President's Column

Joe Adkison, IADD President

Joe Adkison is the President of ADKO Incorporated, a producer of laser produced steel rule cutting dies and photopolymer printing plates. A veteran of the industry for over 37 years, and a Patron member of the IADD for 25 years, Joe lead our industry as Chairman of the highly successful 2007 IADD/FSEA Odyssey in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Joe was the recipient of the 2003 IADD Presidential award and was recognized internationally as the 2007 recipient of the IADD PEAK Award.

Joe resides in Fort Smith, Arkansas with his wife Dee and enjoys an occasional 9 holes of golf, traveling, and fishing, especially when they're biting.

The following President's Columns first appeared in The Cutting Edge, the IADD's monthly magazine:
To view columns from previous issues, chose the issue from the drop-down list below:

This column first appeared in the May, 2008 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Friends,

At our most recent Midyear Leadership Conference in Clearwater Beach, FL, USA, I shared with the Board of Directors that I was able to listen in and participate on many conference calls since my last report.

I was quite impressed with the Finance Committee chaired by IADD Treasurer Natalie Pepper. They worked through every line item of our budget, fielded questions, and gained a consensus. Our Board was very upbeat in approving our budget, providing the assets required for the smooth running of our Association and fulfilling our Strategic Vision. We are in very sound financial shape, with substantial money in reserve.

I listened in on numerous TechTeam™ conference calls which allowed me to learn even more than ever before. The TechTeam is a diamond in the rough and I encourage you to explore the possibilities that the TechTeam has to offer. Mike Vanderspool, IADD Executive Administrative Coordinator, has been a welcome help to leader Mark Baril and its 14 members. I thanked them all for sharing their passion. TechTeam was represented by staff and several members at the Gasketing/Converting Expo in Florida (presented by the Gasket Fabricators Association and co-sponsored by IADD).

I also chaired and participated in a new Membership Task Force initiative. IADD President-Elect Greg Zimmer, CEO Cindy Crouse and her staff, as well as Mike Porter, John White, Gino Gaultieri and Justin Smith brainstormed creative ideas to increase membership and retain our existing members. Greg asked us to promote recruiting new converters/diecutters as a core value, bringing more balance to our Association.

Vice President Andrew Carey chairs a task force to review certain points in our Bylaws, to reword the terms and duties of our officers, and to make them easier to understand. The task force made some excellent progress and its recommendations were favorably reviewed by our full Board. Our next step is to seek advice from legal counsel and then present to our Association for approval and adoption when completed.

I shared with the Board that we are earning our international designation, as 22% of our Board members now come from outside of the US. Derek Ames, Peter Witzig, Mauro Tomelleri, Simon Lile, and Sam Vial make up our international contingent. We were able to discuss a vision statement for international initiatives and activities.

Odyssey is just over 12 months away. Immediate Past President Dan Johnson shared an excellent report from Planning Task Force Co-Chairs Eddie Mucci Jr. and Clint Medlock and shared that we are well ahead of Odyssey 2007 in all areas. Vice President Eric Anderson chairs the task force to promote and increase attendance at Odyssey. More opportunities are sure to follow.

Vice President Michael Barkin led all of our Regional Vice Presidents in sharing some outstanding reports of Chapter meetings completed and new and exciting meetings planned in our near future. Vice President Rick Putch has been very busy and has a full schedule presenting some excellent Chapter meeting programs.

We have an Executive Committee meeting scheduled for the middle of June to review where we are and where we want to go heading into our Annual Meeting in Kansas City, MO, USA in September. We are still hard at work for you and appreciate your efforts and ongoing support.

Cindy, Greg, Natalie, Dan and I continue to be in touch weekly and are available for your thoughts and ideas. Let us know how we might further be of service to you.

Thank you, Signature

Joe Adkison,
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the April, 2008 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Friends,

I would like to share with you two of the many compliments we have received regarding the new look of our monthly publication, The Cutting Edge (TCE). We received many, but these two struck a spot in my heart:

“I don’t know how much extra this color initiative will cost in real terms. But I would say that it is an excellent step forward in portraying the Association as a professional and vital part of the industry as a whole. I’m sure you’ve had shed-loads of praise already, but I’d like to add mine too. Because the effect is nothing short of brilliant. I don’t know who deserves the credit for putting this through, but I hope you’ll pass my resounding endorsement along.”

