guiding clients towards long-term solutions. Cross Discipline Engineering's Approach Bill Cappel outlines Cross Discipline Engineering's four-step process: understanding client needs, anticipating solutions, communicating expectations, and executing the...
Manager Minute-brought to you by the VR Technical Assistance Center for Quality Management
Go behind the curtain at the National Clearinghouse of Rehabilitation Training Materials (NCRTM) with Heather Servais, Project Manager. Join us as we delve into the vast resources available to vocational rehabilitation counselors, supervisors, and VR professionals. From employment navigation to disability-specific resources and cutting-edge training, Heather reveals how the revamped NCRTM website is a treasure trove of information and tools to enhance your practices and improve services. Tune in to explore these new features and see how the NCRTM can support you in your vital work. Don't miss this opportunity to unlock the full potential of this dynamic platform! Listen Here Full Transcript: {Music} Heather: This is made by people that have done the work, like it's just so relevant and timely to what's happening in the field. We have resources on a Microsoft Word and PDF, PowerPoints. There's a whole bunch of information on the NCRTM page, which is a great starting point for when you're thinking about how can I make this information accessible for everyone? If you have a customer who's thinking about work, or you want to have some reputable job-seeking tools, it's a great tool for those counselors to be able to give to their customers. If you want help locating some resources, just email us NCRTM at New Editions dot Net. Intro Voice: Manager Minute brought to you by the VRTAC for Quality Management, Conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time. Here is your host Carol Pankow. Carol: Welcome to the manager minute, Heather Servais project manager with the National Clearinghouse of Rehabilitation Training Materials, or the NCRTM, will join me in the studio today. So, Heather, how are things going? Heather: It's so good to be here. I'm great. I'm so excited to be on Manager Minute. Carol: I love it, I love it. We've been doing lots of fun stuff lately, so it's kind of fun to do this collaboration. I want to give our listeners a little bit of a background. So the NCRTM is a central clearinghouse for vocational rehabilitation information for individuals with disabilities, and it offers VR and education communities an opportunity to contribute new knowledge to their specific fields and gain visibility for their work. Now, I remember Heather, when I was still with Minnesota Blind, and I stumbled across this website and it was full of information, I was like, what is this? I had no idea it existed. And back then we had this internal like a little intranet. And I remember linking up staff to different materials because back in the day, and I know you went through a big refresh of the website back in the day, it was a little complicated to get through. I was linking folks to some really specific things that existed out there, and I thought that was so cool. Now, I know since you've been on, you've been working really hard on promoting the website and everything that NCRTM does, and we wanted to just take our listeners behind the curtain at the NCRTM. I also wanted our listeners to know, too, that Heather and I have been collaborating for the past few years on a lot of different items, and she has been fabulous in promoting our podcasts and all our materials for the VRTAC for Quality Management. So with that, let's dig in. So, Heather, would you tell our listeners a little bit about yourself and your journey into VR? You didn't just like land at the NCRTM out of nowhere. You came through kind of a fun journey. Heather: Yeah. I'd love to tell you a little bit about my journey in VR. Well, if you would have asked me when I was growing up if I would be a VR counselor or know what the field of rehabilitation counseling was, I would have told you no. I actually landed in this field by happy accident when I went to college. I was majoring in history and was considering being a teacher, or maybe pre-law, and I was looking for ways to get involved on campus. And I came across a club called Best Buddies that pairs college students into 1 to 1 friendships with individuals with disabilities. And I just loved being a part of the club. I loved my buddy that I was able to be paired with. And then while I was volunteering, I got asked by one of my co volunteers to consider working with this new company in town that worked with individuals with disabilities on independent living skills and non-residential support services. So I started doing that when I was in college, absolutely fell in love with it. And then when I graduated, I moved on to work for a community rehabilitation provider, where I started as a job coach, moved up to an employment specialist. I dabbled in vocational evaluation and then eventually became the employment services manager. And while I was there and working in the field, I absolutely just fell in love and I knew that this is what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. So I actually went back to school for my master's while I was working full time. I was really lucky to be the recipient of an RSA scholarship. That helped me be able to go back to school to get my master's in rehabilitation counseling, and I was able to do that, which I really felt like helped my career and was really able to be beneficial to me. When I made the jump from community rehabilitation provider to the state VR side, it was like there was all these names and terms and theories behind the work that I was actually doing. So it really kind of tied it all together in a nice little bow. I worked for that community rehabilitation provider for about seven years, and then I decided to make the jump to state VR to be a counselor. And for a long time I had a general caseload. I also worked in a rural county, and then towards the end of my time in the field, I worked with youth. And then I made the jump over to VR headquarters, where I took a supervisory job as the supervisor of at the time was a new unit called the Field and Provider Relations Unit, and this unit did training and technical assistance with both VR staff and with the community rehabilitation providers that were providing those employment services. So I really enjoyed it because it got to pull together the field experience that I had and then also the provider experience. And then my last stop at Florida VR was as the assistant chief of Field Services, where I oversaw a lot of the programming. So I oversaw learning and development, Ticket to Work, the employment programs team and the deaf hard of hearing deaf blind team and business relations team. I worked there and I loved building programs and loved being part of state VR. Towards 2020, I started to study for my Project Management Professional, or PMP certification. We were managing a lot of projects and building a lot of programs, and I felt like the PMP kind of helped me have a better understanding of some different methodologies to be able to do that. So it really helped pull the programmatic experience with the project management experience. And that's what really landed me here at NTM. So in my role, I get to work with a lot of technical assistance centers and training centers, and I'm able to have both the VR program knowledge and then also the project management knowledge to be able to understand the terms of the project and the contracts and the business aspect of this too. So it's been a long journey, but I'm so happy to be here because this role I get to work with so many different stakeholders. I love working with the VR agencies, the counselors, the rehabilitation counseling students, the parents, the families. I get to see it all, and not just from a local perspective. I'm getting to work with state and nationwide programs, and I think that's just a really big joy. Carol: And it's so cool. What a great fit for you. This explains a lot. You crack me up, though, because I was considering being in pre-law like back in my undergrad as well. I feel like we have kind of similar journeys. I was a job coach. I'm like, we both come from those humble beginnings, kind of fall into VR, and we find a lot of our guests on the show have been from different backgrounds and sort of stumbled into VR different ways. So that is so cool to know about you. Thanks for sharing that. Now, I know sometimes people are maybe confused a little bit about the NCRTM can you ground us in like how all this works, how you're connected with RSA? Like who do you actually work for? Because people are like, is this an RSA thing? What is this thing? So give us the skinny. Heather: Yeah, sure. So the NCRTM has actually been around for more than 40 years. When I found that out, you know, I was a little history nerd. So I did some digging and I was shocked. I was like 40 years. I mean, I think I've, you know, been around in the field for a long time and I didn't even know about the NCRTM until I was working at headquarters as a manager. So I think about the first basically half of my career, I didn't even know about it. And that's one of the things about this job is like, I want people to know. And so when NCRTM originated, it was a paper based repository that was basically where RSA grantees would submit their products at the end, and they would be stored and used and to what it is today, which is this really dynamic and engaging platform that has a website and a YouTube and social media and lots of connections. And so it's kind of continuing to grow and evolve. And the driver of NCRTM, where it actually originates is section 15 of the Rehabilitation Act. We are in there. And what section 15 says is that it creates a clearinghouse, and it says that we have to deliver three things. One is information about the location, provision and availability of services and programs for individuals with disabilities. We also need to have information and research related to recent medical and scientific developments bearing on disabilities. And we have to have information about the current numbers of individuals with disabilities and their needs. And so when we look at NCRTM, that's our driver. That's what we're trying to do. We're trying to share that information, the NCRTM itself and how it relates to RSA. Right now, NCRTM is funded by a contract through RSA and is operated by New Editions Consulting. So technically I work for New Editions Consulting, which is a fantastic company to work for. We just won one of the top places to work for the Washington Post, so they take wonderful care of us. It's been one of my favorite teams I've ever had the pleasure of being a part of. It's just been a really fun place to work. So we work very, very closely with RSA. We have a coordination team, so there are a big group of folks from RSA and the different units there that add and contribute to the content and the planning and the strategic direction for NCRTM. And then we also work really, really closely with the Technical Assistance Centers with other RSA grantees and federal partners to build out the content to deliver to our users through the NCRTM website and our platforms. Carol: I had no clue that that had been around for 40 years. Holy cow. I had no idea. That is amazing. And I can imagine, you know, when you think about the paper based, you know, products in the day. Heather: How do you get that out into the hands of the field? So we live in a great time, you know, we have this technology and we can use it because the products that are coming out of the technical assistance centers and some other RSA grantees, you know, this is made by people that have done the work. Like that's one of the things that I love so much about the clearinghouse is it's just so relevant and timely to what's happening in the field. Carol: Yeah, I love it. That advent of social media, too, has helped so much with us all being able to kind of cross plug and promote each other's tools and activities and things that are going on that has been so great. Now, I know since you arrived there, I feel like, no, I'm not disparaging anybody from the past, but I feel like you've brought this just fresh, different look at things and you've been really doing a lot of cool stuff. So would you talk about some of that cool stuff that you've been doing and kind of where are you getting your ideas from? Because it's been really fun to watch. Heather: Yeah, I came onto the scene with NTM in late 2021, and there was a lot of this stuff that was already in progress, and we launched a new version of the website in 2022. So not only do we have, you know, pretty robust content, NCRTM has mostly been known for the library. When you say NCRTM, people think library, library, library, and that is a big part of what we do. We have more than 3600 items in our library. When you think of a library, it can be anything from podcast episodes, research papers, blogs, toolkits, guides, trainings. There's such a diverse array of materials in that library. So that's one of the things we were most known for. We started with some of those library enhancements, so we had an enhanced filtering. So now our users are able to locate by topic area, disability type, audience type. There's a ton of filters that you can select to really zero in on materials of interest. We also added some recently viewed features. So if you go to the NCRTM and you're poking around looking for some things and you look at it, you can go back and you'll see some of the items that you recently viewed. We now have the ability to share the information from the website so you can email it to yourself. You can share it directly on social media. Also, as part of that big website launch, we updated our training and events page. This is one of those plugs that if you are new to the website, I love directing people to the training and events page because I know time is of the essence and there's so much training and information available, and NCRTM collects training and events and post them from the Technical Assistance Center. So if there's something happening from those, those are going to be on our site, from federal partners, from grantees. So a grantee could be a university, could be a nonprofit. There's lots of different types of events that are out there on our site. You can sort by live, which means these are like live upcoming events. So you're going to want to log into those or on demand. So that could be either a training module that was made to be an asynchronous learning experience, or it could be a recorded event from one of the previously featured live and upcoming events that we had hosted prior. You can also sort on that training events page by CRC Credit Availability. So for those of you that are counselors or administrators or managers that are looking to get those CRC credits, this is a great way where you can zero in on finding those trainings that are of interest to you, that offer that CRC credit for free. It's a great resource. We also added some new pages to the platform so that we're really the result of user feedback. I think that's one of the things that I'm most proud of with NCRTM team that we do is we are serious about user feedback. So we are collecting feedback from surveys. We run user advisory groups a few times a year. We also are really out in the community talking to VR counselors, talking to rehabilitation counseling students. We're talking to grantees about their needs and what they're doing, really wanting to get the feedback so that we can curate content or we can build content that's meaningful for folks. So in the spirit of section 15, one of the new items that we launched on NCRTM was a programs and services page. And this page focuses on job seeking resources. So for individuals with disabilities. So all processes from when you're considering employment. So maybe you need to do some assessments. Or maybe you're just thinking about going to work all the way through the hiring and retention and career advancement phases of your career. So this is a really great starting point. If you have a customer who's thinking about work or you want to have some reputable job seeking tools right at your fingertips, you can use it there. It's a great tool for those counselors to be able to give to their customers as a starting point. And we do update that page regularly. So if you would like to see like a national level resource on there that you found, that's not, email us. We're here. We want to add things to that page. We are constantly growing the page. We are adding new information to the library and to the website regularly. Carol: I actually have your site up right now. I love it really did change with that refresh that you guys did in 22 