ASQ 0511 - Section Management

Message from the Chair

Consider Serving on our Section’s Leadership Team

It’s funny on when I think back over the almost 17 years I’ve served on our section’s leadership team. It was in 2002 or 3 that I saw a notice that the section’s treasurer was relocating and a volunteer was needed to complete his term. I was using Quicken to do my checkbook and had taken two semesters of bookkeeping (oops, accounting) in college, and I figured I could step up. Well, the accounting classes really weren’t needed, just a passing knowledge of Excel (anyone remember Lotus 123?). Because of the two-year limitation for serving as Treasurer, I and another volunteer, Mike Coleman, switched positions on and off for four terms. Eventually there was a vacancy for Chair-Elect and I volunteered for that position.

I’m now completing my second term as Chair after serving earlier in this decade, and as I plan on becoming a retired member of ASQ next year, will no longer be able to serve as a section officer in the future. But I have served with, and known well, many of the folks who have volunteered their time and effort to make our section run. Our section isn’t the biggest, doesn’t have a large geographic area to cover, isn’t filled with dying or consolidating industries as others, but as it borders our country’s capital, it’s close to the pulse of our government. It gives us an unparalleled opportunity to have a large cross-section of professionals within our section’s membership.

Some of us like working with numbers, some of us like working with people, and for a select few, working with both is desirable. Well, whatever makes you tick, we could use your help. We’re in the process of submitting our section’s leadership team to ASQ for the 2020 slate. Under the capable leadership of Barbara McCullough who next year serves as Chair, we have two positions filled by members who have served in other positions and are stepping up because no one else has, but would prefer to sit back and let fresh blood invigorate the section’s leadership.

Serving as Chair-elect gives you a year’s tutelage in how the section operates, so after a year you’ll be able to take the wheel in your own hands. The section’s leadership is collegiate; I haven’t seen but one or two arguments or disagreements all the time I’ve served. As ASQ modernizes its operating processes, they require less paperwork and fewer reports. We basically operate as we see fit except for a few mandatory reports and the occasional region-wide web-conference/telephone call. And all our committee chairs are there to help make the section run smoothly. So, whether you’re an accomplished manager or who someone who would like to try the challenges of leading professionals, we’d welcome you aboard as chair-elect.

The treasurer’s position is the only one that is limited in longevity, and can only serve two one-year terms consecutively. The benefit of that is that there are plenty of ex-treasurers serving in other positions in our section, and our treasurers have been known to enjoy being treasurer so much that they serve the same function in other organizations. As mentioned above, as ASQ migrates much of what we did independently to a centralized platform, the reporting that the treasurer needs to do decreases. Nowadays the need to be fluent even in spreadsheets is downplayed, as the online reports make it even easier complete the tasks. Our section’s audit committee, consistently gives our financial operations two-thumbs up as they offer suggestions on how to make our operations run even smoother. So, whether you’re accomplished in Excel or who someone who would like to try the challenges of working with numbers, we’d welcome you aboard.

Each of other committee members would welcome you as co-chair or as a member of their committees. As a section officer or committee chair you earn recertification points and attend our leadership meeting starting at 5;30 the evenings of our membership meetings. The section treats you to dinner when you attend both the leadership and regular membership meeting the same night. Two or three times a year the leadership team convenes for a three-hour weekend morning meeting to go over topics in detail. Usually not more than an hour or so a week needs to be spent on section activities. Serving as a section leader takes little of your time but pays off handsomely in the feeling of satisfaction you get when you’re part of a smoothly operating team. Take a look at the section leadership positions that are available on our website at http://www.asq0511.org/Section/CurrentBoard.html, and if you’re interested in joining us, please get back to me (chair19@asq0511.org) or Barbara (chairelect19@asq0511.org), the sooner the better.

Thanks for reading this!

Jeff Parnes

Section Overview

ASQ 0511 is governed by a board of elected officers and appointed committee chairs. The officers are elected annually in January and serve from the following 1 January thru 31 December of the following year. Committee chairs are appointed as vacancies occur or as the need arises.

Current Section Developments:

Treasurer's Reports

Visit our Treasurer's report page to review the reports

Membership Committee Reports

Visit our Membership committee page to review our membership reports
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