Lean and Green Certification

(3 days)

The Lean Institute’s exciting new Lean and Green program adapts tools from Lean process improvement to reduce environmental waste. Lean and Green looks at waste from the perspective of the environment. Through Lean and Green, participants re-learn the concept of waste, learn to see the environmental waste in processes all around them, learn how to reduce energy use, eliminate the production of garbage and redesign processes to recapture wasted materials that would otherwise go to landfill. This course emphasizes exercises in the field, small group interaction and a comprehensive hands-on project in order to gain the distinction of Lean and Green Certification. Lean and Green focuses on helping organizations identify ways to become more competitive and profitable through green initiatives.

Who Should Attend: This curriculum is applicable to students from all fields and industries, with diverse technical, operational and/or transactional backgrounds. No prior Lean experience is necessary to be successful in this training. Those who are passionate about conservation will find this to be an excellent tool to get to the root causes of waste in operations. Natural candidates to become Lean and Green certified are people whose current positions are routinely associated with or directed at problem solving. Individuals identified for this intense training should be those who will be expected to continue participating in improvement efforts after the completion of training

Objective: The workshop includes intensive training and hands-on exercises that will train each participant how to identify waste and lead process improvement strategies effectively. Along with classroom training, participants will work closely with the instructor as a coach in preparing projects for delivery. Each student must demonstrate, under the coaching of a Lean Institute instructor, the ability to implement process improvement using Lean methodologies. Upon successful completion of the project, the participant will become Lean and Green certified.

Topics: This workshop presents strategies for adapting Lean tools specifically to environmental issues. Each Lean and Green certificate holder will be able to:

• Apply the basic Lean tools and methodologies of waste reduction to environmental problems
• Apply the value stream mapping tool to environmental waste
• Think critically and use data-driven approaches to solving problems
• Apply Lean tools to track day-to-day process/project improvements
• Report out results in a structured format

This program is funded as part of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce’s “Oklahoma Green Project”, and is available at no cost to participating businesses. The mandate of the Oklahoma Green Project is to make this training as widely available throughout the state of Oklahoma as possible, and training can be held at any city statewide where there is sufficient interest to convene a class. If you or a team from your business would be interested in participating in this program, please contact the Lean Institute at marc.jensen@ou.edut or 405-325-9135.

The 44-question survey geared toward Oklahoma business executives covers everything from affordable housing for workers to the effectiveness of state business incentive programs. More than 400 had responded to the 2011 Business Climate Survey at www.fallinforbusiness.com by Thursday afternoon. Fallin’s goal is to get 100,000 responses by Dec. 31 so the data can be analyzed before the beginning of the next session of the Oklahoma Legislature in February.

The responses will be used to formulate pro-business legislation on issues such as workers’ compensation law, health care and tort reform, Fallin said.

“We are going to be asking Oklahoma businesses how and what we can do to help them,” Fallin said. “I hope this will be another tool in our toolbox to work with the Legislature to make Oklahoma more business-friendly.”

The survey is one of the biggest, broadest research efforts taken on by any state in the union, said Dave Lopez, Oklahoma secretary of commerce and tourism.

“The data our businesses provide will help us understand the specific needs of businesses, identify ways we can help them, and benchmark economic development strategies and business-friendly policies to secure our economic future,” Lopez said.

The survey is being funded by the Oklahoma Business Roundtable.

Lean and Green Certification

(3 days)

The Lean Institute’s exciting new Lean and Green program adapts tools from Lean process improvement to reduce environmental waste. Lean and Green looks at waste from the perspective of the environment. Through Lean and Green, participants re-learn the concept of waste, learn to see the environmental waste in processes all around them, learn how to reduce energy use, eliminate the production of garbage and redesign processes to recapture wasted materials that would otherwise go to landfill. This course emphasizes exercises in the field, small group interaction and a comprehensive hands-on project in order to gain the distinction of Lean and Green Certification. Lean and Green focuses on helping organizations identify ways to become more competitive and profitable through green initiatives.

Who Should Attend: This curriculum is applicable to students from all fields and industries, with diverse technical, operational and/or transactional backgrounds. No prior Lean experience is necessary to be successful in this training. Those who are passionate about conservation will find this to be an excellent tool to get to the root causes of waste in operations. Natural candidates to become Lean and Green certified are people whose current positions are routinely associated with or directed at problem solving. Individuals identified for this intense training should be those who will be expected to continue participating in improvement efforts after the completion of training

Objective: The workshop includes intensive training and hands-on exercises that will train each participant how to identify waste and lead process improvement strategies effectively. Along with classroom training, participants will work closely with the instructor as a coach in preparing projects for delivery. Each student must demonstrate, under the coaching of a Lean Institute instructor, the ability to implement process improvement using Lean methodologies. Upon successful completion of the project, the participant will become Lean and Green certified.