“I am in another world today; I just received my Cutting Edge in its new form. It is beautiful, my friends. I am so proud of all of you. Way to go.”

I responded to both compliments, thanking them; and in my mind, trying to explain where the credit should go, I realized that it is the sum total of a tremendous amount of creative work, energy, and forethought from all of us in the IADD as a team.

It is also the result of the Board’s trust, but the yeoman’s work was done by (and credit goes to) IADD’s IT Director Ron Crouse for his infinite patience and diligence as we worked through each exceedingly detailed step to both redesign and reformat the publication. He is responsible for creating the new bright graphics, the basic layout, and many of the interesting details that you might not notice individually, but which subliminally add to the beauty of the piece. And the poor guy had to do it day after day, long into the night, with Cindy Crouse, our CEO, hovering at his side, constantly requesting this change here and that improvement there.

We were fortunate that we were able to make the switch without dramatically changing our software program. Despite the fact that working with the new layout and color is a big change, Jill and Cindy made the formatting transition with minimal sweat and tears. Even though the layout is now more complicated to implement, we’re relishing the fact that the use of color gives us more options in terms of communicating our message. To be honest, now that we’ve all survived the process, we are very excited about the results.

We are confident that these improvements will take the IADD to the next level in the eyes of all who see it. People will pick it up and be compelled to flip through the pages, so as always, we ask your help in getting as many people to notice it as possible. It truly is a leap of faith and now we need everyone’s help in getting the word (and the magazine) out in the field! Maybe you could encourage everyone to pass along their copy to someone new this month. Spread the word to others. Bring it to their attention.

In addition, a major block of credit goes to our previous leadership. When I came on the board in 1999, I remember talk of this new look for our magazine. Rex Williams and Ken Holiday introduced some ideas. Clint Medlock and Eddie Mucci Jr. started putting teeth in these ideas. Dan Johnson and I said wouldn’t it be nice if we could finally make this happen. It does take money, assets and energy to make this happen, and I want to thank all of our previous leadership for having the vision and energy to see this come to fruition on my watch. They deserve much of the credit, but I can tell you they will all turn down the credit and defer to others. How can we top that?

Of course every one of these past leaders had a strong Board of Directors behind them. With 20+ members of our Board times that many years—we are talking about over one hundred members and staff; so with that many people behind this project, we are very blessed. Your Board of Directors is the body that put the wheels in motion and makes things happen in our Association. Thanks to them as well.

With all of this feel-good energy, where do we go from here? I do believe that we can put our monthly publication in the forefront, sharing news and information with our members. It makes a very nice first impression. You can show it to a new potential member to learn what we are all about.

TechTeam™ articles bring instant results with solutions to our problems. New products, processes and equipment are quickly known to the industry. Our industry calendar alerts us to upcoming events. Make sure you read Money Matters, World Watch: Monthly Economic Forecast and Safety Corner. The Member News and Chapters Update sections keep us updated on association activities. We also have a salute to our Patron Members each month.

TCE is a “must read” each month. Many people start reading and can’t put it down. The advertisements are very eye catching and promise to be seen by more and more people each month. This makes having an ad in the magazine even more desirable. New advertisements will bring revenue to the mix, making the new look a calculated risk worth taking. We will continue to grow and get even better as time goes by.

Thank you for giving me a spot of time out of your busy day. Please give me a call if I can help you. Enjoy your new magazine, you are part of it. Have a great month.

We’ve just returned from our Midyear Leadership Conference in Clearwater Beach, FL, USA. I’ll update you in my next message. I have communicated with our Chapter Chairs and Vice Chairs, with our Board of Directors and Executive Committee. I had the great personal privilege to have a working lunch meeting with our IADD staff in Crystal Lake, IL, and I want to report that we are in great shape, with many opportunities at our reach.

Thank you. Signature

Joe Adkison,
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the March, 2008 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Friends,

Wow, I just got back from our IADD Executive Committee meeting in Kansas City, MO, USA. The night before, we were first treated to the IADD Kansas City Chapter’s Post Holiday Dinner held at Em Chamas Restaurant. We had a nice attendance and networked with one another throughout the night, sharing events prior to and planning our strategy for the months to come.

