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Following review and certification of ballots from the general membership, eleven business and civic leaders have been elected to the Board of Directors of The Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama.
    
Re-elected for their second three-year term were (pictured above, left to right): Carol Armstrong, Tanner & Guin; Ron Davis, ZF Lemforder Corporation; Nancy Dawkins, Nancy & Company; Willie Fort, Tuscaloosa Housing Authority; Randy Skagen, Nucor Steel of Tuscaloosa; and Susan Tucker, Tucker-Massey Marketing (not pictured).
   
Elected to first terms were (pictured above, left to right): Robert Burns, Stillman College; Archie Craft, Mercedes-Benz U. S. International; Roy Clem,WVUA-TV 7 (not pictured); Robert Kuhn, Regions Bank; and Tracy Waldrop, First National Bank of Central Alabama.
Directors officially take office on January 1, 2008 and will serve three-year terms. They will be presented at The Chamber's annual celebration event on February 8, 2008. The Chamber's Board of Directors has a total of 36 directors representing the membership of the organization.
The Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama is a private-sector, business-based organization representing over 1,100 area employers. The mission of the organization is to provide vision, leadership and be a catalyst for the advancement of the economic prosperity, business climate and the quality of life for the total community. |
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The 2007 Nucor Steel Adopt-A-School Golf Tournament is set for Thursday, September 27th at the Country Club of Tuscaloosa. Proceeds benefit the AAS program and area schools--Four schools are eligible to win $500 in these categories: most players for an elementary school, most players for a secondary school, random drawing, and the winning team's school.
Format is a four-man scramble and flights begin at 8 AM and 1 PM with great prizes for both. Cost is $125 (morning) and $150 (afternoon) per player, which includes cart, lunch, and favors. Deadline for entry is September 21st.
The 2007 Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa Adopt-A-School Tennis Tournament is set for Thursday, October 18th at Indian Hills Country Club. Prizes will be presented to winners and runners-up in each division and $250 will be awarded by random drawing to one public school represented in the tournament. A school's name will be entered in the drawing each time a player designates that school. Limit of one school per player.
Format is Women's Doubles-USTA Levels 2.5; 3.0; 3.5; and 4.0+. In order to allow more rounds of play, tournament begins at 8:30 AM and may continue until 5:00 PM. Playing times will be available on Wednesday, October 17th (please call the IHCC Tennis Shop at 349-1505). Cost is $45 per player, which includes lunch, drinks and favors. Deadline for entry is October 12th.
Raffle Tickets are available for $4 each for drawings to win exciting prizes from such merchants as Nancy & Company Fine Jewelers, area restaurants and many others. You may send $4 to purchase a raffle ticket or $20 for six tickets to Adopt-A-School, P.O. Box 020410 Tuscaloosa, AL 35402. No need to be present to win.
Registration forms for these events are available at The Chamber office downtown and at www.tuscaloosachamber.com/aas. Please contact 391-0563 or 391-0556 for more information. |
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The August 'Second Tuesday' mixer was held at Snow Hinton Park on August 14th, sponsored by Verizon Wireless. We were treated to Catfish One fish and shrimp, Gutherie's chicken and peanut butter cake from FIG among other things. The rather warm weather didn't hinder our group from having a good time.
The September 'Second Tuesday' event was at L & N Station--always a good place for a gathering--sponsored by Wilhagen's. The Station did the catering, which was fabulous and included chicken skewers and roulades, nice cheeses, dips and more. It was a fun evening, as expected.
 
A 'Before Hours' Networking event will be held on the morning of October 16th from 7 AM to 8:45 AM at Capstone Village. Cost will be $20 for Chamber members and $25 for non-members. Plan to be there and please make a reservation by Friday, October 12th (required), as space is limited. A generous breakfast buffet will be served.
There will be time for networking so bring lots of business cards, and also a speaker, Meaghan Williams of Business Networking International (BNI). She'll give us networking tips and tricks as well as the basics.
Next 'Second Tuesday' After Hours Mixer is October 9th from 5 PM to 7 PM at Shelton State. Mingle, snack and enjoy a fall evening in Tuscaloosa with us. Please mark your calendars now. |
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The 5th Annual "State of the Community" breakfast was held this morning at The Sheraton Four Points Hotel. The session with local elected leaders was hosted and sponsored by The Chamber and The Tuscaloosa News.
Probate Judge & County Commission Chairman, Hardy McCollum, Mayor Walt Maddox of the City of Tuscaloosa, and Mayor Harvey Fretwell of the City of Northport provided updates on the growth and positive business climate of Tuscaloosa County. Downtown riverfront revitalization and changes in West End were topics of discussion and Mayor Maddox especially emphasized the positive impact of the Pre K initiative.
The event was well-attended and the "voice of business" was heard. |
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 A reunion event to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Leadership Tuscaloosa, 'The Bash at the Zone,' was held on the evening of September 18th at The Zone at Bryant Denny Stadium.
Old friends and classmates caught up, enjoyed elegant stadium food as well as fine wines by Carpe Vino wine shop and the fun music of Touch of Gray.
Three members from the special first class were present to tell a few stories about that first year: Mark Feldman, Ron Davis and Johnnie Aycock (pictured left to right).
Sponsored by The Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama and the College of Continuing Studies at The University of Alabama, Leadership Tuscaloosa is a nine-month personal leadership development program open to citizens from all sectors of Tuscaloosa County.
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One of the next steps in the 'Culture Builds' strategic planning process includes a community survey. Gathering input from citizens from a cross-section of the community and from all sectors will contribute to a more effective, grassroots cultural development plan.
The survey, which will take about 10 minutes to complete, is designed to develop information and opinions on a broad-variety of cultural issues and interests. Once completed, the information will be submitted as part of the planning process to the Culture Builds leadership team and to our consultants, Partners for Livable Communities.
Surveys have been mailed to all Chamber members-Sorry about the slight mix up in page order that probably took a second to figure out. Even easier, the survey is available online for citizens to complete by the October 1st deadline. Please take a few minutes to visit www.tuscaloosachamber.com and click on the 'Culture Builds Survey' icon. Your participation and input is appreciated! |
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"Customer Service by Dale Carnegie" will be offered on September 25th from11 AM to 1 PM at the Hilton Garden Inn. Topics will include telephone etiquette, barriers that affect communication, importance of attitude and much more. Trainer is a Dale Carnegie professional. Cost is $30 per person and includes lunch.
"Paperless Office" will be offered on October 16th from 11 AM to 1 PM also at the Hilton Garden Inn. Many people find the idea of converting their paper documents into an electronic format desirable but the actual task may be daunting. Participants of this seminar will learn the benefits of converting to digital format, how to choose the right format for he business, and back up strategies. Trainer is Larry Bates of Syscon.
Sign up today! Please contact Tracy Crumpton at 391.0554 or tracy@tuscaloosachamber.com to register or get more information. Non-members are welcome at a different cost. |
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The Northport Citizen of the Year Banquet and Awards program will be held on the evening of October 2nd at 7 PM at the Northport Civic Center to honor those who have contributed to the betterment of Northport during the last year.
In addition to Citizen of the Year, awards will be given in these categories: Educator, Historian/Pioneer, Public Safety leader, Business Leader and Religious Leader.
Keynote speaker will be David Housel, a native of West Alabama and Athletic Director Emeritus at Auburn University.
Tickets are $25 each and a few corporate tables are available (8 seats reserved with company name on the table). If you'd like to participate in the event or get more information, please contact Tracy Crumpton at 391.0554 or tracy@tuscaloosachamber.com. |
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 The University of Alabama's full-power WUOA TV Channel 23 can now be seen on Direct TV and the Dish Network across the Birmingham designated market area stretching from Mississippi to Georgia. WVUA TV Channel 7 and WUOA TV now reach an estimated 330,000 households via over the air, on cable, and on satellite.
The professional and student staff at the stations produces four newscasts Monday through Friday at 11 AM, 5 PM, 6 PM, and 10 PM. On the weekends, the news team presents newscasts at 10 PM each night. WVUA TV is the only truly local television station in Tuscaloosa and focuses its news efforts on Tuscaloosa and West Alabama. The news ratings are at the top in Tuscaloosa and West Alabama. According to Nielsen's Stellar report for the Tuscaloosa television region, the average ratings (May and July sweeps combined), show WVUA News as number one at 5 PM and 6 PM and number two at 10 PM in the key demo of 18-49 year olds and the key demo of 25-54 year olds. In overall households the station is a solid number two.
In addition to news, the station staff, sometimes in combination with other partners, produces University of Alabama Sports programs featuring football, men's and women's basketball, women's volleyball, baseball, and softball. This past season, WVUA produced and aired more than 60 University of Alabama sporting events.
The station is continuing to improve its program lineup with quality shows like Little House on the Prairie, The Insider, Mad About You, The Nanny, Degrassi High, Regenesis, DaVinci's Inquest, Gomer Pyle, Discovering Alabama, and The Alabama Experience.
WVUA TV goes out of its way to provide the local, local news and community affairs that Tuscaloosa and West Alabama deserve. The station is currently in the process of upgrading its weather system and other capabilities to enhance its emergency services to the West Alabama and Campus Communities they serve.
The station is dedicated to the process of continuous improvement in its service to the University of Alabama, to the students, to the community and to the advertisers that support those efforts. This commitment is reflected in the awards the station has received including the Distinguished Service Award from The Chamber and numerous awards from the Associated Press. |
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In the early 80's, Chrysler Corporation recognized the exceptional technically trained work force in the Huntsville, Alabama area. Due to the space program, the number of technical degrees in the area was only second to Silicone Valley. Chrysler had a desire to build a facility that took advantage of the lean manufacturing philosophy (then called Just In Time, or JIT) in order to improve productivity, quality, and therefore profitability. For this streamlined manufacturing process to be successful, Chrysler suppliers were required to be able to supply raw materials and components within minutes of receiving the order. Naturally, this meant their components had to be physically located within minutes of the Chrysler facility. This requirement caused suppliers to scramble to secure warehouse space close to Chrysler and manage their inventory in an entirely different manner under the JIT principle. The newness of this, and the limited amount of experience caused costs to escalate. The need for a properly managed warehouse that could accommodate the needs of numerous suppliers became apparent. Recognizing the value of this new JIT approach to warehousing, and with 25 years experience in manufacturing operations, Peter Ferrante resigned from Chrysler Corporation to take over the helm of JIT Services.
From its modest beginnings of 34,000 sq ft, 12 employees, and shipping to one local Manufacturer, JIT has grown to become a force when it comes to warehousing and supplying value added services for lean manufacturers with 7 locations in two countries, 150 employees, and over 400,000 square feet in Huntsville alone. JIT now processes material for more than 100 locations throughout the world.
When Chrysler began this venture with JIT, it was saddled with approximately $95 million in on-hand inventory consisting of raw, in-process, and finished goods. Through implementation of the lean manufacturing philosophy, in large part due to JIT's contribution, that dollar figure was dramatically reduced to $6 million during a period when sales doubled.
Committed to utilizing the advancements in technology, JIT started with Bar Code labels and RF Readers. JIT has since evolved to using state of the art bar code scanners and RFID to improve efficiency and integrity of its services and inventory. It is interesting to note that JIT became one of the first companies to have its customer's inventory available 24 hours a day available via JIT's website. This enabled suppliers to check inventory status, place orders, or read notes no matter where they were in the world regardless of time.
 In an effort to support Mercedes and a number of its surrounding suppliers, JIT opened its newest facility in June 2007 in Vance, Alabama. JIT is receiving imported material and delivering it to Mercedes and other related manufacturers on a Just In Time Basis. The services offered by JIT will not only create local jobs, but due to its efficient operations, it will make Mercedes and its supplier manufacturers more competitive by delivering components to the manufacturer often only minutes before they are needed on the assembly line. For more information, please contact Vance site manager Jon Lib at 561.2234. |
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Alabama Credit Union awarded Matt Kidd a $1,000 scholarship on Tuesday, August 21st. Kidd, from Birmingham, is a freshman at The University of Alabama, with plans to major in Biology.