I remember having. Well, I'll say it, I tried to search in the library before and it would bring up like either 50,000 things or no things. When you put in word search or something, it just seems like your capabilities on here are so much more robust than they used to be. Heather: Yeah, we've definitely added a lot of enhancements to make it a lot more user friendly. We were trying to make it more streamlined. We wanted things to be easier to find, easier to get to material. And then we're also trying to be a little bit plainer in our language. Some of our users felt the language was way too academic, and we wanted this site to be something that's useful for all. So we're trying to do better with using plainer language and getting straight to the point of what the document is or what that material is, so that it's easy for people to digest when they're reading it. We also added a business engagement page. So for those counselors or even those folks who work for VR agencies that are on the business relations or business consulting team, this is a great resource to kind of help you understand the business needs and how to work with employers. When you're thinking about things like job placement and job retention and accommodations and the process for hiring, that's another great tool that you can use and share in your work. But you can use it as a counselor to educate yourself. It's also helpful when you're engaging with businesses so that you're using their business language. Carol: Excellent Heather: One other thing for counselors to consider. I know sometimes when we're VR counselors, I always say it was the hardest job I ever had. There's so much that you have to balance. There's so much to learn, and it always feels like there's things on your plate that you need to do. And sometimes we're so focused on our individual customers, our individual caseload, that we can forget that we're part of something so much bigger. It's not just our caseload or our office or even our state. We're part of a national VR program. Every state has a VR program. There's programs and the territories. There are so many others that are in this field along with you. And I think that's one of the great things about NCTRM is it can kind of help connect the dots so that you get to see the bigger picture. You can find materials that are created by other folks that are doing this work. You're able to see what innovative practices are working on caseloads that may be similar to yours. It may give you strategies that you can better know how to work with your customers. So I think that's one takeaway for NCRTM is just it's a different perspective. You can find things from your peers to help improve your work, and it just connects you better to the VR community around the country. Carol: Do you guys agree with that page at all with like CSAVR and the NET? Heather: We did. We were very happy that CSAVR and Kathy West Evans was helpful with us when formulating that content and reviewing that content. So yes, absolutely. We partnered with them to help put that together. Carol: Excellent. Heather: We also have I know you mentioned the Disability Innovation Fund and I'm a Manager Minute podcast listener. So I know, I know you've done some episodes with some DIF grantees, and we have a whole page that's dedicated to the Disability Innovation Fund grants. And so this is one of those pages that we're working on. It's definitely still a work in progress. So if you're interested in learning more about those Disability Innovation fund programs, we have each iteration of the grants there so that you can see kind of a little bit about what the purpose is and what those grants are doing. And then as those grantees are submitting products, we're going to be linking those products in the library right to that page. So you can kind of start to see some of the outcomes from those grant programs. So that's a really exciting page that we added. We're looking forward to being able to continue to update that pretty regularly, as we're starting to get some of those products in from those grantees. Carol: I love that. Those Disability Innovation fund, let me tell you, since we started doing podcasts, you know, featuring the different years and the States and what they're doing, I had no clue, you know, you'd hear about them. But unless you're really, like, talking to the people and finding out what's going on, man, there's some awesome stuff happening across the country that is going to be so helpful to the rest of the VR. People put out their products. It's good to know you're going to have a page dedicated to all of that, because I just envision these really amazing things coming from that, that are going to be so useful to VR as a whole for years to come. Heather: Absolutely. And there really is a lot of innovation coming out of the agencies that have these grants. And that's exactly what we want. We want others to be able to access those materials so they can think about how that could work in their state, and how that could work in their program, and be able to connect to resources that can help them on their journey to implementing and improving and streamlining their services. Carol: For sure. 100%. Heather: And then lastly, I have to plug here for the Accessibility Resources page. So accessibility is such a huge part of what we do. And coming from the field of VR and coming from a provider background, I knew about accessibility in theory, but it really wasn't until I got to working at the clearinghouse when I realized all I didn't know about accessibility. And this is definitely an area where I've had a lot of personal growth and a lot of personal learning to do since I came on board here. But the NCRTM has a page for accessibility resources. So if you are with a VR program or you're a VR counselor, or if you're an RSA grantee and you're looking to make your products accessible. So if you're thinking about having a PowerPoint, how can you make that accessible so that the information is accessible to all users? We have resources on a Microsoft word and PDF and PowerPoints. We have guides, we have video tutorials. There's a whole bunch of information on the NCRTM page, which is a great starting point for when you're thinking about how can I make this information accessible for everyone? And so we encourage folks to check that out too, because it's a really great starting point. Carol: Yeah, I think that's been an area that maybe VR has not done as well with. You would think we'd know better and do better and be better with that. But I've been amazed over time, different places I've gone or, you know, folks I've talked to and people still struggling with accessibility. So your having those resources out there is super timely and really important. Heather: Yeah, absolutely. And it really is one of those you don't know what you don't know until you kind of get into the thick of it. And I'm thankful now that I know better and I'm starting to do better. But it's definitely a journey and there's a lot to learn. And I would encourage folks not to be intimidated because you can start small and just learn a little at a time. And over time, that makes a really, really big difference in what you can do with your materials. Carol: Absolutely. Now, I know we have a lot of counselors that listen in, and you and I had talked about this a little bit. What advice would you have for counselors who may be exploring your website for the first time? I know you and I talked about you felt like you'd be a whole different counselor had you known about the cool materials that are out there for them. Heather: Yeah, man, I do. I feel like I would have been totally a much better counselor than what I was. When I think about going back to being a VR counselor, it can be overwhelming. I always say the hardest job I ever had was a VR counselor. Just because there's so much to learn. You have a lot of cases. I had to travel a lot for mine because I was in a rural county. You have a lot on your plate and it can be kind of overwhelming and you kind of start spinning your wheels sometimes because you're like, well, I don't even know if I have time to find out this information to help me do better. And I think, you know, what I would tell counselors is NCRTM is here and you can plug in. And so whether you're a new counselor and you're coming into VR kind of cold, maybe your background is in something different. You know, maybe you came with a social work background or a business background, and you may be kind of struggling to learn the VR part of counseling. Or if you're a seasoned counselor, you know, you may feel like you've been doing this a long time and you know a lot. But if you're not learning, you're not growing, and there's really always something more you can learn. And so we have resources for you in every stage of your career. And even as you continue to grow and transition, we have a lot of resources for those who move into management or supervision and program administration. So it's a really great resource to be able to support you when you are out there in the field looking to do, I think about like motivational interviewing and how much I really wanted to do that and use that technique. And I went through some trainings and it was like, okay, But the trainings, I always felt like they were just kind of never really got to the nuts and bolts like it was overviews. And one of my favorite resources in the NCRTM was actually this motivational training series that was created by Oregon VR and it's, you know, several years old now, but it's nuts and bolts. It's how to do motivational interviewing in a VR setting. Like it's amazing. And I wish I would have had that when I was a counselor. And there's also all kinds of different toolkits and guides. There's so much available. There's also another place on the NCRTM team where you can kind of as a starting point. We produce these things, which is a fancy word. We call it a curated list, but basically we have more than 20 curated lists on various topics, and most of the topics that we have selected these curated lists on were user driven. These were given to us. Ideas came from the field, came from our users. And these curated lists usually have, you know, 10 to 25 different resources on them about various topics. So for instance, we did one on VR 101. So for those folks, it can be counselors, it could be parents. All of the curated lists are segmented by audience. So if you're a counselor and you're looking for resources for yourself, you can check out these lists and it'll say for VR professionals. Or if you're looking for resources that you can share with your customers, you'll see for individuals with disabilities and families for general audiences, some of them are for specific disability types, like we have a list on autism and employment. We have a list on mental health. We have curated lists on work incentives, financial incentives, labor market information. So there's more than 20 of them out there. We add new lists pretty regularly. Right now we're in the process of updating some existing lists. So these lists change and they grow. But that's a really great starting point. If you're not really sure where to go or what to look at, I'd also highly recommend plugging into those training and events pages. So I know with the variety of information and training topics that are available, sometimes you really don't want to sit down and do a training, but you can look and a lot of the trainings are available on demand, so you can do it at a time that's convenient for you. As nerdy as it sounds, I like to listen to trainings in the background sometimes, so most of the trainings that are on the site I've listened to, I've taken myself and there's some really good stuff out there. So I'd encourage you to not be intimidated. But I'd also like to offer is just support. There's a team behind the team behind this curtain that's there to help you. So if you want to get acquainted with the site or you want help locating some resources, just email us. Our email address is NRTM@NewEditions.net, and one of our team members will be able to help you right away. So don't feel like you're in this alone. Like we can help you navigate and help you learn how to explore and show you what's available on the site and how it can benefit your work. Carol: All excellent advice that you've given that is super cool. I know that curated list. When I found that, I'm like, oh my gosh, that literally is what I felt like I did back in the day when I was at Minnesota, was create a curated list from your website. It was like linking counselors to these different really awesome materials on particular topics. So it's so awesome that you guys have done that. I feel like this is advanced so much and I know your team can do other cool stuff for VR agencies. So I heard you say, you know, obviously people can email you and you can do some support, but what are kind of trainings you could do for a VR agency on supporting using the website and such? Heather: Yeah, absolutely. So we are happy to do in-service trainings and system demonstrations for VR agencies. In the past we've had agencies where we've done executive leadership, where we've shown the executive leadership how to use the site. Not only do we show you how to use it, we talk to you about it. We tell you about it, and then we show you it. So you get to see a live system demo and then, you know, we can take requests. So if it is of interest or particular parts of the website where you want to learn a little bit more information, we can focus on those areas. We've also done it with teams or units. So we can do any type of training like a 1 to 1 setting or like small group setting for your teams. If you're interested in learning more about NCRTM and how you can use it in your work, we also help agencies with locating materials. Well, not just VR agencies. We help individuals so we get emails all the time about people. I just had one last week from a parent who has a child that's transitioning into the workforce, and they're really interested in learning more information about customized employment. And so the parent reached out to us because they really weren't sure where to go. And we were able to pull together a list, kind of walk the parent through what was on the list and was able to share that with them. So if you've got a topic that you're interested in, or maybe you're looking to compile a curriculum of trainings that are available to support you, there's a ton of great resources out there for the training. So those on demand training modules are very common. So if you're an agency and you're looking to build out a training curriculum without like basically rebuilding and restarting and rebuilding the wheel, let's take a look and see what's already out there. You know, this stuff that's coming out of the Technical Assistance Centers and RSA grantees. It's really relevant to what's happening and what's needed in the field right now. And we really want folks to be able to connect to that so we can help you locate those. I had an agency that was asking about financial literacy training, and I was able to send them, Carol, to the financial literacy training from QM, you know, so it was really great. So we have these kind of resources and these requests coming in all the time, and we welcome that. We want to be able to help you navigate resources that's out there. It's up to us to know where to point you and we're happy to do that. And then another thing that we do. So for those agencies that want to submit products to NCRTM, or maybe they're a DIF grantee or another RSA program grantee, we do accessibility technical assistance. So the team behind the team is we have a 508 team here at New Additions, and they help us a lot with accessibility work and making sure that the products that go onto the NCRTM are accessible so we can help provide technical assistance. We do accessibility reviews on materials, especially if they're the result of an RSA grant. And then we can offer if it's like remediations or complex accessibility work, we can provide technical assistance on that. So for instance, we had an RSA grantee who was really interested in doing some new video work, but they really weren't sure how to do audio descriptions. And so our 508 team was able to provide that technical assistance, to be able to kind of show them and walk them through how to do audio descriptions in work. We often do a lot of document remediation, so we're able to kind of review your PDF and word documents. If you're submitting it to the NCRTM, to let you know if it's accessible or not, and then what kind of steps need to be taken to make sure that it's accessible. So that's another service that we offer. Carol: I had no clue about that. That is fabulous. I hope people take you up on that for sure. Oh my