Communication, Time and Project Management training next week: The first session in MEUW’s six-session Management Training Program, dealing with topics related to Communication, Time and Project Management, will take place Wednesday, Feb. 27, in Marshfield.
Darla Leick, an experienced educator and business professional, is leading the day-long session that teaches participants how to track projects to assure nothing falls through the cracks as well as how to prepare for effective/efficient meetings and proven ideas for knowing what information to share with whom and when. Leick founded and designed communication programs based on her teaching experience and business communication research. Her sessions are presented using activities to reinforce concepts, to immediately apply the material, and to assist in recall.
MEUW’s Management Training Program provides education for existing managers, mid-level managers and future management prospects. Participants may start at any point in the six-session (A-F) program. MEUW awards certificates to all those who complete the program.
Registration is open through Friday, Feb. 22. Click here to learn more and to sign up.
It’s Awards Season — deadlines fast approaching: The music industry presented the Grammys earlier this month and The Academy will honor the year’s best motion pictures during the Oscars on Sunday night. It’s Award Season at MEUW, too!
MEUW enjoys recognizing member utilities for taking steps to improve their overall safety performance. We are now accepting applications for 2018 performance measures. We ask each utility to take time to compile the necessary information and submit the application spreadsheet, which is available on MEUW.org/safetyawards.
The tiered recognition system remains the same, as follows: Bronze − 90 to 99; Silver − 100 to 109; and Gold − 110 and over. The deadline to submit the application spreadsheet and the required documentation is Friday, March 1.
Specific questions about the Safety Awards should be directed to Manager of Safety Services Mike Czuprynko.
Nominations are also being accepted for MEUW’s Association Honors and Awards that recognize individual contributions and achievements toward advancing public power. Awards are presented in a number of categories and those that meet specific criteria will be reviewed by the Awards Committee. To nominate someone in your area, please visit MEUW.org/awards, complete the nomination form and submit it by the March 29 deadline.
Awards will be presented at MEUW’s 90th Annual Conference in May.
WPUI offering programs of interest to MEUW members: Consistent with its mission to advance understanding and discussion of relevant utility industry topics and emerging trends in the electric, natural gas, and water industries, the Wisconsin Public Utility Institute (WPUI) is holding two upcoming programs:
- Utility Partnerships with Non-Utilities — Feb. 26: A discussion of best practices and collaborations to help advance sustainability, economic benefit and shared energy goals.
- Public Utilities Law Update 2019 — March 5: This annual program highlights the regulatory and legislative changes over the past year, including presentations from the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin as well as from attorneys familiar with those recent changes.
For registration information and to learn more, visit WPUI’s Website.
Registration now open for annual Watt-Hour Metering Workshop: MEUW will hold its annual Watt-Hour Metering Workshop March 19-21, 2019, at the Northeast Wisconsin Technical College in Green Bay. The three-day workshop is a must-attend event for meter technicians, as industry leaders will explain new technologies and approved work practices. Other agenda highlights include verifying and identifying metering inaccuracies, and choosing the correct metering equipment. There is a half-day “Pre-Workshop Session” beginning at 12:30 p.m. on Monday, March 18, that covers basic metering for those who are new to metering or would like a refresher.
The registration fee for the Workshop is $495 per person; the Pre-Workshop session is an additional $75. Registration is now open. Click here to learn more and to sign up.
Sign up to attend this year’s Collections Seminar: Every other year, MEUW hosts a seminar to share information about the rules and regulations for utility collections and provide attendees with some new tips and techniques to make the process effective and efficient. The program is designed to help strengthen the public power utilities’ collection process, with timing targeted at the end of the cold-weather moratorium on electric-service disconnections.
This year’s seminar is planned for Tuesday, March 26, in Marshfield, and will feature a main presenter/facilitator who conducts similar seminars for public power utilities across the country. She will then be joined later in the day by a representative of the Public Service Commission to provide timely updates about the end of the moratorium and other collections rules.
More information and registration details are available here.
Registration now open for MEUW’s 5G Forum: Fifth-generation wireless technology – 5G – is all the buzz these days. Wireless carriers claim new facilities are needed within the public rights-of-way advance this “next-generation” technology. As new “small cell” wireless broadband facilities are deployed across the nation, public power utilities are facing increasingly complex wireless pole-attachment issues.
MEUW is hosting the 5G Forum to help educate member utilities about the latest developments and most significant issues facing public power utilities and to share information about how new rules affect them. The half-day session is planned for Thursday, April 4, at the Kalahari Resort in Wisconsin Dells.
Presented by Attorney Anita Gallucci of Boardman and Clark, the 5G Forum will offer an overview of 5G small cell wireless and explore the truths, myths and implications for public power while offering practical advice to help Wisconsin utilities prepare for and respond to small cell deployments in their communities.
All are welcome — come with questions and leave with answers and new insights to manage this emerging topic. To learn more and to register, visit MEUW.org.