SEMA_________________________________

SOUTHEASTERN MEAT ASSOCIATION
P.O. Box 620777; Oviedo, FL 32762 Phone: 407-365-5661

CONVENTION 2003

EXHIBITS	NETWORKING
CONVENTION 2003 JUNE 13 - 15, 2003 SAVANNAH, GEORGIA
EDUCATIONAL	ROUNDTABLES
MEMBERS LEARNING & SHARING IDEAS ON PROACTIVE - FOOD SAFETY
SCHOLARSHIPS	FUN

REVIEWS:
"Seminars/the intimacy of the conference/can be with one or
several vendors for an extended period of time….." M.K.

"The speakers were excellent in the fields they spoke on…."
Anonymous

"Good attendance, relaxed atmosphere, excellent speakers…"
Anonymous

"DO YOU HEAR WHAT I HEAR?"
……. theme of this year's convention

Our industry is concerned about food safety and this year's convention gave our attendees new ideas and procedures to stay proactive. Having 63% of our processing members attending and 65% of our total membership in attendance, it gave a great opportunity for networking. In times of increasing regulations, we are seeing processors looking for help through the association.

As the industry changes, so does our Association with new leadership. As of June, SEMA President Lee Thomas of Thomas Packing turned over the gavel to Jimmy Carroll, Jr., of Sunset Farm Foods.

2003-2004 OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS ELECTED

President, Jimmy Carroll, Jr.
Vice-President, Adam Chernin
Treasurer, Scott Downing
Executive Director, Anna Ondick

Directors

CONVENTION HIGHLIGHTS 2003

Our keynote speaker was the dynamic and entertaining Al Squire, Director of Training for Ryan's Steakhouse, Inc. He started off the educational portion of the 2003 SEMA Convention by giving everyone specific tools to "Raise the Bar on Performance" in their companies. Speaking to a full house, Al first discussed finding, identifying and keeping talented employees/team members.

He explained why it is so important to have talented team members. Every member affects a team: positively, neutrally or negatively. Why would you want negative effects on your team? What will that do to the morale of those who positively affect the team? In addition, if you have negative influences on your team, team members first blame the team member, and then they blame the manager.

He gave the group 12 key questions for team members to answer. The more 'yes' answers, the more successful a company will be in keeping talented employees. A list of the 12 questions is listed in a handout from Al-Squire.

Al related that in many companies, the average is 4 "yes's," but that you need at least 9. To obtain more yes's, local managers are the keys. A study determined that 'Leadership is Local' and that the corporate culture is important, but the immediate supervisor is the key.

For supervisors, what you say and do determines who you are. A study showed that the management trait with the highest correlation to higher profits were managers who do what they say to do and do what they promise.

Al also gave effective methods to simplify performance standards and a way to move your negative and neutral team members to positive:

• Use color to relate to performance; red/yellow/green
• After you give a directive, always follow up with corrections or praise.

A study showed that when supervisors never followed up (red) after a directive, they got poor performance results. When they sometimes followed up (yellow), they got better performance. These types of supervisors are difficult to work for, as they are inconsistent. When supervisors always followed up (green), they got the performance they desired.

You can contact Al Squire at asquire@ryansinc.com or call 864.879.1011 ext. 2159.

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Jeff Chilton of Chilton Consulting Group gave a HACCP update. Jeff's background includes QA and plant management positions, so he was able to bring us a very nuts and bolts program. He updated us on the changes coming. He gave a very straightforward approach to the changes that are coming through the USDA and HACCP. He provided many tips to help companies to improve their systems and survive a review.

Chilton Consulting Group is a SEMA member and you can contact them through the SEMA website or by calling 706.695.8324.

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Designing for food safety and sanitation is Mark Redmond of Hendon & Redmond's expertise. Whether replacing rooms or expanding, it is important to save yourself future money and grief by designing the room with food safety in mind. He went through an entire plant plan, giving the pros and cons of different types of key items such as wall, doors, and floors.

Mark's insights into the pitfalls of certain types of equipment were incredibly valuable, even for those not building a plant or adding an addition. An example would be, purchasing a new type of door only to find it was the wrong item for your environment.

SEMA member, Hendon & Redmond can be found on the SEMA website or by calling 513.641.0320.

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Mike Dawson recently moved from a position at Albertson's with responsibilities ranging from procurement and advertising for their meat and fish, to a position as Director of Retail Sales with Tampa Bay Fisheries. Mike told us "What's New in Retail" and shared some current trends in the big companies.