The next day, we had a full and very active agenda planned for our Executive Committee meeting and hit the ground running. We are charged with overseeing the smooth flow of our Association and fielding data designed to keep everyone updated on any new programs or projects underway.

At the forefront was our Strategy Blast. We discussed how we will implement tactics to carry out the charge of our Board of Directors. We will be calling on members who have volunteered and others to share their passions and be a direct contributor to the priorities listed in our Strategy Blast.

We discussed possible meeting sites and will continue to gain information allowing us to make suggestions to our Board for locations for our 2009 Midyear and Annual Meetings.

Because our TechTeam™ is one of our solid anchors to share technical knowledge to the industry, we will continue to commit energies here. If you have not consulted the website lately, let me invite you to the wealth of information available to you at www.iadd.org. As I have often told you, we know somebody that knows somebody that knows about this. We are the definitive resource to the diecutting and diemaking industry.

We had a very informative discussion regarding our Bylaws to better understand the inner workings of our association and defining our roles, duties, structure, and terms of service.

Great reports surfaced from our Regional Vice Presidents, sharing the news of our Chapters. We have had great Chapter meetings, allowing our grass roots members the opportunity to network, share and gain valuable knowledge. If fact, many Chapters have exceeded their normal number of meetings this year, with additional meetings planned.

Our Board has become quite diverse. We explored ways to continue our international thrust and bring in an understanding of how we all relate within the international economy. We hope to increase global awareness of our Odyssey program which is coming to Atlanta, GA in 2009.

I was extremely pleased and impressed with the level of participation and conversation at our Executive meeting. We had great feedback and surfaced many creative ideas. So I would like to share with you that we are hard at work for you and continue to welcome your thoughts and feedback.

We will still call on everyone to expand our membership, with a special focus on converters. As every new converter comes on board, it increases the diversity of our membership. When we continue to bring in new members, we gain new contacts and expand to new and different areas of our industry. Every new step opens a new door, creating new jobs and the need for new products and processes. This is a concept likened to a tree branching out with new limbs, creating newer limbs, producing many leaves. We will be implementing a new membership drive designed to create diversity while keeping us on the leading edge of our industry, bringing in the next new product or process.

I am encouraging everyone to bring in a new member. We will all share and profit from our newfound diversity.

Thank you. Signature

Joe Adkison,
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the February, 2008 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Friends,

In the only way I know to say it, the IADD has done more for me than I will ever be able to repay. This is my simple attempt at explaining the IADD to potential members. I am truly blessed.

Now, for as good of a salesman that I think I am, why can I not be 100% successful at convincing people to join?

You may have heard the phrase “All of us are smarter than one of us.” So together, we as a group should be able to spread the word and take a new look at increasing our membership.

I’m asking you to take a moment to consider this and make that personal contact to get a new member. After that, consider what new step you can take to add value to your association.

Take your passion—what you are good at and what you enjoy—to the next level and you will see value back to yourself tenfold. It’s often said “You get by giving,” and I truly believe that.

All of our past leaders have seen and greatly endorsed the idea of bringing in new blood with fresh ideas. Our future leaders are here watching and learning from us, and we will not disappoint them.

Who among us thought that leadership was a cake walk? I seriously doubt if any of us could say that. We all had fears on the front end, and we learned from our past leaders as they shared their knowledge. Fear of public speaking hits most everyone. Fear of saying the wrong thing at the wrong time silences many people. But allowing someone to take a chance without the fear of ridicule will instill confidence for them to try again and again.

This is called mentoring. I hope that this is how we will continue to bring up our new leaders. Teach them and mentor them; they are our future.

How many of you gain a warm feeling in your heart when you help someone else through a learning process that you yourself traveled in the past? Life’s rewards sometimes come in small packages, but the personal satisfaction of helping another person through something you have had an experience with is enormous.

In our businesses we want to mentor and train new employees to expand our own knowledge base within our companies. This allows us to tackle new obstacles and create new products, processes and value for the further success and expansion of our companies. We simply duplicate ourselves and hope to double up our strengths and profits.

Likewise, I would like to see us expand these same opportunities for our association. If every one of us brought in a new member, in one month we would double our membership. How easy does that sound? This brings me back to one of my opening statements: “All of us are smarter than one of us.”