Again this summer, thousands of future UA students poured into Tuscaloosa to participate in Bama Bound, UA's two-day freshman orientation. Alabama Credit Union gave all Bama Bound attendees a chance to win the scholarship; more than 500 students entered the drawing.
Alabama Credit Union takes its responsibility to students very seriously, according to Alabama Credit Union President Steve Swofford. "We want to help students make wise choices that will ensure a sound financial future," said Swofford. "Our association with the University gives us the opportunity to help the students get off to a good start in their academic careers. We're pleased to award Matt with this scholarship and look forward to his future successes."
Alabama Credit Union serves the employees, students, and alumni of The University of Alabama. Persons who live, work or attend school in Tuscaloosa County are also eligible to join Alabama Credit Union. For more information, please visit www.alabamacu.com.
 Alabama Credit Union President Steve Swofford (left) and Bruce McColl, Alabama Credit Union's business development representative, presented Matt Kidd (center) with a $1,000 Alabama Credit Union scholarship check. |
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Wachovia Bank hosted a grand opening with ribbon cutting ceremony on August 24th for its University Town Center financial center, its fifth location in Tuscaloosa. This 3,000-square-foot branch is located at 1140 University Blvd on the University of Alabama campus.
The event, which featured great giveaways like Visa gift cards, was attended by Mayor Walter Maddox, Lee Garrison, Tuscaloosa City Councilman and Jim Harrison III, Chairman of The Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama and Wachovia Market President Michael Russell.
"This new location offers great convenience to the University of Alabama community and those Wachovia customers who are visiting the area as well," Russell said. "It is important for us to stay focused on our customers while continuing to offer the products and service that allow us to remain as a trusted member of the community."
The addition of the University Town Center branch gives Wachovia five locations in Tuscaloosa. A sixth branch, under construction near the intersection of Rice Mine Road and New Watermelon Road, is expected to open in November 2007 |
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So, you have been asked to give a speech on behalf of your department, but have little no experience speaking in front of large groups. People think that you can handle this because you are confident in meetings and with your team. You wonder, "How do I write a speech that people will be interested in and how do I calm my nerves and look professional while giving my speech?"
The thought of giving a speech can seem daunting, but it won't be if you are prepared. People do not expect you to be perfect, but they want a speech to be honest, easy to comprehend, and delivered clearly and concisely. Here are some tips to help you achieve this.
1. Be simple. It is best to use a simple outline. You'll want an introduction, main points with supporting details and a conclusion. Avoid complex language and try to keep it as simple as possible.
2. Add details. By having a simple structure, you can bring in details to make your speech interesting. Use variety when compiling information (e.g. personal anecdotes, newspaper, media quotes, statistical studies, examples, fun definitions). If you want to add style, try repetition, word play or rhetorical questions.
3. Know your audience. Why are these people coming to hear you speak? What do they want or need from this speech? Put yourself in their shoes. Are they learning about this subject for the first time or peers who already understand the basics of the subject? Think about these things and then write your speech accordingly.
4. Beating nervousness. First of all, it is imperative that you know your audience. This will wipe out any fear of not knowing what to say. If you are over-prepared you will automatically be less nervous. Also, know what your opening line is to help take away the anxiety of getting started. Lastly, practice, practice, practice! If you have already given your speech several times, it won't feel like the first time.
5. Body language. Be sure to stand tall, smile, and avoid lots of body movements. Too much motion can distract the audience. Keep your hands and arms in an open position because you will look more confident. Finally, talk slowly and remember to breathe!
If you have any business related questions or would like advice on other workplace issues, visit our web site at www.birmingham.dalecarnegie.com or email us at Nancy_Covert@dalecarnegie.com.
(c) Dale Carnegie & Associates, Inc. 2005. All Rights Reserved.
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