Summer Management Conference Sponsorship Information

Are you interested in presenting your business to top building supply owners and managers in Georgia and Alabama? Consider sponsoring an event or showing a table-top exhibit at our annual Summer Management Conference.

The Summer Management Conference attracts CSA’s top business owners and managers for three days of education, networking, and fun! CSA is pleased to offer its associate members the following opportunities to sponsor conference activities.

Table-Top Exhibits
Table-top exhibits will be placed in a prominent viewing area during the length of the conference. There will be plenty of time to chat with CSA members in-between sessions and at receptions, but why not give CSA members the chance to view your business information at any time? Table-top exhibits are $300 per table.

Session Sponsorships
Currently, there are six sessions at the Summer Management Conference that are in need of sponsorships.

· Opening Reception, July 9th $1,500
· Morning Education Session, July 10th $1,500
· Learning Luncheon, July 10th $1,500
· Chairman’s Dinner & Reception, July 10th $1,500
· Morning Education Session, July 11th sponsored by Pennsylvania Lumbermen’s Mutual Insurance Company

Please contact Lisa Golden at 678,213.2164 or lisagolden@gocsa.com for details or to become a sponsor.

Innocent Sellers Fairness Act Reintroduced in Congress

NLBMDA-Promoted Initiative Would Provide Liability Protection for Those that Only Sell Products

[Washington, DC] - The National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association (NLBMDA) commended Reps. Dan Boren (D-OK) and Jim Jordan (R-OH) for their reintroduction of the NLBMDA-promoted "Innocent Sellers Fairness Act" (H.R. 2518) which would provide product liability protection to those businesses that only sell products but did not manufacture them. The bill has been already cosponsored by eight additional members of Congress. Read the full article here.

Join Us at the Summer Management Conference

Come and join CSA at the 2009 Summer Management Conference! This year’s conference will be held July 9 - 12 at The Ridges Lodge & Resort in Hiawasee, Georgia. If you missed out on last year’s conference, don’t miss your chance to attend this year! The Ridges is located in the north Georgia mountains and is the perfect place for our members and industry associates to mingle and learn about important industry news.

CSA has booked top educators and speakers in the construction supply industry for our educational sessions. These speakers include Chris Hall, Vice President of Haddow & Company and an expert in the Southeast regional housing market, Mike Purcell, a trainer and human resources development specialist whose philosophy is "Not just your people, but your good people are your greatest asset,” and Bob Janet, a sales expert with over 40 years of experience, some of that as an owner / operator of wholesale, retail and service businesses.

Each morning of the conference is filled with educational sessions, but the afternoon before our nightly dinners and programs is yours! Bring the whole family along to enjoy the resort and surrounding areas. We will also be offering an optional golf outing in North Carolina on Saturday afternoon. There is also a vast array of outdoor activities including hiking, birding, and fishing.

The traditional CSA Chairman’s Dinner will be held at the resort on Friday night and will include an interactive performance by Anthony Galie, a hypnotist and engaging speaker as our featured entertainment.

Saturday evening will feature an optional dinner and reception where you’ll have the opportunity to enjoy a last evening of fun with your fellow attendees.



ABOUT THE RIDGES RESORT AND CLUB LAKE CHATUGE
Come and join CSA at the 2009 Summer Management Conference! This year’s conference will be held July 9 - 12 at The Ridges Lodge & Resort in Hiawasee, Georgia. If you missed out on last year’s conference, don’t miss your chance to attend this year!

The Ridges is located in the north Georgia mountains and is the perfect place for our members and industry associates to mingle and learn about important industry news. Each morning of the conference is filled with educational sessions, but the afternoon before our nightly dinners and programs is yours! Bring the whole family along to enjoy the resort and surrounding areas. We will also be offering an optional golf outing in North Carolina on Saturday afternoon. There is also a vast array of outdoor activities including hiking, birding, and fishing.

The traditional CSA Chairman’s Dinner will be held at the resort on Friday night and will include an interactive performance by Anthony Galie, a hypnotist and engaging speaker as our featured entertainment. Saturday evening will feature an optional dinner and reception where you’ll have the opportunity to enjoy a last evening of fun with your fellow attendees.

The Ridges Resort & Club Lake Chatuge encompasses a tranquil lakeside escape in Hiawassee, Georgia. Featuring beautiful accommodations and fun for the whole family, The Ridges offers a relaxed atmosphere, friendly service and memorable cuisine. Spend the day fishing, boating, horseback riding, or just nap on the lakeside lawn. Recreational choices abound at The Ridges including swimming pools, golf, tennis, lake, marina and water sports, and fishing in a private stream.

Single and double rooms are available at a rate of $155 per night. Triple and quad rooms are also available. Triples are $165 per night and Quads are $175 per night.

The Ridges also offers Lake and Golf Villa units at a rate of $155 per night per bedroom. Rates include complimentary wireless internet service and continental breakfast. There are no additional mandated resort fees, however, equipment rental charges may apply. These rates are guaranteed until 6p.m. (eastern) June 11th – it is anticipated that rooms will sell out, and room availability cannot be guaranteed after this date. Call (888) 834-4409 to book your room today!

