Mark J. Anderson, PE, CQE, MBA Mark is a principal and general manager of Stat-Ease, Inc. Prior to joining the firm, he spearheaded an award-winning quality improvement program for an international manufacturer, generating millions of dollars in profit. Mark offers a diverse array of experience in process development, quality assurance, marketing, purchasing, and general management. Prior to joining Stat-Ease, Mark was General Manager for WR Medical Electronics, a medical device manufacturer. Mark is also co-author of two books, http://www.statease.com/doe_simp.html "DOE Simplified: Practical Tools for Effective Experimentation" and http://www.statease.com/rsm_simplified.html RSM Simplified: Optimizing Processes Using Response Surface Methods for Design of Experiments,"and has published numerous articles on design of experiments (DOE).

Professional Credentials:

• Professional Engineer (PE), #015059 MN
• Certified Quality Engineer (CQE), #20446

Education:

Bachelor of Chemical Engineering, University of Minnesota, 1975, High Distinction

MBA, University of Minnesota, 1980, Beta Gamma Sigma (honorary academic society)

Dr. Peter Patton & Bijay Jayaswal Agilenty Consulting Group

Software Quality Design for Six Sigma

The tutorial would be based on the tenet that software quality and reliability issues are fundamentally similar to those in hardware and manufactured products. Further, the current software development processes are largely faulty and we would argue that software must be produced differently if you desire to deliver trustworthy software from customer's cost, quality and delivery perspectives. That implies the end of downstream testing, bottleneck analysis, and finding and fixing one bug at a time. The goal of software quality should be to prevent bugs in implementation rather than finding and eliminating them later. A new technology, Design for Trustworthy Software (DFTS) would be presented. It consists of Robust Software Development Model (RSDM) and various upstream customer oriented methods, all of which may be applied before a single line of code is written! The DFTS technology and, particularly, its development model, RSDM, are central to producing trustworthy software in a cost-effective and viable manner.

The tutorial would include key elements of the development model and its accompanying implementation framework, the supporting organizational structure, and all-enabling learning process for successful deployment of the technology. It would be accompanied by discussion of a few case studies and would be wrapped-up by a discussion of the merits of the DFTS technology and its implications for delivering trustworthy software from customer's cost, quality and delivery perspectives. The presenters would draw from their recent book, Design for Trustworthy Software: Tools, Techniques, and Methodology of Developing Robust Software, Prentice-Hall, 2006.

Level - Basic

About the Presenters:

Dr. Peter Patton is Chairman of Agilenty Consulting Group and has recently retired as Professor of Computer Science at the University of St. Thomas. He has also taught at the Universities of Minnesota, Paris and Stuttgart and has held the position of Chief Information Officer at the University of Pennsylvania. He was Chief Technologist at Lawson Software from 1996 to 2002 and Lawson representative on the Technical Advisory Committee of the IBM SanFranciscoTM Java Framework project. He has been involved in computer hardware and software development since 1955. He has engineering and mathematics degrees from Harvard, Kansas, and Stuttgart.

Bijay Jayaswal is the CEO of Agilenty Consulting Group, LLC. He has held senior executive positions and has consulted in quality and strategy for the last 25 years. His consulting and research interests include value engineering, process improvement and product development. He has taught engineering and management at the University of Mauritius and California State University, Chico and has directed MBA and Advanced Management programs. He has helped introduce corporate-wide initiatives in re-engineering, Six Sigma, and Design for Six Sigma and has worked with senior executive teams for effective implementation of such initiatives. He holds an MBA and a Master's degree in electrical engineering from Aston University in England.

Rip Stauffer, Woodside Quality Solutions

Back to the Basics of World - Class Quality

A number of powerful lessons had to be learned the hard way back in the early 1980s. These have since fallen by the wayside. As a result, many organizations face some of the same productivity, cost and quality problems they faced in the ‘80s. Many of the more powerful points of the theory-of-variation, systems thinking, knowledge theory and psychology have been lost in the shuffle. As a result, a number of approaches, based on these important concepts, have been diluted. This workshop will explore some of the concepts that have slipped away from us, and show why they are just as relevant and important today. Furthermore, it is easy to integrate these into newer approaches such as Six Sigma, Lean and Innovation. The contents of the workshop will benefit anyone who has learned about Quality in the past 10 years. Take a short, but deep dive into the powerful concepts that originally fueled the development of approaches such as Six Sigma. The classic Deming Red Bead Experiment, Nelson’s funnel, and a number of other demonstrations and videos are part of this exciting workshop.

Level - Intermediate

Lauri Flaquer Executive Officer Saltar Solutions, LLC

SOAR to Success! Writing Quality Bios That Blast Off

One of the most difficult tasks we face as individuals, business people, and employees today is writing our biography. When asked to write reports, summaries, and papers on specific topics we race to our computers without batting an eye. Yet, when asked to write a simple paragraph or two about a topic we supposedly know so well, we are practically paralyzed with uncertainty. We are never sure how to present ourselves, often overlooking our important achievements and downplaying our successes. Under the guise of modesty, we virtually destroy any opportunity for advancement. Anger and resentment grow as we watch others get the promotions and raises we deserve. While many of us can relate to the scenario described above, it just doesn’t have to be this way. One of the first and most important steps in the creation of a beneficial and inspiring biography is the development of a personal brand. The exploration and promotion of ones core values, character traits, and brand message provide a solid foundation with which to write a piece that highlights your achievements, promotes your successes, and demonstrates your value. Learn to use this powerful tool to fuel your success and SOAR!

Level - Basic

Dr. Dean Russell, Bon Vivant

"How To" Critically Think, A Much Needed Global Concept

Dr. Russell is an Organizational Effectiveness Consultant with Employer's Association, Inc., and President of his own company, Executive Performance and Solutions, Inc.

Critical thinking is not what you think, but how you arrive at conclusions. It is not results-based, but process-based. It is the process of determining the facts without prejudice and placing those facts in a "pattern" that you can understand. It is the ability to think!

The ability to think and recast that thinking in an improved form is the foundation for critical thinking. It is to know the existence of illogical fallacies, with a major component being - is the comment true or false. In this fun-filled session you will learn the skill set most needed for your future.

You will learn how to listen to your intuition along with skeptical, skilled fact-finding follow-through.

In critical thinking, you must question the information – purpose, sources, interpretation, assumptions, implications, relevance, accuracy, precision, consistency, and logic. The most important question is of purpose - asking why.

This exercise requires everyone in the room to combine and sort through bits of information. The group will use a critical thinking process to arrive at answers for the who, what, where, when, and how's of a murder. The points of critical thinking will be demonstrated through a dynamic group exercise, “Murder Mystery!” The group critical thinking “IQ” will be tested and points reinforced at the summary.

Sign up now, this is a practical workshop you don't want to miss.