Delivering Business Value through Innovation and Leadership
If you're looking for new ideas to improve efficiency, manage risk or advance sustainability, you'll find inspiration through the interactive discussions and peer case studies the Forum delivers. This year, we are organizing these peer-led sessions around four tracks, Risk and Resource Planning, Innovations in EHS Management, Leveraging Data and Metrics, and Sustainability Challenges and Drivers.
Download a PDF of the Schedule-at-a-Glance, Download a PDF of Full Schedule, Download a PDF of Full 2014 Forum Program (30MB)
Tuesday October 21, 2014
2:00 - 7:00 p.m. | Registration Opens Ballroom CDE Foyer - 4th Floor Avoid the lines, register and pick up materials on Tuesday! |
1 - 6:00 p.m. | Annual Pre-Forum Golf Event Please join us at the beautiful Crenshaw Cliffside Course at the Barton Creek Resort and Spa. This venue is a spectacular natural course designed by one of Austin’s native sons. A 1:00 p.m. shotgun start is planned and we have a special NAEM rate of $99 per person, which includes unlimited time on the range. Individual signups are welcome and sponsors are encouraged to host client groups! |
1:00 - 4:00 p.m. | Understanding GRI G4, Driving Sustainability Reporting Success Salon FG - 6th Floor Wondering how to implement GRI G4? Struggling with materiality? Curious about lessons learned one year after the G4 launch?
This three-hour workshop is a streamlined version of the full two-day GRI-Certified Training Courses being offered by GRI training partners in North America. Using primarily interactive breakouts and group discussions, this course is designed to provide attendees with an overview of the G4 revisions, while also digging into some of the more challenging and significant changes to the guidelines.
A preliminary agenda is shown below:
With an emphasis on sharing real world examples and best practice tips, this course is ideal for those directly responsible for creating their organization's sustainability report as well as those with strategic oversight of the process.
About the Trainers ERM is a leading global provider of environmental, health, safety, risk, and social consulting services and one of only six firms currently certified as GRI training partners in the US. The NAEM pre-conference workshop will be led by ERM trainers with focused expertise and extensive experience in strategic corporate sustainability reporting, report assurance, and the GRI framework and guidelines.
Sponsored by: |
5:30 - 7:00 p.m. | 2014 CDP North America Climate Change Leadership Celebration Cocktail Reception – Room 400 Join CDP and NAEM for a complimentary evening cocktail reception to celebrate the highest performing North American companies reporting to CDP in 2014.
The reception will open with a welcome from NAEM Executive Director Carol Singer Neuvelt, and feature remarks from Deb Geyer, the Vice President of Environment Health and Safety for Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. It will also include updates and information about CDP's ongoing work to drive corporate carbon emissions reductions in North America.
Cocktails and hors d'oeuvres will be served.
Important Details: Formal CDP confirmation of your registration is required in order to attend. While this complimentary event is open to the public and media, registration is reserved and guaranteed primarily for CDP disclosing corporations.
CDP hosts this reception with special thanks to our sponsors: |
8:00 - 9:30 p.m. | First Time Attendee Welcome at the Austin Hilton Liberty Tavern Join the members of the Forum planning committee and fellow first-time attendees for a welcome drink at the Liberty Tavern. This is a great opportunity to meet a new friend and build your network before the conference kicks off! First-time attendees will receive an email invite directly from NAEM with more details. |
Wednesday October 22, 2014
7:00 - 8 a.m. | Registration Open, Continental Breakfast in the Exhibit Hall | |||
8:00 - 8:30 a.m. |
Welcome and Introductions Salon FG - 6th Floor
|
|||
8:30 - 10:00 a.m. | Opening Keynote - Beyond Sustainability: Designing for Abundance Salon FG - 6th Floor Drawing on a decade of lessons in putting Cradle to Cradle concepts into practice, William McDonough invites us to reimagine everything from doorknobs to the Hoover Dam. In a world that uses design as a tool for positive impact, industry can do better than “do no harm”: it can actively improve everything with which it comes into contact. For McDonough, the questions of resource scarcity and sustainability are questions of design. He envisions beneficial designs of products, buildings, and business practices and shows us these ideas being put to use around the world as everyday objects. Chairs, cars, and factories are being reinvented not just to sustain life on the planet but to grow it. McDonough will provide an eye-opening, inspiring tour of the next industrial revolution as it unfolds and shares insights with attendees on how to take their companies from "less bad to more good."