gosh. You've talked about the website and the materials posted there. So I know that the RSA grantees can put information out there. Are there other people that can put information on your website? Heather: Yeah, technically anybody can submit materials to the NCRTM. It's a public website. So anybody can what we recommend if you're interested in submitting, we have an online library submission form. So when you go to the NCRTM website home page, if you navigate to the library using that top navigation bar on the far left hand side, it says library. When you go into the library, then you will come across a link on the right hand side of the page. And what that link says is submit materials to the NCRTM library. You can go ahead and click on that link. And there's a form that you can fill out. And you'll just have to put some very basic information about the material that you're submitting. So maybe this is something that your agency created, that you're very proud of and would like to be on the NCRTM website. Or maybe it's something from a federal partner that's publicly available, that's not in our library that you think should be. That's another thing you can do is you can submit it to NCRTM. Every material that's submitted is reviewed by our team to make sure that it's accessible, and then also that it's appropriate to be on the NCRTM, and then we can go ahead and publish it and make it available on the website. So anybody can yeah, anybody can submit, which I think is pretty cool. And we really encourage folks. So if you're a VR agency and you have tools and you have success stories or you have trainings you want to share and you want them to get the word out about it, send it our way, we will help you figure out a way to put it on the site and help you amplify that material. Like, we really want these products and these materials that you're working on that are really meaningful for the VR community. We want to get them out there. Carol: Well, we're definitely better together. You know, everybody's creating all of this great stuff. We don't have to all reinvent the wheel. Like, let's use this so each other can get like all that great stuff. Everybody's producing. I think that's wonderful. Heather: Yeah. If you're afraid to use that form, you can always email us like we are small team, but we're very responsive. We take a lot of pride in making sure that we're responding to folks quickly. So if you have questions about submitting materials or you want to walk it through, you can email us at NCRTM@NewEditions.Net, and we'll walk you through that. For those RSA grantees we have a whole guide that's out there, the guide for product submission and websites about submitting products to the NCRTM. But that's more for RSA grantees. If you're an individual or you're a VR agency, definitely email us or use that library submission form and we're going to be happy to help you. Carol: Very cool. So I know you have a lovely newsletter you guys put out. And then I saw recently kind of a little different format. You were doing like a news blast or something. Sort of groovy. How can folks, because we do have a lot of counselors that listen into and they don't always have access, you know, maybe the directors on your mailing list or something. But how do folks subscribe so they can get it quickly? Heather: Yeah, we have a lot of ways that you can connect with us. Carol, you mentioned the newsletter. We do put out a monthly newsletter. We are trying some new things. So we are starting to do some news blasts. So if there's some really important announcement or might be an event reminder or something that NCRTM is doing, we're going to start sending some more regular communications to our subscribers. The best way to do that is to sign up for the NCRTM newsletter. And you can do that by using the web page. You use the top navigation bar and click on join the NTM network tab. That's going to take you to our page, where you can start to subscribe so you can subscribe for our newsletter. Like I said, it goes out once a month. We also have another subscription where if you're really interested in keeping up to date on what's new, what's happening with the library materials, you can subscribe for library updates. So once a month, you'll get a list of all of the new items that were added to the NCRTM library. And it really varies month to month. Sometimes we have a lot of folks that submit products, other times it's just our team out there looking and finding what's new and putting it onto the site. So some months you'll see a lot, some months you might not see as much. It just really depends if you're really interested in staying up to date, we encourage you to do that. We also have social media. You can find us on X which is formerly Twitter. Our handle is at RSA_NCRTM. So we encourage you to follow us on Twitter. We do a lot of amplifying new products. We talk about some of the events and trainings that are going on. And then we also have a YouTube. So whenever NCRTM hosts a training because we do host trainings ourselves too. Right now we're doing a series of lunch and learns. Carol, you were a big help with moderating what our first Lunch and Learn event last November with Doctor Herbert. We had a panel discussion about recruitment and retention. We also just did a really wonderful lunch and learn session that we did alive. And then we just released the publication earlier this month on managing counselor workload guilt. So for those of you counselors who are out there maybe struggling, feeling a little guilty because your workload is high, and this really looks at strategies to kind of find balance and prioritize wellbeing. It was a really fantastic event. And so that video is available on our YouTube channel. And then earlier this month we hosted a lunch and learn where we partnered with NRIC, the National Rehabilitation Information Centre, and really kind of zeroed in on research. And how can you navigate with NRIC and use research in your work. And so the video of that will be coming out very soon too. So if you're interested in looking at some of the trainings that NCRTM has done, definitely check out our YouTube channel. Carol: Yeah, folks, definitely need to sign up because then you get everything. I love it because I must be signed up like three different ways. I get it, you know, from RSA, Joe Doney. And then I get from you guys, I get it all the time. So I make sure I have all the current information and the lunch and learns are fabulous. They're really fast paced. It's nice. There's just great guests that have been on there. I think they're really a good product that you've developed. Heather: Yeah, so definitely the newsletter. I think you hit it. That's the best way. So if you're looking to connect, we have a lot of ways. But the newsletter you're going to see a lot of the new stuff that's coming out. You're going to be able to see any of the lunch and learns that we're hosting. You're going to get to see NCRTM materials. You'll also get to see all of our new library materials. We usually feature 3 to 4 new library materials on that newsletter, too, so you don't sign up for library updates. You can still see that in the newsletter. So yeah, the newsletter is really a great source to get the most information about what's happening at NCRTM. Carol: Very cool. So is there any way our listeners can help you? I don't know if you had any particular ask for them. Or are there ways that our listeners can help you guys? Heather: Yeah, absolutely. Like I mentioned, we are very serious about user feedback. So we want to hear from you. We want to be able to curate content that's meaningful and helpful for you. So we want you to share your ideas with us. So if there's library materials, if there's a webinar or training topic that would be helpful for you or idea for a new curated list, we want to hear from you. That's how we continue to build and grow the NCRTM to make sure that it's meaningful to our users. So really reach out to us, email us, NCRTM@NewEditions.Net. We also have a customer feedback survey so you can connect with us. That way you can fill it out if you have ideas for content or things that you would find helpful, and then also just connecting with the NCRTM team by signing up for the newsletter would be a really big help. It also helps keep you up to date on what's happening. Those are some of the bigger ways that your listeners could help us is really those connections. Tell us what you need, how we can help you, and then connect with us and stay up to date. Connect with us so that you know what's going on, because I guarantee you your work will benefit. Carol: Awesome. Thanks for joining me today, Heather, I really appreciate you being on. This was great. Heather: Yeah, thanks for having me. It was awesome I appreciate it. {Music} Outro Voice: Conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time, brought to you by the VR TAC for Quality Management. Catch all of our podcast episodes by subscribing on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks for listening!
Today's guest is Joe Meloche, Business Line Manager for Service in North America at Atlas Copco. Joe joins the program to talk about the various challenges facing field service leaders, especially around new equipment obstacles and the multi-decade “brain drain” much of the industry has faced in an ever-changing workforce. Later, he and Emerj Senior Editor Matthew DeMello dive into how service organizations can deploy AI in the form of ‘tribal knowledge' to best capture expertise and deep insights, especially for large enterprises, where problems are solved locally but not documented systematically. This episode is sponsored by Aquant. Learn how brands work with Emerj and other Emerj Media options at emerj.com/ad1.
Our next stop takes us to the Quad Cities, home of the Single A Affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, RiverBandits. We met up with the Director of Field Services and good friend, Morgan Hunter. We discussed her time in the KC Royals system, where she has grown in each opportunity. Talked about an upcoming field renovation necessary to meet PDL standards and much more. You do not want to miss out!
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Dusty Holley is a man with many talents and a diverse knowledge base that allows him to be equally at home in a board room or sitting on a board in a set of cow pens. Aside from being the Director of Field Services for the Florida Cattlemen's Association, he's a great storyteller with extensive family roots in our state's cow culture. Dusty set aside some time from his busy schedule to share that family history, part of which relates directly to the infamous Barber-Mizell Feud, and a good deal of general Florida history gleaned through various family accounts. Trust me when I say you don't want to miss the historical accounts captured in this conversation.
Kayla Montgomery, the stepmother at the center of the Harmony Montgomery murder case, has been granted parole from her prison sentence, shedding light on a tragic tale of betrayal and loss. Kayla, who played a pivotal role in her estranged husband Adam Montgomery's recent murder trial, appeared before a parole board on Thursday, paving the way for her impending release from New Hampshire State Prison. Kayla Montgomery's journey through the legal system began in 2022 when she struck a plea deal with prosecutors to testify against Adam Montgomery regarding the disappearance and death of five-year-old Harmony. She had been serving an 18-month sentence for lying to a grand jury about the case, a lie she later admitted to in court. According to the N.H. adult parole board, Kayla's release is contingent upon her completion of rehabilitative programs mandated by the court. Her housing plan will also be scrutinized and approved by officers from the NHDOC Division of Field Services before her scheduled release in May. During her testimony, Kayla painted a harrowing picture of Harmony's final moments, recounting how Adam repeatedly assaulted the young girl over bathroom accidents in the car. Adam Montgomery was subsequently convicted of second-degree murder last month, with authorities believing he killed Harmony nearly two years before her disappearance was reported in 2021. Notably, Harmony's body has yet to be found, intensifying the ongoing search efforts. Adam's sentencing is set for May, marking another chapter in this tragic saga that has gripped the community. Meanwhile, Kayla Montgomery's parole offers a glimmer of closure for those affected by Harmony's untimely death, even as questions linger about the whereabouts of her remains. The search for Harmony's body persists, with authorities urging anyone with information to contact the designated tip line at 603-932-8997. As the legal proceedings continue, the memory of Harmony Montgomery lives on, reminding all of the importance of seeking justice for the innocent. Want to listen to ALL of our podcasts AD-FREE? Subscribe through APPLE PODCASTS, and try it for three days free: https://tinyurl.com/ycw626tj Follow Our Other Cases: https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com The latest on Catching the Long Island Serial Killer, Awaiting Admission: BTK's Unconfessed Crimes, Delphi Murders: Inside the Crime, Chad & Lori Daybell, The Murder of Ana Walshe, Alex Murdaugh, Bryan Kohberger, Lucy Letby, Kouri Richins, Malevolent Mormon Mommys, Justice for Harmony Montgomery, The Murder of Stephen Smith, The Murder of Madeline Kingsbury, and much more! Listen at https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com
Hidden Killers With Tony Brueski | True Crime News & Commentary
Kayla Montgomery, the stepmother at the center of the Harmony Montgomery murder case, has been granted parole from her prison sentence, shedding light on a tragic tale of betrayal and loss. Kayla, who played a pivotal role in her estranged husband Adam Montgomery's recent murder trial, appeared before a parole board on Thursday, paving the way for her impending release from New Hampshire State Prison. Kayla Montgomery's journey through the legal system began in 2022 when she struck a plea deal with prosecutors to testify against Adam Montgomery regarding the disappearance and death of five-year-old Harmony. She had been serving an 18-month sentence for lying to a grand jury about the case, a lie she later admitted to in court. According to the N.H. adult parole board, Kayla's release is contingent upon her completion of rehabilitative programs mandated by the court. Her housing plan will also be scrutinized and approved by officers from the NHDOC Division of Field Services before her scheduled release in May. During her testimony, Kayla painted a harrowing picture of Harmony's final moments, recounting how Adam repeatedly assaulted the young girl over bathroom accidents in the car. Adam Montgomery was subsequently convicted of second-degree murder last month, with authorities believing he killed Harmony nearly two years before her disappearance was reported in 2021. Notably, Harmony's body has yet to be found, intensifying the ongoing search efforts. Adam's sentencing is set for May, marking another chapter in this tragic saga that has gripped the community. Meanwhile, Kayla Montgomery's parole offers a glimmer of closure for those affected by Harmony's untimely death, even as questions linger about the whereabouts of her remains. The search for Harmony's body persists, with authorities urging anyone with information to contact the designated tip line at 603-932-8997. As the legal proceedings continue, the memory of Harmony Montgomery lives on, reminding all of the importance of seeking justice for the innocent. Want to listen to ALL of our podcasts AD-FREE? Subscribe through APPLE PODCASTS, and try it for three days free: https://tinyurl.com/ycw626tj Follow Our Other Cases: https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com The latest on Catching the Long Island Serial Killer, Awaiting Admission: BTK's Unconfessed Crimes, Delphi Murders: Inside the Crime, Chad & Lori Daybell, The Murder of Ana Walshe, Alex Murdaugh, Bryan Kohberger, Lucy Letby, Kouri Richins, Malevolent Mormon Mommys, Justice for Harmony Montgomery, The Murder of Stephen Smith, The Murder of Madeline Kingsbury, and much more! Listen at https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com
Kayla Montgomery, the stepmother at the center of the Harmony Montgomery murder case, has been granted parole from her prison sentence, shedding light on a tragic tale of betrayal and loss. Kayla, who played a pivotal role in her estranged husband Adam Montgomery's recent murder trial, appeared before a parole board on Thursday, paving the way for her impending release from New Hampshire State Prison. Kayla Montgomery's journey through the legal system began in 2022 when she struck a plea deal with prosecutors to testify against Adam Montgomery regarding the disappearance and death of five-year-old Harmony. She had been serving an 18-month sentence for lying to a grand jury about the case, a lie she later admitted to in court. According to the N.H. adult parole board, Kayla's release is contingent upon her completion of rehabilitative programs mandated by the court. Her housing plan will also be scrutinized and approved by officers from the NHDOC Division of Field Services before her scheduled release in May. During her testimony, Kayla painted a harrowing picture of Harmony's final moments, recounting how Adam repeatedly assaulted the young girl over bathroom accidents in the car. Adam Montgomery was subsequently convicted of second-degree murder last month, with authorities believing he killed Harmony nearly two years before her disappearance was reported in 2021. Notably, Harmony's body has yet to be found, intensifying the ongoing search efforts. Adam's sentencing is set for May, marking another chapter in this tragic saga that has gripped the community. Meanwhile, Kayla Montgomery's parole offers a glimmer of closure for those affected by Harmony's untimely death, even as questions linger about the whereabouts of her remains. The search for Harmony's body persists, with authorities urging anyone with information to contact the designated tip line at 603-932-8997. As the legal proceedings continue, the memory of Harmony Montgomery lives on, reminding all of the importance of seeking justice for the innocent. Want to listen to ALL of our podcasts AD-FREE? Subscribe through APPLE PODCASTS, and try it for three days free: https://tinyurl.com/ycw626tj Follow Our Other Cases: https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com The latest on Catching the Long Island Serial Killer, Awaiting Admission: BTK's Unconfessed Crimes, Delphi Murders: Inside the Crime, Chad & Lori Daybell, The Murder of Ana Walshe, Alex Murdaugh, Bryan Kohberger, Lucy Letby, Kouri Richins, Malevolent Mormon Mommys, Justice for Harmony Montgomery, The Murder of Stephen Smith, The Murder of Madeline Kingsbury, and much more! Listen at https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com
Kayla Montgomery, the stepmother at the center of the Harmony Montgomery murder case, has been granted parole from her prison sentence, shedding light on a tragic tale of betrayal and loss. Kayla, who played a pivotal role in her estranged husband Adam Montgomery's recent murder trial, appeared before a parole board on Thursday, paving the way for her impending release from New Hampshire State Prison. Kayla Montgomery's journey through the legal system began in 2022 when she struck a plea deal with prosecutors to testify against Adam Montgomery regarding the disappearance and death of five-year-old Harmony. She had been serving an 18-month sentence for lying to a grand jury about the case, a lie she later admitted to in court. According to the N.H. adult parole board, Kayla's release is contingent upon her completion of rehabilitative programs mandated by the court. Her housing plan will also be scrutinized and approved by officers from the NHDOC Division of Field Services before her scheduled release in May. During her testimony, Kayla painted a harrowing picture of Harmony's final moments, recounting how Adam repeatedly assaulted the young girl over bathroom accidents in the car. Adam Montgomery was subsequently convicted of second-degree murder last month, with authorities believing he killed Harmony nearly two years before her disappearance was reported in 2021. Notably, Harmony's body has yet to be found, intensifying the ongoing search efforts. Adam's sentencing is set for May, marking another chapter in this tragic saga that has gripped the community. Meanwhile, Kayla Montgomery's parole offers a glimmer of closure for those affected by Harmony's untimely death, even as questions linger about the whereabouts of her remains. The search for Harmony's body persists, with authorities urging anyone with information to contact the designated tip line at 603-932-8997. As the legal proceedings continue, the memory of Harmony Montgomery lives on, reminding all of the importance of seeking justice for the innocent. Want to listen to ALL of our podcasts AD-FREE? Subscribe through APPLE PODCASTS, and try it for three days free: https://tinyurl.com/ycw626tj Follow Our Other Cases: https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com The latest on Catching the Long Island Serial Killer, Awaiting Admission: BTK's Unconfessed Crimes, Delphi Murders: Inside the Crime, Chad & Lori Daybell, The Murder of Ana Walshe, Alex Murdaugh, Bryan Kohberger, Lucy Letby, Kouri Richins, Malevolent Mormon Mommys, Justice for Harmony Montgomery, The Murder of Stephen Smith, The Murder of Madeline Kingsbury, and much more! Listen at https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com
Selecting a field service-specific application is complicated, with many businesses considering themselves part of another, larger industry segment and lacking an understanding of how their unique requirements play into selecting software. As a result, field service companies often settle for the wrong solution and face obstacles that could have been avoided had they implemented the proper functionality. Field services require high-level automation for estimating, quoting, work orders, and much more, making it difficult to simply “identify” the right application, not to mention determining the correct software, third-party add-ons, and implementation partner. In this episode of The ERP Advisor, Shawn Windle will uncover the most important factors to consider when selecting software for your field services company.Connect with us!https://www.erpadvisorsgroup.com866-499-8550LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/erp-advisors-groupTwitter:https://twitter.com/erpadvisorsgrpFacebook:https://www.facebook.com/erpadvisorsInstagram:https://www.instagram.com/erpadvisorsgroupPinterest:https://www.pinterest.com/erpadvisorsgroupMedium:https://medium.com/@erpadvisorsgroup
Kaes has worked at Diamondback Energy since July 2016 in various roles and as President and CFO since February 2022. Prior to that, he was CEO of Bison Drilling and Field Services in Midland, TX from September 2012 to June 2016. He began his career at Citigroup as an investment banking analyst, and worked for Wexford Capital prior to joining Bison. On this episode, Chris and Kaes discuss: Learning the Oil & Gas business A timeline of Diamondback Energy The Permian Basin How to get people to love Oil & Gas again We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners. https://www.thefortpod.com/survey Links Diamondback Energy Kaes on Twitter Topics (00:01:48) - Kaes' career & tennis (00:09:32) - Learning the Oil and Gas business (00:16:37) - Building Windsor (00:26:15) - High yield vs. investment grade businesses (00:31:20) - Diamondback's merger with Energen Resources (00:34:12) - Experiences during Covid (00:39:03) - How do you source deals? (00:42:18) - The 2021 market (00:45:24) - Hedging (00:46:41) - Thoughts on the Permian basin (00:49:09) - Being a low-cost producer (00:52:07) - Learning to manage people (00:53:43) - Thoughts on the $60b Pioneer acquisition (00:55:28) - Is there a way to make people love OIl & Gas again (00:01:46) - This business is a trade (01:03:06) - Are investors coming back into the space? Support our Sponsors Relay Human Cloud: https://bit.ly/3sjQcaY Fort Capital: https://bit.ly/FortCapital Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/ Chris on Social Media: Twitter: https://bit.ly/3BYIjcH LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX Visit our website: https://bit.ly/43SOvys Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0 Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts
In this podcast episode, Vivek hosts Prateek Chakravarty, CEO of Zinier, a field services management software company. Prateek shares his journey from being a field service engineer in the oil and gas industry to leading Zinier. The conversation delves into Pratik's background, the challenges faced in field service roles, and the evolution of the field service industry. Prateek's narrative takes a significant turn as we delve into his experiences in the field, notably during his stint in Siberia—an area renowned for its challenging conditions. These pivotal experiences profoundly impacted Prateek's mindset, offering invaluable insights into the complexities of field service roles. His time in utilities further enriched his perspective, providing firsthand knowledge of the intricacies involved in managing diverse assets and addressing unique challenges within the energy sector. Prateek emphasizes the need to bring innovation to the field and make blue-collar jobs attractive again. Zinier's platform focuses on field service automation, catering to companies with distributed assets and workforces. The flexibility of their platform allows for customizable workflows and efficient scheduling, addressing the common challenges across industries. The discussion explores Zinier's role in empowering the field workforce and bridging the technology gap. Prateek highlights the importance of adapting to changing business scenarios and the company's consultative approach in working with clients from various sectors, including telecom, energy, and manufacturing. As the conversation shifts to the manufacturing sector, Prateek discusses the concept of servitization and its impact on optimizing workforce management. The podcast concludes with insights into the evolving landscape of customer relationships, where a proactive and consultative approach is key, especially with the generational shift in leadership.
Today’s guest is Mark Brown, Director of Field Services with Plains Cotton Growers (PCG) in Lubbock, TX. He recaps the 2023 growing season, talks about [...]
The Transformation Ground Control podcast covers a number of topics important to digital and business transformation. This episode covers the following topics and interviews: What's Next for Digital Transformation in Europe, Q&A (Kyler Cheatham, Third Stage Consulting) Executive Leadership Roles & Responsibilities (Julie Williamson, Karrikins Group) Digital Transformation & Distrubution in Field Services (Kyler Cheatham & Jeff Nelson, Third Stage Consulting) We also cover a number of other relevant topics related to digital and business transformation throughout the show. This weekly podcast series premiers live on YouTube every Wednesday at 8am New York/1pm London/9pm Hong Kong. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Google, Spotify, Pandora, or your favorite podcast platform. Register here
Join us this episode as Eric and Carla talk with Jerrica Owen from the National Animal Care and Control Association and Kristi Boucher from the Washington Animal Control Association. We will be talking about a recent interagency agreement between Animal Incident Management and Maui Humane Society and how AIM utilized the relationships between NACA and State Animal Control Associations to provide Animal Control Support to Maui Humane Society field services after the fires in Lahaina. Support the showhttps://asartraining.com/https://www.facebook.com/asartraining
Moving to another country is always a challenge, but our guest this week Barry Lynch's journey was amplified by the added stakes of securing dual citizenships for his children. Richard and Barry talk about confronting unique complications, acquiring a deeper understanding of different cultures, and encountering the many highs and lows of expatriate living. Barry is Senior Vice President of Field Services at PTC, but his career has now transformed into an interesting amalgamation of professional accomplishments and social media stardom as an esteemed theme park reviewer.Relocating from the UK to the US in 2005 was the beginning of a captivating excursion for Barry. It was not without hurdles, but it represents the joy and achievement of a well-planned journey filled with resilience, adaptation, and eventual success. Dive into their story as we unravel the essence of the Lynch family's "expat" living, marked by personal professional victories, familial growth, and a passionate love for theme parks.Always an Expat is affiliated with Plan First Wealth LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Plan First Wealth. Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein. Plan First Wealth does not provide any tax and/or legal advice and strongly recommends that listeners seek their own advice in these areas.
In this episode we discuss insights, challenges and opportunities related to scheduling in the trade industry. How can trade professionals work smarter, not harder to reduce scheduling errors, keep customers happy and keep non-billable hours and fuel costs to a minimum? The discussion is based on the findings from the 2023 Voice of the Trades study. Read more here: https://www.simprogroup.com/resources/podcasts/episode-13
On this episode of the Healthcare Education Transformation Podcast, Dr. Blaise Williams shares his journey from being a physical therapy student to becoming the Director of Field Services at the Nike Sport Research Lab. He discusses his educational background, including his undergraduate degree in biology and environmental science, and how he stumbled upon physical therapy as a career. Dr. Williams explains how he developed a passion for running-related research and biomechanics, which led him to pursue a PhD and eventually work in various research labs. He also talks about his experience setting up and running a research lab at East Carolina University and later at VCU. Finally, Dr. Williams discusses his current role at Nike and how he is using his expertise to serve athletes and everyday runners.Key Takeaways:- Physical therapists have a unique understanding of human movement and can play a valuable role in various industries, such as sports science and product development.- The field of physical therapy offers opportunities beyond traditional patient care, including research, consulting, and advising.- Technology, such as wearables, provides new opportunities for physical therapists to analyze and interpret human movement data.- Physical therapists should embrace their knowledge and expertise in human movement and actively seek out opportunities to contribute to discussions and advancements in the field.D. S. Blaise Williams III, Ph.D., MPT, FACSM is Director of Field Science and Services on the Field Experience Team within the NIKE Sport Research Lab. Blaise is an energetic and seasoned leader in Applied Human Movement Science with more than 20 years' experience guiding projects and platforms with multidisciplinary teams. Through innovation, education and service to ALL athletes, Blaise is focused on the future of sport science and its role for healthy participation across the globe.You can learn more about him at: https://www.nike.com/nikelab/nde-nike-sports-research-labSpecial thanks to both our sponsors, The NPTE Final Frontier, and Varela Financial! If you are taking the NPTE or are teaching those about to take the NPTE, visit the NPTE FInal Frontier at www.NPTEFF.com and use code "HET" for 10% off all purchases at the website...and BREAKING NEWS!!!! They now have an OCS review option as well... You're welcome! You can also reach out to them on Instagram @npteff If you're a PT and you have student loan debt, you gotta talk to these guys. What makes them unique is that they view financial planning as like running hurdles on a track. And for PTs, the first hurdle many of us run into is student loan debt. Varela Financial will help you get over that hurdle. They not only take the time to explain to you which plans you individually qualify for and how those plans work, but they ALSO take the time to show you what YOUR individual case looks like mapped out within each option. So if you're looking for help on your student loan debt, or any area of your personal finances, we highly recommend working with them. You can check out Varela Financial out at varelafinancial.com. Feel free to reach out to us at: http://healthcareeducationtransformationpodcast.com/ https://www.facebook.com/HETPodcast https://twitter.com/HETpodcast Instagram: @hetpodcast @dawnbrown_pt @pteducator @dawnmagnusson31 @farleyschweighart @mail.in.stew.art @ujima_institute For more information on how we can optimize and standardize healthcare education and delivery, subscribe to the Healthcare Education Transformation Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Sarah welcomes Franklin Maxson, VP Field Services, North America at Socomec for an important conversation on safety. Franklin touches on what works well in terms of policy and leadership but also why a top-down safety approach will never be enough.
