After 11 years with Printing Industries of America, Dr. Bohan is leaving the organization at the end of the month to go work for Heidelberg.

Jim Workman, a 32-year veteran employee of Printing Industries of America will become Vice President of PIA's Center for Technology and Research and will hire a new Assistant Vice President of Research for the organization.

Dr. Bohan's popular Ask Dr. B column will be replaced with a new feature entitled, Ask The Tech Experts.  We wish Dr. Bohan all the best with his new position.

Successful organizations thrive because of their culture.  A healthy culture has high levels of motivation, quality, and performance.  A toxic culture is full of resentment, absenteeism, and turnover.  Watch for these dangers that can keep your employees from feeling motivated to do their best.

Bullying - Employees who face abuse and humiliation from mangers and co-workers won't have the kind of morale and loyalty your organization needs.  Observe interactions in your workplace and act quickly to snuff out aggressive misbehavior.  Maintain a positive atmosphere where people feel comfortable sharing ideas and communicating with managers and colleagues.

Stealing Credit - When managers take all the credit for their employees' work, those employees feel cheated.  When you score a victory, let everyone know who contributed.  Investigate employees' big wins to find out which co-workers helped, and show appreciation for everyone's efforts.

Dishonesty - Strive for transparency in everything you do so employees see that you're behaving ethically.  Don't tolerate shortcuts that compromise your ethics and quality, and reinforce the importance of telling the truth even when it's inconvenient.  For example, thank employees who bring problems to your attention instead of getting angry with them.

Lack of Focus - Most organizations start out with clear goals and a strong determination to succeed.  Over time, though, those early goals can grow vague and disconnected from everyday work.  Keep your organization's mission simple and concrete.  Explain how assignments support goals, and eliminate red tape that gets in the way of achieving real success.  Reinforce your mission as often as possible so it stays at the top of everyone's mind at work.

1. Learn.  If you stop learning, you stop growing.

2. Play.  You must experiment.  Do something you haven't done before or try to solve the problem in a new way.  Playing it safe will not take you anywhere new.

3. Work. It may seem obvious, but don't wait for inspiration.  Start working and see what develops.

4. Fail.  Everyone must be comfortable with failure, otherwise, you're not taking chances.  Learn from it and move on.

5. Evolve.   Your mission should guide you, but reassess once in a while.  It may be time to shift gears, which may lead you somewhere new and exciting.

6. Seek.  Look for any and all possible ways to become leaders of not just your product category, but f the discussions that consumers are having about your products.

7. Push.  Accentuate consumer and trade passions such that they excite the conversation.

8. Innovate.  Create relevant compelling differentiation.

9. Invest.  Take stock in your brand, while seeking creative ways to tell your story.

10. Drive.  Never accept the status quo.  There is always someone else looking to one-up you.

Source:  John Clifford, creative director and principal, Think Studio.

Printing companies today need to grow in order to remain healthy.  As adding volume organically continues to be a challenge, growing by acquisition is a very realistic growth strategy.

Merging with or acquiring another company is a viable method of strengthening your company's financial position and provides the added volume necessary to stabilize pricing to attract and retain customers.

On November 19th in Denver, WSPA will feature a special session on M & A.  The 90 minute program will cover:

• The methods, advantages and pitfalls of employing acquisitions as a business growth strategy
• What to look for in a potential merger or acquisition and
• How to best position your company should you wish to sell.

If you have ever thought about growing your business by buying another company or someday selling your own company, this is a must-attend session.

The session leader is Paul Reilly, former Chairman and CEO of Cenveo, Inc., one of North America's leading graphic communications firms.  During his tenure with the company, Cenveo grew from $17 million to over $2 billion in sales, while completing some 60 acquisitions.

Mr. Reilly's firm, New Direction Partners, will compile a desktop valuation for printing and packaging firms attending. This valuation is worth in excess of $3,000 and is included in your registration fee of just $39!

Date: Thursday, November 19, 2015
Time: 10:30 a.m. - Noon (followed by a light networking lunch)
Location: Veritiv (3900 Lima Street Denver, CO 80239)
Price: $39 for members

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

To see the Color 2015 Program CLICK HERE.

Each week, E-Connects shares incredible photos on just how lax individuals can be when it comes to safety. 

The goal - to keep a safe work environment front and center on the minds of all of your employees.

Pictured: Re-engineering at its worst.

If you come across a funny safety pic you think should be featured, email Michael Makin at mmakin@wsprint.org.

WSPA is only as strong as its membership base and wants to continually grow to service its members.  You can help by being an ambassador and referring potential members our way!

"Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work."

Peter Drucker