APICS update

Donate to the APICS Scholars Education Program
Donations now are being accepted for the 2011 APICS Scholars Education Program. Your organization's donation can help develop the next generation of operations and supply chain professionals. Learn more or donate now.

Use these tools to market APICS 2011

The 2011 APICS International Conference & Expo marketing tool kit has been updated on C-BOX. Channel partner leaders can use the toolkit to promote the conference by:

• distributing fliers at professional development meetings
• highlighting the conference on the chapter website
• sending emails that invite members and colleagues to attend.

Download APICS 2011 marketing tools today.

APICS 2011 registration discount and the 2011 Volunteer Leadership Workshop

Registration for the 2011 APICS International Conference & Expo is now open. The conference will be held October 23-25, 2011 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. The theme of APICS 2011 is Achieving Sustainable Productivity: Meeting Customer Demand in an Unpredictable World. Learn more about this year's conference and register today.

To receive your discount register for Volunteer Leadership Workshop (VLW), use one of the following RSVP codes:

• APICS 2011 and VLW: PTPAJ1
• VLW only: PTPAJ

Don't forget to attend preconference and post conference events:

• October 20-21: Train the Trainer (TTT)
• October 22: Volunteer Leadership Workshop
• October 23-25: 2011 APICS International Conference & Expo
• October 26-27: Learning Dynamics for Instructors (LDI)

Register for TTT or LDI. Visit apicsconference.org and click Instructor Events.

Register for the Best of the Best S&OP Conference

Presented by APICS and IBF

Chicago, Illinois, USA

June 16-17, 2011

Register today.

Advertise upcoming Train the Trainer or Learning Dynamics events on apics.org

APICS has made it easier to list upcoming TTT and LDI classes on the APICS website. Please allow a minimum of five business days to receive and process your information. Submit your upcoming class today.

APICS membership update

After six consecutive months of membership growth, APICS membership fell slightly in April to 35,165 members. Historically, we see more APICS members lapse in April, and this held true in 2011. Overall, membership is up for 2011.

2011 year-to-date highlights

• APICS is 971 members ahead of the 2010 year end membership total.
• APICS lost 500 fewer members than during the same period in 2010.
• APICS added 868 new members in April and 4,335 new members YTD, which is 467 more new members than the same period in 2010.

The Canadian district celebrates 50!

On May 6, 2011, the APICS Canadian District chapters gathered to celebrate 50 years of APICS in Canada. More than 75 chapter officers, members, and guests attended the golden jubilee dinner, hosted by the Ontario Grand Valley Chapter, Hamilton Chapter, and Toronto Chapter.

The program was emceed by Eric Somers, CPIM, CIRM, CSCP, APICS Canadian District Manager, and Louise Beauchamp, CFPIM, President, Ontario Grand Valley Chapter. Eric Schaudt, CPIM, CSCP, Chair, APICS Board of Directors, recognized the district leaders, volunteers, and members for this accomplishment. Keith Launchbury, CFPIM, CIRM, CSCP, 1991 APICS President, spoke warmly about his times at Canadian meetings. Congratulations, Canadian chapters!

View a congratulatory video from APICS Corporate.

Pictured: John Dantas, CPIM, CSCP-Toronto Chapter President; Gary Bryant, CPIM-Hamilton Chapter President; Louise Beauchamp, CFPIM-Ontario Grand Valley Chapter President

Best practices

Q&A: How do I acquire a copy of our chapter's tax status determination letter (501c3, 501c6, or other) from the IRS?

A: A determination letter is the most important legal document your organization possesses. The IRS sends this letter as recognition of your organization's tax-exempt. This document indicates under which section of the Internal Revenue Code your organization is qualified (501c3 or 501c6).

To acquire a copy of the determination letter call the IRS Customer Service for non-profit organizations at (877) 829-5500. You will be asked to provide your official chapter name (which typically starts with "American Production and Inventory Control Society," EIN number, and the chapter address. The determination letter is mailed to the address on record, and will take approximately 10–14 days to receive.

When you receive your chapter's determination letter, forward a copy to APICS District and Chapter Services at chaprel@apics.org, or fax (773) 639-3007. The determination letter is stored in the APICS corporate archives.

The determination letter is the only official document and proof that your organization is recognized as a tax-exempt organization.

APICS chapter case study: From brainstorming to using public relations to fill chapter courses

By Doug Parkes, vice president of education, APICS Piedmont Triad Chapter

The mission of APICS is: "APICS builds knowledge and skills in operations management professionals to enhance and validate abilities and accelerate careers. We help our members and their organizations successfully compete and build a stronger global economy."

The APICS Piedmont Triad Chapter puts this into practice by providing programs that meet the diverse needs of the chapter members, area businesses, and the extended Piedmont Triad community.

Standard and customized educational programs and seminars applicable to our core audiences, include

• manufacturing and service industry employers
• colleges and universities
• employees of manufacturing and service industry companies
• potential new employers in the area
• unemployed or under-employed workers
• non-supply chain professionals working for manufacturing and service industry companies.

We strive to develop, promote, and present excellent programs that fit the diverse needs of our community. This is an interesting challenge because of the diversity of industries and companies in the area and the degree of commitment and financial resources available to potential class participants.

Promotional challenge

We have great offerings but struggle to fill seats. We have created new offerings, including Lunch and Learn, Quest for Excellence, Customer-Focused Supply Chain Management, and we continued to provide the industry standards, including APICS Certified in Production and Inventory Management (CPIM) and Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP) courses, the Global Sourcing Workshop Series, and more, in formats that meet any individual or company needs.

Despite our promotion through newsletters, email blasts, website, professional development meetings (PDM), company visits, and word of mouth, we have had to cancel programs with low participation. This is disappointing and frustrating to our leadership.

It's not what you know but who you know that counts

I have all these great letters after my name: BS, MBA, CPIM, CSCP, VPEDU, DAD, GPA, GGPA, and so forth. Somehow, this shows I must know something, right? I am also a fearless, right-brained, creative person. So, ideas should just be flowing, right? Well, I guess not because all these things didn't help to fill seats in our classes. Another tactic was obviously required.

In mid-November, I called a meeting of the chapter education team. We brainstormed ideas for promotion and offerings for the upcoming year. During the meeting, a team member suggested a newspaper article promoting APICS certification and to generate interest among nonmembers in the area. This team member, Buster Lewis, had a wide variety of contacts and suggested a reporter for this article.

I established a dialog with the reporter and provided information about APICS, our chapter, and the benefits of the programs we deliver and the resources we provide. I established contacts with others at the Greensboro News & Record and followed up with each contact.

Our article was published in the April 17 issue of the Greensboro News & Record. When I read the article, I was so pleased. The article, "Certification in Production and Inventory Management," showed the human side of what our chapter and APICS provide.

I have no idea if we will fill any more seats because of this venture into public relations. Time will show what the results are. I also know the project shows the benefit of teamwork and once again gives me appreciation of the diverse gifts of our members: especially long-term leaders and volunteers like Buster Lewis.

Understanding email marketing

Promoting your chapter events and activities through email marketing can be a reliable way to fill your classes with members, customers, and your peers. According to the 2010 APICS Channel Partner Needs Assessment, 81 percent of partners use email communications to reengage lapsed APICS members and nearly 78 percent produce a regular email newsletter.

The use of email to market and communicate valuable benefits information to your members requires you understand the types of email you send and, for leaders in the US, CAN-SPAM.

What types of email do you send?

When you market your courses, events, and membership opportunities through email, you are sending "permissions-based email." These are email messages sent to subscribers who requested them or subscribed to your email messages.

Permission is obtained by

• individuals opting into your list
• a customer or member relationship with an individual.

Commercial

Individuals can opt out of receiving some messages. These messages are considered commercial emails and are used to sell products or services, including

• conference promotions
• surveys
• membership acquisition
• certification sales and acquisition
• educational product sales.

Transactional

Individuals cannot opt out of receiving messages that are transactional. Transactional emails relay information including receipts, invoices, expirations, and so forth. APICS sends transactional messages to members when

• certifications or memberships are expiring
• individuals make a purchase
• new members join.

Note: As a part of your leadership rold with APICS, Leadership Central is considered a transactional email. Integrate email marketing into your organization's marketing plan -- download the Channel Partner Leadership Marketing Handbook. See regularly scheduled emails from APICS corporate.

Learn more about the laws that govern email marketing in the US. Visit the Federal Trade Commission website.

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Channel partner development

Promote your courses through the APICS Chapter Course Listing program
Upload your courses to the APICS Chapter Course Listing program and raise the profile of your classes to the thousands of monthly visitors to apics.org, the 98,000 readership of APICS Operations Management Now, and the more than 3.5 million monthly ad impressions on Google.

New! APICS CSCP leads to available to volunteer leaders

Offering an APICS CSCP review course? Now APICS CSCP leads are available to leaders that have APICS CSCP courses scheduled or do not have a course scheduled, but have the resources to conduct one. Be sure to upload your course and indicate that you would like to receive APICS CSCP Learning System demo leads in your area.

List a course now.

Find the materials you need: Group testing bulletins, marketing tool kits, and more on C-BOX

Looking for something? Find the resources you need on C-BOX.

• APICS certification information, forms, bulletins and more: Visit apics.org/cbox and click Certification. Visit now.
• Marketing tool kits for APICS educational offerings, including APICS 2011, Customer-Focused Supply Chain Management, and more: visit apics.org/cbox and click Education. Visit now.

Submit content for upcoming editions of Leadership Central

Is there a topic you'd like to see covered in Leadership Central? Do you have a best practice, case study, or tip to include in an upcoming edition? Submit your ideas, articles, and more to be included.

Submissions may include:

• best practice article
• lessons learned article
• quick tip or idea
• question for APICS staff to answer.

Submit your content today.

Important reminder: update chapter board roster for 2011-2012

Whether you are the outgoing chapter president or planning to continue in your role, you must update your chapter's board roster using the My Chapter database management tool. If you do not update your chapter roster term before the term end date on June 30, 2011, you will lose access to My Chapter.

Note: The ability to make updates to the My Chapter board management function is restricted to current chapter presidents.

Group commercial general liability insurance opportunity: complete you enrollment form by June 24

APICS chapters in the United States have the opportunity to be insured under a master policy for comprehensive general liability coverage at a nominal cost per chapter. The effective date of the policy is July 1, 2011-June 30, 2012. The registration forms are on C-BOX and must be reviewed and completed before the June 24th, 2011, deadline.

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