Jason Gutting joins the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast this week to talk about his new role as director of MDOT's Bureau of Field Services. He talks about standards and specifications for paving materials and how MDOT engineers confer with counterparts from across the country; innovations in road building, winter maintenance and operations; and ongoing challenges because of inflation and supply chain pressures since the pandemic began.Gutting was previously the administrator of the Construction Field Services (CFS) division. He also worked in operations and was the construction contracts engineer for CFS as well as the construction engineer and an assistant construction engineer at the MDOT Lansing Transportation Service Center (TSC).Other references in the podcast:Iowa State University's National Concrete Pavement Technology Centerhttps://cptechcenter.org/Inflation in road buildinghttps://enotrans.org/article/highway-construction-costs-have-risen-50-in-two-years/ MDOT winter road maintenance https://www.Michigan.gov/MDOT/Travel/Safety/Road-Users/Winter-Safety
Today’s guest is Mark Brown, who is the Director of Field Services with Plains Cotton Growers (PCG) in Lubbock. he talks about current crop conditions, the reality that much of … Read More
City Quick Connect Podcast from the Municipal Association of South Carolina
The Association's field services managers travel the state to offer hands-on technical assistance and training to help all 271 municipalities address challenges. Naomi Reed, covering much of the Upstate, has joined Charlie Barrineau and Ashley Kellahan as part of the team. Hear from all three about the services they offer and the territories they cover. Learn more: https://www.masc.sc/request-municipal-assistance
In the latest episode of Boom! It's on the Blockchain, we are joined by Jonathan Knight, CEO of Uprise Energy, joins us to discuss the current difficulties and challenges that Offshore Wind Energy is now facing. Subscribe to Boom! It's on the Blockchain - https://boomitsontheblockchain.com/ **Show Notes** With Vattenfall suspending a massive project in the UK North Sea and Iberdrola-owned Avangrid agreeing to pay roughly $50 million to end a power arrangement for a groundbreaking US venture that it claims is no longer viable, offshore wind has had better months. A examination of Siemens Energy's wind turbine business revealed more serious issues than anticipated that might cost more than 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion). As a result, the company canceled its 2023 profit forecast. An extensive technical study of Siemens Gamesa's installed turbine fleet and product designs, according to Siemens Energy, was started as a result of what it claims to be a marked increase in component failure rates. Since offshore wind's ambitions have grown, it has always signaled good news for the energy transition. This month, the US announced first leasing in the Gulf of Mexico, but storm clouds are now undeniably forming. In this podcast, Jonathan offers his assessment of the market and discusses if the global recession is to blame for some of the unfavorable trends. Guest - Jonathan Knight Jonathan Knight is a Cofounder and CEO of Uprise Energy, a San Diego, CA based startup that is building the world's first commercially sized mobile wind turbines. Prior to Uprise, Jonathan was the Senior VP and General Manager of Knight & Carver Yacht Center, an award winning and globally recognized custom yacht builder that also operated the largest marine repair facility on the West Coast of the Americas. In the late ‘90s, Jonathan leveraged the company's reputation as a leader in composites to begin offering repair services to utility scale wind turbine companies. The success of this venture spun-off its own division - Knight & Carver Wind Group - that evolved from blade repair to new blade manufacturing for the largest OEM's in the space and created a Field Services division with nearly 400 employees that serviced wind farms all around the world. The crowning achievement of this division came when the company teamed up with the US Dept. of Energy and SANDIA Laboratories to develop the STAR Blade®, which is the #1 performing wind turbine blade ever built. Uprise Energy - https://upriseenergy.com/ Jonathan Knight on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/3YPPmND Jonathan Knight on Twitter - https://bit.ly/3mXxOSA Follow Boom! It's on the Blockchain on Social Media Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/3NDCeWF Facebook - https://lnkd.in/gv4WRDMm YouTube - https://bit.ly/3a0R9M2 Spotify - https://spoti.fi/3t0A0ZU LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/3z4b3R5 TikTok - https://bit.ly/3HZQSGg Podcast Host Alastair Caithness - https://bit.ly/3kpBLP3 Alastair Caithness on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/3BjK6bp Energy Tokens - https://www.energytokens.io/ Ziyen - https://www.ziyen.com/
Dragos Grozavu is the Co-Founder and CEO of epitet.co, helping field service companies leverage the power of AI to achieve more with fewer resources. In this episode Dragos and KJ discuss the challenges faced by deskless workers in industries such as oil and gas, energy, and plumbing, and the need for optimization in scheduling and workforce management. Key Takeaways: How deskless workers are impacted by inefficiencies in vocational jobs The challenge of coordinating multiple teams and technicians in service-based industries The Importance of deskless workers in powering the economy How epitet.co is focused on the energy sector and clean energy Quote of the Show (30:00): "I'd like people to think more about the people that power up our economy, the plumber, the carpenter, the maintenance guy, and just having knowledge that there's a life outside of the office that's beautiful." – Dragos Grozavu Join our Anti-PR newsletter where we're keeping a watchful and clever eye on PR trends, PR fails, and interesting news in tech so you don't have to. You're welcome. Want PR that actually matters? Get 30 minutes of expert advice in a fast-paced, zero-nonsense session from Karla Jo Helms, a veteran Crisis PR and Anti-PR Strategist who knows how to tell your story in the best possible light and get the exposure you need to disrupt your industry. Click here to book your call: https://info.jotopr.com/free-anti-pr-eval Ways to connect with Dragos Grozavu: Email: dragos@epitet.co LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dragosgrozavu/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/dragosgrozavu?lang=en Company Website: https://www.epitet.co/ How to get more Disruption/Interruption: Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/eccda84d-4d5b-4c52-ba54-7fd8af3cbe87/disruption-interruption Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/disruption-interruption/id1581985755 Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cub21ueWNvbnRlbnQuY29tL2QvcGxheWxpc3QvODE5NjRmY2EtYTQ5OC00NTAyLThjZjktYWI3YzAwMmRiZTM2LzNiZTZiNzJhLWEzODItNDhhNS04MDc5LWFmYTAwMTI2M2FiNi9kZDYzMGE4Mi04ZGI4LTQyMGUtOGNmYi1hZmEwMDEyNjNhZDkvcG9kY2FzdC5yc3M= Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6yGSwcSp8J354awJkCmJlD Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/disruption-interruptionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Exclusive interview with Dr. Victor D. Sutton, who oversees MSDH's Office of Preventive Health and Health Equity, Office of Health Services, Office of Field Services, and the Jackson Heart Study Community Engagement Center, after having served as the director of the Office of Preventive Health and Health Equity for many years.
On this week's edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, a topic that provokes strong feelings among everyone who drives: when to merge when a freeway lane is closed for construction. Tom Vanderbilt explained in his 2008 book, Traffic, there are two schools of thought:The first camp - let us name it after the bumper sticker that says practice random acts of kindness - viewed early mergers as virtuous souls doing the right thing and late mergers as arrogant louts. "Unfortunately, people suck," wrote one Random Acts poster. "They'll try whatever they can to pass you, to better enjoy the traffic jam from a few car lengths ahead of you… People who feel that they have more pressing concerns and are generally more important than you will keep going, and some weak-spined schmuck will let them in further down, slowing your progress even more. This sucks; I'm afraid it's the way of the world." Another camp, the minority camp - let's call them Live Free or Die, after the license plate motto of the state of New Hampshire - argued that the late mergers were quite rationally utilizing the highway's maximum capacity, thus making life better for everyone. In their view, the other group's attempts toward politeness and fairness were actually detrimental to all. Gregg Brunner, acting chief operations officer and director of the Bureau of Field Services at the Michigan Department of Transportation, talks about the advantages of the so-called “zipper merge” for commuter routes. He also shares insights on the importance of driver education and public awareness for a successful implementation, as well as why the zipper merge isn't suitable for every project. Michigan is among several states encouraging drivers to use the zipper merge technique in specific circumstances and working on creative ways to educate drivers on how it works. This Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) video features adults in cardboard cars as a learning exercise on how to take turns.
Brad Hawkins has been with ServicePower:Field Service Software since 2004, where he currently serves as Senior Vice President of products and solutions, overseeing operations, development and product management. He's a long-time veteran in the world of field service technology and Brad brings more than 20 years of experience in workforce management software. Questions • Could you share a little bit about their journey, how is it that you got to where you are today. And just in your own words, why you're doing what you're doing and how you got there. • Could you explain to our listeners a little bit about what field service is exactly? Maybe just break down some examples of what types of work does that entail? • What has your experience been with field service? And do you find it differs based on maybe the culture of the country? Or how do you optimize for a great experience with all of those variables that are so uncontrollable? • Can you share with us what you've seen AI's role been in elevating field service to create better customer experiences? • Could you also share with us maybe I would say let's say 1 to 3 different types of solutions that you've seen that have been pretty innovative in the whole field service space? Have you seen things being done differently, more efficiently? Are there trends that you're seeing you think organizations should be tapping into more in order to improve on their service delivery? Or has your company been pioneering that in any way? • Could you share with our audience what's the online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely can't live without in running your business every day? • Could you also share with our listeners, maybe one or two books that have had a great impact on you, it could be a book that you read a very long time ago, or even one that you've read recently, but it definitely has impacted on your professional competencies as a Chief Solutions Officer? • Could you also share with our listeners, Brad, what's one thing that's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about? Either something you're working on to develop yourself or your people. • Where can listeners find you online? • Do you have a quote or saying that during times of adversity or challenge, you'll tend to revert to this quote? It kind of helps to get you back on track if for any reason you got derailed. Highlights Brad's Journey Me: Now, Brad, before we start off our conversation with our guests, we always like to give them an opportunity to share in their own words, a little bit about their journey, how is it that you got to where you are today. And just in your own words, why you're doing what you're doing and how you got there. Brad shared that it's an interesting journey for him as somebody who's been with ServicePower for a long time. And in field services in general, even longer. Because he started out as a self-taught programmer, he had sort of one other career job before coming to the field service world, which was all about data management, he worked down in the Caribbean, where they had very innovative ways, this was back in the 90s, of how they captured data across various mechanisms, the biggest being intelligent character recognition, where you're scanning things, and he can intelligently read what he can decipher off of a piece of paper. And in that job coming to an end, he came back from living in the Caribbean. It was in need of finding work and he ended up at a place called Key Prestige, which was then acquired by ServicePower but that was where they built a warranty management platform. And that was his first foray into the world of field service. It was understanding, there's this world out there of workforces that are out in the field, how do you optimize them best? How do you use an employee versus an independent contractor and then building out that initial platform, they then became part of the ServicePower world. Along that journey, he ran development. He's since run their consulting and professional services organizations. He's on his second tour running product. But they then combine those platforms, again, with the sort of the ServicePower ecosystem to provide all of these various ways of field service solutions where sort of a big differentiator of ServicePower is do I work with an employee workforce? Or do I work with an independent contractor? And what's the best way to do that? So, just over time, he's had new and interesting challenges at ServicePower, he's been able to take on other areas. And he's got to work basically, across the business. He runs product, but he still works very closely from a development standpoint. He's working with marketing and sales all the time. So, it's still exciting to him as a long timer but that's kind of how he got there. What is Field Service? Me: So, you've done a lot of work in field service. Could you explain to our listeners a little bit about what field service is exactly? Maybe just break down some examples of what types of work does that entail? Brad shared that he'll give a couple of examples of some industries. But specifically, when you think about, I'm an end consumer and I have a product or a service that requires someone to come out and do some type of service. And there are organizations then who have these workforces that they leverage. So, an example would be very simple a homeowner example. I'm in my house, I'm an in consumer, I've got a refrigerator, it breaks, who do I call? Is it in warranty? Is it under a service contract, depending on that, that's going to determine, let's say it's Electrolux, I'm going to call them about my fridge, I'm having an issue, it's not cooling. They make the decision, oh, we're going to send a resource to your house to fix that. So, the entire process of entitling that service event, the transparency to the consumer of everything that's going on, if you think about those events happening on a larger scale, the optimization of that workforce to gain efficiencies, identifying contractors in the moment to say who's the right guy to go out and run this job, ensuring people are getting reimbursed for their work properly from the proper organization. And again, just to come back up a little bit high level there, think of that across multiple industries. So, major appliance, consumer electronics, actually anybody who has a home warranty on any products in their home, the insurance industry who has adjusters for you may have a catastrophe event and have a need to call up your homeowners' insurance, they're going to come out and do inspections. It can get larger, apartments, facilities, they have needs for workforces to come in and do inspections, repairs, any of that really. So, it's any organization that has a field workforce, whether that workforce is employed, or they're leveraging independent businesses. The goal of a field service platform should be how do I optimize that? How do I ensure a world class customer experience along the way? How do I defend my brand along the way? But that's high level. Me: So, you touched on quite a few things. So, field service is definitely something I believe that all consumers at some point will have to engage in throughout the