Local Meetings for the Upper SC Chapter are the first Thursday of each Month (September - May) unless otherwise noted.

Meetings are held at the Hilton and Towers, 45 West Orchard Park Drive (located off I-85 and Haywood Road), Greenville, SC 29615. Phone is (864) 232-7350.

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Registration is from 5:30 PM - 6:00 PM, the Meeting/Meal starts promptly at 6:10. Meetings last until 8:00 PM. The cost is $23.00 in advance, $27.00 at the door (if you don't preregister), which includes drawings, plated dinner, and the program.

Upcoming Meeting

Our next meeting will be March 4, 2010 - Topic: The Value of Supplier Diversity
by Rajeev Jindal, President & CEO, Bunty, LLC. Please attend and bring a purchasing colleague. Show your support of our chapter this meeting!

Like the much anticipated night at the Oscars®, every year this time, our Chapter has hosted what has come to be known as Supplier Night. The recent economic downturn has made it difficult for the Chapter to host the event this year.
In the spirit of showcasing local suppliers, the Board has planned a meeting like none in the history of our Chapter!

We are privileged to have at our next Chapter meeting the distinguished President & CEO of Bunty, LLC, Rajeev Jindal, who will be answering a panel of questions on how to weather the storm and remain viable in this tumultuous economic climate. Bunty, LLC is the 2007 recipient of the Supplier of the Year award from Carolinas Minority Supplier Development Council (CMSDC), and most recently, the recipient of Greenville Chamber of Commerce’s Minority Business of the Year award. Congratulations Bunty!

Want to attend the meeting? You must register online. (You may pay at the door or online, but registration online is required for an accurate headcount.)

Cancellations: Any member or non-member who fails to attend after having made a reservation, and has not cancelled by 4:00pm on the Tuesday prior to the meeting, will not be credited the cost of the dinner meeting.

2009 – 2010 Meeting Dates

September 3, 2009 - Topic: The Effect of the Economic Downturn on Purchasing (Boss’s Night) Open Forum.

October 1, 2009 - Topic: On-line Purchasing Tools. Speaker: Beate Bannon of BMW.

November 5, 2009 - Topic: Contract Law. Speaker: Lance Sheek of The Sheek Law Firm.

Lance Sheek is a 1992 graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law. He served as a prosecutor with the Eighth Judicial Circuit Solicitor's Office, City attorney for the City of Greenwood and Municipal Judge for the City of Abbeville. He is a solo practicioner in The Sheek Law Firm in Greenwood, South Carolina. He has been admitted to the South Carolina Bar since 1992. He is admitted to practice law in all courts in the State of South Carolina as well as the Federal District Court for the District of South Carolina and the Fourth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals.

December 3, 2009 - Topic: Knowledge Management and New Product Development. Speaker Dr. Gulru Ozkan, Clemson University.

Gulru Ozkan is an Assistant Professor at Clemson University in Supply Chain and Operations Management area in the Department of Management. She previously lived in Atlanta, Georgia where she was a Ph.D. candidate in the Operations Management department in Georgia Institute of Technology. Gulru earned her B.S. in Environmental Engineering at the Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey in 2001, an M.B.A. at the Georgia State University in 2003 and a Ph.D. in Operations Management in the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia in 2009. Gulru’s research interests include new product development, knowledge management, technology management and game theory. She is a member of the INFORMS and POMS.

February 4, 2010 - Topic: Green Initiative. Speaker: Stacey Washington, SC DHEC.

Stacey joined the Center for Waste Minimization in October 2005. She has a BS degree in Chemical Engineering, 2 years of process engineering experience, and over 8 years of industrial and state government environmental experience.

March 4, 2010 - Supplier Night

April 1, 2010 - Topic: The Benefits of ISM. Speaker TBA.

May 6, 2010 - Awards and Elections Topic: The Five Greatest Challenges That Are Threatening Companies Today – and the four things a company must do to stay competitive in today’s marketplace. Speaker Gregory S. Smith, MS, MSW - Managing Principal of The Center for Advanced Performance.

In this presentation, Mr. Smith will report on the results of a national research study analyzing several million dollars of the latest data on market trends and best practices. This report will examine the most significant driving forces that are impacting companies today, and the critical success factors for ensuring the future of one’s company. The research also found that companies which out-perform their industry peers excel at eight specific business practices that will be highlighted in this report. According to the research, companies that consistently followed this formula had better than a 90% chance of sustaining superior business performance, grew twice as fast as the average company in their industry, and generated shareholder returns more than 2000% greater than their peers. If you are in a role of responsibility for the performance of your firm, then we invite you to take advantage of this unique opportunity for advancing your profitability, growth, and competitive advantage.

