Board Approves New Direction for SAME Conferences

President’s Opening Remarks. Maj. Gen. Del R. Eulberg, P.E., F.SAME, USAF, called the meeting to order at 7:50 a.m. The Executive Director (XD) stated that there were 35 of the 40 voting members present, as well as five non-voting members of the Board.

Proposed Changes to Regional Conference Guidelines. The Board approved the additions to the Regional Conference Guidelines that were outlined in the XD’s Corner in the April SAME News, including:

• Posts in the two regions should refrain from scheduling Post meetings during the month of the Regional Conference.
• Posts in the two regions should refrain from hosting an industry day or other major event in the four weeks preceding or the four weeks following the regional conference.
• The Host Post will share 25 percent of the profits of a regional conference with the Posts in the two regions based on attendance at the conference, including those attending from the Host Post.

While the Board debated these changes, most of the comments favored the proposal to enhance the participation in regional conferences by Posts in the two regions, emphasizing that the changes will be incorporated into the regional conference guidelines as suggestions and not requirements.

National Conference Policy. Based on a proposal presented by the SAME XD, the Board approved SAME HQ taking the lead on national conferences beginning with the 2009 Joint Engineer Education and Training Conference & Expo, and to initiate a new site selection process beginning with the 2013 national conference. After a healthy debate, the Board supported the adoption of the proposal for SAME HQ to take more responsibility for SAME national conferences, while retaining the volunteer support of a local Post. The President hailed the decision as a positive change and the correct strategic direction for SAME.  The change will build on the successes of the past several years in providing more consistent and high-quality national conferences, and utilize the expertise and capabilities of the national headquarters staff.

Highlights of the discussion included: support for SAME HQ handling contract negotiations and coordination with hotels and convention centers; the need to maintain the support of a local Post to plan and conduct the conference so it takes advantage of the culture and highlights of the local area; the need to provide equitable sharing of profits between the national and local post; and the need to maintain SAME’s low registration and exhibit fees.

To assist in developing a transition plan and new national conference policy, the Board approved the establishment of a National Conference Advisory Committee and the following schedule of follow-on actions:

• XD and National Conference Advisory Committee will commence work on the changes to the National Conference Policy document and develop Memoranda of Agreements with the Host Posts for conferences from 2009 through 2012.
• The SAME Executive Committee will review and discuss the revised National Conference Policy and Transition Plan at its August meeting.
• The XD will send the proposed revised National Conference Policy document and Transition Plan to the Board at least 30 days prior to the Fall Board meeting.

The Board will discuss and vote on the new National Conference Policy and Transition Plan at the Fall Board meeting in October 2007.

Transition of West Point/Stewart Post to Student Chapter under New York City Post. Based on discussions held with leaders from the West Point/Stewart Post and the New York City Post, SAME XD Bob Wolff recommended the deactivation of the West Point/Stewart Post and the establishment of a West Point Student Chapter under the New York City Post. There was much discussion regarding the need to maintain an SAME presence at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., as well as the other service academies. The Board approved the recommendation, which is consistent with SAME’s involvement with the U.S. Air Force, Coast Guard and Naval Academies, where there are Student Chapters hosted by a Post in an adjacent community.

Strategic Alliances. The XD reported on the status of alliances with the National Society of Professional Engineers, International Facilities Management Associ¬ation and the Construction Management Association of America. One Board member mentioned that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has adopted the Project Management Professional (PMP) certification as a desirable credential for project managers. Other Board members supported SAME’s programs to facilitate its members having access to various certification programs, including the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design® certification. A Board member suggested that SAME should not rule out the possibility of SAME becoming a certifying body for some type of military engineer or management certification. The President suggested that SAME determine how much energy to put into certifications and which certifications SAME should facilitate for its members. The President requested that the Board once again look at SAME’s strategic alliances and decide whether further alliances should be pursued. The Project Management Institute, Design-Build Institute of America, U.S. Green Building Council and American Public Works Association were discussed as candidates for strategic alliances. The XD agreed to update the matrix showing possible partnering organizations, which was presented in 2004, and bring it back to the Board for further consideration. The XD cautioned that SAME needed to ensure that it is able to implement these alliances at the national and Post levels so that they became meaningful to SAME members and not just signed agreements.

2007-2008 Focus Areas. The XD and Col. Steve Hoarn, USAF, briefed the Board on the results of the March Strategic Planning Workshop that developed the 2007-08 Focus Areas. The President emphasized the need for regions and Posts to communicate with one another and to spread the word about the value of SAME to the military engineer community. Lt. Col. Neal T. Wright, P.E., PMP, F.SAME, USA (Ret.), Chair of the Public Sector Task Force, discussed the process by which SAME is obtaining information on why people join professional societies as a means of better understanding SAME’s target audience. The Board discussed the term “Body of Knowledge” as it relates to military engineering. The consensus was that we don’t have a formal Body of Knowledge for military engineering, but there is an informal Body of Knowledge within SAME that needs to be shared between regions and Posts. Clay Kelly, P.E., reported that as the Chair of the K-12 Task Force, he completed a survey of Posts’ K-12 programs. Based on responses, more than 70 percent of the Posts have a K-12 Program, and more than 90 percent of those rate the SAME Engineering and Construction Camps as their No. 1 program. The need to educate parents, counselors and teachers about engineering was discussed. The Board also discussed the need to track the high school students who attend the SAME Engineering and Construction Camps. A Board member asked if SAME knows what its members want. The XD reported that SAME HQ did a member survey in 2005 and a communications survey in 2006. Another member survey will be done in 2007. The Board approved the three focus areas for 2007-2008.

Proposed Changes to Strategic Plan. The XD reported on the proposed changes to the Strategic Plan, resulting from the March Strategic Planning Workshop. The President reflected on great discussion at the March meeting and the validation of the Strategic Plan as still providing the strategic direction for SAME. The Board approved the proposed changes. The revised 2006-2007 Strategic Plan will be published in the July-August issue of The Military Engineer magazine.

Adjournment. The President thanked the Board members for the participation in the meeting and adjourned the meeting at 12:10 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted,
Bob Wolff, Ph.D., P.E., F.SAME
SAME Executive Director
rwolff@same.org