course of their lifetime. How has it been for you on the end of as you mentioned, optimizing to get the best experience when you have to deal with so many different personalities. And I hear you mentioned that you lived in the Caribbean for a while, would you mind sharing with our listeners, which Caribbean island or country that was? Brad stated that he was going to ask, he feels like Yanique's accent got to be Caribbean, he could be wrong. But yes, I lived in Grenada for about a year. What Has Been Your Experience with Field Service? Me: So, I am Caribbean, I'm Jamaican, and I am currently in Kingston, Jamaica. Here in Kingston, Jamaica is listening to you speak just now about the fact that you would have a fridge for example, and the fridge breaks down and you call the person that you purchased the fridge from, especially if the fridge is still under warranty. I have found, for example, in Jamaica, contract persons like plumbers, carpenters, painters like those kinds of trades people, they are highly unreliable. They tell you, they're going to come tomorrow and probably you'll see them in another two weeks, you have to be constantly following up with them. And I find the service experience to be extremely poor. What has your experience been? And do you find it differs based on maybe the culture of the country? Or how do you optimize for a great experience with all of those variables that are so uncontrollable? Brad shared that culture and geography does matter, it absolutely matters. Again, as somebody who lived in the Caribbean, he knows the differences there. As a company, ServicePower, they very prominent in North America, but also in Europe, they rolled out in multiple countries in Europe. The geography and sort of the interaction that the customer can have, can change. But the key that they try to push along the way is, you're going to have a better experience, if you understand how best to interact with the resources involved, or he'll give you a word that they use in the product world is the personas involved. So, he has to understand that he has an end consumer who has expectations of a level of service, he has to provide a way for that consumer to have full transparency of everything that's going on. One of the things he thinks is, in our world today, it's very clear that consumers, they want to know up to the minute what exactly is going on in any event they're doing whether it's where's my pizza that's on the way to my house? Where's my Uber? Same thing. When he books a technician to come out to his home, he wants to know everything that's going on, if he's trying to order a part and it's delayed, you have to give full transparency to that. That's better than not hearing anything, it's like you said you're constantly having to follow up. So, one of the key things is to have a system that is very proactive and is going to inform the consumer and keep them in the loop of everything that's going on all the way up to the point of “I'm on my way, I'm in route.” And ensuring that the resource that you do send, how do I make sure in the moment, that that's the best possible resource that's going to provide the best possible outcome for that end consumer. And again, that's all about what the ServicePower platform does is it understands whether it's an employee or a contractor, if it's a contractor, who is the contractor that is performing to the level that I expect them to, so I can rate and rank them. It's again, it's really about those principles. AI's Role in Elevating Field Service to Create Better Customer Experience Me: Brilliant. So, you've mentioned optimizing for a better customer experience and the fact that you have real time up to date information for the client so they know every step of the way what's happening, as you mentioned, if the person is en route, if a part hasn't been ordered, that kind of stuff. So, artificial intelligence is pretty big now. There's a ChatGPT, there's Bing search engine. There are lots of them and lots of organizations are using the AI to integrate into their current systems to make it smarter, to make it bolder, to make it more informative for consumers. Can you share with us what you've seen AI's role been in elevating field service to create better customer experiences? Brad stated absolutely, and he'll add another term in there along with AI, which is machine learning. It's very much in the forefront of what everybody's doing these days. But in the world of field service, again, if you think of that service event, and somebody, whether they make the phone call, they go on a website to schedule service for self-service, it's in that moment, based on what he knows about that event. What can I predict? That's what AI and machine learning offer in their world. And that's the biggest one right now is, if he knows it's this product, this model, this is the description of what is being told to him that's wrong and he can even then look at past repair history, how can he just use AI to predict? Well, the technician, he needs to send out likely needs these three parts. Or he can triage them, he can give them some information to say, try this first, try that. And it's using AI and machine learning to make those intelligent predictions. What they've really learned about it is, people are using historical data to do that today, it's really about building the feedback loop of as you continue to get that data and ensure that the model you've created continues to learn over time. But again, another good field service term for this is if you can make those predictions intelligently and he can send a tech out with everything he needs ahead of time, that ensures a first-time fix. Because again, imagine when your contractor comes out, he looks at it, he goes, “I don't have the parts on the truck. I'll reschedule you for next Tuesday.” That's a bad experience. So, using AI and machine learning, they can make the predictions of how do I ensure you have all the tools you need so that when you get on site, you are insured of doing a first time quality fix, because that will lead to a happy customer. Innovative Solutions in the Field Service Space Me: Could you also share with us maybe I would say let's say 1 to 3 different types of solutions that you've seen that have been pretty innovative in the whole field service space? Maybe especially since we've been emerging out of the pandemic, have you seen things being done differently, more efficiently? Are there trends that you're seeing you think organizations should be tapping into more in order to improve on their service delivery? Or has your company been pioneering that in any way? Brad shared that he thinks we've certainly pioneered it. There're two things he'll talk about there. Because there's actually not that many field service companies that have, they have already thrown around the term optimization. And every company will tell you they do optimization but what we've learned and we've seen, is there are some specific definitions of things you need to be able to do to truly optimize a workforce. And there really, again, not many companies that actually do it. So, when he talks about optimization, imagine an employed workforce. So, let's just take North America as an example. If he were to have 2000 resources across North America, he's got jobs that where he has to offer up appointments to consumers, he may have SLAs for inspections. So, a job comes in where he's got to be there in three days, that's his agreed upon contractual SLA. But he has emergency jobs that may be coming in throughout the day. True optimization, and one of the things they offer is they can continually evaluate a schedule that's been built out over time. And that's one of the ways where they use AI, they use a specific algorithm as part of that, to be constantly evaluating that schedule. And as events are coming in, he can sort of rip that schedule apart, move jobs around, understand what's the best possible most optimal schedule for all of his resources across however many jobs he has. And that's running constantly, throughout the day. When most field service organizations tell you they do optimization, what they're really doing is, “Well, I have an optimized route. Like I went to Google Maps, and I made sure that my optimized route.” And that's fine. They can use the term optimization for that. But that doesn't necessarily take into account things like you can have your route, you can have drive time, is there access hours to a particular building, you may be going in and doing an apartment maintenance or facilities maintenance, and there's access hours. What's the cost of overtime? And am I considering that in the schedule? Just the schedule in general, my text, the knowledge and skills that those texts have. Again, how do I ensure that I'm taking all of that account into the schedule I'm creating. And again, that's sort of what creates that again, that's how they refer to optimization. They know others use the term but they're not doing AI based optimization like they are that can really based on any number of parameters that any of their our clients want to use. The KPIs that drive the business, the important key indicators of the business, all of those with AI. So, that would be one of them. The other one that again, this is technology and just sort of a general shift in where field service has gone is most software platforms that relate to field service, they sort of choose one method of solving a problem or another and the two main ones are, do I have an employed workforce? Or do I leverage independent businesses, and where most make a mistake and what they've really driven in the in the field service world, he would even tell you, he feels like ServicePower is the one who has been on the forefront of this all along, is the idea that you have to understand both of those types of organizations work very differently. But you still have to be able to blend them together because whether he sends his own employee or an independent business, he has to ensure that the experience is exactly the same for the customer. Again, when he employs someone, he has control of their schedule, he can dictate technology to them, he knows everything about them. When he's working with an independent business, he sort of have to be able to rate them and score them based on how they performed for him, and he has to know like, “Okay, you're an independent business, I have to authorize you to work for me, which means I want to ensure your background check. You've been through all the proper trainings.” And again, some of those terms he talked about, what are your first time fix rates? What are your costs? He needs the transparency to see into that business because he's only giving them maybe 10% of the work they actually do, they're not dedicated to him. So, one of the things again that they think they brought to the world of field service, and they continue to innovate on is, how can I have a rules engine around that understands? He's got two different types of workforces he's working with, but he's going to provide one unified world class customer experience where that customer doesn't know any different. He doesn't know that it's an independent business who showed up, he just thinks, again, “My GE product or my LG product, I got it fixed, they did it the first time, that's all that matters. It was a great experience. So yeah, that's a couple there. App, Website or Tool that Brad Absolutely Can't Live Without in His Business Me: So, we've spoken a lot about optimization and what are some of the pioneering, I would say, talents and attributes that ServicePower has been demonstrating and those are excellent, really, really a good way for us to dovetail into my next question. And so, we'd like to know if you could share with us, Brad, because it's all about the tools and resources that you're using to ensure that you're being most efficient in whatever task you're completing. Could you share with our audience what's the online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely can't live without in running your business every day? When asked about an online resource that he can't live without in running his business, Brad that in running the business, he can name some tools here. But he tell you, they all have a common theme, which is tools that provide analytics. We live in a data driven world and understanding the analytics underneath your business are crucial. And some examples of that, again, when you think of ServicePower as a software company, it all start by coming at it from the development side, they have to know exactly the velocity of their development staff, they have to know how much time they're spending on which initiatives are they putting their time into innovation and roadmap versus support and issues, implementation, whatever, they can break all that down. That way they can plan and forecast for the future, what directions they want to go. Obviously, from an analytics standpoint, sales pipeline matter in that. So, they have a bunch of tools underneath that they obviously use things like HubSpot, as it relates to sales and marketing. And there is a component of Salesforce, they use for that for the development side. There's a couple of tools they use Jira being one to sort of track and it facilitates them gathering that data. They actually have their own, why say their own, it's a tool that they use called Domo, that it's basically a data warehouse with an analytics engine over the top of it. So, from their use, again, anything related to analytics. And that's the other thing he would tell you beyond just their business is they then have to take all that data that comes out of their platform and present it the same way to their clients, where they can see how is your network performing, how are your employees performing? What's your customer satisfaction? He'll just give you one example of that, there was a sort of a great story at ServicePower was, they came out, it's probably been about three or four years, they came out with their consumer portal, that's where consumers are notified of everything of their service event. They can be driven into a portal which gives them information about it. One of the great key value points of that was their clients who are receiving calls from consumers just like you said, going, where's my contractor? Their call volume went, they were able to show through their analytics that their call centre volume went down by 40% when they put that tool out there to say, I can now have a system that's informing the consumer, there's no need for them to call you because they feel informed. So, again, back to the question, he'll just tell you anything analytics based. So, again, data driven world and you want to be on top of the things that are driving your business through analytics. Books that Have Had the Biggest Impact on Brad When asked about books that have had the greatest impact, Brad stated that he'll tell his, because in his schooling days long ago, he sort of became very enthusiastic about the idea of culture in business. And there's a book called The Culture Code: The Secret of Highly Successful Groups, it's by Daniel Coyle, and it is all about how do I build a culture that brings your workforce together? Has you all enthusiastic about working towards a common goal, it gives you the tools for that. He read it a couple years back, in his opinion, it's more relevant now because post pandemic, you have people who are disconnected, a lot more people working at home, and it just gives you tools of how do you bring about a workforce that they're just as much invested in the mission and the goals as you are? So, that's the book he would recommend, as it's called The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle. What Brad is Really Excited About Now! When asked about something that's going on now that he's excited about, Brad shared that for him, he'll give a personal one, because this is a podcast, and he finds podcasts can be fun that way, and he'll try to do both. But for him, he's in a kind of a new transition in life, maybe he shouldn't say this to the public, he's 53 years old. Through the pandemic had some struggles in life, and started reinventing things with a new blended family. And so for him, personally, he feels like he's getting another round of being a dad again, his children are grown. So, personally, that's very important to him, he's a huge believer in family, and creating a tight knit family. And so, that's a big thing for him. From a work standpoint, he'll just tell you that ServicePower has been around a long time. But it does feel like they're always on sort of the edge of innovation as it relates to field service. And this is a year that they actually talked about heavy investment from their