Topics: This workshop presents strategies for adapting Lean tools specifically to environmental issues. Each Lean and Green certificate holder will be able to:

• Apply the basic Lean tools and methodologies of waste reduction to environmental problems
• Apply the value stream mapping tool to environmental waste
• Think critically and use data-driven approaches to solving problems
• Apply Lean tools to track day-to-day process/project improvements
• Report out results in a structured format

This program is funded as part of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce’s “Oklahoma Green Project”, and is available at no cost to participating businesses. The mandate of the Oklahoma Green Project is to make this training as widely available throughout the state of Oklahoma as possible, and training can be held at any city statewide where there is sufficient interest to convene a class. If you or a team from your business would be interested in participating in this program, please contact the Lean Institute at  marc.jensen@ou.edut or  405-325-9135.

Start Time: 2:00 pm
End Time: 3:00 pm

In this FREE informative session, you will learn how the new Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contracting Program works. This seminar will be lead by experts in women-owned business issues and government contracting. Topics will include:

• What are the benefits of the WOSB program?
• What are the qualifications?
• How do you apply?
• Points of contact for each program and step along the way.

Presenters:
Judy Robbins, OK Bid Assistance Network
Jennifer Edwards, REI’s Women’s Business Center OKC

Who should attend: Any woman entrepreneur or business owner interested in doing Federal Contracting as a Woman-Owned Small Business.

After registration is complete, participants can expect to receive the webinar link & instructions a few days prior to the event. For more information, please call the WBC at 405.319.8190.

“We’re the only place in the world that still has expertise about going into deep space,” says Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle. He says the moment the Saturn V took off and put man into space, it turned what was then a rural farming community on its ear.

And the city has been on a high-tech growth spurt ever since. The place dubbed “Rocket City” is now a metropolitan area with 400,000 people, a high-tech enclave in a poor state.

Huntsville Unemployment Snapshot

Huntsville’s unemployment rate is 8.2 percent — below the national average but double the city’s typical jobless figures.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

Credit: Alyson Hurt/NPR

But with NASA downsizing and the specter of automatic defense cuts looming, Huntsville finds itself in limbo.

The ‘Sound Of Cash Registers’

Battle meets me at the Space and Rocket Center, under a giant model of the Saturn V, and you can hear it rumbling in the background. He says that’s a familiar sound for longtime residents here.

“You’d hear that in the middle of the night. They’d be out on a test stand … and it would shake the whole community. And one time somebody said, ‘I’m not sure I like that shaking the community’ and somebody said, ‘No, sounds like cash registers ringing to me.’ ”

But Huntsville is quieter today.

Engineer Greg Allison, who works for a space contractor, says scaling back space exploration is tragic for Huntsville, and the nation.

“If you go through the offices where I’m at, it’s like a ghost town. There’s empty cubes all over the place,” Allison says. “This is talent that can turn our country around. We have enormous capabilities here if we would just get our act together. We can still shine, we can still perform, we can do things that nobody else can.”

Huntsville’s unemployment rate is 8.2 percent — below the national average but double typical jobless figures here. The situation has left laid-off engineers and scientists banding together.

EnlargeDebbie Elliott/NPR

Huntsville space engineer Greg Allison says that since the Constellation human spaceflight program was canceled, his office is like a ghost town.

Systems engineer Andy Sutinen founded the Huntsville Space Professionals after he lost his job last year. Sutinen, 55, has since found another job, but that’s not the case for many of the 1,000 members of the club.

Brian Floyd, a space mechanisms designer, has been out of work for a year now. He is 61. “The age thing is a major consideration. I got laid off and my son got laid off exactly the same day. We’re holding pink slips and looking at each other. And he got a job right away, and I’ve had lots of interviews and I can’t get anything,” Floyd says.

Age and experience typically got you ahead in aerospace, but maybe not so much anymore. Karen Murphy, 40, lost her job a month ago. “I’ve never seen it this hopeless,” Murphy says. She says the town is full of smart and dedicated people who need things to do. She blames a lack of leadership in Washington.

