| Brett
Vassey interview
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Virginia Business
November
2004
Brett
Vassey
president
Virginia Manufacturers Association
Born:
Richmond, Mo.
Education: studied public administration
at University of Kansas; Virginia Tech
Years at the VMA: two
First job out of school: director
of student life at St. Mary's College in Leavenworth,
Kan.
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What
is the overall mission of your organization?
Our goal is to ensure that Virginia remains
a haven for manufacturers — a place where they
can grow and prosper. Our organization has been around
for 82 years. Since manufacturing accounts for 11.6
percent of our gross state product, the economic impact
that our industry has is enormous, considering only
3 percent of the businesses in Virginia are manufacturers.
What
is your industry’s greatest challenge?
The greatest challenge is globalism, or what I refer
to as hyper-competition. Nowadays manufacturers are
so focused on survival and their quarter-to-quarter
growth that they don't have time to devote to long-term
planning. Within our industry there is a constant drive
for productivity, without the proper time or resources
to focus on growth. Through our events and programs
we try to give the manufacturing community a forum to
have that long-term vision.
How
do you measure success?
We really look at three parameters: We constantly survey
our members to find out how we're doing; we look at
the levels of participation in the programs and events
we hold; and we look at overall membership growth —
are we doing a good job of marketing the benefits of
membership? We also follow certain legislative bills
through the General Assembly and work closely to have
our views heard. Representing the interests of the manufacturing
community is an important mission of the association.
The
VMA recently announced the 2004 winners of the Governor’s
Environmental Excellence Awards. Tell us about the award.
Each year a panel of independent judges selects manufacturers
in Virginia who are good environmental citizens, as
demonstrated by their implementation of Virginia's pollution
prevention policies and their promotion of environmental
stewardship. Winners are chosen in two categories —
environmental projects and environmental programs. And
the awards are given in each category to a first place
and runner-up recipient for large manufacturers and
a first place and runner-up recipient for small manufacturers.
It is the only Virginia award that the governor has
his name on, and is underwritten by VMA Outreach (an
organization of VMA members) and endorsed by the Office
of the Governor and the Department of Environmental
Quality.
What
are your goals for 2005?
We are very excited about the Governor's Summit on Manufacturing
coming in 2005. We are also working closely with the
new Joint Subcommittee on Manufacturing that was formed
by the General Assembly — it's the first of its
kind in the country. [The panel will consider the needs
and future of manufacturing in the state.] Our organization
will be active in both these initiatives in the coming
year.
Return to Virginia Business - November 2004
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