With Special Support from |
|||
10:00 - 10:30 a.m. | Morning Break Exhibit Hall - 4th Floor | |||
Breakout Sessions | Track 1: Risk and Resource Planning |
Track 2: Innovations in EHS Management |
Track 3: Leveraging Data and Metrics |
Track 4: Sustainability Challenges and Drivers |
---|---|---|---|---|
10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. |
Session 1: Allocating Limited Resources to Deliver Compliance AND Sustainability Results Room 406 Handling numerous compliance programs, management systems and sustainability initiatives with one team, especially a decentralized team, can be a struggle. This session will feature brief presentations and a panel discussion with organizations that are successfully navigating those challenges. In this session you will gain insight into how your peers are managing these competing priorities, with a focus on program structures, staffing, and budgets and learn what efforts have proven successful.
Moderator:
|
Session 2: Leveraging Management Information Systems and Tools for Innovative Results Room 408 This session will explore case studies from EHS and Sustainability managers who've utilized management information systems to achieved unexpected value and results. By considering the 2-way use of EHS and non-EHS application, the speakers will share ideas and inspiration for cost-sharing and collaboration that attendees can apply in their own organizations. Attendees will leave the session with specific ideas for ways to leverage their existing tools for new or different applications as well as share innovative uses they've employed at their own organizations.
Moderator: Anne Heinrich, Associate; E2 ManageTech Inc.
|
Session 3: Leveraging Leadership Metrics and Goals to Drive World-Class EHS&S Programs Room 410 Many of our high-performing EHS programs are at risk of stagnating, or worse, declining due to competing priorities, personnel changes, and budget constraints. Setting different leadership goals enable us to make a step-change in EHS performance. Learn how others manage the dilemma of setting goals related to performance versus goals to drive site-specific behaviors. Hear how your peers balance the demands of external metrics with internal goals. How do world-class EHS leaders combine lagging and leading indicators to drive EHS leadership behaviors? Hear and share best practices for integrating global EHS goals into business management systems.
Moderator: Michelle Redfield, Director, Safety, Environment & Process Improvement; Schneider Electric SE
|
Session 4: Integrating Sustainability into the Business... The Journey Room 412 EHS and sustainability professionals are often confronted with how best to integrate sustainability into the mainstream disciplines of their organizations. This journey introduces question such as: ‘How do you define sustainability?' ‘How do you gain support from the C-Suite?' and ‘How do you measure the results of your program?' The speakers in this session will share their individual journeys to address these challenges and to integrate sustainability, as they define it, into their organizations.
Moderator: Jamey Jones, Vice President Compliance and Environmental Affairs; TruGreen
|
12:00 - 1:15 p.m. |
Roundtable Discussions Luncheon Salon FG - 6th Floor | |||
1:30 - |
Session 5: Proactive Risk Management - Identify, Quantify & Communicate Room 406 Risk management has become a hot topic in board rooms across the nation and EHS and Sustainability are key components of those discussions. Attend this session to learn about successful risk management programs and begin to develop your own risk management plan. You will get tools to identify quantify and communicate the financial benefits of EHS and Sustainability Risk Management; learn how to engage the right stakeholders; and how to build the business case. You'll leave the session with a path forward to enhance your plan and impress your board members.
Moderator: Kenny Ogilvie, CEO; EHS Support
|
Session 6: Innovations to Reduce Compliance Costs and Time Room 408 Time is money and money talks. Sound familiar? So, how do you find more time and more money? Hear from your peers on innovative ways to achieve these goals while overcoming workplace challenges. This session will include methods to improve compliance, reduce property risk and EHS incidents, speed up permit time and improve processes that provide financial value or other benefits to the business. This session will also address the challenges of maintaining compliance when faced with fewer resources and ever expanding responsibilities. Finally, we will hear successful strategies to show the value of these efforts.
Moderator: Kristin Meek, Senior Project Manager;
|
Session 7: Driving Business Value through External Reporting Room 410 Companies are continually looking at ways to be accountable and transparent to stockholders but how about driving competitive advantage, strengthening your brand and engaging customers and investors? Attend this session and learn how three leading companies are fine turning their reporting strategy to achieve their core sustainability communication goals, as well as reap some of these additional business benefits. Learn from these veteran reporters who will share rich insights on how to overcome reporting challenges and set your reporting strategy to ensure maximum value.
Moderator: David Bubenick,
|
Session 8: Water - Material Risk or Business Opportunity? Room 412 You know water is a valuable natural resource but does it rise to the level of a material risk? Have you thought about how global water needs and the implications of future demands may affect your company? How do you move beyond price when assessing the value of water or justifying reduction projects? Learn how companies are taking action to improve their corporate water stewardship and discover how opportunities from water are being realized. Hear the latest from CDP’s Water Program and gain insight as to how your peers are identifying, managing and reducing their water risks. Come away with an understanding of how the water/energy nexus may expand your consideration of water as we explore this systemic resource management challenge.
Moderator: Hal Ehrhardt, Senior Manager – Energy, Environment & Common Systems; Lockheed Martin Corp.
|
3:00 - 3:45 p.m. |
Afternoon Break Exhibit Hall - 4th Floor | |||
3:45 - |
Session 9: Addressing EHS Challenges throughout the Mergers & Acquisitions Life Cycle Room 406 EHS managers have an important role in identifying and quantifying the risks that are material to the outcome of Merger and Acquisition (M&A) deals. The due diligence period is often brief and deal teams look to EHS to ensure potential future liabilities are identified and addressed. This includes not only environmental liability but cultural issues as well. Learn from your peers how M&A risks are identified, quantified and communicated from pre deal through the post deal integration process. Also hear from members of the NAEM M&A working group on lessons learned and ideas shared throughout their 2014 working sessions.
Moderator: Lori Smargiassi, ESH Engineer; Lockheed Martin Corp.
|
Session 10: Regulatory Hot Topics & Emerging Issues Room 408 This session will provide attendees with a review of emerging regulatory issues and regulatory changes and updates. Special focus will be given to regulations at the federal, state and global levels. Attendees will leave the session with a thorough review of current or pending regulatory changes as well as a list of issues to keep an eye on for 2015.
Moderator: Karen Hansen, Principal; Beveridge & Diamond pc
|
Session 11: Measuring Your Training Effectiveness Room 410 Organizations spend a lot of time creating and delivering training to increase knowledge and skill levels for their employees. How can you be sure that this is time well spent? Learn how other companies measure their training effectiveness and use their training metrics to improve their programs.
Moderator: Annette Russo, Senior Manager, Communications & Training, EHS&S; Johnson & Johnson
|
Session 12: Charting a Green Products Strategy: Setting the Scope and Demonstrating Value to Stakeholders Room 412 Companies are under increasing pressure to provide more sustainable products that take the impacts of the full product life cycle into account, and to respond to customer demand for life cycle information. This session will explore how a company defines greener products, sets the scope of what attributes to include and what goals to strive for, responds to key customer requests for life cycle information, and communicates the value to stakeholders.
Moderator: Margaret Enos, Manager, Product Stewardship; Baxter International Inc.
|
5:30 - 7:00 p.m |
Networking Reception Exhibit Hall - 4th Floor
Special thanks to our Sponsors, Credit360 and Workiva |
Thursday October 23, 2014
7:30 - 8:15 a.m. |
Registration Open, Continental Breakfast in the Exhibit Hall | |||
8:15 - 8:30 a.m. |
Opening Remarks
|
|||
8:30 - 10:00 a.m. |
Keynote Session - Everybody's Business: The Unlikely Story of How Big Business Can Fix the World Salon FG - 6th Floor This year, we are proud to introduce the provocative ideas of Lucy Parker and Jon Miller, Partners at the Brunswick Group and authors of the book “Everybody's Business: The Unlikely Story of How Big Business Can Fix the World”. Lucy Parker and Jon Miller bring a fresh point of view to the relationship between business and society, and how corporate leaders should think about environmental stewardship. Lucy and Jon have worked with large companies from across a variety of industry sectors, helping them develop their companies' unique "sustainability point of view" and think creatively about how their business can solve global environmental problems while making a profit.