Tentative Schedule
Thursday, July 9
8:00 a.m. Registration Opens
8:00 a.m. Board of Directors meeting (Open to all CSA members)
11:30 a.m. Leave for rafting trip
6:30 p.m. Picnic

Friday, July 10
Complimentary breakfast available to all guests in hotel lobby
8:30 a.m. Speaker: Mike Purcell
Spouse Tour begins
12:00 p.m. Luncheon with Chris Hall
1:30 p.m. Afternoon free for networking/play
6:30 p.m. Reception
7:00 p.m. Chairman’s Dinner, featuring Anthony Galie

Saturday, July 11
Complimentary breakfast available to all guests in hotel lobby
8:30 a.m. Speaker: Bob Janet
11:30 p.m. Lunch on your own/free afternoon
12:45 p.m. Golf outing
6:30 p.m. Closing Dinner

Speakers
Mike Purcell
In 2004, Mike Purcell founded Compass Performance Group, LLC on the belief that the saying, "Our people are our greatest asset," is not necessarily correct. It should read "Good people are our greatest asset."

Developing good people requires good training. Using an engaging, relaxed style, helping you find ways to get your team to reach a higher level of performance is Mike's ultimate goal.

Chris Hall
As Vice President with Haddow & Company, a real estate consulting firm in Atlanta, Chris has over 10 years of experience as an urban planner and real estate consultant including project work on a wide variety of real estate assignments, ranging from feasibility and highest and best use studies to the marketing and disposition of land and investment properties. Chris will
share his analysis of the Southeast real estate market with us over lunch.

Bob Janet
Bob is one of the rare speakers who can say he has been there and done it, walked many miles in your shoes as owner / operator of wholesale, retail and service businesses. Combining 40 plus years of front-line, face-to-face selling and marketing experiences with his unique presentation style, Bob has helped business owners and sales professionals across the globe gain and retain
their most profitable customers for a lifetime of success.

Anthony Galie
For the past 30 years, Anthony Galie has been teaching audiences around the world how to get and stay motivated. As an author, speaker, and trained psychotherapist, Anthony has studied the secrets of top performers in every field. In his wildly entertaining keynotes, he shows
you how they achieve the unthinkable – and how you can put the same scientific
principles to work in your business and personal life.

Spouses Tour
CSA will offer a Spouse Tour for an additional cost during Friday morning’s educational sessions. The tour will include a visit to an artist’s colony where you will tour the Goldhagen Art Glass studio and watch the creation of art glass using ancient blowing techniques. That visit will be rounded out by a gallery tour.

We've also scheduled a tour of Crane Creek Vineyards, including a wine tasting and light lunch. Transportation will be provided. The fee includes entry fees, tasting fees, luncheon and transportation.

Optional Recreation

Rafting
Join other CSA members for a 3.5 – 4 hour rafting trip on the Middle Ocoee River beginning at 1pm on Thursday, July 9. We will carpool from the hotel to the river at 11:45 a.m. Box
lunches will be provided for the ride.

Cost: $60.00 per person

Golf
We'll go golfing at the Brasstown Valley Resort, a quick shuttle ride from The Ridges Resort & Club Lake Chatuge.

A limited number of golf reservations are available at 12:45 p.m. on Saturday, July 11.

Cost: $130 per person

Registration Form and Procedures

You can use the form pictured below to register for the event. Mail along with payment to the CSA Office, 1850 Lake Park Drive, Smyrna, GA 30080.

Attendees are responsible for making their own hotel reservations. Please call (888) 834-4409 and tell the reservationist that you are with the CSA room block.

Click the picture to enlarge it.

For more information, please call 678.213.2164

Webinar: Strategies for Selling the "Green" Commerical Builder

W E B I N A R

Strategies for Selling the "Green" Commerical Builder
Tuesday, June 23, 2009 = Price: $139 per logged-on computer
Start Time: 3:00 PM Eastern Time; 2:00 PM Central Time


This webinar is an introduction to the skills necessary in contacting and successfully selling the commercial builders. The shift in emphasis within the commercial builder market segment is growing everyday toward being GREEN. How does that impact the relationship with the supplier/vendor?

- The workshop will begin with elementary language that sales persons need to be able to communicate within their company and the decision maker with the commercial builder.

- Participants will learn the six basic criteria used in determining whether their product or service is “green.” It best be truly eco-friendly. The decision maker will be asking the questions upfront.

- Attendees will learn the five questions that eco-friendly commercial builders ask that conventional builders don’t know to ask. Participants will be exposed to the three basic marketing elements their companies must have in place before trying to sell to this emerging market segment.

This is an incredible amount of material in 60 minutes. Fasten your seatbelts and welcome to the 21st Century as you and your skills grow GREEN!

The presenter, Steve Monroe, AB, CGP, brings nearly thirty years of laughter and tears from working with builders and those who sell to them. He has stayed on the leading edge of trends within the industry including emerging markets such as Green Building. His research and writings in this field allows him to learn and lead workshops for builders and associates as they develop talents and techniques in the field. His newest books, Selling Green In A Black and White World, and Marketing Essentials for Green Builders will be released in January 2010. Steve will speak at the 2010 IBS on green building. He teaches 9 courses to builders as part of the NC Building Institute and is part of the faculty of the University of Housing in conjunction with NAHB.