Seminar (topics and speakers to follow): February 5, 2010

2008 – 2009 Meeting Dates

September 4, 2008 (Bosses Night) Topic: "Developing and Retaining Talent” by Kathy Lyles, Michelin, VP of Purchasing.

October 2, 2008 Topic: “Emerging Workforce Trends" by Sarah Houck, HTI Employment Solutions, Technical Recruiter.

November 6, 2008 Topic: “Minority Suppliers” by Greg Stephens, Director, Supplier Diversity and Small Business Development with Michelin, North America, Inc.

December 11, 2008 Topic: "Global Suppliers: Pressure or Impact on US Economy." by Keith Burgio, C.P.M., GE Energy, Sourcing Manager-Quality and Operations.

January 2008 – No Meeting

February 5, 2009 Topic: "Six Sigma and Lean Applications" by Crista Stamper, Heil Environmental, Chief Quality Officer.

March 5, 2009 (Purchasing Month) Topic: It's Supplier's Night.

April 2, 2009 (Elections) Topic: "IncoTerms 2000—Practical Applications" by Shane Wier, BMW.

May 14, 2009 (Awards Night/Election Results) Topic: "Influencing Purchasing Policy and Compliance" by Matt Marthinson, Hubbell, Inc., VP of Strategic Sourcing.

Upper SC Seminar

February 6, 2009 - Topic: "Six Sigma and Lean Applications" by Crista Stamper, Heil Environmental, Chief Quality Officer. More information.

ISM-CV Quarterly Meetings

September 11 - 12, 2008 - Columbia, SC

December 4 - 5, 2008 - Pinehurst, NC

Spring, 2009 (Date and location TBD)

ISM International Conference

May 3 - 6, 2009 - Charlotte, NC

2007-08 Meeting Dates and Topics

September 13, 2007 - (This is one week later than our usual 1st Thursday meeting) Topic: Developing Effective Supply Chain Metrics by Carol Marks of ISM/C-V & Industrial Distribution Group. First time visitors attend No Charge.

October 4, 2007 - Topic: Gathering Information and Driving Change Through Analytics, by Keith Wagoner.

November 1, 2007 - Topic: Purchasing and Accounts Payable In-sync by Tehseen Ali.

December 6, 2007 - Topic: Plant Tour at Spartanburg Steel off of New Cut Road in Spartanburg

February 7, 2008 - Topic: "South Carolina and the UCC" by Marsha Hass. (Spouse & Guest Night)

March 6, 2008 - Purchasing Month. SUPPLIER NIGHT Encourage all suppliers to participate and register a booth! All members should attend.

April 3, 2008 - (Elections) Topic: "ISM Moving Forward" By Jan Miller. Jan is ISM’s Vice President for Affiliate, Group and Forum Support.

May 1, 2008 - It's Bosses Night - Encourage your manager to attend to see what you've been up to regarding professional development! It's also Awards Night and Results of Elections. Topic: "The Federal Reserve System" by Raymond Owens.

2006-07 Meeting Dates and Topics

September 7, 2006 - Topic: Developing Effective Supply Chain Metrics by Carol Marks of ISM/C-V & Industrial Distribution Group. It's Bosses Night - Encourage your manager to attend to see what you've been up to regarding professional development!  First time visitors attend No Charge.

October 5, 2006 - Topic: no speaker, we will be taking a plant tour of WW Grainger. There is no meal cost for this tour but donations to the chapter are welcome. Since Grainger will provide a box dinner, you must register for this meeting before September 30, 2006. The meeting will begin at promptly at 6pm. Due to safety issues, anyone arriving after 6:45pm will not be allowed admittance.

November 2, 2006 - Topic: TBA by David Alewine of Fluor.

December 7, 2006 - Topic: Implementing a Supplier Diversity Program by Lennie Beamom of BMW.

January 4, 2007 - NO Meeting due to holidays & possible inclement weather.

February 1, 2007 - Topic: What are Incoterms and what can they do for you by Stan Pech of Michelin.

March 1, 2007 - SUPPLIER NIGHT Encourage all suppliers to participate and register a booth! All members should attend.

April 5, 2007 - Topic: TBA.

May 3, 2007 - Final meeting of the year. Topic: “Meeting the Challenges of RoHS” by Donna McMahan with Newark. The RoHS Directive stands for "the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment". This Directive bans the placing on the EU market of new electrical and electronic equipment containing more than agreed levels of lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyl (PBB) and polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants.