TapRooT® Friends & Experts e-Newsletter
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North American Edition
August 24, 2010
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In This Issue
Investigations and Accidents/Lessons Learned
2010 Summit News
Attend a 1-Day Software Course
Win an iPad!
Career Development
Wisdom Quote
TapRooT® Around the World
Register for a TapRooT® Course
J.O.K.E. of the Week
Editor's Note: What Are You Wearing to the Summit Costume Reception?
Connect With Us ...
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President's Question
mark1Dear Readers:

I have two topics to consider this week. They both go back to prior questions and are somewhat related.

The first topic is about the rewards people get for doing good investigations.

Here are the results from my unscientific survey of TapRooT® users:

Never received rewards from management for a good investigation: 76%

Received a verbal "Atta-Boy/Girl" for investigations: 20%

Received a financial reward for investigations: 4%

Here's the actual answers for your review:

http://www.taproot.com/wordpress/2010/08/05/rewards/

I didn't find these statistics surprising.

I also found it interesting that many of the investigators said that performing a good investigation and seeing people's jobs get better (safer) was reward enough.

However, if managers want good investigations, shouldn't they be rewarding what they want? Isn't this basic management?

Therefore, one major improvement that management should consider for improving investigations is to start a systematic evaluation of investigations and rewards for good investigations.

What do you think? Is this a good idea? Let me know by commenting here:

http://www.taproot.com/wordpress/2010/08/23/should-management-reward-investigators-for-good-investigations/

The second topic is about what Summit participants have learned from past Summits.

You can read the comments here:

http://www.taproot.com/wordpress/2010/08/12/summit-recommendations/

After I read the comments, I thought:

"The Summit could be a reward for good investigations!"

Because so many investigators are proud of their ability to help improve performance, what could be a better reward than sending them to a Summit with other like-minded individuals where they can improve their skills and learn new best practices?

So take action! If you have some good investigators working for you ... send them to the Summit in San Antonio (October 27-29) as a reward.

What if you are an investigator who does good investigations? Maybe your boss needs a hint about rewards. Maybe you should forward this newsletter to him/her to read?

That's all for this week. Good luck improving performance (and getting rewarded!).

Best regards,

Mark

Mark Paradies
President
System Improvements, Inc.
http://www.taproot.com

Investigations and Accidents/Lessons Learned
Are you attending the VPPPA Conference in Orlando this week?  If you are, please come by the TapRooT® Booth (#503) and say hello and have a chat about root cause analysis.  Mark, Linda, Ken and I (Dave) will all be there (Read more).

Construction Fatality in Australia:  PowerPoint presentation about an accident that occurred near Townsville, Australia (Read more).

Canary in a Coal Mine - Managers in China's Coal Mines Haven't Stopped Accidents:  Associated Press reports that China's mines have not suddenly become "safe" after China's Premier ordered mining managers to go down in the mines with the miners (Read more).

CSB to Investigate Accident that Killed Two Workers at Horsehead Holding Company:  CSB Press Release (Read more).

Tough Criminal Attorney to Head Deepwater Horizon Prosecution:  A Houston Chronical story (Read more).

The Ugly Effects of Budget Cuts:  I was talking to a root cause analyst the other day and he couldn't see how budget cuts could cause a major accident (like BP Deepwater Horizon or BP Texas City) (Read more).

Rewards:  When was the last time you were rewarded for a good investigation? (Read more.)

Investigation into the Derailment of a Passenger Train at East Langton, near Market Harborough, Leicestershire, on 20 February 2010:  UK Rail Accident Investigation Branch Press Release (Read more).

King Tut Needed Root Cause Analysis:  New research suggests that King Tut was killed by a chariot accident (Read more).

