We’re ready to execute the Innovation swim lane of regional activities.  This is both a valuable program to deploy innovative capability to your business, and it’s a terrific quality for our region.

The challenge is to instill a culture of innovation: the capacity of middle managers and staff to execute change as a team.  It’s a behavioral thing – and the best way to achieve that is as part of a group.  So teams are taught from businesses across Hampton Roads together.  Networking enforces the culture of innovative initiative.  Skills are taught, practices are mentored, and project initiatives implemented, using results of performance to support team behavioral development.

With collaboration from an initial community of practice, the first program will start on 20 May, with 3 half-day sessions over 6 weeks.  To include your team, submit the attached registration form.

How’s your brand?  HRQMC is working to establish a brand for Hampton Roads.  It’s a brand that communicates customer driven, innovative, and continuously improved performance.  It will improve your business performance and the economic growth of the region.

There are 4 parts to the Hampton Roads Brand:

• Talent Acquisition
• Innovative Capacity
• Knowledge Networks
• Continuous Improvement

These swim lanes of activities provide specific capabilities, which are only available as a result of collaborative effort through communities of practice, for regional businesses.

The benefit for participating businesses is the establishment of innovative capability – the product of leadership, vision, and staff development to improve corporate performance/competitiveness.

Program: The initiative deploys innovative capacity through staff development by teaching, mentoring, and practicing.

To register, fill in the form and submit to hrqmc@verizon.net.

Report out on:

1. 1st Line Leadership Training  Initiative
2. Virginia ValuesVeterans

Flyer 2013-1c

HRQMC’s Talent Acquisition Community of Practice (CoP) met today, 21 December at Busch Manufacturing on Viking Drive, Virginia Beach.

The second iteration of the 1st Line Leadership training program was reviewed.  Ball Metal, Bauer Compressor, and Busch Manufacturing each sent a 5 supervisors.  Feedback reported high satisfaction.

A discussion of potential additional or second tier training initiatives was held.  Potential topics: Conflict Response, and Basic Communications Standards.

Action to develop better follow-on for program participants and development of a lesson on Training Techniques was taken.

Commitment was made to conduct another session to start in late  February.  Prospective participants include:

• Busch Manufacturing
• Ball Metal
• Bauer Compressors
• Amadas Industries
• Tabet Manufacturing
• Stihl, Inc.
• BAE Systems
• Lifetouch School Photographs

Additional CoP members will be recruited.  Based on support and training needs, the 7 lesson program will be expanded to include new topics or from materials available from the basic template.

Joe Barto reported on the Virginia Values Veterans (V3) program.  Over 3,000 positions have been pledged as Veteran Hire commitments.  The program has received significant support from the governor – being designated as the lead Veterans initiative for Virginia.  Work is ongoing to reverse engineer job descriptions to provide appropriate military terms/metrics for civilian job descriptions.

A forum will be held in March to provide a report out on the  initiative to the Hampton Roads region.

The purpose of the training initiative is to fulfill a need among small industrial operations for basic leadership training of 1st Line Supervisors.  While many materials and teaching providers are available for this purpose, the cost, time, and applicability of training to specific plant operations makes it impractical to train small teams.  By collaborating and sharing resources we can establish a program to significantly improve the “soft” skills of front line leaders – a critical element of any organization’s competitiveness.

Link to list of topics and training demo:  http://www.tmgva-dev.com/HRQMC/hrqmc_demo.htm

The organizational model for HRQMC is the Community of Practice.  Organizations engage on a selected domain to implement an agenda for a particular objective. 

The first community of practice (CoP) has focused on Talent Acquisition, implementing a 1st Line Supervisor training program to resolve  the need for basic leadership capabilities of employees recently hired and promoted to team leader roles. 

We’re scheduling training for 1st quarter 2013.  If you would like to train your team leaders collaboratively with other teams across the region just let us know.

Link to list of topics and training demo:  http://www.tmgva-dev.com/HRQMC/hrqmc_demo.htm