We will continue to work on our membership drive using many new and some familiar tried and tested ideas. Nothing works as well as the old personal contact explaining why you belong to the IADD and how it would be a benefit to your potential member through participation, education and the sharing of knowledge.

Please contact someone today, share with them your excitement and ask them to join the IADD. Help them through the process. Collectively we will all benefit, and we will have a new member who will some day bring in another new member. Life is great.

Have a great month. Thank you for your time. Signature

Joe Adkison,
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the January, 2008 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Friends,

Our Chapters serve as an immediate venue to share valuable knowledge through participation. I would like to share with you that some of my most satisfying times, learning and networking, have been at Chapter meetings.

In my earlier years in the IADD, I belonged to the Chicago Area Chapter. We had a wide variety of participants from an even wider group of states. At one memorable meeting—I believe it was in the mid to late ‘80s—a new machine called a CNC Automatic Rule Processing Machine was introduced. We all had an understandably doubtful tone about the meeting, and I remember many people sharing that it would not be possible to get a machine to put the necessary craftsmanship required into a steel rule cutting die.

Wow, were we wrong about that or what? Take a look at how things are done today and compare that to an even shorter period of time like five years ago and you will start to ponder where we will be five years from now. You can’t stand in the way of the train of progress or it will run you over and flatten you out.

I have previously stated that many people attend Chapter meetings because they are seeking ways to make their jobs easier and they are also seeking solutions to their problems. Many like-minded attendees are all gathered in the same room, and they ultimately find that everyone else shares in their similar problems. At first thought, people do not want to expose that they have problems, but that fear quickly goes away when they realize that life is just too short and much more can be accomplished by talking and sharing. You just have to give it a chance to work. Soon you find that you have a lot more in common than you first thought, and you can begin to understand the phase, “all of us are smarter than one of us.”

Anything we can do for our Chapters gives value to the IADD. When is the last time you attended a Chapter meeting? You might be surprised to learn that these are not your father’s boring old Chapters any more. They are coming up with creative and innovative ways to revitalize and reinvent themselves. In the past months, Chapter attendees have met and played teamwork games at Dave & Buster’s adult playground/restaurant, cheered at a national league baseball game, been serenaded at a Styx concert, played cornhole (a beanbag game), ridden on two wheeled Segways, and of course listened to many excellent technical presentations.

This thinking outside of the box and the fact that our Vice Presidents are supporting new ideas and venues tells me that we are not slowing down; rather we are adapting to change. We have experienced an ebb and increased flow of Chapter movement, as is promoted in our Strategy Blast.

I do believe that when our Chapters meet, and even if it is a social event such as a party or golfing event, networking does take place. Ideas are exchanged, questions are pondered, and solutions are surfaced. Information is asked for and given. Information is then “regiven” and shared with other members. As members return back to their respective home bases, this information is reprocessed over and over again.

Just participating in our Chapters is enough of a reason to be involved in the IADD and realize some of its remarkable payoffs.

Our customers expect us to come up with improvements long before they can even dream up that they need them. Going to Chapter meetings for me is one way to learn, network and try to grab on to the leading edge of our industry. Please make it a priority to attend your next Chapter meeting. Ask questions if you need to learn when and where. Please attend, come loaded with questions, and you will glad that you did. We have a great year ahead of us.

Thank you. Signature

Joe Adkison,
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the November/December, 2007 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Hello Friends,

This is an extremely exciting time in my life. Thank you for taking a spot out of your busy life to allow me the time to share some thoughts with you. As your new president, I am deeply humbled at the faith you have placed in me. I will work very hard for you and try to deserve your faith in me.

Past presidents have shared with me that their time as President went by so fast. Just as you start to learn the ins and outs, they say, “It’s time to step down.” I appreciate the wise counsel of our past presidents and I want you to know they have not left us. They are still around to watch, enjoy and share in our progress. We all can thank them for paving the way and putting us on the right path and allowing us the opportunities to adapt to the current conditions of the world. I would like to personally thank past presidents Clint Medlock and Eddie Mucci Jr. and our new immediate past president, Dan Johnson, for helping me, mentoring me and especially for all of their support to me during our 2007 Odyssey in Milwaukee, WI, USA.

They say good friends are hard to come by. I say good friends are easy to come by in the IADD.

Our incoming Executive Committee is made up of our President-Elect, Greg Zimmer; Secretary/Treasurer, Natalie Pepper; our six Regional Vice Presidents (Andrew Carey, Peter Witzig, Rick Putch, Jeff Zaiger, Michael Barkin and Eric Anderson); our Immediate Past President, Dan Johnson, whose experienced advice we will welcome and enjoy; our CEO, Cindy Crouse; and myself. We will maintain contact all through the year, discussing ideas, fielding data and conveying such back to our Board of Directors for their advice and consent. Our board is a cross section of our association membership.

There is no doubt in my mind that every board to date led us to what they considered was the best path for the conditions in existence at that time. As we worked at our October Annual Meeting, I believe that our current Board did just that. Our Strategic Vision, more narrowly defined as our Strategy Blast, is our road map of where we want to take this association into the future. Look in your 2008 Membership & Resource Directory to see where we’re going. Let us know if you have skills that can help make this happen. As new ideas develop, we will have more to follow on implementing our plans for the future.

Sometimes you hear the statement that “you are either part of the problem or part of the solution.” While I think that seems a little harsh, I would prefer to say, if you want to make a difference, effect a change or make your thoughts known: speak up, be heard. Get involved; get on a committee or task force. Get on the Board. Tell someone that you want to be more involved. Participate or work in your Chapter. Bring a few friends to a Chapter meeting.

I joined the IADD in 1982 (25 years ago)—From my experience I can tell you that I have gotten more out of the IADD than I will ever be able to repay. In my early years, I stood in the background and watched. I did not actively participate. A good friend said to me, “get involved.” I cycled through three election cycles, only to hear, “not this time.” I was told to get more involved. I even had to submit a written document begging to get on the board. I then started working on various committees, programs task forces and really started to learn and understand how valuable our networking can be.

I have often said that the ongoing networking in the IADD is my million dollar payoff. In 2000, I accomplished my goal and got on the board. I now continue to learn new and exciting things that make up our industry. I often tell people that we are the definitive resource in the industry. I also say that we know somebody that knows somebody that knows about this. So ask your questions, share your experiences and we all win together.

I now have a great opportunity to pay back to our association for all of the wonderful things that have happened for me. I have quite a way to go so I need to get busy. Call me if I can help you. As I take on this responsibility of president, I will do my very best to make the best decisions and lead this association with a listening ear. I will continue to promote fairness, openness, mentoring,and education throughout the ranks. I will give of my time, talents and energy and do my very best to leave us in better shape than when I started.

Thank you. Signature

Joe Adkison,
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the October, 2007 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Colleague,

It’s hard to believe that my term as president is already over. Where does the time go? These past two years have been some of the most challenging and rewarding years of my life. There are so many of you that were standing right there beside me as we worked together to strengthen this great association.

Once again I would like to thank Eddie Mucci Jr. and Clint Medlock for gently pushing me into accepting the nomination for president-elect. They saw something in me that I didn’t see myself. What great mentors and friends they have become. I would also like to thank John and Joann Gordon, as well as the entire Jonco management team, for allowing me to serve you. This was a huge commitment of my time and finances on their part. Jonco has been involved in this association for many years, and they see both the educational and networking value of being involved. They also realize the importance of staying in touch with the latest in technology and innovations within the packaging industry. And I want to thank my wife Karen and daughter Jadelyn for putting up with days away from home, as well as additional hours at work, as I served this association. (I love you both.)

Our future is in great hands. Joe Adkison will be a great president; his passion and excitement for this association are seen and heard whenever you are around him. Cindy Crouse and her team of Peggy Molitor, Jill May and Mike Vanderspool are as anxious as we are to see this association take the next step. As I look down the road 5-10 years, our future looks great. We have several newcomers to our board of directors who are full of energy and knowledge, and I’m sure they will bring fresh ideas and an energy that can only be of benefit to our members. The only thing that can hold us back is ourselves, so please be involved—look for ways to be a part of the growth and continued success of this association.

