This Thursday Feb. 14 is our first luncheon in our new home!  We truly look forward to seeing you there.
Join us at the Texas Land & Cattle Steakhouse located at 1101 S. MoPac.  MAP.  Luncheons are held the 2nd Thursday of most every month, beginning at 11:30 AM.  Reservations are required, and available by clicking the following link: Feb 08 IFMA lunch.  Great speaker and a fascinating topic -- "An Introduction to Voluntary Carbon Offsets" as presented by an Austin Energy expert.  You can learn more by clicking here.

The hats have been ordered so there's no turning back now. The 2008 IFMA-Austin Open is just six weeks away -- March 31.  Players and potential sponsors should register now.  Please note the deadline for payment is March 1.  Learn more.  **Professional members wishing to be involved, but not play golf, please contact Sharon Henson via e-mail.  General inquiries can be made to our Golf Committee chair, Sid  Fiegel, via e-mail or phone at 917-0424.  Our designated charity will once again be K9 Rescue of Austin. A couple of our benefactors are pictured here from last year's event.

Have you heard about Globalcon 2008?  Held on March 19 and 20 at the Austin Convention Center, Globalcon is part Expo, part conference, and part networking event.  The Expo portion showcases the latest innovations in technology and energy efficiency.  This is an opportunity to "shop" for energy and/or money-saving technologies for your facility.
IFMA-Austin is participating, and has room for volunteers for either a two- or four-hour shift.  Click to learn more about the event >>: Globalcon 2008.  Please contact Pete Stein to volunteer.

The chapter directory project is nearing completion.  Do we have your contact info listed correctly?  If not, please contact directory co-chair Vesta Yoder right away.  Please contact co-chair John McGimsey for more on reserving your ad space.  The clock is ticking.  

Former Austin chapter president (and still an active chapter member!) Charles Carpenter recently had an article published in IFMA's Facility Management Journal.  Here's a link if you'd like to read his submission, which is an excellent piece about site selection.  Now, to access the article, you'll need to log on.  This is a great time to set up your password if you have not done so yet.  Doing so will let you into the national site's members only area.

Glad someone tipped me about Charles' article!  We always appreciate hearing about our chapter members' activities.  Please send your submissions to me anytime: tulmer@centralsystems.com.  Thanks!  

www.IFMA-AUSTIN.org

 "Performance Review"     Q & A with Michael Leach, RE & Facilities Director for Cadence Design Systems

"Performance Review" is a regularly featured interview with one of our chapter's professional members. 

Provide some insight on your Employer/Company's core function/service. 
Cadence Design Systems, Inc., is headquartered in San Jose, California, and is the largest supplier of EDA (electronic design automation) technologies, methodology services and design services.  Our software is used to accelerate and manage the design of semiconductors, computer systems, networking and telecommunications equipment, consumer electronics and a variety of other electronics-based products.

Identify Company's total number, sq. ft., types, and locations of offices, e.g., corporate, industrial, owned, leased, downtown, suburban, local, regional.
Cadence operates 56 offices world wide totaling 1.8M sf, with our typical office building located in a suburban area near a customer location.  We have 766K sf of owned space at our Headquarters, with the balance of the square footage leased.  In North America there are 26 US office locations in 15 states, and one in Canada.  Our 30 international offices are located throughout China, India, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Russia, Scotland, Sweden and the United Kingdom.  International properties total 680K sf with our largest presence being India with 288K sf.  We also have a 205K sf, five-story R&D building under construction at Headquarters.

Identify Company's total number of employees..
Over 5,000 full-time employees worldwide with 1,800 residing in San Jose.             

What are your primary job functions?
As Real Estate and Facilities Director for the Central and Eastern Regions, I manage 17 of the domestic office locations and one in Canada with the support of two Facility Managers.  I am responsible for site selection of new lease space, lease negotiation and project management of the office build-out and relocation.  I also manage the on-going office operations including Landlord relations and all support services at each office.

How long have you been in the FM field?
I started in the Real Estate field in 1989 as a commercial real estate appraiser and then a stint as a residential appraiser.  That experience led to employment in the FM field with Dell Computer in 1995 and Cadence in 2000.  I have a BBA from The University of Texas at Austin, a Texas Real Estate Broker license and the CFM, FMA and RPA designations.

Who do you report to?                                                              
I report to the Worldwide Vice-President of Workplace Resources at Corporate.  He manages global Real Estate, Facilities, Security & Safety, Planning, Procurement, Travel, Community Involvement and Shipping/Receiving & Importing/Exporting. 

Who reports to you?
Six reports; three receptionists in Austin, Plano and Columbia, MD, a full time mail room contractor and an Assistant Facilities Manager in Austin, as well as, a Facility Manager in Chelmsford, MA that has a dotted line to me for Eastern Region sites.

Do you outsource any functions? Which ones?
Staubach Real Estate for assistance with market research, lease negotiation and lease administration services.  And yes, I have met Roger, been to a party at his house and attended a Dallas Cowboys game in his private suite…the game that Emmitt broke the rushing record.  I was just lucky picking that game.

We use AlliedBarton for our Security Central monitoring station and security guard service in San Jose.  We use preferred vendors for real estate legal services, architectural, furniture, network cabling and security systems.  Other facility related functions and services are sourced to local vendors.

