Gates Foundation’s Milliron To Keynote ASFE’s April 7-9 St. Louis, MO Meeting

Mark Milliron, Ph.D., the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s deputy director for postsecondary improvement, will keynote the upcoming Spring (Annnual) Meeting of ASFE/The Geoprofessional Business Association, April 7-9, 2011, at the Four Seasons Hotel, St. Louis, MO. Dr. Milliron will address the future of education and how a new generation of learning is taking shape.

In a session titled “Strategic Leadership: Building Blocks To Create Sustainable Value,” Gerald J. “Gerry” Salontai, P.E. (Salontai Consulting Group) will explore techniques for driving a business to new objectives by developing and implementing new strategies through enlightened leadership, and continually refreshing the objectives and strategies to create a vibrant, sustainable organization.   

Through his presentation titled “Lessons in Service,” Melvin R. “Mel” Nichols, P.E. (Nichols Consulting) will explain the underlying principles of stewardship, the significant differences between organizational stewardship and ownership, how the most successful leaders encourage stewardship throughout an organization, from the top down.

Other programs include three case histories demonstrating the bottom-line benefits of high-quality geoprofessional services, through projects involving geotechnical, environmental, and construction materials engineering and testing, respectively. 

A panel of experienced practitioners will discuss ASTM International and geoprofessionals, with emphasis on the benefits of involvement and how to derive them.

ASFE’s Legal Affairs Committee will host a luncheon presentation focusing on employment disputes and claims and how to respond to them, and Joel G. Carson (Kleinfelder Group) will unveil ASFE’s new geoprofessional value proposition, an essential tool for accomplishing ASFE’s new purpose. As explained by ASFE President James W. “Jay” Martin, P.E., vice president and principal of AMEC’s Earth & Environmental Division, ASFE’s new purpose is to “maximize the geoprofessions’ importance and value to the marketplace.” He said that ASFE is achieving that purpose by “reaching out to public- and private-sector owners, design professionals, contractors, and others to inform them about the time- and money-saving benefits derived by relying on qualified geoprofessionals, and developing programs, services, and materials geoprofessional firms use to enhance their business and professional practices to become their clients’ trusted professional advisors.” Geoprofessional firms provide geotechnical, geologic, environmental, construction materials engineering and testing, and related professional services.

Source: ASFE