“We are all very aware of what the elections next year mean. Both parties have very different ideas and neither set of ideas seems to be doing any good. They seem to have a tremendous amount of motivation to put blocks in front of each other,” she says. “That’s fine when you’re playing politics in Washington, but it doesn’t do a darn thing when I’m trying to decide whether or not I can actually get something for somebody for Christmas this year.”

A Future For The ‘Genius Baby’

Sutinen says there’s a lack of political vision for NASA, which he likens to a neglected baby.

EnlargeAP

In 1962, President John Kennedy (center) and Vice President Lyndon Johnson visited Dr. Wernher von Braun (left), who designed the Saturn rocket in Huntsville, Ala.

What Launched Huntsville’s Space Start

Huntsville, Ala., is known as Rocket City, a nickname that can be traced to the efforts of German scientist Wernher von Braun.

During World War II, von Braun led the Nazi rocket program, until — sensing an Allied victory — he and some of his top scientists surrendered to the Americans. Von Braun and his team moved to the U.S. to help with its rocket program, and in 1950, he set up shop at an arsenal near Huntsville to build an Army missile.

As the space race with the Soviet Union intensified in the late 1950s, the U.S. government tapped von Braun and his team to help put Americans in space. That move not only launched the Saturn moon rocket and other key space vehicles but also sealed Huntsville as the center for American rocket propulsion research.

Von Braun, the first director of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, later headed up the agency’s strategic planning effort in Washington, D.C.

— Heidi Glenn

“Not one of the parents, Republicans or Democrats, said, ‘That’s important to us.’ Our genius baby that can help us with our future is not talked about,” Sutinen says. “That tells everybody that the future is dim no matter who’s in office. On top of that both parents have no money.”

And that’s not simply a problem for the aerospace industry. Just across the interstate from the Space and Rocket Center is one of the biggest research parks in the country. Nestled beside cotton fields and cow pastures are aslew of defense contractors: Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and hundreds more.

“Everyone has an eye on Washington. Huntsville always has an eye on Washington,” says Lee Roop, a reporter with The Huntsville Times. “Everyone’s watching the supercommittee, the impasse in Congress. What’s going to happen? Where is the defense program going to go next?”

If the congressional supercommittee doesn’t come up with a plan to cut the federal deficit, more than half a trillion dollars in automatic defense cuts will kick in. Roop notes that politically, voters here like the idea of budget cuts in general.

“Alabama is a red state. This is a conservative area. Folks here do have the same concerns people do everywhere about the budget and what’s going to happen,” he says. “I think they would tell you this community does vital federal work. There’s government spending, and then there’s our government spending.”

With nearly half the city’s jobs dependent on space and defense spending, that’s certainly Battle’s message.

“We’re developing the kind of things that you have to have if you are going to be a more efficient Army, if you’re going to be a more efficient NASA,” the mayor says.

EnlargeCourtesy of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County

Huntsville’s Cummings Research Park is home to 285 companies specializing in software design, engineering, aerospace and defense, computers and electronics and biotechnology. In the background is the Saturn V rocket model at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center.

Whatever happens with the federal budget, Battle remains optimistic. He says Huntsville survived a severe blow to its economy in the 1970s, when the Apollo program shut down.

“Left a lot of engineers here without jobs and all of sudden those engineers, some of them moved away, some said, ‘I’m staying here.’ And out of their basements came four Fortune 500 companies because you left an engineer alone long enough that he decided, ‘I’ve got to do something, so I’m going to start a company,’ ” Battle says.

There are similar rumblings under way today. At the end of a Huntsville Space Professionals meeting last week, founder Sutinen had some news: He’s starting a space and defense contracting company and has plans to hire many in the group. We have the talent, he says, to go from helping people find jobs to creating jobs ourselves.

Kelly is president and CEO of SpiritBank in Bristow, where he has been with the bank for 25 years. 

Kelly has a diverse and strong background in the banking industry serving as the past chairman of the Oklahoma Bankers Association and the ABA Community Bankers Council and served on the ABA’s Board of Directors. 

He has testified before Congress on ABA’s behalf and currently serves as the Oklahoma Bankers Association Coordinator for banking advocacy. 

Kelly has also been active serving on the boards of the Oklahoma State Chamber, Tulsa Metro Chamber, Oklahoma Policy Institute, Oklahoma Center for Non-Profits, Salvation Army and Opportunity Oklahoma. 

Prior to his banking experience, Kelly was an assistant district attorney for Creek and Okfuskee counties, a partner in the law firm of McMillan, Vassar & Kelly and served in the U.S. Army Reserve, attaining the rank of captain. 