As I think back over my term, the one thing that stands out above everything else was our 2006 annual meeting. We took a chance to do something that many of us have wanted to do for so many years, including several of our past presidents, who dreamed of reaching out to our international members. We felt strongly about living true to our name of being the International Association of Diecutting and Diemaking, and I’m grateful that I was able to be a part of making that a reality by holding our annual meeting this past November in Interlaken, Switzerland.

Not only has my own life been touched by this association, but as I have shared in some of my columns over the past two years, my family has been touched as well. We have made lifelong friends throughout the world and I am so grateful to all of you who have touched our lives in such a powerful way.

Finally, I want to thank Cindy Crouse. Without her guidance and support, serving as president would have been very difficult (or nearly impossible). Thank you, Cindy.

I look forward to serving this association as your outgoing president and will continue to give of my time and resources to do what I can to ensure that this association continues to be the definitive resource in the converting industry.

Sincerely,
Dan Johnson.
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the September, 2007 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Colleague,

I am sure that all of you have heard about the 35W Bridge collapse here in Minneapolis. It was indeed a tragedy—13 lives lost, hundreds of people injured and thousands of commuters and business owners in the area affected due to the re-routing of traffic. Yet, as I looked at the media coverage of this event, I saw community drawn closer together.

Many individuals who witnessed this tragedy threw caution to the wind, climbed down to those in cars, trucks and even a school bus full of kids and helped free them from their vehicles, and at times carry them to safety.

Kids from all over the metro area were raising funds to help those in need. Professional athletes were giving and getting involved. Several churches were giving of their time and finances, along with offering counseling and, most importantly, prayer for the families affected.

For myself, personally, it made me realize that I cannot take anything for granted. None of us knows when our lives might be turned upside down in the blink of an eye. At Jonco we have employees, drivers and sales staff who used the 35W Bridge several times a day, yet none of us was touched by the incident. But we could have been.

I guess what I’m trying to say is, that none of us has ultimate control of our lives; we don’t know what tomorrow holds. It doesn’t matter who you are, how much or how little you have, we are here on this earth for only a moment in time. Our purpose here on earth is not just to make cutting dies or to produce cartons, but to reach out to those in need, to serve God, community and country in any way we can.

Over the past two years as I have served as President of this association, we have had several tragedies of our own that have affected individuals, families and even businesses. Did they face them alone? I say no.

This association is made up of so many people who care, who reach out and give of their time and finances to help others in need. Many are lifting one another up in prayer, trusting God to give peace and direction.

I can honestly say that I’m proud to be part of this association. I know that you as members feel the same way as well. We are not just an association that is the definitive resource in the converting industry, but we are a resource for those in need, for those who may be going through a difficult time. Maybe you don’t have family to turn to in your difficult times, or maybe they’re not supportive of your circumstance. During those times I would encourage anyone who might be feeling alone, or in need of help or who just wants someone to talk with, to please feel comfortable reaching out to others you trust within the IADD.

We do care. We are a family.

Sincerely,
Dan Johnson.
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the August, 2007 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Colleague,

Everyone, mark your calendars and make your reservations today for the IADD’s Annual Meeting in beautiful Vancouver, BC, Canada, October 4-6, 2007.

The Fairmont Waterfront Hotel is the perfect spot to enjoy many fun filled activities like the world famous Capilano Suspension Bridge and the Chinese Garden. We have an informative and interactive business meeting planned, bringing back Jerry Kovach, President of Helmold LLC., who will be presenting “STATS: Your Hottest Ticket for Growth & Profits Today.” We are continually learning about better ways to “sell” our products—so during this meeting, we are bringing you information on what a buyer is looking at when purchasing equipment/consumables and some of the most important factors in their decision making process. These are but a few of the many things you will learn while interacting with new and old friends from the industry, so don’t stay home and wonder who’s having all the fun!

Are any of you getting complacent when it comes to our high fuel prices, or is it just me? This past week I was on my way to a customer and saw that gas had jumped 32 cents per gallon from $3.07 to $3.39 in just a matter of seconds. In my vehicle, that would add up to about $9.00 more per fill. Just one mile down the road at another station, gas was still at $3.07, so I pulled in and filled up and then called my wife and told her to stop what she was doing and get over here and fill up her car as well. I felt really good that I got my gas for a “mere” $3.07 per gallon—what’s wrong with me!?!