• "No Risk"
• Category business planning
• "Top-to-Top" where big company CEO's meet with other big company CEO's

Mike answered the question on everyone's mind, "How do I get my new item noticed?"

• Find out what's important to your customer right now. Ask the person who answers the phone or makes your appointment; listen to the people talking in the lobby, and at the desks. Then, incorporate those topics in your presentation and in your product's benefits.
• Have someone in the stores (in the field) ask "What's important in X's culture?" They'll tell you.
• Make sure your store representatives are actually doing what you ask. He gave a real-life example of some reps just breezing in and asking for a signature before leaving again. Ask your reps some specific questions-follow up .
• Ask the people in stores where your competition is lacking or if there are any opportunities.
• Offer pre-pricing and/or resealable packaging-both are desirable right now.

Mike said if you would like to keep in touch, he can be reached at 813.752.8883 (Tampa Bay Fisheries) or by e-mail at: mdawson@tbfish.com

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Seth Pulsfus, food technologist with Alkar, spoke on designing a "Foolproof Cooking Process"-a topic critical in any HACCP plan.

He summarized the types of cooking equipment and their uses, as well as explaining wet & dry bulb theory and use. He gave cooking steps, diagrams on how ovens work, discussed target and acceptable temperature ranges for houses, as well as identifying some common problems and the usual coldest spot in a cook oven. Seth shared that Alkar is working on validating ovens for HACCP.

SEMA member, Alkar-Rapid Pak-Systematic, sales representative, Tyrone Beatty, can be reached through the SEMA website or by calling 770.965.0801

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One of the top scholars on family business, Dr. Joe Astrachan, Director for the Cox Family Enterprise Center at the Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University, stated that over 90% of all businesses are family businesses. What he shared with us pertained to all businesses.

He showed data from a study that tracked business revenue over a CEO's tenure. The study showed that for year 0-14 the ROA increases with a peak just after 14 years, but then decreases to a low at 28 years. This showed that it is important to change the helm before it is too late.

Dr. Astrachan found that succession planning is unrelated to successful succession. However, success is related to practices that are beneficial to any business.

• Have a Board of Directors that will hold management accountable.
• Strategic Planning-on a regular basis (where are we and where do we want to go).
• Hold regular family meetings.

He related that a family business is like a complex building. Planning for shocks only works if the shock absorbers are in place. Boards, family meetings and strategic planning are the necessary shock absorbers. Above all, the family and the business must pull in one direction.

Dr. Astrachan can be reached at 770.423.6045 or by e-mail at: joe_astrakhan@coles2.kennesaw.edu

SEMA MEMBERS HONOR
DR. ESTES REYNOLDS

The Association took the opportunity to recognize
Dr. Reynolds on his retirement from the University
of Georgia. The Association made a donation in his
honor to the Georgia 4-H Foundation.

We look forward to having Dr. Reynolds
continue working with SEMA.

SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS

Four $1,000.00 scholarships were awarded to the following deserving students. To qualify they must have at least a 3.50 GPA and be majoring in animal/meat/food science and be planning to pursue a career in the food industry.

Auburn University - Jeremiah Alexander
University of Florida - Christopher Damico
University of Georgia - Jeffrey Mitchell
University of Tennessee - Carrie Harris

GOLF TOURNAMENT

Ron Brown of Cryovac-Sealed Air did a great job putting together this year's golf tournament at The Club at Savannah Harbour. Along with having a winning tournament, he was on the winning team. His foursome consisted of Scott Downing, Steve Graves and Bruce Owens. The SEMA golfers send a special thanks to Cryovac for providing them lunch and tournament prizes.

"ROLLING DOWN THE RIVER"

The convention finished with a riverboat dinner cruise. Rolling down the river, everyone enjoyed the buffet. After dinner, there was music and dancing. Some watched the Savannah skyline while enjoying being out on deck.

EXHIBITORS AND SPONSORS

With food safety being a priority, it is good to know that SEMA has quality suppliers to work with. Our suppliers are always there to work together with SEMA processors to build a better and safer industry.

BUILDING A BETTER INDUSTRY

SOUTHEASTERN MEAT ASSOCIATION
Phone: 407.365.5661 Fax: 407.365.8945
E-mail: anna_ondick@earthlink.net

All photos by Nicky Dronoff-Guthrie of Pix 'n Pages