ownership. So, it's an exciting year from the things they're building, they're kind of reimagining the entire user experience of the platform, so they find that very exciting. So, even in his 20 plus years that he's been doing this, he still finds it rewarding, exciting, the initiatives they're driving. So yeah, again, he's done this for a long time but hopefully you're getting that from this podcast is that he's still very passionate about all of it. Where Can We Find Brad Online Website – servicepower.com LinkedIn – Brad Hawkins Quote or Saying that During Times of Adversity Brad Uses When asked if he has a quote or saying that he tends to revert to, Brad shared he does. He'll quickly look it up. He did this on a previous one he did, it'll just take him a second because he missed to be prepared for that one. This is one of his favourite quotes, matter of fact, he will tell you that all of the people at ServicePower have heard this multiple times from him. This is the quote, “Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that they've been robbed. Most putts don't drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, most jobs are often dull than otherwise. Life is like an old time rail journey there's delays, sidetracks, smoke and dust, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling burst of speed. The trick is to be thankful that you are on the ride.” He loves that quote. Me: And do you know the author of the quote? Is it anonymous? Brad stated that he's seen a couple people attributed to it, the person he knew that said it his name is Gordon B. Hinckley. Please connect with us on Twitter @navigatingcx and also join our Private Facebook Community – Navigating the Customer Experience and listen to our FB Lives weekly with a new guest Links · The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups by Daniel Coyle The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Service Grab the Freebie on Our Website – TOP 10 Online Business Resources for Small Business Owners Do you want to pivot your online customer experience and build loyalty - get a copy of “The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience.” The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience provides 26 easy to follow steps and techniques that helps your business to achieve success and build brand loyalty. This Guide to Limitless, Happy and Loyal Customers will help you to strengthen your service delivery, enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the customer experience and provide tips and practical strategies that you can start implementing immediately! This book will develop your customer service skills and sharpen your attention to detail when serving others. Master your customer experience and develop those knock your socks off techniques that will lead to lifetime customers. Your customers will only want to work with your business and it will be your brand differentiator. It will lead to recruiters to seek you out by providing practical examples on how to deliver a winning customer service experience! Our Next Webinar – May 16, 2023 at 10:00 am Register Here
Manager Minute-brought to you by the VR Technical Assistance Center for Quality Management
Scott Dennis, Assistant Superintendent of the Maryland Division of Rehabilitative Services (DORS), joins Carol Pankow in the VRTAC-QM Studio and tells us about how Maryland DORS increased recruitment and decreased resignations by raising salaries to compete in the regional job market. Learn how they opened the door and proved the case. Listen Here Full Transcript: Music} Speaker1: Manager Minute brought to you by the VRTAC for Quality Management, Conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time. Here is your host Carol Pankow. Carol: Well, welcome to the Manager Minute. Scott Dennis, assistant superintendent of the Maryland Division of Rehabilitative Services or DORS, is joining me in the studio today. So thanks for joining me. How are things going in Maryland, Scott. Scott: Things are going well, Carol. I appreciate the opportunity to join today's podcast. Excellent. Carol: So a little background for our listeners. I did have some familiarity with Maryland DORS. I had worked with Sue Page. She was the former director and a national level. We were on the executive committee together and Sue and I also did a couple panel presentations and that was super fun. And I was so disappointed, you know, when she had retired in '18, I had just worked with her. And then like the next week she goes, I'm retiring. She had sent me a note and I knew you had been her deputy and I think you were named right in 2019 to replace her, was that right? Scott: Yeah. I came into this position an acting role in 2018. Sue left in June of 2018 and I was named, the Acting. Was permanently placed into the position in January of 2019. Carol: Gotcha. Scott: Almost five years now. Carol: Nice. Well, it was really fun because early in '19 you and I, we were working on that RSA workgroup around Rethinking Performance. So I liked getting to know you and realizing, Oh, you're the fiscal guy too. You were the fiscal guy for the agency. So it's been fun to have that kind of a little lens into your agency. So I know you've had some unique challenges that we're going to get into later. And I understand that there had been some previous runs at trying to get employee wages increased, which, you know, had failed. So this was all prior to you being at the helm. And the state of the recruitment and retention issue nationally has been front and center for every VR agency, I think. And you were able to more recently secure a rather significant employee pay increase. So I am sure our listeners are on the edge of their seats and are anxious to hear, How did you make that happen? So let's dig in. So Scott, can you tell our listeners a little bit about yourself, like how long you've been with DORS and how have you got to the position you hold today? What's kind of the path you took? Scott: Well, sure. I kind of happened into VR. I was working in a private sector in retail and was looking to do something different than that. And as anybody who's ever worked in retail, there's a lot of long hours that are very odd and so forth. So I was looking to do something different and happened to come across an advertisement in the paper for a director for this program called the Business Enterprise Program for the Blind. Carol: Oh, wow. Scott: It kind of struck me. And so I said, Well, I've got a retail background, I've got a business background, let me get my shot at it. And so I put in my application and went through the interview process. And about four months later in 1990, I became the director of the Maryland Business Enterprise Program for the Blind, which was kind of unique because my background was not in the area of either VR or in blindness, but I did bring that business background, which is what the agency at the time was looking for. It was a great experience. The business enterprise programs for the blind bring their own unique challenges and so forth, and trying to operate a business environment inside of a state government. And you've got some real challenges in trying to do stuff fast and an organization is trying to slow you down. But it was a great experience. I was the director for BEP for six years and then our state director, who was Bob Burns at the time, said, I need some help over at DDS. And I went, What's a DDS? Because my focus had been strictly on BEP. And so he sent me over to the Disability Determination Services as the assistant director over there, and I oversaw sort of the administrative side of the DDS and did a number of activities over there. We moved into a much larger facility. We also at that time moved off a state legacy system onto *Levi. And for any of those who have been around a long time and have a program, you understand how far back that went. After about five years of DDS, moved over, back over here to the side of the shop and became the director of business services, which included all the administrative functions of the agency and sort of the financial piece of it. And so I was that until 2018 when I became the assistant state superintendent. Carol: Very cool. I had no clue. Your days started with BEP. That is amazing. Good for you. You have a definitely a great broad history there. Paint a picture for our listeners about DORS and what agency you live under. What's your designated state agency and how many staff do you have in VR? And you already said you had DDS, but is that service under your purview as well? Scott: Yeah, we're housed within the Maryland State Department of Education. We're probably one of the first big divisions of the Maryland State Department of. We were created in 1929 and we at that time the division had two employees and a budget of $15,000. And the only reason I know any of this is because we've got the enacting legislation sitting out in the hall. We had two employees and $15,000 worth of state appropriation at the time. And of the two employees, one was the director of the agency and the other one was his secretary. He was also the counselor at the time as well. So obviously but we've been here ever since. The Division of Rehabilitation Services is comprised of two main programs that we operate are the VR program, obviously, as well as the program. In total, we've got 648 employees in total, of which 416 of them reside in the VR program and the remaining 232 reside in the DDS program. Within that VR program operates an Office of Field Services, which is very much operated the way the general agencies operate and then we have an Office of Blindness and Vision Services, which operate very much as a blind agency. And so we have a director of each one of those offices. They have their own budget and own staff and so forth. Then we also operate our Workforce and Technology center, which does a lot of our training and so forth, as well as a number of community based services out in the field and so forth. So yeah. Carol: Yeah, you have a large operation. Holy cow. I didn't realize all of that. That's a bunch. Carol: So let's talk about your unique position as far as the state. You border other states, as does every state. You know, people probably think duh, but there's something special about where your state is positioned in this country, because I always hear people say that you're the training ground for people that move to RSA. Can you talk about like what that geographical situation has played for you as far as your staff? Scott: Yeah, and appreciate that. It does provide a unique situation for us. We border Delaware, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia as well as D.C. We do have some challenges, especially when we're competing with the federal government. And so because of the federal agencies that are housed here, it has become a real challenge because obviously the states don't pay as much as the federal government does, in particular around the Washington, D.C. area. The salaries are much higher than what we as an agency was able to offer. I mean, in some cases we'd have staff leave and they would nearly double their salaries as a result of that. In some cases, you just can't blame them. It has been a challenge having some of that federal government around, you know, as especially the presence of it, you know, large presence and so forth. Carol: So we all know about this great resignation, you know, that's been talked about in the news. VRs experienced that itself. So how has that impacted what was happening in your agency? What were you facing for vacancy? Scott: We were facing a high level of resignation. It was almost I hate coming in in the morning and turning on my computer and opening my email to see how many people resigned that particular day or week. And so we got hit pretty hard. We had about 40 counselors and supervisors, so it was about 30% of our workforce. We had vacancies in and that's on the VR side, on the side. You know, for those agencies that operate that, we had 59 vacancies and our examiners, which was about 45% of that. And, you know, the big culprit was they were going elsewhere, both private and public, to organizations that were paying them substantially more money than what we could afford, at least at the time. It hit us bad. Carol: Well, I know your number's up there. I'd heard from some other directors talking about you like a 60% turnover in counselors and all these crazy numbers. It's hard to imagine how the work is able to get done. So obviously, you've got this geographic situation, you've got the great resignation going on, and you decided to embark on a journey where you wanted to get these wages increased. Can you tell us more about what went into that? Scott: It was more than just me. I mean, it was a total agency effort. And I'm talking about from the top. In 2021, we got a new state superintendent who was from Texas. And so he was obviously very new, very young and high energy. And so being one of the large divisions and he wanted to have a one on one with me. And so we sat down and we talked. And what he wanted to know what DORS was to begin with and what VR was because he'd always been in education and so forth. And so we, you know, we talked and his first question, you know, real serious question was, what's your biggest challenge? I said, I can't hire, I can't retain because our salaries are so low. And I gave him an example. I said, we've had a recruitment out for three weeks now and we've got one person who is applying and they don't even meet the qualifications down in Montgomery County and Prince George's County, which are two largest counties in the state as far as population, but they're also the two counties that encircle Washington, D.C. And so the obviously the wages down there are extremely high because of the federal government. And so getting any staff at the wages that we were paying was next to impossible. We couldn't recruit, period. That was just the part of the problem. And so, you know, after I told him what the wages were, he even coming from the south out of Texas, even by his standards, the wages were low. So he put together, you know, he tasked the senior management, not only of the Maryland State Department of Education, but also of DORS to start working on a salary adjustment. Obviously, with something like this, it takes all hands on deck because it's just not one person who's doing all the work and guiding this. And so he tasked us and so my staff started doing feelers out to other states to find out what they're going for. We looked at the federal government and some of the positions that they were hiring for that had sort of equal entry level requirements. We looked at our counties. Some of our counties were paying way more than what we were. And so we took all that into consideration in looking at what is it that we wanted our salaries to look like. The other piece of this that was probably sort of the saving grace for us. Our counselors are in a classification series in this state that's only unique to DORS. It doesn't cross other state agencies or anything. And because of that, our Department of Budget and Management allowed us to do what they call an off cycle adjustment. Typically when they take a look at their salary adjustments and so forth and see whether they need to rescale them, they're looking across all the state agencies. They've got to balance who's got money and who doesn't, money when they start to raise salaries for, you know, let's say, an office secretary. Well, every agency has an office secretary. So they've got to have to balance this all out. When they say, okay, we're going to raise the office secretary's levels, well, they only had to look at us. They didn't have to compare us to anybody else, which made it a lot easier. And because a lot of our salaries, the way the state funds us, they put most of our state match dollars into our case services budgets. And so we've got just a small amount that actually goes towards salary. And so when we kind of pulled this together and say, okay, where can we go with this? We said, Hey, for a little bit of investment from the state side, we've got more than enough appropriation and federal funding over here. We can support this without any problem. So the meeting started in September. We kind of got going in earnest just after the Christmas holidays. We spent basically from October through December polling just gathering information. And then in from about January on, we started writing this up, getting everything put together. And then by late April we had the package ready together and we presented it to our Office of Budget and Management and Director of State personnel, and we suggested a threshold that we thought we could go to. They didn't quite agree with that. So there was some negotiating with the Department of Budget and Management, but we landed on a on a figure that was acceptable that they could live with that wasn't so far off that they were going to have problems with other state agencies as well, once they learned about what we had done. Our superintendent really wanted to push our salaries. He wanted it to be the highest in the nation. Carol: Wow! Scott: And he was pushing very hard to get us there. Didn't land there. Carol: So how far did you get? How high did you get to go? Scott: We got a substantial pay increase for them. We got, depending upon where they started, it was well over 20% pay increase for our counselors and examiners, which really stabilized it. I mean, it kind of gives you an idea, our salaries, starting salaries for what we call our VR counselor ones, which are individuals who come in with just a bachelor's degree, no experience. So we kind of have to build them up. We were starting at like 41,000 between 41 and 42. Our VR 2-counselors are individuals who have come in with a master's degree, no experience or some experience. And they were starting around 44,000 at the time and we were able to get them up. I mean, today our starting salary for counselor one is 57,000 and a couple of months with the new fiscal year will go to 58. Our twos were starting them at 60,000 and they'll go up to 62 in July. And then we have a technical specialist series and these are for individuals who again, have master's degrees, have been here a couple of years. They're starting in the upper 60s and low 70s now. Carol: Yeah, good for you. That's pretty amazing. So were there other positions included? So it's not like your examiners or counselors. Were there any other types of positions in the agency include? Scott: Well, we had to go back and do a readjustment because it affected both our counselors and our supervisors because it's a series of counselors, one, twos, technical specialists and supervisors. Then we have our regional supervisors and our regional directors. Well, because of it went up by grades and steps. Basically our regional supervisors were making the same thing as our office supervisors now. And so we had to raise them. When we raised the regional supervisors, they were making the same thing as the regional directors. So we had to raise the regional directors, but it had to happen over the course of time. The first push was the counselor series and so forth, and then we had to come back about a month later and do the rest of the others and so forth. So yeah, it's been sort of a work in progress and we still have some other classifications to take a look at as we kind of move down this path. Carol: I wondered about that. If you had some work left to do. Scott: Yeah, yeah, we do. We have to kind of go back. I mean, our support staff, we've got to go back and we've already started that work already to start looking at that group as well, because again, those classifications go across all state agencies, so we have no authority to raise those salaries. So we have to go back and do what we call a reclass them, which means we have to take a look at their classifications, see whether or not it still fits the job duties and so forth. So that's the only way I can raise that series, those individuals up. I just can't do what we did with the counselors. And in some cases, those salaries and all that are all controlled by the union. Carol: Yes. Scott: And so you've got to kind of have to work through all that stuff. So those positions take a little bit longer to kind of get through. Carol: That makes good sense. So how long did that take you for this? Scott: The first like I said, we started in 20. We started in September when I first met and we started in September. Late October. Carol: Was that 2021? Scott: Right. Carol: Okay. Scott: And then the pay raise went into effect on July 1st of 2022. So it took us nine months to kind of get it all put together and work through all the processes and doing the negotiation and so forth. So yeah. Carol: And it's interesting because you are a union state as well. I came from a union state too, so there's extra things that go into play because I know some other folks have been successful across the country, but they didn't have that added complexity to it. So it was good to see you were able to do this in that environment. Scott: Yeah, well, I mean, one of the things is even though we're part of a union, because the series is strictly DORS, we brought the union in once we had kind of got everything kind of worked through and said, okay, here's what we've done. They could have said, Yeah, no, we don't want you getting a pay raise. We worked at it that way just because and we had to cross even within our parent agency, if our parent agency, the Department of Education had a classification series and some of the stuff that they did, this would have never happened. Carol: right. Scott: Because of that uniqueness, we were able to get it done. Carol: Yeah, the stars were aligned for you, for sure. So how have these increases impacted your staff recruitment and retention? Scott: Oh, yeah. Big. I mean, it's like I mentioned earlier, we couldn't find staff or if we did, our supervisors and directors were making the decision of, I got to have a body, and so in some cases you're just getting a warm body. This has nothing to do with the person or anything like that. But they were probably individuals that this may not have been the best fit. But because you're sitting there as a supervisor and you've got 3 or 4 empty caseloads sitting on your desk, at least if I can get them in and get them do some work that's less work that I've got to do and so forth. So we were making some decisions on trying to sort of balance whether this was the right fit for people, but also looking at the number of people that are actually applying for the job was extremely low. I mean, we might come up with 4 or 5 individuals that make like really good candidates. And then when you made salary offer to them, they went, Uh, no thanks. In some cases we actually had made salary offers to individuals who had interned with us and wanted to work for us. And then we made the salary offer and they went, no thanks. Carol: They're like, I can go work at Target instead. Scott: You're exactly right. Because the salary, especially down in Prince George's and it is extremely high. Maryland has the highest median income in the country. You know, it's driven by about 3 to 4 counties in this state that drive that. And so that kind of shows you how tough it is in some other jurisdictions to find people and retain people is extremely difficult. Like I said, you know, one of those recruitments was just before we put out the salary change where we had gotten one individual. We got the permission to start publishing the new salary and we went from 1 to 40 in about two weeks. Carol: Wow. Good for you. Scott: For example, we had a recruitment out for this for about a month and maybe have gotten 25 to 30 applications. We re-advertised and got 170 in 3 weeks. So we went from 30 people to well over 200. So it obviously had a tremendous impact. In fact, I just had a regional director in talking with me earlier this week, talking about the quality of individuals that we're now seeing, because I haven't seen this high level of quality of people that we've gotten in years. So yeah, the impact has been immediate. Carol: That's terrific. Have you had any staff want to come back? Maybe that left? Scott: Well, actually, funny you asked that. We went back out to we had several staff. members who left 3 or 4 months earlier, and these were good staff. Sometimes you have staff leave and you go, thank God. Other times, you know, you see staff go out the door and you go, What a loss. And so we had about a half a dozen staff that had recently left that were sort of, oh, man, I hate to lose them. And so we reached back out to them and we were able to get four out of those six back. We almost got five back. But when they went to talk to their new employer, they went, Oh, we'll give you a pay raise. So she ended up getting a pay raise out of it because we told her what we were going to give her and they went higher. That's the benefit of a private sector situation versus, you know, state government type of situation. So we were able to get some seasoned staff back really quick. I mean, literally within weeks after the new pay plan went into effect. So yeah, it's stabilized. I'm seeing right now what I would consider sort of normal turnover. Now you're back down to 5 to 6% turnover rate versus 25 to 30% turnover rate. It's really made a made a difference in the world. It's stabilized the agency. We have a wait list. We had to basically shut it down because we had so many vacancies. I mean, we have had one and we were bringing people off the wait list. We just had to literally just shut it down. We couldn't handle. The individuals that were coming in the door that met the criteria for Category one. We were struggling with that along with our pre-employment. We just couldn't handle. We couldn't do it. So we shut it down. Once we got stable. Our regional directors and director of Office Field services came to me and said, We can handle bringing people off the waitlist now. And so we've been able to start bringing people back off the waitlist now. Carol: Good for you. That is terrific news is a big win all the way around. I just wondered if you had any advice for other directors and leaders across the country as there may be interested in doing something like this in their state. What advice would you give them? Scott: The biggest advice is you've got to get buy in from your senior secretary, superintendent, whoever is your most senior, most person in the agency, because at the end of the day, they're the ones that are really going to have to go to bat and particularly when you start dealing with the counterparts over at your budget office who are always going, Oh, that's going to cost us a dollar. No, I don't think so. That's where you really need to have sort of that political clout to kind of push some of this stuff through, because it's not, it's not easy. And again depending upon the environment, to some degree, we benefited from the environment itself because obviously we weren't the only state agency losing people. And so the state, I think, recognized that they had to do something. Because even other state agencies around us couldn't hire people because of the state wage. And so I think we kind of hit it right at the right time, so we were able to do it. So I think the combination of two. One, we had a superintendent who had no problem to go banging on the secretary of budget management's door and say, I need this in order for this program to function and opening the door and then letting the rest. of the team go to work and prove the case. Carol: I Like that you said that, prove the case. So if folks wanted to reach out to you. What would be the best way for them to contact you? Because a lot of times our listeners will say, I want to talk to Scott Dennis about what he just said. Scott: Yeah, I mean, anybody can reach out to me. My email address is Scott Dot Dennis (D e n n i s) @maryland.gov. Carol: Excellent. I really appreciate you joining me today and congratulations on the win. I just wish you continued success as you're working through your other positions. This is very cool. Thanks, thanks much. Scott: Not a problem. Thank you, Carol. {Music} Speaker1: Conversations powered by VR, one manager at a time, one minute at a time, brought to you by the VR TAC for Quality Management. Catch all of our podcast episodes by subscribing on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks for listening!
Necessity is the mother of invention, and a 20-year megadrought is the driving force behind several new aggressive water conservation measures in Southern Nevada. Doug Bennett, SNWA Conservation Manager, and JC Davis, Director of Customer Care & Field Services for the Las Vegas Valley Water District, talk about how you might be impacted by the new conservation initiatives and what you can do to drive down your water use on the Water Smarts Podcast, “AGGRESSIVE & PROGRESSIVE: New conservation measures to drive down water use.”Water Smarts Podcast Hosts: Bronson Mack and Crystal Zuelkehttps://www.snwa.com/
Join our host Danny Brister as he interviews Dr. Kwasi Kena, Associate Professor of Ethnic and Multicultural Ministry at Wesley Seminary at Indiana Wesleyan University. They discuss the book Building A City On A Hill: African American Communities of Purpose. Danny's new substack: https://dannybjr.substack.com/Website: https://www.actjustlylovemercy.org/Dr. Kena and his wife Safiyah's wearable art website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/SankofaNSilkDr. Kwasi Kena's bio:Kwasi Kena is married to Rev. Dr. Safiyah Fosua, who also serves as an Associate Professor of Spiritual Formation at Wesley Seminary at IWU. The couple has two adult children and two grandchildren. Kwasi and Safiyah are fiber artists who spin and weave “wearable art.” The couple co-founded Sankofa N Silk, an online store that warehouses their woven goods. He spends his spare time playing piano and creating new arrangements of familiar hymns and sacred music. He also enjoys photography, creative writing, and collaborating with imaginative performing artists in worship. Prior to coming to the Wesley Seminary, Kwasi Kena served in variousnational and conference positions in the United Methodist Church:Director of Evangelism Ministries, Director of Field Services and theGeneral Editor of UMMen Magazine, and Congregational DevelopmentCoordinator. Kena and his wife, Rev. Dr. Safiyah Fosua, also served asmissionaries to Ghana, West Africa, assisting the Methodist ChurchGhana in curriculum writing, clergy and lay leadership development, and local pastor's education. Kena has taught at several colleges and universities. He is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church and has served as a pastor in Iowa. Kena is a published author of various devotional and Bible study curricular works. He has been in frequent demand as a preacher, workshop leader, and guest musician for national events.
Hey Guys! This week our guest is Rory Johnston. He is the savant of all things oil. We discussed how he became an energy analyst, oil's volatile history, how energy companies started caring about profitability and forgetting about growth at all cost, what is shale energy, the oil and field services and how to understand supply and demand data. [0:00] Who is Rory Jonhston? [7:30] The Energy Lost Decade [16:00] Where to start learning the energy industry? [22:00] Oil is Technology. [27:00] Oil's Volatile History [32:00] Profitability > Growth [34:00] What is shale oil? [40:00] Oil and Field Services [42:00] Pressure Pumping and Labor Most Likely to Benefit the Most [50:00] The Stone Age did not end for the lack of stones. [52:00] Understanding Demand and Supply: Inventories, Futures Curve, [55:00] Supply and Demand Data: IEA, OPEC, Energy Information Agency [1:05:00] Where to learn? [1:16:00] More from Rory Johnston and Closing Questions Finally, a big thanks to the following sponsors for making the podcast a reality! Mitimco This episode is brought to you by MIT Investment Management Company, also known as MITIMCo, the investment office of MIT. Each year, MITIMCo invests in a handful of new emerging managers who it believes can earn exceptional long-term returns in support of MIT's mission. To help the emerging manager community more broadly, they created emergingmanagers.org, a website for emerging manager stockpickers. For those looking to start a stock-picking fund or just looking to learn about how others have done it, I highly recommend the site. You'll find essays and interviews by successful emerging managers, service providers used by MIT's own managers, essays MITIMCo has written for emerging managers and more! Tegus Tegus has the world's largest collection of instantly available interviews on all the public and private companies you care about. Tegus actually makes primary research fun and effortless, too. Instead of weeks and months, you can learn a new industry or company in hours, and all from those that know it best. I spend nearly all my time reading Tegus calls on existing holdings and new ideas. And I know you will too. So if you're interested, head on over to tegus.co/valuehive for a free trial to see for yourself. TIKR TIKR is THE BEST resource for all stock market data, I use TIKR every day in my process, and I know you will too. Make sure to check them out at TIKR.com/hive. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/valuehive/support
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