I understand that if you must have something, you will pay just about anything for it. Fuel, for example, is almost the lifeblood of our nation. At this point hardly anyone can get along without it; and I’m sure that’s one of the reasons refineries and oil companies are able to get away with those outrageous prices.

When I look at the packaging industry, nearly all of us have an intrinsic role in supporting one of the largest industries in our nation’s economy. I will say this (in jest of course): what if all of us were to triple our pricing over the next two years, similar to what we have seen in the oil industry. Could we get away with it? Would our customers get used to the pricing?

Of course the answer is no, but why not? Don’t we value what we produce? Every part that each of us provides—whether it be ink, printing plates, cutting dies, paper etc.—is necessary to produce packaging. If any one of these were missing, the package would not be complete, or in some cases impossible to produce.

I’m not suggesting that we all just agree to raise prices, but I do feel strongly that if all of us would truly value what we produce, we may be more prone to sell our products for what they are worth instead of selling them at a loss or at break-even, which does no one any good. So like my friend Ken Holliday told me, we all need to get a better handle on our profits and losses to insure that our businesses and industry continue to thrive.

Sincerely,
Dan Johnson.
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the July, 2007 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Colleague,

This past May we held our bi-annual IADD•FSEA Odyssey in Milwaukee, WI, USA. This industry specific event was the fourth Odyssey and was a true success in every way possible.

At Odyssey 2005 in Atlanta, GA, USA, we were told that Odyssey was the best show of its kind, people were wondering how or if it could be improved upon. Well it was.

Let me share with you a few comparisons. Total attendance was up 25% over 2005; exhibiting companies 121 vs. 105; booth spaces 183 vs. 156; TechShop spaces sold 27 vs. 13; educational session attendance 1,647 vs. 1,583; and the total countries represented was 22 vs. 16.

Odyssey does not just happen by itself; it takes hundreds of people working together, striving to bring value and credibility to this show. So I want to thank all who attended or exhibited, along with those companies that brought in equipment that was used for TechShop sessions; to all the volunteers who stuffed bags, helped with registration, managed classrooms and TechShop sessions; and to those who developed and or presented educational sessions, along with the task force chairs and committee members. All of you who volunteered made this industry-related show even more valuable to our associations and industry than ever before.

A special thanks to the Odyssey planning group—Joe Adkison IADD President-Elect and Task Force Chair; Sue Corcoran, Event Coordinator; Jeff Peterson, Kym Conis, Kevin Bennitt and Chandler Young of FSEA; Eddie Mucci Jr., Clint Medlock, Kevin Koelsch, and last but not least, Cindy Crouse of IADD. It was a pleasure serving with all of you again this year. This was truly a team effort that has set a high standard for all future Odysseys.

The site location for Odyssey 2009 has not been determined as of yet, but one thing I can assure you of, we will again strive to make Odyssey even better, to bring more value to exhibitors and attendees.

We were pleased but not satisfied with the 25% growth in attendance and have already taken steps to see that we continue to grow our attendee numbers. We have appointed Eric Anderson from Anderson International Trading, incoming IADD Vice President of Region 6, to head up a Task Force to look at ways to increase Odyssey attendance.

We will also strive to bring in more of the latest and innovative converting and diemaking equipment and will continue to provide the best education relating to all areas of this industry.

Odyssey 2009 will be chaired jointly by two of our past IADD Presidents, Eddie Mucci Jr. and Clint Medlock, with assistance from Greg Zimmer, incoming IADD President-Elect.

Please feel free to contact them with any suggestions and especially if you are able to offer help in any way.

Sincerely,
Dan Johnson.
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the June, 2007 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Colleague,

This past May, my 6 year old daughter, Jadelyn, started playing soccer. She is in a beginner’s league for first and second grade boys and girls who have little or no previous soccer experience. The team had just one practice prior to their first game and has not practiced since then. They play 4 against 4 with no goalie. They do not have offensive or defensive players, they are not supposed to pass the ball and do not keep score (although I DO).

During the first couple of games they looked like a swarm of bees flowing from one side of the field to the other. On occasion the ball will just squirt out of the swarm and miraculously find its way to the goal.

But after just a few games you can see the team developing. Most of the players understand that if everyone is just clumped together kicking at the ball with no plan, just hoping the ball will somehow make it in the goal is not very effective.

