AGRR - November/December 2007 - AGRR Magazine

“That total of five years means it’s timeto graduate,” said Tompkins, speakingof the possibility of third-party auditsto be developed by early 2009.Membership chair Jean Pero of Mygrantalso provided an update on themembership committee. She remindedthe group that every company thatdoesn’t renew its membership/registrationis contacted by the membershipcommittee—usually by phone. RodgerPickett of Cindy Rowe Auto Glass, chairof the training programs committee,discussed his committee training programprogram. (See page 41 for the listof registered training programs, whichwere announced during the conference.)AGRSS is now registering trainingprograms that can show they complywith the AGRSS Standard. Five organizationsreceived these credentials(see page 41).Conference Kick-OffThe AGRSS Council kicked off itsannual conference—and its tenth-anniversarycelebration—on October 31by honoring four industry representativeswho have devoted their time andefforts to the AGRSS standard: CarlJolliff of Jolliff Glass, Dean Mieske, formerlyof Performance AchievementGroup, Bill Ives, who serves as legalcounsel for the group, and BobBirkhauser, president of AEGIS ToolsInternational.“How did we get there? We had tohave a vision,” said AGRSS chairpersonCindy Ketcherside, as she introducedJolliff, who is known as thefounder of AGRSS. As a former IGApresident he first thought of the ideaof developing a Standard for safe autoglass installations.In accepting the honor, Jolliff said hestill has high hopes that the work of theAGRSS standard will go even further.“I may not live to see it, but I hopeI do and think I will, the day thatevery auto glass shop in the nationgets on board with the AGRSS Standard,”Jolliff said.(Left to right) Dean Mieske, Bill Ives, Cindy Ketcherside, Carl Jolliff andBill Birkhauser gather at the conference.Mieske, who no longer works in theauto glass industry, also attended theconference to accept the honor AGRSSbestowed upon him.“He worked day and night to getour original standard drafted,” Ketchersidesaid of Mieske, who thankedothers for their support and notedthat they all had something in commonthat made the creation of thestandard possible.“We needed one other ingredientand that was faith—we all had faith inthe process,” he said.In honoring Ives, Ketchersidenoted that his work has often beenbehind the scenes—and for awhilewas even pro bono.“Bill never complained whenAGRSS couldn’t pay him,” chuckledKetcherside, who noted that the groupis now up-to-date in their paymentsto Ives and now is fully “in the black.”Ives, who has been involved withthe standard since the beginning, saidhe also appreciated the others involvedin the work.“It wasn’t just the activity of those involved—itwas the dedication,” he said.In recognizing Birkhauser, Ketchersidereferred to him as the “thread tolink all these people,” noting that in thethree previous thank-you speeches,Birkhauser’s name was mentioned.Birkhauser also was appreciative—but said the Council still has lots ofwork before them.“This industry is under a great dealof pressure to become a commodity,”he said. “We need to work with the insuranceindustry and we need to educatethem that there is a difference.”“Remember, we’re on a journey andthe journey is not at its end,” he said.Keynoter Rocky Bleier, former PittsburghSteeler and Vietnam veteran,also provided a motivational talk inwhich he advised attendees that theyneed to believe in themselves andwork as a team in order to reach theircommon goal of promoting safe installationsin the auto glass industry.“Successful organizations like successfulteams are made up of twoparts—trust and commitment,” he said.He also reminded attendees to rememberthe past when thinkingabout how to approach the future. “Ifyou don’t understand your past, thenhow do you know where you’re goingto go?” he asked.Bleier noted that leadership playsan important role, too.“When put in charge, take charge,and when you’re in charge, have thecourage to do what is right,” he said.Bleier’s speech was sponsored byGlass America.The Audit QuestionAlso on the second day of the conference,Tompkins led what turned outto be a lively discussion on third-partyaudits in the future of the AGRSS.continued on page 40www.agrrmag.com November/December 2007 AGRR 39