by Tim Brooke

ASTM is proud to offer the 2002 Officers’ Conference in September of this year. We all know from our business and even our personal experiences the advantages of formal training. Job training improves productivity, enhances effectiveness, and ensures success. The 2002 Officers’ Conference will offer “job training” to ASTM main committee officers and subcommittee chairmen.

The 2002 conference will take place Sept. 9-10, 2002, at ASTM Headquarters located in West Conshohocken, Pa. The conference will include sessions that address a number of topics such as:

• Electronic tools for creating and revising standards;
• Electronic balloting;
• Handling resulting negative votes or comments;
• Officer and subcommittee chairman’s duties and responsibilities;
• ASTM in the national and international arena;
• Interactive standard development forums;
• New activity development;
• Technical and professional training, proficiency testing, and symposia;
• Role of the standards professional.

The goal of the conference is to enhance the leadership skills of the main committee officers and the subcommittee chairmen. Doing so strengthens the consensus process, accelerates the development of standards, and increases the effectiveness of each technical committee in meeting market needs. ASTM leaders can learn about their responsibilities in a number of ways—through the staff manager, the experiences of fellow ASTM officers, the Officer Handbook, and their own experiences. In two days of thorough, hands-on training, all of these aspects are brought together.

The conference will offer a total of 14 modules presented in one- and two-hour sessions. Each module is led by ASTM staff and is structured to encourage participants’ questions and facilitate interaction. Although primarily aimed at new officers and subcommittee chairmen, the conference also serves as a valuable tool for experienced leaders. While it is helpful to have information presented directly by staff, many attendees commented that an additional benefit was the opportunity to hear how other committees address situations similar to their own.

Registration will be posted to the ASTM Web site and e-mail notification will be sent to committee officers and subcommittee chairmen early this month. The Web site will contain descriptions of each module and will enable each registrant to select modules based on individual interest and needs. A personalized schedule will then be sent to each individual who registers on the Web site.

Each committee’s membership relies on its leadership for direction and vision. This conference offers the tools and knowledge to provide strong support to your committee and to maximize its success. As the 2002 Officers’ Conference chairman, I encourage you to attend the conference and to learn more about ASTM and the Society’s resources to assist in your standardization strategy. //

Copyright 2002, ASTM