Click the registration form to enlarge, print and use it to register.

Why ProBuild scares me (and should scare you, too)

By Jim Moody, CAE
CSA President

The May issue of ProSales is a great one. Not only does it contain the ProSales 100, it also features an insightful cover story on ProBuild Holdings.

ProBuild, for those of you who don’t have them in your market (yet), is the largest LBM dealer in the nation. They are an amalgamation of several other dealers such as Hope and HD Supply (which itself had purchased Williams Brothers). Based in Denver, ProBuild is owned by a division of Fidelity Investors.

In my opinion (which I know is shared by many others who are more knowledgeable than me), ProBuild is the large national monster that will be around to compete with independents in the long run. Unlike 84 Lumber, Stock and Builder’s First Source, ProBuild seems to be well managed AND have deep pockets. (Stock has deeper pockets today than it did just a few weeks ago with an investment group taking a majority ownership, but it remains to be seen whether the new owners can manage the company any better than the old ones. At a minimum, Stock is a much smaller entity than it once was.)

One reason that I worry most about the competition ProBuild will bring is that I’ve met the CEO, Paul Hylburt. Paul is the current chair of the National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association (aka NLBMDA, “the association with too many letters in its acronym”). I’ve had the privilege of seeing how he operates, and I’ve been fortunate to have dinner with him. He’s an impressive fellow. He’s humble, which I think is a key factor in leadership today. He knows the industry (Wicke’s, PrimeSource and Strober are on his resume). He’s surrounded himself with very smart people, though he’s not short in the smarts department himself. And he’s likeable. In fact, he reminds me of many of you.

Paul and ProBuild have been spending much of their time creating a unified corporate culture and system of processes among all their acquisitions. They are close to achieving that goal. (Their technology system is going to be a competitive advantage – more about that next week.) Even while trying to wrangle all those companies into one, they’ve managed to be the top dog in our pound – by almost a billion dollars. What will they be able to do when their focus really becomes selling building materials?

When I talk to dealers about competing with the national groups, I hear a common refrain: They focus on price. Our price may be a little higher, but for our customers, service is as important as price. If we can stay in the same area on price and provide better service, we can handle the national chains’ competition.

ProBuild has the ability to make a market very price-oriented. It’s tough for a small independent (and they are all small compared to ProBuild) to win when the whole conversation with a builder is about price. But what scares me the most is that with strong leadership in place, they may well have the ability to provide service equal to that of the small independent AND do it at a lower price. What happens if ProBuild “gets it right” and they are not satisfied with simply serving production builders?

Time will tell. Many of you have been through this kind of thing before (“Home Depot and Lowe’s will kill the independent dealer”) and it didn’t come to pass. I am certainly not predicting the end of the universe as we know it – I believe that has already happened. Instead, I’m giving you a heads up that if you have a ProBuild yard near you, you should not assume that their level of penetration in your market is going to remain the same. And if you hear that ProBuild is opening a yard near you, you better be ready to play because the game will be on.

Workplace Emergency Tips

Security Products has a great article on their website about how to deal with workplace emergencies.

If a fire or other emergency happened in your workplace, would you know what to do? Planning ahead and staying calm can mean the difference between safety and injury.

"We're calling everyone to action to start thinking about fire safety not just at home, but at your place of work or any building you're in," said John Drengenberg, global consumer affairs manager at UL. "Preparation now could lead to an effective escape in the event of a fire."

UL safety professionals offer these common sense steps that should be taken now to prevent serious injury or even death in the event of a workplace emergency. Read
the full article.

Coverage with Pennsylvania Lumbermens

Are you insured by Pennsylvania Lumbermens? If so, you’ll want to make sure you’ve notified PLM that you want to be part of CSA’s safety group. By being a part of that group, you become eligible for a dividend of up to 10% of your premium. There is no risk to you – either you earn a dividend, or you don’t, but in no case would you owe more premium or fees to PLM. The dividend is based on the ratio of losses in the group to premium paid by the group.

If you are not insured by PLM, you might want to consider asking them for a quote the next time your Property and Casualty insurance is up for review. They are CSA’s endorsed carrier, and we encourage members to take advantage of this dividend program. PLM is marketed through local independent agents. You can learn more about the dividend program here. To find an agent near you who can write PLM coverage, click here.

Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance Company

One Commerce Square

2005 Market Street, Suite 1200

Philadelphia, PA 19103-7008

Main: 800.752.1895

Fax: 215.625.9097

The 3 Easiest Ways to Make More Money

By Bob JanetSales Growth Expert
Copyright Bob Janet 2009

1. Increase your customer base. Gain new customers.
You may not think that is so easy, but it is. The easiest way to gain new customers is to sell to those already in the market, those already buying the products and services you sell. If they are not buying them from you they are buying them from your competition. All you have to do is take customers away from your competition.


Go to http://www.bobjanet/, to purchase book - "How to take customers away from your competition" - 35 aggressive actions and 23 Sales Closing Techniques.


2. Increase your selling price. I have never seen a business in any industry, that is providing superior service, that can not raise their selling price 1% - 3%, or more. You do the math for your business. Take last years profits and add 1%-3% to them. I am sure you will be presently surprised.