Moderator: Carol Singer Neuvelt, Executive Director; NAEM |
|||
10:00 - 11:00 a.m. | Morning Break Exhibit Hall - 4th Floor | |||
Breakout Sessions | Track 1: Risk and Resource Planning |
Track 2: Innovations in EHS Management |
Track 3: Leveraging Data and Metrics |
Track 4: Sustainability Challenges and Drivers |
---|---|---|---|---|
11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. |
Session 13: Employee Engagement to Drive Continuous EHS&S Improvement Room 406 Creating an engaged workforce can be a key to continuous EHS&S improvement. Join us to hear from EHS leaders who have deployed programs that were championed by an engaged workforce. They'll share their strategies for measuring and increasing engagement levels, as well as how they used performance metrics to demonstrate continuous improvement. You'll come away with proven programs and tactics for increasing engagement and taking EHS performance to the next level.
Moderator: Diana Cosgrove, Director, EHS Governance; Danaher Corp. Speaker Bios |
Session 14: Strategies for Integrating and Standardizing EHS Across the Business Room 408 How do complex organizations tackle the challenge of standardizing EHS across their business and harmonizing management systems to reach their EHS and sustainability objectives? In this session we will explore how companies are integrating management system standards with EHS regulations to achieve compliance at all levels and across a variety of geographic regions. You'll come away with an understanding of how to embark on a project to achieve this standardization.
Moderator: Milan Dayalal, Vice President of Sales; Dakota Software
|
Session 15: So you're the new "Product Compliance Manager.” Now What? Room 410 This session will examine how companies are putting systems and strategies in place to track and comply with global product regulations. It will highlight tactics that have been successful as well as identify persistent challenges that attendees should be aware of. You'll leave this session with an understanding of the critical steps to ensure your company isn't falling behind on product regulatory compliance, and how you can pull all the data together to ensure compliance from customer request through to import/export and final delivery.
Moderator: Brad Ullery, Manager-Permits Operations and Compliance; Target Corp.
|
Session 16: The Next Evolution in Sustainability Management Room 412 For some companies, the tendency is to develop sustainability initiatives as specific issues arise. The result of this reactive approach may be a program that fails to deliver optimal results. In this session, we will discuss best practice examples from practitioners who have been successful at managing sustainability challenges in a coordinated manner – across the various areas of sustainability as well as in conjunction with traditional EH&S obligations. You will get new ideas for prioritizing issues, leveraging resources and improving efficiency to optimize sustainability and EH&S management performance.
Moderator: Rich Pandullo, Director, Sustainability & Environmental Management; Trinity Consultants
|
12:30 - 1:30 p.m. |
Business-to-Business Luncheon Salon FG - 6th Floor | |||
1:45 - |
Session 17: Developing Today's Talent into Tomorrow's Leaders Room 406 Most companies today find hiring, developing, and retaining EHS and Sustainability leaders to be a challenge. Often it can take months to find the right person and years to build the experience and skills necessary for the role. Companies must also address the possibility that EHS talent will move to a different role, change companies or retire. This session will explore ways companies attract, develop and retain talent, and identify EHS leaders. Attendees will leave this session with a better understanding of how companies manage their EHS and Sustainability talent pipeline, from recruitment through development of the EHS Leaders of tomorrow.
Moderator: Lauren Blair, EHS Professional; Caterpillar Inc.
|
Session 18: Engaging Employees and Managing EHS Globally Room 408 Entering new countries and regions presents many challenges and opportunities for companies, especially from an EHS perspective. From language barriers to lack of available resources, driving responsible EHS and Sustainability programs and engaging employees around your EHS culture is a significant challenge. Attendees will hear how other companies have successfully overcome these common challenges, and what they continue to struggle with.
Moderator: Chris England, Director Environment, Safety, Health & Security; Xylem
|
Session 19: Using Leading Indicators to Predict Future Incidents Room 410 Measuring environment, health and safety performance accurately and reliably is a key ingredient to achieving management support for EHS programs. Business leadership wants metrics that will help them predict future performance and EHS leaders need to know what information to give them. This session will explore how EHS leaders are using leading indicators as proactive measures to drive excellent performance results and have a positive impact on the workforce.
Moderator: Steve Gedalije, Director ESH; ITT Corp.
|
Session 20: Preparing Your Business for Climate Change Room 412 The first sentence in the recently released report Climate Change Impacts in the United States reads: “Climate change, once considered an issue for a distant future, has moved firmly into the present.” Climate change has the potential to introduce new business risks that must be understood and managed. In this session we will explore how companies are assessing and climate change risks, and what they are doing to develop adaptive management strategies.
Moderator: Kevin Conroy, Principal and U.S. Manufacturing Sector Lead; Golder Associates
|
3:15 - 3:45 p.m. |
Afternoon Break Ballroom Foyer - 4th Floor | |||
3:45 - |
Leading Without Authority: Tools and Behaviors that Get Results Salon FG
|
|||
5:15 - 5:30 p.m. |
Closing Remarks Salon FG - 6th Floor
|
|||
6:30 - 10:00 p.m |
Night Out on the Town at Maggie Mae’s Join your colleagues at one of Austin's favorite night spots, Maggie Mae's for dinner, live music, dancing and the best rooftop view in the city! Tickets can be added with registration, so don't forget to sign up for what is sure to be a fun networking night out. |
Friday October 24, 2014
9:00 - 9:30 a.m. | Grab-and-Go Pastries and Coffee Outside Room 406 |
9:30 - |
Discussion Groups Friday morning will offer attendees an opportunity a variety of issue-specific discussion groups. These discussion groups are open to all and included in your conference registration. Seating will be limited and an RSVP will be required.
New NAEM Working Group Formation - Best Practices in Permitting Room 400 Permitting involving the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) or state equivalents generally requires that companies engage in a detailed and time consuming evaluation process to construct new or expand existing facilities. The intended purpose of NEPA was to ensure that governmental agencies consider potential alternatives and environmental impacts into decision making processes. Unfortunately, the current process, despite its well-intentioned goals, often gets challenged and bogged down in stakeholder disputes, litigation and other attempts to delay or disrupt projects. Attempts have been made at the state and federal level to resolve some of these issues including when the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Responsibly And Professionally Invigorating Development Act of 2014 (or the RAPID Act). However, the Act has not progressed any further. The goal of this meeting is to create a new NAEM working group and discuss/generate best practices around this important regulatory arena in order to more effectively permit new projects in a timely fashion. Come join your peers in an initial roundtable/panel discussion as we lay out a vision and path forward for the group. There is no charge to attend this meeting but for planning purposes, please RSVP if you plan to attend.
Mergers and Acquisitions Discussion Group Room 412
Women's Environmental Leadership Roundtable Brainstorming Session Room 408 |
11:30 a.m. | Conference Adjourns |
- Download a PDF of the 2014 Forum Schedule-at-a-Glance
- Download a PDF of the 2014 Forum Full Schedule (1MB)
- Download a PDF of Full 2014 Forum Program (30MB)
Program Details
Track 1: Risk and Resource Planning
It is imperative that EHS Leaders create and implement plans that demonstrate business value while reducing regulatory and other related risks. With continuous pressure on budgets, leaders must prioritize their resources to achieve results. Sessions in this track will focus on how companies have successfully aligned resources with business objectives and the processes they have used to most effectively prioritize risk.
Track 2: Innovations in EHS Management
Compliance remains at the core of what EHS professionals do, and having effective systems and tactics are critical to ensure performance meets expectations. The topics in this track will showcase best practices, real takeaways and innovative ideas for the EHS professional striving for continuous improvement.
Track 3: Leveraging Data and Metrics
Data and information management remain critical components of effective compliance and injury-reduction systems. Find out how leading companies leverage existing and new enterprise-wide systems to proactively manage the complexities from an operational and stakeholder perspective.
Track 4: Sustainability Challenges and Drivers
Sustainability practices continue to evolve and offer transformational pathways and opportunities for companies. Learn how common operational risks and challenges across the supply chain are being proactively addressed to better protect companies and position them as industry leaders.
Interested in Speaking?
Are you an EHS or sustainability leader with a case study to share? Contact Virginia Hoekenga, NAEM Deputy Director at (202) 986-6616 to learn about speaking opportunities.
About NAEM
NAEMThe National Association for Environmental Management (NAEM) empowers corporate leaders to advance environmental stewardship, create safe and healthy workplaces, and promote global sustainability. As the largest professional community for EHS and sustainability decision-makers, we provide peer-led educational conferences and an active network for sharing solutions to today's corporate EHS and sustainability management challenges. Visit NAEM online at www.naem.org.