[On The Road] NPMA Academy

The 14th annual NPMA Academy, sponsored by Dow AgroSciences, was held July 23-25 in Phoenix and approximately 300 industry professionals attended, a 20 percent increase from last year’s event, NPMA officials report.
National Pest Management Association Executive Vice President Rob Lederer said because of the economy, reports out of the association industry are that attendance at various events throughout the country is down 40 to 50 percent; he thanked attendees for being at Academy. “We’re thrilled that you are here,” he said.

This is the second year in a row Dow AgroSciences has sponsored Academy. Dave Morris, commercial leader, said Academy is a great way for attendees to renew friendships and a chance to create new ones, as well as network with colleagues. Morris said Dow AgroSciences agreed to sponsor Academy again this year because it’s the right thing to do. “This is a long-term investment in the industry for us,” Morris said. “We’re a part of this industry and it’s important to give back.”

The theme of this year’s Academy was “Growing Your Business in Challenging Times,” and speakers provided lots of tips to help pest management professionals. Terminix International’s Bill Sublette, who also serves as chairman of NPMA’s Leadership Development Group, kicked off the meeting by introducing Lederer and Morris.

Morris then introduced the keynote speaker, Chip Eichelberger, founder, Get Switched On!. He offered inspiring words to help pest management professionals lead better lives overall, thereby enabling them to be better spouses, better parents, better friends and better managers. “The formula for failure is committing a few errors in judgment and repeating them every day,” he said.

The second speaker, Lance Holmes, director of measurement systems, Hilti North America, discussed building and keeping the right team.

Other speakers and topics during NPMA Academy included:

• Consumer Spending Patterns in Today’s Economy, Steve Good, Terminix International
• Creating a Marketing Plan That Works: Andrew Klein, Assured Environments; Michel Maheu, Maheu & Maheu; and Jerry Smith, Dial Pest Control
• How to Sell in a Tough Economy, Jack Lindsley, Sandler Training
• You Can’t Manage It If You Can’t Measure It, Daniel S. Gordon, PMP WealthBuilders
• Work-Life Balance…Fact or Fiction?, Randy Moser, TMMG
• Voices from Outside the Industry: Keith Fimian, U.S. Inspect, and Betsy Dockins, Scotts Lawn Service
• Voices from Inside the Industry: John Wilson, Orkin; Don McCarthy, Braemer Pest Control; Karie Keown, Presto-X; Lee Blevins, Antimite Termite and Pest Control; and Raleigh Jenkins, ABC Pest Pool and Lawn Services
• The Personal Key to Success: Jane MacMillan, Preston International and Randy Moser, TMMG

The author is editor of PCT magazine and can be contacted  at 330/523-5359 or via e-mail at jdorsch@giemedia.com. Look for additional coverage of this event in future issues of PCT.

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Children of the Gila River Indian Community Receive New Wheels

As part of its Olympic events, NPMA Academy attendees assembled and donated bicycles to the Residential Program for Youth of the Gila River Indian Community.

The bikes, constructed in a team-building exercise at the association’s meeting, were then donated along with helmets and other bicycling gear to the youth program, which provides a safe haven for the Gila River Indian Community (GRIC) children who have been removed from their homes due to neglect, abuse or exploitation.

NPMA donated a dozen bikes to the program, six each for girls and boys. The bikes were given in support of the program’s commitment to engage children in daily activities that allow them to grow and develop in order to be healthy, productive and viable members of their community. The Pima tribe of the Gila River Indian Community has the highest documented rate of diabetes in the world.

“The bikes that our members built will help encourage Pima children to have fun and enjoy a more active lifestyle, which can help to prevent diabetes,” said Rob Lederer, executive vice president of the NPMA. “The National Pest Management Association is pleased to have this chance to give back to the Pima community during our time here in Phoenix and we thank the GRIC community for its hospitality.”

The GRIC owns and operates the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort in Chandler, Ariz., where NPMA’s Academy meeting was held.