Describe your recycling program, if applicable.
Paper, plastic and aluminum recycling bins throughout most of our office locations.

Describe any energy conservation measures you have implemented in your facility.
There are some programmable thermostats and lighting controls in my various office locations, however, the Landlords control most of the energy conservation features.

Identify some FM challenges you face within your organization.
Our Planning Department is communicating the “alternative workplace” (AWS) concept to the employees of our new building, which will incorporate low walled cubes, open collaborative spaces and a minimal amount of assigned space.  Quoting one of the seminars at IFMA New Orleans, Planning is in the process of educating the employees on how the AWS model “reaches beyond physical workspaces to leverage technology, design strategies and innovative real estate planning to create a vibrant high-performing culture…”

Identify some challenges the FM industry as a whole must face in the near future.
Same as above.  A number of presentations in New Orleans dealt with AWS issues and how to position your Company to accommodate the changing work habits of future generations of employees which are shifting more and more towards a mobile work style.

What are some of your hobbies and interests outside work?      
Water skiing, hunting, outdoor activities, UT football games and sports in general.  My wife and I enjoy managing the lives and travels of our 14 year old twin boys, shuttling them to and from daily swim practice and competitive swim meets across Texas.

Thanks, Mike! 

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"Cold Call"   Q & A with Roger Simpson, Vice President of KISS (Klean Image Sevice Specialist) Janitorial

"Cold Call" is a regularly featured interview with one of our associate members.                       

Describe your company's core competency.                                             
K.I.S.S. Inc. (Klean Image Service Specialist) was established in 1991 and is an Austin based and woman-owned full service HUB certified commercial janitorial company serving the Greater Austin Metro Area. Our company offers industry-leading cleaning solutions to retail, corporate, commercial, and industrial businesses of all sizes and types. Our commitment to quality and innovation assures the best services available today at a competitive price. Our company is staffed with full time professional personnel ready to assist our clients in all situations, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our philosophy is simple - do the job right, the first time.

Describe your primary job functions.
I am the Vice President of K.I.S.S. Janitorial.  My wife, Ginny, and I are responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company.  I am in charge of the sales department as well as the operations department.  Please believe me, there is always something going on.

Describe an average day.
My average day is 8:30 am to 5:00 pm Monday through Friday and sometimes Saturdays doing operations and sales.  My evenings are usually spent doing the paperwork that I did not have time to do during the day because I was so busy.  Work! Work! Work!

What type of clients you work with?
We specialize in:  Commercial office buildings, industrial facilities, health care facilities, public facilities, educational facilities and airports.  We serve companies of all sizes.

What percentage of your work and clients is local/regional/national?
We are a locally owned certified WBE business.  We service clients within a hundred mile radius of Austin.

How long have you been in this field?  Tell us briefly about your career, education, certifications.
I have over 20 years in the building trades industry and have been a licensed Master Plumber since 1979.  I have 30 plus years of management experience.  I am a veteran and served with the United States Army Security Agency for over 7 years.  I was attached to the National Security Agency in Washington D.C. and abroad.  While in the Army, I had a Top Secret/Crypto-Center Clearance.  I have over 16 years of experience in the building maintenance industry and am a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, and the Texas Exes. I am also a member of the Paralyzed Veterans of America, National Rifle Association, AMVETS, ASPA, the Humane Society of Williamson County, Austin Humane Society, Oceania, and the Sierra Club.  I hold a B.A. in Computer Science and a B.S. in Civil Engineering.

What’s the best lesson you’ve learned from a client?
The best lesson I have learned from a client is to always be on time for an appointment and always do a follow up.  Now, I usually get there 20 minutes to 30 minutes before an appointment.  You can never depend on Austin’s traffic conditions.

Tell us about an interesting situation(s) you’ve encountered related to your current work.
I had an interesting situation a few years back in a conference room in a multi-tenant building when we went in to clean it.  I cannot go in to details, but it was rated XXX!!!

How's business right now?
Everyday on the news, I hear about how bad the economy has become.  Apparently, they do not live in Austin Texas.  We are so busy, that we expect a growth between 15 to 20 percent this year.

Identify some challenges in your industry.
Staffing seems to be a major problem unless you hire people 35 and older (work ethics).  The younger generation has not figured it out yet.  Let’s pray they do someday soon because the world does not owe them a living.

Tell us about your personal life, family, hobbies and interests outside work.
I have a wonderful wife and two little puppy dogs (Both are Shitzus) named Annie & AJ (also known as The A-Team).  The A-team is so cute that they could be show dogs. I am also blessed by a wonderful son and two grandchildren. I get to travel a lot. My passion is walking the beaches of the world.  I just love a deserted island in the middle of the Caribbean or the South Pacific with the sun shinning, with beautiful white sand, and with blue-green crystal clear water surrounding it.  Walk! Walk! Walk!  I also collect old, pre-1933 gold coins and artwork originals.

Can we quote you on that?
My favorite saying is “Don’t make your problem my problem.”  It is very hard to convince some of my friends, family, and employees of my philosophy, but it sure sounds good!

Thanks, Roger!

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