Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 1, 1995 TAG: 9510020013
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
BLACKSBURG - Town officials have scheduled Retire Blacksburg '96 for June 6-9; and this time around, organizers will target about 50 participants.
Retire Blacksburg '95, held in June, was the first time the town had showcased itself to retirees. Thirty-seven people attended, though organizers had hoped for more.
Still, Blacksburg Town Manager Ron Secrist said organizers were happy with last year's results. Some participants bought houses in the area, and others said they would retire here.
And they provided feedback to which the Retire Blacksburg steering committee has been listening closely.
Next time around, Secrist said, there will be less food and entertainment and more information and seminars. Participants will receive more individual attention, in an effort to create a intimate atmosphere.
The steering committee is made up of town, business and Virginia Tech officials.
Seminar helps with the angry customer
RADFORD - A sad fact of business and professional life is that sometimes customers, clients and patients become irate. So what's a business owner or employee to do?
Radford's Kiwanis Club and Saint Albans Hospital may have some answers at a seminar on ``Dealing with Angry Customers,'' Thursday, at the Norwood Room.
Conducting the seminar will be Mike Aamodt, a Radford University professor, consultant and frequent speaker.
Aamodt says that two-thirds of customer losses are caused by customer dissatisfaction, and often those losses reverberate when unhappy customers talk to other people. Fortunately, he says, 95 percent of dissatisfied customers will return if they are dealt with appropriately, while less than one-third will come back if their unhappiness is not addressed.
Aamodt will talk about why customers get angry and the different types of anger they show.
The seminar costs $35, with all proceeds going to civic and charitable activities.
Advance registration is recommended. For more information, call 639-3953.
Montgomery to hold Industry Appreciation week
CHRISTIANSBURG - Montgomery County will honor its industries this week during Industry Recognition Week.
The county's manufacturing industries employed an average of 4,800 people with a combined payroll of $145 million during 1994. The county declared its first appreciation week in 1991.
On Monday and Wednesday, county 10th-graders will tour local plants, including Electro-Tec, Federal-Mogul, Litton Poly-Scientific, Montgomery Regional Hospital, Corning, PPL Therapeutics, Wolverine Gasket, Christiansburg Printing, Eastern Repair and Fabrication, New River Valley Workshop, and The News Messenger.
The Charles H. Johnson Memorial Golf Tournament is scheduled for Tuesday at Round Meadow Country Club. The entry fee is $25, and the first tee time is 9 a.m.
A reception and dinner at Custom Catering will be on Thursday. The cost will be $25. Invitations were mailed in September.
For more information, call the Montgomery Regional Economic Development Commission at 382-5732.
Volvo GM gets certification
DUBLIN - Volvo GM Heavy Truck's Dublin plant has earned ISO 9001 certification, making the company the first vehicle manufacturer in the country to attain such certification at all of its plants.
The certification is an international quality standard developed by the International Organization for Standardization in Geneva, Switzerland. The certification applies to the manufacturing process rather than the products. It gives customers confidence that the product was made to expectations and requirements.
Company officials had to identify all quality systems at the plant, which employs 1,700 people. Auditors from Underwriter's Laboratories inspected the facility, then presented the certification.
Small-business seminars set
BLACKSBURG - Virginia Tech and New River Community College each have seminars on small-business issues scheduled this fall.
The New River Valley Small Business Development Center, part of Tech's Public Service Programs, will sponsor nine two-hour seminars on developing a business idea, choosing a business, raising capital, creating a market plan, strategic management, and other issues. The seminars will begin this Monday and be held every Monday through Nov. 27 at the Donaldson Brown Center from 6:30 to 9 p.m.
New River Community College's Center for Training and Development will sponsor a three-part series, "Business as Usual: A Quest for Excellence," in October.
The first part, called "Looking Out," will deal with external customers' increasingly higher expectations regarding service, quality, cost and professionalism. The workshop will be Tuesday at the Farmhouse in Christiansburg and will be repeated Thursday at Pulaski County Hospital's Community Room.
The second part is "Looking In," on the importance of communication and collaboration in the workplace. It will be Oct. 17 at the Bank of Floyd and again Oct. 19 at the Blacksburg Marriott.
"Looking at How" is the final workshop, scheduled for Nov. 1 at Radford's Norwood Center and Nov. 2 at Anna's Restaurant in Narrows. The topic will be technology and ways to measure work flow and employee perceptions.
The fee is $10 for the three-part package. For more information, call 674-3653.
by CNB