After only six games, most of the players are beginning to understand each other’s strengths. They are also communicating with one another and positioning themselves on the field to have the best opportunity for success. It is also amazing to see how a little incentive (my choice is Dairy Queen) will motivate the team or an individual to strive to win or play their best (Jadelyn scored three goals last night, earning herself a trip to DQ). It is really rewarding as a parent to see your child enjoying herselr as she tries to be the best she can be individually, as well as corporately.

How often in a business do we see the same thing happening? We know that the goal is to sell a product or a service, but do we have a strategy for the best way to do it? Have we clearly broken out areas of responsibility; does everyone understand and share the same core values, purpose and future? Too often in a business everyone has their own agenda; their way is the best (or only) way; everyone is trying to get to the ball at once, randomly kicking at it with no sense of direction so it just bounces back and forth in the swarm, not getting anywhere.

As a company (team), we need to continually be thinking of the big picture. We need to clearly communicate our desired goals and develop commitment and trust with all of our employees. In doing this, we will help everyone focus on what is truly important. And by prioritizing efforts and the use of resources, we can help everyone understand where we are today and where we need to be in the future.

Identify your employees’ strengths and utilize them. Remember to encourage and reward personnel for a job well done. After one of her soccer games, I told Jadelyn that I felt like maybe I was being a little too loud with all my shouting of encouragement and praise at her games, and I suggested to her that maybe I would just sit on the sidelines and nod once in awhile when she does something good. Her response was, “No way, I want you to cheer for me.”

Take a look at what you are currently doing and if you aren’t scoring as many goals as you think you should, maybe you need to try a few of these suggestions and see what happens.

Sincerely,
Dan Johnson.
IADD President

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This column first appeared in the May, 2007 issue of The Cutting Edge
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Dear Colleague,

On April 12, 2007, I should have been in Kansas City attending the IADD Kansas City Chapter’s 2007 Spring Tech Talk program entitled “Foil Stamping, Embossing & Debossing,” but due to global warming (which contributed to the 4" of snow in Minneapolis and 4" to 6" in Chicago, along with freezing rain) my flight from Chicago to Kansas City was cancelled. Did I mention it was April 12th?

It’s amazing to me how just a handful of people can have such an impact in determining what a nation believes about a topic like global warming. None of us know the true effects of global warming; the experts can’t even come to the same conclusions. So why is it that most people just accept whatever they are told, like lambs being led to slaughter? They don’t even take the time to hear both sides of the story, or take all the facts into consideration.

I’m sure you are wondering where I’m going with this one. Have you ever had a customer were one person has a huge impact on how much business you receive from them? They may have said that you were too expensive, not taking into consideration the overall costs to their company.

Or perhaps a new manager took over and he decides to bring in a supplier he has used in the past. He has closed vision and does not research what the current needs may be at this plant, but no one from within the company stands up and communicates with the new manger the reasons they use their current supplier.

Or you may have a presumed quality issue and someone starts spreading rumors that you make inferior product, which might keep you from getting work from additional plants within that corporation (was it really a quality issue or were the specifications given to you inaccurate?).

What I’m trying to say is we can’t have our own personal agenda. We must have all the facts and report both sides before we can make claims that may lead others to the wrong conclusion. We have a responsibility, as well, as an association to make you, our members, aware of trends and opportunities in this great industry we serve to help you make informed and educated decisions.

So the next time you are thinking of sharing your opinion with someone else, be sure you have all the facts so that they can make an informed decision. In other words, use your position and influence wisely.

Now where was I? Oh yes, I heard the Kansas City Chapter meeting was a great meeting, with close to 40 people in attendance, including diemakers, people that foil and engrave, as well as converters. Ross Hutchison from Universal Engraving had a great presentation, which encouraged a lot of Q & A. We are excited with what Dave Hilton (Chair), Mark Pierce (Vice Chair) and Christine Guest (Secretary-Treasurer) are doing with the Kansas City Chapter; keep up the good work.

Our Chapters are the lifeblood of this association; without them we would be unable to bring training and education, as well as provide professional and social networking, to the local level.

We strive to bring these opportunities to everyone involved in this industry; to be beneficial to you and your company.

Sincerely,
Dan Johnson.
IADD President

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