Kelly replaces outgoing ABA Chairman Stephen P. Wilson, chairman and CEO of LCNB National Bank in Lebanon, Ohio. 

The American Bankers Association represents banks of all sizes and charters and is the voice for the nation’s $13 trillion banking industry and its two million employees.

Business Briefs: Oct. 26, 2011

By Staff, Wire�
Posted: 06:15 PM Tuesday, October 25, 2011

SpiritBank CEO elected by ABA

WASHINGTON – Albert C. Kelly Jr. on Tuesday was elected chairman of the American Bankers Association.

Kelly is president and CEO of SpiritBank, in Bristow. He has been with the bank for 25 years.

“At this point in our nation’s history, I can’t think of a better person to lead the banking industry,” said Roger Beverage, OBA president and CEO. “He has a passion for the industry and its mission, and that’s precisely what’s needed right now.”

Kelly is past chairman of the Oklahoma Bankers Association and the ABA Community Bankers Council and served on the ABA’s board of directors.

“It’s critical that bankers be champions for the industry and have the industry be a champion itself,” Kelly said.

Kelly has served on the boards of the Oklahoma State Chamber, Tulsa Metro Chamber, Oklahoma Policy Institute, Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits, Salvation Army and Opportunity Oklahoma.

Prior to his banking career, Kelly was an assistant district attorney for Creek and Okfuskee counties and a partner in the law firm of McMillan, Vassar & Kelly. He also served in the U.S. Army Reserve.

Kelly replaces outgoing ABA Chairman Stephen P. Wilson, chairman and CEO of LCNB National Bank in Lebanon, Ohio. – Staff report

More info

Register Now - at no charge to you.

We know recruiting former members of the military is a good thing to do, but the attitudes, expectations, stereotypes, and opportunities on both sides are often cloudy at best and sometimes…sometimes great employees and leadership prospects are overlooked.

With 500.000 or more transitioning soldiers seeking employment, recruiters cannot afford to ignore a ready-made applicant pool of top candidates eager to make a contribution. Yes, there are issues and challenges, but the same is true for nearly every group of candidates.

This webinar cuts through the BS to the hard core strategy and tactics as some of the most successful military recruiting leaders discuss their observations, initiatives, and…in a few cases, creative solutions.

Our panel members are:

• Philip Dana, HR Manager Military Recruiting, North America Operations, Amazon
• David Lee, Founder DAL Social Marketing, Formerly Director Marketing, US Army
• Teri Matzkin , Manager, Strategic Sourcing and Military Relations, Lockheed Martin
• Chris Galy, Director Talent Delivery, Intuit Human Resources
• Angela Covey, Founder, Geaux Veterans

There will be something for everyone. Don’t miss it!

Register now for this insightful, fast-paced webinar – courtesy of�
Recruiting Trends in honor of our veterans.

Tinker Takeoff

11/3/2011

On Nov. 10, Maj. Gen. David Gillett will relinquish his command as the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center commander. On Dec. 31, he will retire from a 34-year Air Force career.

As he reminisced on his Tinker tenure, the general said he has been surprised and impressed by the workforce, realizing with the right direction and support, there’s nothing they can’t accomplish. While he’s honored to have led them, anything the center has achieved, is totally a result of their dedication and perseverance.

“People come first,” General Gillett said. “If you take care of people and give them direction and resources, they will take care of the mission. This is a great team, and they set the pace for how we plan for operations command-wide.”

In January 2009, the general arrived for his second Tinker assignment and was excited to begin a new adventure. He soon discovered the Air Force had tasked the center with several challenging, and possibly daunting, assignments, including increase KC-135 Stratotanker production from 46 to 64 by fiscal 2012; renovate the newly acquired General Motors plant into a first-rate maintenance repair overhaul facility; and integrate the Block 40/45 modification program into E-3 Sentry programmed depot maintenance operations.

But, he didn’t let the challenges get the best of him.

“This is one of the most complex and challenging missions I’ve experienced in my career and we have great professionals who are executing that mission,” General Gillett said. “They have reached their targets every time. These achievements clearly belong to the workforce, and I’m extremely proud of them for what they’ve done.”

Ross Marshall, OC-ALC executive director, said General Gillett deserves much of the credit for OC-ALC’s achievements in recent years and is exactly what the center personnel needed to lead them to success.