Can You Demonstrate a Strong Safety Culture? "Safety Culture" has been a topic of increasing interest since the term was first used in the report on the Chernobyl accident (Read more).
2010 TapRooT® Summit News
Tie StringDATES TO REMEMBER

TapRooT® Summit:  October 27-29, 2010
Special 2-Day PreSummit Courses:  October 25-26, 2010
Live Music/Costume Party:  October 27, 2010
TapRooT® 7th Annual Scramble Charity Golf Tournament:  October 29, 2010

The Summit Hotel and Host City are:
The Westin Riverwalk, San Antonio, Texas
Learn more:  http://www.taproot.com/summit.php

Summit

BEST PRACTICE TRACKS

Here are some details about four of the nine Best Practice Tracks at this year's Summit.  Read next week's edition to learn about more tracks:

Investigation, Troubleshooting & Root Cause Analysis

Improvement Program

Corrective Actions Program

Behavior Change and Stopping Human Error

TESTIMONIALS


A first time attendee's thoughts about the Summit:  Are you thinking about registering for the first time?  Hear what someone just like you had to say about his experience (View video).

An attendee shares what he is taking back to his facility from the Summit:  2010 is an extremely important year to catch up!  Get back on the improvement track and create a plan to revolutionize performance at your facility (View video).

IMPORTANT INFO ABOUT SCHEDULING

Customize your Summit Schedule and Take Your Improvements to New Heights!  Ever attend a conference or training event, and walk away feeling like there was one piece of the puzzle that you really needed an answer to but you just didn't get? We want to assure you that you won't feel that way about the TapRooT® Summit! (Read more.)

Which Summit Track is Right for You?
  Have you registered for the Summit?  October 27th will be here before you know it, so don't procrastinate! We'll be posting detailed track information every Tuesday and Thursday to help you with your decision (Read more).

New this Year:  SPECIAL TOPICS:  You've always had the option to replace any best practice session on your track with a session from another track, but this year you can also choose from a list of special topics to make your track the perfect fit (Read more).

Exclusive 2-Day Courses = Awesome Discounts for Summit Attendees!  Most of these courses are only offered once each year.  Don't miss out! (View courses.)

NETWORKING, KEYNOTE SPEAKERS, AND BEST PRACTICE SESSIONS

TapRooT® Summit Returns 170% More Than a Regular Conference - What an Investment!  What conference has 170% more than other conferences? Well then, lets look at each of the percentages for proof (Read more).

CERTIFIED INSTRUCTORS

TapRooT®  Instructors:  Maintain Your Certification:  What does it take to maintain your TapRooT® Instructor certification?  Every two years you must attend the TapRooT® Summit and one of the pre-Summit Courses (Read more).

TRAVEL PLANNING

Summit Travel Planning:  Have you started your planning to attend the TapRooT® Summit?  Now is the time to plan the trip to get the best airline fares (Read more).

VIDEO:  Why We Chose San Antonio as Host City:  The Westin Riverwalk hotel offers spacious meeting rooms, a well laid-out facility that allows attendees to move around without bottlenecks and delays, as well as covered terraces where attendees can step out of the hotel to make a phone call or review notes while enjoying a Riverwalk view (View video).

2010 Summit: Enjoy Yourself without Ever Leaving the Conference Hotel:  San Antonio, a city with a vibrant night life, is the host for the 2010 Summit ... but we didn't forget travelers who are content to just relax in the hotel after a busy Summit day (Read more).

Riverwalk Restaurant Reviews:  TapRooT® staff picks:    Schilo's and Boudro's
Attend a 1-Day Software Course


What better way to learn and become proficient at using the new version 5 TapRooT® software than to attend a 1-Day Software Course? 

We have developed this course as an optional supplement to the normal TapRooT® courses, giving the students a chance to learn the ins and outs of the software tool.  The course can concentrate on either the Single-User software, or (for our licensed clients) we can use your Enterprise installation to show you how to customize the global reporting and networking functions of the software to make your investigation process much more user-friendly.  (Read more.)
Win an iPad!
Enter the TapRooT® Best Practice Contest!  Submit your TapRooT® Success Stories to editor@taproot.com (please type "Best Practice Submission" in the subject line) for a chance to win an iPad.

iPad

The contest will run six months (deadline:  January 27, 2011, 6:00 p.m.).  All entries will be shared on the Root Cause Analysis blog.  Readers can vote for the Best Practices Success Stories that are most useful to them by simply clicking the "Like" button.  In the event of a tie at deadline, the in house instructors at System Improvements will select the winner by vote.

Please submit your Best Practice in a Challenge/Actions/Results format.  Here are some examples:

Ciba Vision

Canyon Fuel Company

Rohm & Hass

Intel

Enter as many Best Practice Success Stories as you like. 

Don't forget -- the upcoming TapRooT® Summit is all about best practices, so be sure to enter the ideas you learn and implement at your facility!

If you need help with your entry, contact editor@taproot.com.
Career Development
Employment Opportunities for Candidates with Root Cause Analysis Training

Penang, Bukit Minyak - Flextronics - Manager Root Cause Failure Analysis (View opening).

(View more openings.)

P.S. Thinking about registering for a course to add to your personal resume?  Our worldwide calendar of public courses can be found at:  http://www.taproot.com/courses.php
Wisdom Quote

Never assume the obvious is true. ~ William Safire

TapRooT® Around the World
Seattle
Seattle 5-Day Advanced Root Cause Analysis
Team Leader Course (View photos).

Portland
2-Day TapRooT® Incident Investigation
and Root Cause Analysis Course
held Onsite in Portland (View photos).

Bogota
TapRooT® 3-Day Root Cause Analysis
and Equipment Troubleshooting Course in Bogotá (View photos).

Don't Wait!  Register for a TapRooT® Course
Don't wait! TapRooT® Courses fill up and have waiting lists - a sign that the economy is picking up.  What courses have filled up lately?  (Read more.)

Course

PUBLIC COURSES IN US AND CANADA

2-Day TapRooT® Incident Investigation and Root Cause Analysis Course


Albuquerque, New Mexico - September 16-17

Boston, Massachusetts - September 21-22

Vancouver, Canada - September 23-24

Edmonton, Canada - October 13-14

Chicago, Illinois - October 14-15

Gatlinburg, Tennessee - October 20-21

San Antonio, Texas - October 25-26

St. John's, Canada - November 3-4

Denver (Golden), CO - November 16-17

Toronto, Canada - November 22-23

Charleston, South Carolina - November 30-December 1

New Orleans, Louisiana - December 1-2 (Add 1-Day Equifactor® Equipment Troubleshooting Course!)

Las Vegas, Nevada - December 6-7 (Add 1-Day Equifactor® Equipment Troubleshooting Course!)

Calgary, Canada - December 7-8 (Add 1-Day Equifactor® Equipment Troubleshooting Course!)



5-Day TapRooT® Advanced Root Cause Analysis Team Leader Training

Calgary, Canada - September 13-17

Las Vegas, Nevada - September 27 - October 1

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - October 11-15

Portland, Oregon - October 18-22

Knoxville, Tennessee - November 8-12

Edmonton, Canada - November 15-19

Houston, Texas - December 6-10



Special 2-Day TapRooT®/Equifactor® Equipment Troubleshooting & Root Cause Failure Analysis (View Course Description)

San Antonio, Texas - October 25-26



3-Day TapRooT®/Equifactor® Equipment Troubleshooting and Root Cause Failure
Analysis
 
St. John's, Canada - November 3-5

New Orleans, Louisiana - December 1-3

Las Vegas, Nevada - December 6-8

Calgary, Canada - December 7-9



1-Day TapRooT®/Equifactor® Equipment Troubleshooting & Root Cause Failure Analysis (For previous 2-day/5-day course attendees

New Orleans, Louisiana - December 3

Las Vegas, Nevada - December 8

Calgary, Canada - December 9


View our worldwide calendar of courses at:

http://www.taproot.com/courses.php

J.O.K.E. of the Week
laugh
Editor's Note:  What Are You Wearing to the Summit Costume Reception?
Dear Readers,

Alison (our 2010 Summit planner) and I put our heads together this morning to decide that very important question:

What will we wear to the Summit Costume Reception?

Since the Summit is close to Halloween, we are inviting everyone to wear a costume to the Summit reception. 

We had some pretty good ideas, including coming as exhausted TapRooT® team members (after all, it will be after a full day of learning at the Summit!).  But we came up with a costume that fits the theme of our event in that the characters we are coming as have lots of enthusiasm just like our speakers and attendees!

So disguise yourself in your best get up and win awesome prizes this year by coming to the reception in costume! 

LEARN MORE about the plans for the Summit Reception!

We'll see you at the 2010 Summit!

Best regards,

Barb Phillips

Editor & HR Rep
System Improvements, Inc.
editor@taproot.com
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