Friday, October 9, 2009

PIA Converge Conference

Are you planning on going to the PIA Converge Conference in November?

The Converge Conference - The Next Generation of Print and Communication Services - is designed for the new breed of company that is integrating the components of conventional and digital print, web technology, automated workflow, personalized and cross-media campaigns, mailing services, and more.

While many challenges exist to undermine profitability, so do numerous profitable opportunities. Progressive printing companies are adding new services, changing their names and rebranding. The result is a new breed of company integrating the components of conventional print, digital reproduction, web technology, mailing services, personalized cross media campaigns and much more.

The Converge Conference will present the strategy, tactics, and tools necessary for creating a dynamic new profit oriented business paradigm. Key industry leaders have acknowledged that there is no other conference attempting to serve the industry in the same way as Converge. The conference is broken into three tracks - Sales and Positioning, Production and Workflow Issues, and Value Added Services - the program is designed to appeal to a wide cross section of companies and individuals. I will be giving a session on how to integrate these new services into your management information system.

The Converge Conference takes place November 7-10, 2009, at the Hilton Bonnet Creek in Orlando, Florida. It is presented in partnership with the Printing Industries of America, the IPA, the Association of Graphic Solutions Providers, Digital Printing Council, Direct Marketing Association (DMA), and Printing Impressions magazine. Visit the Converge Conference website at http://converge.printing.org/

If want to learn how your organization can grow and prosper by taking advantage of new value-added business opportunities, join us in Orlando at The Converge Conference.

Monday, October 5, 2009

Printing Business Seminar: Calculating Budgeted Hourly Cost Rates

By: Craig L Press,
The Printing Industries of Wisconsin (PIW), &
The Institute for Graphics and Imaging (IGI)

November 11, 2009
9:00 am - 3:00 pm


In today's economy it is essential to know your true costs so you are more competitive on the desirable work and avoid the less lucrative work. This workshop will teach you how to develop and calculate hourly cost rates of your production equipment and employees. You will learn how to distribute 100 percent of your expenses among your cost centers so that your costs are fully absorbed in your estimates, actual costs, and pricing. All participants will receive forms and a spreadsheet that can be used to develop your own hourly cost rates.


What Attendees Will Learn?
- What budgeted hourly rates (BHR's)
- How to develop BHR's for your equipment
- The components of budgeted hourly rates
- Where to get the information and numbers
- How to recover your overhead costs
- What to do when equipment is fully depreciated or paid for
- How to compensate for under-utilized equipment
- Calculating direct manufacturing and all-inclusive costs
- Example prepress, press, and finishing BHR's
- Software and publications available to help develop BHR's
- How to use BHRs for pricing and job costing
- What to do when your cost is more than your customers will pay


Who Should Attend?
Principles, managers, financial officers, estimators, cost accountants, billing personnel, department managers, or anyone wanting to improve estimating, pricing, and costing skills.


Click here to download the seminar brochure and registration information.
http://www.igi.org/events/IGI_CPress_CalcRates_F.pdf


.

Printing Business Seminar: Maximizing the Performance of Employees

The Printing Industries of Wisconsin (PIW), &
The Institute for Graphics and Imaging (IGI)

November 11, 2009
9:00 am - 3:00 pm

Performance is essential for maximizing efficiency, productivity, cost effectiveness, and the utilization of resources. This session will teach you how to improve the overall performance of your organization by motivating your administration and production employees, selling change, overcoming resistance, setting performance goals, creating performance benchmarks and scorecards, pinpointing areas of improvement, measuring results, and creating incentive programs.


What Attendees Will Learn?
- Maximize the performance of your most valuable assets, your people
- Developing a performance oriented culture
- Integrating lean practices and principle
- Why "Change Is Good"
- 10 Ways to sell change
- Proven techniques to motivate employees
- Retaining your best employees
- Improving employee morale and engagement
- Evaluating employee performance
- Setting realistic goals for your employees
- Creating employee key performance metrics and scorecards
- Effectively collecting and presenting data
- Designing employee incentive programs
- Using technology to improve performance


Who Should Attend?
Principles, managers, financial officers, human resource managers, or anyone wanting to improve company performance by engaging, motivating, retaining, and maximizing the capabilities of employees.



Click here for additional information or to register: