MCAA National Update for January 26, 2015

This Week

2015 Student Internship Grants are Now Available

Legislative Session Begins to Ramp up After State of the Union Address

MSCA's New Webinar Series Teaches Leadership through Team-Building

Your Company's Excellent Safety Record Deserves a Safety Certificate of Commendation

Accelerate Your Leadership Skills with MSCA's Sales Leadership Symposium

Don't Be Left Out in the Cold...Apply Now for ALI Course 15

Take Your Company to the Next Level with MSCA Dispatcher Training

Poole & Kent Contributes to MCERF

2015 Student Internship Grants are Now Available

f you are planning to hire well-qualified college students as interns, be sure to apply for one or more 2015 Student Internship Grants funded by the Mechanical Contracting Education & Research Foundation (MCERF). In celebration of the Year of the Intern, the grant amount has increased to $1,500 per student intern hired, and the check will be sent as soon as we receive your completed grant request. All MCAA members are eligible for this benefit, and the program covers student interns hired for the summer or for the year under a university coop program. And, requests are welcome for student interns from any college or university. To help you find just the right intern (or full-time employee), MCAA will announce very soon its new website featuring resumes of students from MCAA student chapters. We're putting the final touches on the website and we'll notify you as soon as it's ready! For more information about Student Internship Grants and the online form, please go to http://www.mcerf.org/initiatives/education-careers/internships or contact Ann Mattheis at amattheis@mcaa.org.

Legislative Session Begins to Ramp up After State of the Union Address

Plan to Attend the MCAA/Quality Construction Alliance National Issues Legislative Conference

In the 114th Congress, a number of committees may be taking up federal procurement reform proposals. Procurement reform issues will be on the agenda for the MCAA/Quality Construction Alliance National Issues Legislative Conference slated for April 27-29 in Washington, DC. The event will be held at the W Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue, and the program panel discussions will be held at the Newseum at the foot of Capitol Hill. The format of the conference is different this year. There is no issue program element on Monday, April 27, but registration materials will be available at the hotel. Tuesday, the program begins at the Newseum with breakfast followed by issue sessions moderated by former Senator Norm Coleman and others. Lobbying appointments will be set on the Senate side of the Capitol on Tuesday afternoon. Wednesday morning, there will be a breakfast at the hotel, followed by House side lobbying meetings in the late morning. Please plan to attend this important conference. Pension reform "Phase 2" will lead the agenda, along with procurement issues (prime and subcontractor selection criteria), energy efficiency issues (tax incentives for energy efficient buildings and industrial facilities) and workforce standards issues (worker misclassification and prevailing wage standards).

MSCA's New Webinar Series Teaches Leadership through Team-Building

Leadership skills must be cultivated in order to be effective. To support contractors in their development, MSCA is launching a new webinar series on team-building called The Team Thing. Acclaimed MSCA presenter Steve Thomas will host this six-part series to teach you what a "team" truly is (and isn't), and how to embody it as a collaborator and a leader. The first webinar will be held on February 11 at 1:00 p.m. EST. Registration is now open at https://msca.webex.com. Tentative dates for the remaining webinars are April 1, June 3, September 2, November 4, and December 6. This series is free to all MCAA/MSCA members as a benefit. For more information, contact Barbara Dolim (bdolim@mcaa.org).

Your Company's Excellent Safety Record Deserves a Safety Certificate of Commendation

Your company's 2014 safety record is a source of pride, and MCAA wants to commend your efforts. Send your company's 2014 safety data to MCAA and we'll send you a safety benchmarking report and if your company qualifies, an MCAA Safety Certificate of Commendation. Here's how it works - if your company achieved a Lost Workday Cases Incidence Rate of zero or one that is 25% or more below the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics industry average for mechanical construction in 2014, MCAA will send you a Certificate of Commendation that is suitable for framing. Regardless of your 2014 safety record, MCAA will send you a benchmarking report that allows you to confidentially compare your company's incidence rates with the aggregates of others in your size category and with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' averages for the mechanical industry. To make the request, please visit www.mcaa.org/safetycommendation and complete a short, simple form using your company's 2014 OSHA 300A form as a guide. The completed forms are due to MCAA by the close of business on Tuesday, March 31, 2015. The certificates will be delivered in April 2015.

Accelerate Your Leadership Skills with MSCA's Sales Leadership Symposium

The MSCA Sales Leadership Symposium will be held for the last time this year on February 23-24 in Philadelphia, PA. Designed exclusively for sales leaders (even if he/she does not have a sales manager job title), attendees will further develop the skills needed to recruit, hire, onboard, coach, and train a strong team through this extended two-day seminar. Participation in this session is required by the sales leader before team members can attend the Sales Masters program (for intermediate- and advanced-level service sales staff) to ensure that managers are equipped to support employees who advance through the Sales Masters program. Visit www.msca.org/salesinstitute/leadership to register for the Sales Leadership Symposium. Class size is limited, so register early. For information about all MSCA Sales Institute programs, visit the MSCA Sales Institute Web page. Contact Sobeida Orantes (saorantes@mcaa.org) with registration questions.

Don't Be Left Out in the Cold...Apply Now for ALI Course 15

Now that almost 500 industry executives are graduates of the Advanced Leadership Institute (ALI), MCAA's foremost educational offering, those who haven't gone through the program are scrambling to apply for Course 15. Our industry's top executives know that ALI's leadership education will help them meet the challenges of unexpected economic, market, technological or other developments that could impact their businesses. They also know that the ALI curriculum, with its focus on strategic planning and leadership development, will help them lead their company to success when business issues emerge that affect your company's short and long-term performance. In addition to an outstanding schedule of educational topics customized for our industry, ALI's new module on "Branding" and another on "Customer Partnerships" enhance the value of the program. The branding module will include WebEx-delivered components during the interim period between Week 1 and Week 2. Dates for ALI's Course 15 are: September 27-October 2, 2015 (Week 1) and November 8-13, 2015 (Week 2). To request an application or learn more about the ALI, please contact Dennis Langley (dlangley@mcaa.org).

Take Your Company to the Next Level with MSCA Dispatcher Training

Service dispatchers are at the core of your business, often serving as the first encounter clients have with your company. Therefore, investing in these team members becomes critical to their success in the role, customer satisfaction, and your bottom line. Join MSCA in Cleveland, OH, from March 26-27 for the Dispatcher Professional Development Training Program. This training will help new and experienced dispatchers understand their true role in the company and advance their careers as they further develop their ability to contribute to your company's success. Register today at http://www.mcaa.org/education/msca/dispatcher. Contact Sobeida Orantes (saorantes@mcaa.org) with registration questions.

Poole & Kent Contributes to MCERF

The Mechanical Contracting Education & Research Foundation (MCERF) recently received a $1,500 contribution from The Poole & Kent Corporation (Baltimore, MD), raising its total to $267,000. The MCERF Board of Trustees is very grateful for the support which helps the Foundation continue its education and research programs that help our industry grow and thrive. Find out more about MCERF and how you can help by visiting www.mcerf.org or contact Dennis Langley at dlangley@mcaa.org.

The MCAA National Update is is a weekly publication of the
Mechanical Contractors Association of America
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Questions? Contact Ann Mattheis, Editor, Phone: 301-869-5800; Fax: 301-990-9690