3. Lower your marketing and selling costs.
Stop supporting media advertisers. Stop wasting your money. A good rule is,
'NEVER ADVERTISE UNLESS YOU CAN MEASURE THE RESULTS'

Use word of mouth advertising. But not your fathers word of mouth advertising. You know when you hope a satisfied customer will tell someone about you and your business. Your fathers word of mouth advertising is not working anymore. Your satisfied customers have too many things to think about and do to ever make you a priority.

You must create your own word of mouth advertising. You already have the tools paid for. You already have the best and most effective means to make word of mouth advertising work. Your sales and sales support staff.

Train everyone in your business to use the 3 ft. rule. "Anyone within 3 feet of you knows who you are and how you can solve their problems, needs and wants."

Pay your people to bring in new customers and increase sales to present customers through commissions, bonuses and rewards.

I used to send my people to bars and pay for a few drinks each night. What do people do in bars besides drink? They talk about their problems, needs and wants. My people would listen for a problem, need or want we could solve by selling them one of our products and services. We gained many, many sales by aggressively creating our word of mouth advertising. When you want more information on how to use 'The 3 Easiest Ways To Make More Money' ...

1. Increasing your customer base.
2. Increasing your selling price,
3. Lower your marketing and selling costs..... contact me.


Join The Profit Club at http://www.bobjanet.com/ for FREE sales tips like this on.

Tim Shaver's Sales Meeting Minute

Who You Call On is a Conceptual Thing

When you make calls, whether it’s a brand new sales call or a service call to a customer, the level you call on within the organization is a reflection of how you see yourself conceptually. If you make sure to meet the president, then you believe you belong there.

Amateur salespeople will only go as high as their “inner parent” will let them go; they’ll keep calling on purchasing agents and other non-decision makers time and again even if they get nowhere. Professional salespeople know how to get invited in to see the president, and they also understand conceptually why they belong there.

Where do your salespeople wind up: the president’s office, or the janitor’s closet? Who you call on is a conceptual thing, not a technical thing.

This sales tip is from Sandler Training – The Global Leader in Sales and Management Development. For more information, please contact Sandler Training – Nashville TN. Tim Shaver can be contacted at 615-399-8700 or tim@nashvillesalestraining.com . ©2009 Sandler Systems Inc. All rights reserved

NLBMDA News - LP Recalls Composite Decking

Louisiana-Pacific Corp. (LP) and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a voluntary recall last week of approximately 48 million linear feet of composite decking which can prematurely deteriorate and unexpectedly break. There have been 14 reports of injuries.

The recall includes outdoor deck board and railings sold under the brand names LP WeatherBest, ABTCo. and Veranda and were sold between January 2005 and August 2008. For more information on the recall, visit the CPSC website by clicking here.

NLBMDA News - "Green Neighborhoods" Legislation Reintroduced

"Green Neighborhoods" Legislation Reintroduced
Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) has reintroduced the "Green Resources for Energy Efficient Neighborhoods (GREEN) Act" (H.R. 2336), with 14 additional cosponsors. The legislation seeks to create incentives through lenders and financial institutions for consumers to buy, build or remodel their homes to improve energy efficiency and increase the use of alternative energy. The bill was included in a broader energy package passed by the House last year but was not considered in the Senate. A hearing date in the House Financial Services Committee has not yet been set.

New Sales Seminar: Selling Value in a Recession

REGISTER NOW FOR OUR SALES SEMINAR!

Selling Value in a Recession with Tim Shaver of the Sandler Sales Institute
Thursday, June 25, 2009
9:00a.m. to 1:00p.m.
Inn at Ellis Square (Days Hotel)
201 West Bay Street
Savannah, GA 31401
$100 per person, $50 each additional person from your company - Lunch is included


Want to know why profits and margins are dropping?
· Why your customers no longer have loyalty and how your people can make that better or worse.
· Learn how your value adding suggestions might be costing you clients
· Learn how the bidding, quoting and proposal process might be costing you business

See how you can get more dollars from existing customers and how to get top dollar from new clients
· Learn how to find the clients who really need and want to do business with you and are willing to pay top dollar to do so
· Learn how to get customers to tell you how much profit they will pay you before you get the job

This is a ONE DAY ONLY seminar. If needed, hotel reservations can be made by contacting The Inn at Ellis Square at 912.236.4440 and are the responsibility of the attendee. The $129.00 room rate is guaranteed until May 31, 2009.


To register, click on the registration form below, print, complete and mail with payment to the CSA office at 1850 Lake Park Drive, Suite 200, Smyrna, GA 30080.

NLBMDA News - Senate Subcommittee to Investigate Chinese Drywall

Senate Subcommittee to Investigate Chinese Drywall
This Thursday, May 21, the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Insurance, chaired by Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR), will hold a hearing to investigate the Chinese drywall situation. Witnesses have not yet been named, but NLBMDA will be attending the hearing and continue to keep members apprised of any developments at the federal level.

Dealers with questions or interest in the issue are encouraged to contact Colleen Levine at colleen@dealer.org.

NLBMDA News - Homeland Security Announces New Immigration "Worksite Enforcement Strategy"

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has announced a new "Worksite Enforcement Strategy" in which Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will be targeting for criminal prosecution those employers who "knowingly hire illegal workers."

Further, ICE agents will also be looking for "evidence of the mistreatment of workers, along with evidence of trafficking, smuggling, harboring, visa fraud, identification document fraud, money laundering and other criminal conduct." The announcement goes on to state that ICE offices will obtain indictments, criminal arrest or search warrants or a commitment from a U.S. Attorney's Office to prosecute the targeted employer before arresting employees for civil immigration violations at a worksite.

The complete announcement can be found on the NLBMDA website at http://www.dealer.org/.

NLBMDA News - Comprehensive Energy and Climate Change Bill Taking Shape

Today is the first committee markup of comprehensive energy and climate change legislation in the House Energy & Commerce Committee. The "American Clean Energy and Security Act" (H.R. 2454), introduced last week by Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA) contains a section on "Building Energy Efficiency Programs" which calls for a national building code energy efficiency target that achieves a 30% reduction in energy use over current building codes at the date of enactment and a 50% reduction for residential buildings by January 1, 2014 (and for commercial buildings by January 1, 2015).

The legislation would also create a "cap and trade" approach to managing greenhouse gas emissions. The notion of the government selling allowances has largely been abandoned and the current draft now calls for the majority of allowance permits to be given to industries without charge.

NLBMDA is closely monitoring developments impacting residential construction. The bill will likely transform significantly as it goes through the numerous House and Senate committees with overlapping jurisdiction in the next few weeks.

NLBMDA News - House Passes $6.4 Billion Bill to Modernize and Renovate

Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2187, the "The 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act" by a vote of 275 to 155.

H.R. 2187, sponsored by Rep. Ben Chandler (D-KY), would authorize $6.4 billion for school renovation and modernization projects for fiscal year 2010, and would "ensure that school districts quickly receive funds for projects that improve schools' teaching and learning climates, health and safety, and energy efficiency."

Allowable uses of the funds include: repairing, replacing, or installing roofs (including extensive, intensive or semi-intensive green roofs), electrical wiring, water supply and plumbing systems, sewage systems, storm water runoff systems, lighting systems, or components of such systems, building envelope, windows, ceilings, flooring, or doors.

To further encourage energy efficiency and the use of renewable resources in schools, the legislation would require a percentage of funds be used for school improvement projects that meet widely recognized green building standards. It would require that 100 percent of the funds go toward green projects by 2015 - the final year of funding under the bill.

The legislation now goes to the Senate for consideration.

NLBMDA News - Urging NIST an dALSC to Create Eco-Labeling Program

NLBMDA Urges NIST and ALSC to Create Eco-Labeling Program

Today, NLBMDA will be submitting comments in response to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) request for comments for possible revisions to the American Softwood Lumber Standard (PS 20-05). PS 20-05 is a voluntary product standard that provides for the uniform, industry-wide grade-marking and inspection requirements for softwood lumber and must be reviewed every five years. In its comments, NLBMDA is requesting that NIST, through the American Lumber Standard Committee (ALSC), create a voluntary eco-labeling program covering lumber products from the point raw materials from certified forests reach the production plant (where the chain of custody transfers to the producer of the lumber product) to the final grade stamp of the finished lumber product as it enters the distribution channel. This would be achieved by developing a sixth element to the current grade stamp, verifying that the raw material was derived from a certified forest management program. The authorized grade-stamp under PS 20-05 would include a mark or designation certifying the product attribute of sustainable forest origin, representing an important process innovation - an eco-forest origin certification for softwood lumber products and the corresponding agency-certified eco-label as part of the grade stamp under the current American Softwood Lumber Standard (PS 20-05).

NLBMDA believes that the lack of an on-product label will continue to create confusion in the marketplace as competing forest management certification programs proliferate and become more complex. NLBMDA will post its complete comments to NIST on its website, http://www.dealer.org/ on May 19.

NLBMDA News - Specter Floats Card Check "Compromises"

As expected, Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) has proposed several so-called "compromise" ideas to overcome the challenge of securing the necessary 60 votes to advance card check legislation in the Senate. One Specter proposal would allow mail-in union authorization cards, which theoretically protect workers' privacy in making their decision. In reality, the NLRB has already expressed concerns about the potential for interference and lower participation rates by potential voters than in secret ballot elections.

Specter's second proposal would include "last best offer" arbitration, in which arbitrators would impose contracts after comparing the employer's offer to other union contracts, not to nonunion counterparts. Dealers in Pennsylvania are encouraged to contact Sen. Specter ASAP to let him know that neither suggestion offers reasonable protection to workers and employers. Visit Build the Vote to send an email or print a letter to fax on your company letterhead.

Best Practices Wanted: Credit & Collections

CSA needs your help. We are compiling a "catch all" Best Practices Manual for A/R, COLLECTIONS AND CREDIT POLICIES. We are combining this information into a single source guide available to members.

Please take 10 minutes and help answer the following questions:

1. Do you have a credit policy? If so, please send in along with your credit application
2. How do you handle marginal accounts? Do you have a separate policy for marginal accounts?
3. Do you use a collection agency or attorney to collect debts?
4. When do you write off your accounts?
5. Do you use personal guarantees or joint check agreements?
6. Do you have a credit manager?
7. Do you have a call report system for A/R?
8. How do you track jobs that could be subject to liens? Do you include a policy for filing liens in a timely manner?

We're also looking for samples of the forms and form letters you use regarding credit and collections. Please submit electronically to lisagolden@gocsa.com or fax to the CSA office at 770-752-9726.

All samples will be stripped of identifying information before they are added to the guide.

Webinar: Navigating Bankruptcy: Protecting Yourself When a Customer Files

W E B I N A R
Navigating Bankruptcy: Protecting Yourself When a Customer Files for Bankruptcy
Thursday, June 4, 2009 from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (Eastern Time)
$139 per logged on computer

When faced with a customer’s bankruptcy it is important to understand not only your rights and remedies under the bankruptcy laws, but also the potential limitations on those rights and remedies. Knowing your rights will help improve the likelihood of a meaningful recovery on your claim in the bankruptcy.

Topics that will be covered in this one hour:
1) How to timely preserve a supplier claim against a bankrupt customer.
2) How to “perfect” your supplier lien without running afoul of the bankruptcy “automatic stay.”
3) How to assess whether a supplier’s claim is entitled to full payment under bankruptcy law (as opposed to pro rata payment with other creditors).
4) The advantages and disadvantages of participating in a court appointed committee of unsecured creditors.
5) When to expect, and how to respond to, a bankruptcy trustee’s demand for return of a customer’s pre-bankruptcy payments to a supplier.
6) Before a customer files bankruptcy, what steps, if any, can be taken to reduce the odds of receiving a bankruptcy trustee demand letter (or of actually getting sued by the bankruptcy trustee) for return of customer payments.

The presenter, Annie Catmull, of Walker, Wilcox and Matousek (located in Houston, TX and Chicago, Illinois) has considerable experience in the area of corporate reorganizations, on behalf of creditors and bankrupt companies. Her nationwide practice includes the representation of creditors ranging from “mom and pop shops”, to Fortune 500 companies, to the Enron Employee Committee. She was a speaker at the NLBMDA ProSales Industry Summit in 2008 on the subject of bankruptcy and the homebuilding industry.

Bankruptcy is a federal statutory scheme set forth in Title 11 of the United States Code.

Bankruptcy cases cannot be filed in state court. As such, this webinar will contain information useful to LBM dealers across the U.S.

The webinar is being hosted by Turnkey Programming. Prior to the webinar, you’ll be contacted by them with the webinar phone number and password, as well as instructions for logging onto the website to view the webinar live.


Click the registration form to enlarge, print and use it to register.

News You Can Use

Gov't expands housing plan, off to slow start
Source: Associated Press/AP OnlinePublication date: May 14, 2009
By ALAN ZIBEL

For the past two months Rose Inman hoped she could benefit from President Barack Obama's plan to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. Now it appears to be too late.
Aurora Loan Services is set to foreclose on her home overlooking Seattle's Puget Sound on Friday. Despite numerous calls, e-mails and letters, she says she's only been able to have one phone conversation with a company representative. Read more.



75% in Survey Think Worst is Over in Housing Slump
Source: The Dallas Morning NewsPublication date: May 14, 2009
By Steve Brown, The Dallas Morning News

Three out of four U.S. homeowners think the worst is over in the housing market.
And half of the homeowners in Southern states -- including Texas -- say home prices will stabilize in their areas in the next six months, according to a new survey by Zillow.com.
Researchers for the Internet real estate marketing company quizzed almost 1,400 homeowners around the country in early April about where they thought the housing market was headed. Read more.

From the National Association of Credit Managers (NACM)
FTC Releases "Red Flags" Template for Entities That Have Low-risk of Identity Theft
To help entities that have a low risk of identity theft – such as businesses that know their customers personally – the Federal Trade Commission has created a template that guides such businesses and organizations in developing written identity theft prevention programs to comply with the Red Flags Rule. “Create Your Own Identity Theft Prevention Program: A Guided 4-Step Process,” is available at www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/redflagsrule/get-started.shtm. The template has guidance and instructions that enable companies to complete and print the fill-in-the-blank form online. Under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003, the Rule requires many businesses and organizations to implement a written Identity Theft Prevention Program to detect the warning signs (“red flags”) of identity theft. By identifying red flags, these entities will be in a better position to spot an imposter trying to defraud them by using someone else’s identity to get products and services.

Find templates here.

Impressions from Roundtables

By: Jim Moody, CAE
President

We’ve just concluded roundtable season at CSA, and I’m left with a few nuggets I’d like to share with the full membership.