“General Gillett is a superb leader and has propelled this center to excellence,” Mr. Marshall said. “He’s a master problem solver with a gift to see to the heart of an issue and guide a team to its solution. His impact and influence on our base will be felt for many years to come. We wish him and Stacia Godspeed as they move on to new adventures.”

Gilbert Montoya, 448th Supply Chain Management Wing director, agreed, adding he appreciates General Gillett’s focus.

“General Gillett was key to the transformational changes that have occurred at Tinker,” he said. “With his focus on lean activities that have driven process improvements, Tinker will benefit from General Gillett’s leadership past his retirement.”

Col. Bob LaBrutta, 72nd Air Base Wing commander and Tinker installation commander, said he’s appreciated the general’s leadership and lessons he’s taught him. He said the general and his wife, Stacia, will be missed.

“General Gillett has been an incredible leader and advocate of the 72nd ABW Wildcatters! Not only has he inspired us to excellence in every facet of our base operations support and services activities, but he’s walked-the-walk in leadership and professionalism,” he said. “Until this assignment, I heard about “lean transformation” but I had never witnessed the power and effects of implementing lean into major programs and processes until I arrived in the OC-ALC.

“As a result of his drive for continuous improvement, the 72nd ABW commenced a renewed commitment to its lean journey in 2010 by training over 1,000 members in lean principles and then taking that training and executing a myriad of ‘rapid improvement events’ and ‘just do its’ that have propelled us to better service and performance across the board,” Colonel LaBrutta said. “Moreover, General Gillett’s focus on fitness is a benchmark that all professional Airmen should emulate. In fact, he’s led our wing during a number of our early morning Wildcatter runs — further proving his personal commitment to being fit to fight! Bottom line, we congratulate General and Mrs. Gillett on 34 years of outstanding service to our nation and wish them Godspeed as they transition into retirement!  Sir/Ma’am, thanks for everything!”

Col. Cedric George, 76th Maintenance Wing commander, agreed.

“The maintenance wing family bids farewell to General Gillett and Stacia and thanks them for a job well done,” he said. “They have been faithful in demanding Team Tinker meet its full potential, and have set the center on a continued path of acquisition and sustainment excellence. We wish them Godspeed as they transition to the next phase of leadership and service.”

General Gillett said he isn’t sure what he’ll do next, but he intends to stay in the Oklahoma City metro area for now.

Enid News and Eagle

11/3/2011

ENID — As part of an Air Force initiative to trim civilian jobs in anticipation of budget cuts, five civilian positions have been or will be eliminated at Vance Air Force Base.

No contract positions will be affected by these cuts, according to a press release from the Vance Public Affairs office.

Col. Russ Mack, commander of 71st Flying Training Wing, said the people whose positions are being eliminated have been notified of the decision. He added, however, that just because a position is being eliminated doesn’t necessarily mean five people will lose their jobs.

“Wing and squadron leadership are working to relocate affected Team Vance members into other vacant positions which they are qualified to fill,” Mack said. “The civilian work force at Vance is a valuable asset, needed to keep our aircraft flying and our pilot training mission on track.”

Wednesday, the Air Force announced it was eliminating approximately 9,000 positions, while, at the same time, adding 5,900 positions in high-priority areas. The added positions will be in the areas of acquisition, the nuclear mission, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. The positions eliminated will be in management, staff and support areas.

“We can’t be successful without our talented and experienced civilian work force,” said Michael B. Donley, secretary of the Air Force. “We are making difficult choices about how to deliberately restructure and posture the force and will continue to look for new ways of accomplishing the mission. We can’t afford business as usual.”

According to the fiscal year 2010 Economic Impact Analysis for Vance, the base employed 1,166 civilians, 1,100 of whom are contractors.

The Air Force announced Wednesday Tinker Air Force Base in Midwest City would become the command site for a new Air Force sustainment and logistics center. As a result, Tinker is slated to lose 269 civilian positions. Tinker employs some 26,000 civilian, military and contractor personnel.

In anticipation of deep cuts to the defense budget, the Air Force is working to return to FY 2010 staffing levels. The Department of Defense already has told the Air Force to cut $450 billion from its budget in the next decade.

“The initiatives announced Nov. 2 represent the next step toward that goal, but there is more work to be done,” said Brig. Gen. Gina Grosso, Air Force director of manpower, organization and resources. “The Air Force remains over fiscal year 2010 manpower levels and will continue to develop enterprise-wide solutions to achieve our goals with minimal impact to mission. The Air Force must still define an additional 4,500 civilian positions for reduction.”

The restructuring will be fully implemented by Oct. 1, 2012