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QualPro Leadership Symposium

2004's 15th Annual QualPro Leadership Symposium - Featured Speakers

Williams-Sonoma, Inc.
Ed Mueller
CEO

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. is the premier U.S. specialty retailer of home furnishings. Brands include Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Pottery Barn Teen, Hold Everything, West Elm, and Chambers. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. business concepts cover every room in the house, with sales exceeding $2.5 billion. They successfully market through retail stores, catalogs, and the Internet.

Ed Mueller, CEO of Williams-Sonoma, Inc., has introduced MVT^® to four different companies. As President of Southwestern Bell Telephone, Pacific Bell, and then Ameritech over a ten-year period, he used MVT^® to improve service, increase sales, and drive cost out of critical processes. The cumulative benefits were documented at more than a billion dollars, and dramatic turnarounds in targeted areas of each business were achieved. Now, as CEO of Williams-Sonoma, Inc., he is once again deploying MVT^® as a strategic weapon to improve sales and profitability.

Mr. Mueller described the qualities of the MVT^® process that initially roused his interest, and he shared insights regarding the role of MVT^® as a tool for corporate turnarounds, as well as continuous improvement. He also revealed lessons he has learned through the hundreds of MVT^® experiments executed by his organizations.

Pactiv Corporation
C. William McBee
General Manager Hexacomb Division

Named by Fortune magazine in 2003 as the No. 1 "Most Admired Company" in the Packaging Containers group, Pactiv is a leading producer of specialty packaging products. Pactiv's Hexacomb(r) paper honeycomb products provide shipping and protective packaging solutions that are as tough and durable as they are recyclable and biodegradable.

Bill McBee, General Manager of the Pactiv Hexacomb operations, introduced MVT^® to his manufacturing and sales operations. He described how the Hexacomb organization drove costs down and elevating sales through no-cost actions identified by the MVT^® process. He also shared his MVT^® experiences, which resulted in millions of dollars in benefits over the past 15 years, as President of Liqui-Box Corporation, now a part of DuPont, in addition to the current work being done by Pactiv. Bill's introduction to QualPro was as an executive with Boise's packaging operations in the late 1980's.

Mr. McBee's many years of real world MVT^® experience, across several organizations, allows a perspective available to a select few executives. He described the many potential applications of the MVT^® process for manufacturers, along with the lessons he has learned that ensure fast and dramatic MVT^® successes.

Saks Fifth Avenue
Don Watros
Chief Administrative Officer

Saks Fifth Avenue is renowned for its superlative selling services and merchandise offerings, including the best of European and American designers. With 62 Saks Fifth Avenue stores and 53 Saks Off 5th stores across the U.S., Saks Fifth Avenue is aggressively pursuing the Saks Inc. mission of being a great place to shop, a great place to work, and a great place to invest.

Don Watros, in his role as Chief Administrative Officer for Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises, has been intimately involved in driving the Saks Fifth Avenue MVT^® efforts. He described Saks Fifth Avenue MVT^® testing in Saks Off 5th stores during 2003 as well as overviewed MVT^® experimentation executed in early 2004 in Saks Fifth Avenue stores.

As Chief Administrative Officer, Mr. Watros provided a unique view into the strategic value of MVT^® in the retail environment, as well as sharing his observations regarding the critical management tactics that ensure maximum organizational benefits. He also commented on the actions that led to the nearly immediate ROI achieved by the Saks MVT^® initiative.

Olin Chlor Alkali Products
Frank Chirumbole
Vice President of Manufacturing and Engineering

Olin Chlor Alkali Products is one of the nation's leading producers of chlorine, caustic soda, and related materials. With manufacturing facilities throughout the eastern U.S., their products have uses ranging from reduction of infant mortality rates and elimination of water-borne diseases to the manufacture of PVC plastics and artificial sweeteners.

Frank Chirumbole, Vice President of Manufacturing and Engineering, explained how Olin Chlor Alkali Products is using the MVT^® process to drive down costs, raise production, and improve product quality in every manufacturing facility. With millions of dollars in accumulated benefits, he also overviewed Olin's MVT^® efforts targeting improved administrative effectiveness in areas such as accounts receivable and railcar logistics.

Mr. Chirumbole provided special insight into the challenges and success factors to effectively introducing and managing a process improvement system in a geographically dispersed organization. With many years working in executive roles at General Electric, he can also offer an objective contrast between his experiences leading both MVT^® and Six Sigma efforts.

Since 1982, QualPro has used Multivariable Testing (MVT®) with 1000+ companies to test 100,000+ improvement ideas. MVT® tests between 20 and 40 ideas simultaneously, accurately predicting the bottom-line impact of potential process changes in weeks. Take existing process initiatives, like Six Sigma, to a whole new level. All process improvement tools and approaches (TQM, DOE, Six Sigma, Re-Engineering, SPC) can be enhanced through the use of Multivariable Testing by QualPro.