Practice Management Manual Update

      STC members who were around in 2003 will probably remember the STC Practice Management Manual, a compilation of practice start-up and development advice contributed by STC members.

      This document, which has been available electronically to STC members as a member benefit since that time, has now been revised and will soon be available to members, at a no-cost benefit, in either print or electronic form.

      The work of conceiving and managing the revision was undertaken by a the PMM Task Force, whose members were Henry Baird, John Lambert and Janet Smith.

      Departing from its normal practice of restricting the availability of benefits, the STC will make the revised manual available both to members and non-members. Non-members will be able to obtain only the print version, however, and will be charged $95, plus a shipping and handling fee.

      The revised 185-page publication, called              The STC’s Practice Management Manual for Telecommunications and IT Consultants, contains revisions from the original contributors, a new appendix on the topic of total cost of ownership, and various format and readability enhancements.

      For the sake of document security, each electronic (PDF) version will be numbered and registered to individual recipients. While individuals will be permitted to print out copies, they should not be able to alter them for electronic distribution, or otherwise circulate them, without their name being associated with these efforts.

      While no document security measure is foolproof, the members of the task force feel that these steps should constitute an adequate disincentive to redistribute the document improperly.

3. Attend at least one conference a year. The key to growing an organization is to have active members. If a new member does not develop the habit of attending at least one conference a year, it will become difficult to be a part of decision making process, and know, understand and vote on the issues.

4. At your urging, become an active participant in the STC.  Not every member will want to hold an office, but the more members that understand the structure of the organization and want to participate, the stronger an organization the STC will become.

      Your participation in the STC Mentorship Program    should last at least one year. Specific actions expected of you will include:

¨ Initiating a welcome call.

¨ Introducing yourself and welcoming the new member to the STC.

¨ Talking about the benefits that the STC provides to you and other members.

¨ Availing yourself to the new member to answer questions from the new member.

¨ Acting as a sounding board for ideas.

¨ Informing the new member about local seminars to attend, if known. 

¨ Encouraging him or her to join one or two STC roundtable conference calls during the first year.

¨ Referring the new member to other STC members for advice on business, technology, or possible jobs.

¨ Engaging the new member in your business practice, if practicable.

¨ Calling or e-mailing once a month to demonstrate availability and interest, even just to ask: “How are you doing?”

Other Notes For Prospective STC Mentors

¨ The time commitment for mentoring should be 30 minutes to one hour per month.

¨ It is not necessary for the mentor to live in the same geographic area as the person they are mentoring.

¨ A good mentor should lead by example. The qualifications we are looking for in a mentor include:

· Enjoys the training and developing process.

· Has been a member of STC for three years.

· Is an active participant in the STC.

· Attends at least one STC conference a year.

· Is currently or has been a member of a committee or task force.

      The benefits of being a mentor reach far beyond helping the fledgling new member. Mentorship can be the spark that sharply accelerates the growth of the STC.

       If you are interested in a new and unique way to become involved, this new program may be just the ticket. Please contact me for information on how to apply to be a Mentor, at comlink@frontiernet.net.