Julie Kendrick, who joined the headquarters staff of the Institute of Environmental Sciences in

Julie Kendrick, who joined the headquarters staff of the Institute of Environmental Sciences in 1989 as an editor of the Journal, has been named executive director beginning November 1, 1997. She has had more than 25 years of volunteer association management experience and currently serves as a member of the Advisory Committee for CESSE `98, the Annual Convention of the Council of Engineering and Scientific Society Executives.

Q:Can you tell our readers about the Institute`s new mission statement, strategic plan, and current goals?

A:About a year ago, our executive board and senior staff met to establish a long-range plan for the Institute. We developed a mission statement that clearly defines our focus on educational offerings as well as on the things we publish that serve industry. The main service we provide is our recommended practices and standards, educational seminars, annual technical meeting, and various short courses that are being presented four or five times a year all over North America — and perhaps one day, outside of North America.

We have four goals we`re working toward and several strategies we`ve adopted to meet those goals. They are all equal. Goal A is that the Institute will be a primary resource for education and professional development. Goal B is that we will be the global leader in standards and practices for controlled environments relating to testing, contamination control, and product reliability. Goal C is that the Institute will be recognized as the international resource for controlled environments related to testing, contamination control, and product reliability. The difference here is that in Goal B, we`ll be the leader, and that in Goal C, people will know that and will be able to come to us and get the services they want. Our last goal [D] is that we will be able to do all that and be financially secure and stable.

We`ve developed a number of strategies and a lot of groups and committees that are putting them together.

Q:What do you consider to be the most important “strategies” for meeting your goals?

A:We`re in the process of reshaping the staff — making it the right size — but more importantly, the right shape for what we want to do. We now have dedicated staff in the areas of educational programming, technical editing, and seminars, so that our members can do the things that they do best, which is provide the technical expertise, the ideas, and the passion for our programs and for our mission. That way we can work better in partnership with them.

We want people to do more than say we have good service. We want people to be astounded by it, to be able to go out and tell their friends that this is a real responsive organization. Then we`re also in the process of voting on changing our name. It`s an exciting time to be involved in this because it`s taking all the strengths of the Institute and looking at them in a new way, so that it`s almost like a new organization. I think there are a lot of professionals who need us, and we want to find out who they are and help them out.

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