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From the Executive Director:
Dear Colleagues,
"Good is the enemy of great" - Jim Collins
"When outstanding becomes so easily available,
average is over." - Thomas Friedman
These are two of my favorites authors and are two of the best speakers I have ever had the opportunity to see speak. Think about what they are telling us in these two quotes - we must keep striving to be 'great' or 'outstanding' - we cannot expect to continue to succeed without innovation and change. Independent schools are traditionally risk and change adverse - it is built into our culture. The traditions which we have built at our schools for decades, and at times centuries, are a critical component of our success but also may be holding us back from improving.
Most of you represent the voice of reason and practicality in your schools - you are the ones to remind others that a school must still operate within the constraints of a business. Collins suggested in his talk at the NAIS Annual Conference that this is a well-intentioned idea, but perhaps the wrong idea. Most things in life are just average. To get from good to great our schools need a culture of discipline. In fact, for many of our schools, their financial sustainability depends upon developing a culture of discipline. The Business Officer is the leader of a team of professionals that must practice a culture of discipline.
Collins goes on to tell us that no single person has enough power to make big change happen on their own, but one individual can have enough negative power to derail change on their own. You are all in unique and powerful leadership roles within your schools. Our schools need your leadership through these fast changing, challenging times.
I believe that Collins' characteristics of a great leader are appropriate for your positions. The three factors he believes are critical to differentiate a great leader from a mediocre one:
1) Fanatic discipline
2) Empirical creativity
3) Production paranoia (my favorite - learn from the mistakes you survive)
If any of this resonates with you, please read Collins' most recent book - Great by Choice. I believe you will find this very helpful as you navigate the myriad of issues you deal with on a daily basis.
For those of you that may be taking some time off during your school's spring break, be sure to take some time for yourself - rest and relaxation are so important to you. It allows you to come back to school creative, energized, and innovative.
Sincerely,
Marc
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NEW Business Officer Intensive
 Registration is now open for MISBO's inaugural NEW Business Officer Intensive. This intense, two-day workshop is designed for the NEW Business Officer with 5 years or fewer in their role and is hosted by Woodward Academy, June 9-11, 2013. The New Business Officer Intensive will provide a variety of programs presented by veterans of the business office sharing best practices about Human Resource and Employment Law, Financial Planning and Budgeting, Governance and Board Relations, Risk Management, Technology and much more! Learn more and register at www.misbo.com/intensive. |
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Winter Webinar Series
The last webinar in our
Winter Webinar Series is:
An Asset Management Approach to Facilities
Date: March 20, 2013 at 2:00 pm ET
Presenter: Bill Kesslar, Director of Sustainability Services, Building Solutions
Description: Independent schools usually apply sophisticated asset management techniques to their financial assets, but not to their largest asset - facilities. Instead, facilities are treated as a component of overhead. This webinar will explore how a paradigm shift, from 'facilities as overhead' to 'facilities as an asset', will encourage more strategic thinking and better decision making.
Click here to register.
Details on our Spring Webinar Series can be found at www.misbo.com/webinars!
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FISBO/MISBO Conference
Have you registered yet for this year's FISBO/MISBO Conference - May 5-7 - in Jacksonville, FL hosted by The Bolles School? The conference is open to all current FISBO, FCIS, and MISBO members at the member cost of $250 for early registration until April 8th. NEW Post-Conference Event has been added!
As a result of current events and the request by schools for a session about school safety and security, we have added a Post Conference program for the afternoon - beginning at the conclusion of the FISBO Annual Meeting. The post-conference event will begin at 12:30 on May 7th with a lunch and cracker barrel discussion and then proceed into the campus security program.
This year's conference features a redesigned program and CPE credits will also be available for the first time. Learn more and register at www.misbo.com/fisbo. |
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Electronic Resources Trial Sites
ATTN: MISBO Librarians and Media Specialists
MISBO offers its members the opportunity to order their electronic resources through a simplified process, and with attractive discounts! Please visit our website (and choose Electronic Resources from the product category) for a current list of vendors with whom we work and the new and exciting products they are offering. Ordering through MISBO saves you time and money! Have your librarian, media specialist, curriculum director or technology director view the options we have. If you have questions, please contact diannesagaas@misbo.com for complete details.
To make your purchasing decisions easier, we have developed a web page filled with Electronic Database trial sites. Please use this link to access the page. We will continue to post new trial sites as they become available, so please check back often.
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Vendor Webinar - Microsoft
 MISBO is pleased to share information on upcoming webinars from Microsoft. Be sure to mark your calendars for these dates and register today!
March 26 - Enrollment for Education Solutions (EES) Relaunch
and the Student Option Webinar
11:00 -12:00 EST
The Microsoft Enrollment for Education Solutions offering provides qualified academic customers a simplified way to acquire Microsoft software and services under a single, subscription agreement. EES provides assured coverage for desktop platform products through one annual count of employees, the ability to add Additional Products as needed, student licensing options, and SA benefits.
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1640 Powers Ferry Road, SE
Building 20, Suite 20
Marietta, GA 30067
Phone - 404.921.3810
Fax - 404.921.3816
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Board Nominations
If you know of a good candidate for the MISBO Board of Directors, please participate in this year's nomination process.
Deadline for submissions is Friday, March 22, 2013.
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CDW-G Link
Please note the link to review CDW-G MISBO pricing has been changed to
Please update any Bookmarks or Favorites.
Thank you!
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Login Reminder
Please note that if you're having trouble logging into the MISBO member portal there are links provided to help you with a forgotten username and/or password.
If you are logging in for the first time, your username is your email address and your temporary password is MISBO.
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Help Us Help You
As we continue to enhance the MISBO membership experience, we need your help. We want to be sure we're providing relevant information to the appropriate people at your schools. If you are the primary contact at your school (most likely in the business office), would you please login
to the MISBO member portal and make any personnel updates needed? We can better serve our member schools by having the most up to date information.
Thank you!
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