members. Overall, there was a statistically high response rate, adding to the validity of information collected. A series of questions was asked, such as “Do you think AWS is effectively achieving its mission?” with that mission being to advance the science, technology, and application of welding and allied joining and cutting processes worldwide, including brazing, soldering, and thermal spraying (90% agreed); “What are AWS’s top strategic opportunities?” where certification programs and to become the primary information source for the industry were highest rated; and “What are AWS’s top external threats?” By far, the shortage of welding personnel was the highest listed, with the U.S. economy in second place, and noncompliance with codes and standards placing third. Assemblying an Advisory Group Relying heavily on the responses from our members, the AWS advisory group met to work on developing the next stage of the AWS Global Strategy. This group was composed of AWS volunteers in leadership roles, which included David McQuaid, AWS president; John Bray, Tom Lienert, and Dale Flood, AWS vice presidents; Carey Chen, AWS treasurer; Dean Wilson, past AWS president and instrumental in organizing this initiative; Dave Landon, past president; Pierrette Gorman, District 20 director; and Damian Kotecki and Tom Mustaleski, both heavily involved in the AWS committee system, and also past presidents. In addition to this leadership group, 17 executive and managerial staff were included. Landon recognized the importance of the survey to the whole initiative, “I was impressed with the amount of work that AWS has done through the process of soliciting input from its many ‘customers.’ Those responses and comments were used to identify the top areas of strategic focus.” Survey Provides the Areas of Focus Areas of importance isolated from the survey included shortage of welding Planning the future of AWS causes one to anticipate the future of the welding industry, and it gives us an opportunity to position the Society to be an asset. personnel; professional development; certification; member and volunteer support/customer service; and global expansion. AWS Treasurer Carey Chen noted, “The carefully selected initiatives will direct AWS staff and volunteers on what they should be working on, and equally important, what they should not be working on. If the Global Strategy also narrowly defines vital few activities, a focused road map will be generated that concentrates our precious and limited resources into fulfilling the long-term mission and vision of the AWS. If the strategy is executed properly, then AWS has the best potential of increasing its financial strength and over time increasing its resources to accelerate future activities.” A mix of volunteers and staff were assigned to each area where it was intensely discussed. The methodology for the discussion was to isolate the area of concern, come up with the causes for this concern, and propose solutions. Dale Flood viewed the planning session as a means of opening a broader picture of the industry. “Planning the future of AWS causes one to anticipate the future of the welding industry, and it gives us an opportunity to position the Society to be an asset to everyone who works in metal joining,” he said. John Bray considered the welding personnel initiative vital to the Society. “The shortage of welders is the basic key to everything. If there aren’t any welders, you don’t need an AWS, or CWI, or other programs. The buck stops here. That is why our discussion group thought we need to step up our aggressiveness in going out and taking the message to the streets with spokespersons and mass media.” The Core of the Global Strategy The areas that were pinpointed have been incorporated into the Global Strategy moving forward. “Strategic planning is critical to our success at AWS. We are a global organization with almost 25% of our membership outside the continental U.S. into 125 different countries,” said Landon. “AWS has competition and business growth opportunities. It is important as we plan for the future we are not only looking domestically, but we need to look and think globally. As with any company, we need to listen to the voice of our customers. It involves vision, mission, and outside-of-the-box thinking. It describes where you want AWS to go, not necessarily how we are going to get there,” he continued. Finalizing and Moving Forward After the initial advisory session was conducted, additional meetings were held by an oversight committee to prepare a document that included a plan of action to address the five areas of focus. These recommendations were folded into a presentation that was given to the AWS Executive Committee in August, and the AWS Board of Directors for review and approval during FABTECH this past November. The timeline for implementing the Global Strategy is January 2017. WJ ANDREW CULLISON (cullison@aws.org) is publisher of the Welding Journal. DECEMBER 2016 / WELDING JOURNAL 45
Welding Journal | December 2016
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