- While 2008 was a horribly bad year for many people, there are a handful of folks who actually showed a profit.
- Cash is king.
- The more leveraged your business, the greater the likelihood that you will not be around to see the housing recovery.
- People who maintained a heavy retail presence even when Lowes and Home Depot entered their marketplaces bucked conventional wisdom, and some people mocked them. Of course, Noah was mocked by his townspeople when he started building the ark, too. Now who’s laughing? It’s pretty clear that those who have a good retail presence are the winners in this economy.
- Receivables continue to be a problem for a majority of dealers. Many people, however, seem to have come through their own credit crisis and are now seeing improvement. They’ve written off the debt that is uncollectable and tightened up their policies to ensure they don’t get in the same situation again. I know of at least one dealer who cuts off credit for any customer who hits the 30-day mark. Your head is in the sand if you think this will go away on its own. If you have a growing receivables problem, your business has a terminal illness. I’ve heard people say that tightening credit will run off what little business you have, but if you are delivering material and not being paid, you don’t really have any business to begin with.
- I don’t think I ran across any dealer who hadn’t reduced their employee count, but I did run across several who had eye-opening experiences at their roundtables. They thought they had cut all the fat out of their employee ranks until they looked at the numbers from their peers and realized they could indeed cut more. If your employment cost is more than 60% of your total expenses, that’s a red flag that you need to consider making further reductions.

The staffing issue makes a good transition to another item I’d like to mention. I get a newsletter from Ruth Kellick-Grubbs. Ruth is a consultant in the industry and a good friend of CSA. She made a point recently that I thought was really important.

Many dealers are “holding on” during the storm, just waiting for the recovery. But none of us really know when the storm will abate. Yes, it does appear that the general economy is in the midst of turning around, but all of us understand that new home construction will lag the rest of the economy. Further, we don’t really know just how much boom there will be on the other side of the recession. Ruth suggests that you consider today’s market the new normal. You have to find a way to be profitable in today’s economy.

That’s easier said than done, but cutting payroll is a good place to start. It seems to me that for many dealers, there is still room to cut.

And that leads me to my final item this week. Since this column was such a downer, I thought I’d end on a humorous note, even though it does deal with staff reductions. I found this in Donald Cooper’s newsletter (http://www.donaldcooper.com/). Here, he relates a story about how NOT to lay people off:

"At 4 p.m. one day last week, the fire alarm rang at a large office building in Singapore. All 5,000 employees rushed out of the building onto the street. A
loud speaker made the following announcement….

Dear Employees, with melting heart I am making this announcement that for many of you this will be your last evacuation drill. Due to the recession, we are laying off almost 50% of employees.

While moving back into the building, if your ID card does not work, then you are among those laid off and all your belongings will be couriered to you tomorrow. We followed this approach as we didn’t want to fill e-mail boxes with layoff mails and good-bye mails in thousands… and also to avoid any fight inside the office.

Hope you have a nice career ahead. Now, please move in and try your luck.”

Dream Again

CSA is partnering with lumber dealer associations nationwide in an effort to promote home ownership, construction and remodeling. As published in the March 20, 2009, Random Lengths report, the following positive market conditions illustrate why we believe that now is the perfect time for the American public to DREAM AGAIN.

1. Affordability of both homes and building materials are now at an all-time high
2. Existing home sales are rising
3. There is an abundant supply of homes from which buyers can choose
4. There are some amazing incentive programs now available federally and through various local and state governments
5. Interest rates are at all-time lows

We believe lumber dealers and suppliers can play a vital part in educating the public that now would be a terrific time to build a new home, buy a home that is on the market, or finally build that long-desired room addition or garage.

> An electronic version of the DREAM AGAIN poster for reproduction
> Sample editorials that you can personalize and send to your local paper
> Sample display advertisements for local newspapers and publications
> Sample bill-stuffers that can be copied, cut, and used with invoices.
> Suggestions on how to have the posters printed

CSA is providing your company with this free DREAM AGAIN kit. Included in the kit are:

Starting May 15, and running through the summer of 2009, the campaign will be nationwide and anticipates that every local lumber yard and their suppliers will take part in just a small way. Because we have dealer-members and associate- members in every significant city in the United States, we corporately possess amazing public relations strength if we all act together towards the same end.

It is our hope that each of you will participate by doing the following in your local communities:

> Print and display the poster in your stores and in your cities
> Personalize the editorial and/or display ads for use in your local newspapers and publications
> Print, cut, and include the statement stuffers in all your mailings over the summer
> Consider placing the poster or display ad on billboards or advertising on buses, benches, etc.

As your association we will, of course, be available to help you with this promotion. Professional printers can create full-color posters using the electronic files that are available with the DREAM AGAIN kit. Posters can be printed and mounted on foam boards for under $40.00 at Kinko’s at http://fedex.com/us/office/.

Sincerely,

Jim Moody, President
Construction Suppliers Association

News You Can Use

Remodeler-Focused Dealer Rises From Ply Mart's Ashes
Georgia's Mahaffey brothers are back in business with PMC Building Materials
Source: PROSALES Information ServicePublication date: May 13, 2009
By Andy Carlo
Have you wondered what ever happened to Randy and Rich Mahaffey, the Georgia brothers who led Ply Mart when it became ProSales' Dealer of the Year in January 2007 and were pretty much out of business 18 months later? Like Atlanta's symbol, the phoenix, the Mahaffeys have returned to the construction supply business as the force behind PMC Building Materials in Marietta, Ga. Read more.

Slide in U.S. Home Prices Slows in March
Integrated Asset Services, LLC, a leading provider of end-to-end mortgage services solutions, today released its latest IAS360™ House Price Index. Based on the timeliest and most granular data available in the industry, the benchmark index showed national house prices falling another 1.0% in March.

The March numbers come on top of a 3.0% drop in February and a 3.5% plunge in January, the index's worst single-month decline ever. On a year-over-year basis, U.S. house prices are now down 13.9%, with a full 10.7% coming since September when the economy began unwinding. IAS360 reports prices down 17.7 % from the height of the real estate bubble in 2006. Read more.

Evidence piling up that worst of recession is over
Source: Associated Press/AP OnlinePublication date: May 8, 2009
By JEANNINE AVERSA

Evidence is piling up that the worst part of the recession has ended. But that doesn't mean the pain is over.

A better-than-expected unemployment report Friday - job losses declined to the lowest level in six months - capped a week of encouraging news, including firmer home sales, a revival in consumer spending and fresh optimism about the biggest U.S. banks. Read more.

Professional Remodelers Key To Earning Energy-Efficiency Tax Credits
Homeowners now can claim up to $1,500 in expanded energy-efficiency tax credits for remodeling their principal residence to reduce energy consumption. Available until the end of 2010, the revamped Existing Home Retrofit Tax Credit (25C) tax credit helps consumers save two ways: on their costs and on their ultilty bills.

"Remodelers can help find the best methods of saving energy in your home with an assessment, like a home energy audit," explained NAHB Remodelers Chairman Greg Miedema, CGR, CGB, CAPS, CGP, a remodeler from Tucson, Ariz. "Tightening the house to reduce air leakage by adding insulation, fixing ducts, and installing a more efficient heating and air conditioning system can help save on energy bills today while also reducing next year's tax bill." Read more.

There will be wind: Hurricane forecast sees increase in 2009
The upcoming 2009 hurricane season is expected to be more active than average, according to an expert forecast.

The number of named storms from June 1 to Nov. 30 -- the official hurricane season -- is expected to be 12, compared with the average of 9.6. The findings were announced at the Honeywell Generator booth (#33334) during the National Hardware Show.

Of six major measurements of hurricane activity, four are expected to surpass historic averages. The only metric where a decline in activity is forecast is "intense hurricanes," which is forecast at 2, down from 2.3. Read more.

National Geographic Debuts Line Of Energy-Efficient Hybrid Outdoor Lighting
National Geographic has introduced a new line of energy-efficient outdoor lighting, called the Preserve Our Planet Hybrid Lighting Collection. The collection is available exclusively at LAMPS PLUS, the nation's largest specialty lighting retailer. With green features that enhance the quality of the lamps, the collection offers an eco-friendly solution to outdoor lighting, as it promotes energy conservation, home safety and cost-efficiency. Read more.

LP Recalls Composite Decking
Source: PROSALES Information ServicePublication date: May 13, 2009
By Craig Webb

Louisiana-Pacific Corp. (LP) has launched a voluntary recall of 48 million linear feet of composite decking that can deteriorate prematurely and unexpectedly break, the federal Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) announced today. Read more.

Poetry Corner

The old man stood at the Pearly Gates, his face was scared and old
He stood before the man of fate for admission to the fold
“What have you done” Saint Peter said “to gain admission here?”
“I was in the lumber business for many a many a year.”
Saint Peter lifted up his arm and gently rang the bell.
“Come in and choose your harp, you’ve had your share of hell.”

From Brian and Sam your association Credit Card Guys

Hiring Well is Key to Growing Business

By Jim Moody, CAE
CSA President and CEO

Last week I mentioned the importance of hiring well and gave a pretty egregious example of hiring gone wrong. Today, I’d like to shift gears and talk about what it means to hire well.

I’m not talking about the basic HR functions. Things like ensuring you ask only legal questions in the interview, following through with drug tests and background checks, getting them to sign the employee handbook and the like are all important aspects of hiring. The truth is, however, that this is the easy part. You can be compliant and still preside over a band of idiots (and I say that in the nicest possible way). How much thought have you put into ensuring that your staff is as focused as you are on making the business successful?

I recently had an opportunity to listen to Jim Collins talk about “the people issue.” Collins wrote “Built to Last” and “Good to Great” out of research that he and his students at the University of Colorado conducted. Unlike many books written by business professors, these are very readable. I encourage you to read them or at least read the summaries .

Here are some of the points I heard him make that I thought really applied to hiring and managing employees in our industry.

- Hire clock makers, not time-tellers.
- Work is infinite but time is finite. Make sure your folks are know how to determine the important things.
- A great organization is likely to die from indigestion caused by too much opportunity rather than from starvation of too few ideas. It is far better to be great at our foundational tasks than to be always chasing something new.
- First who, then what. Building and developing the right people are the keys to business success. If you are the only person who can “think,” then the business is limited to how hard you can work. Even the greatest workaholic only has 24 hours in the day.
- Turbulence is your friend. It exposes strengths and weaknesses. Success during turbulent times is directly related to your actions in prior good times. (It’s a little late to do anything about this one now, but it’s an important point to keep in mind when times are good again.)
- Those who do better in unpredictable times aren’t better at predicting. They realize they can’t possibly predict uncertainty. The best way to prepare is to have the right people on your team. Companies that went from great to good to bad to irrelevant to dead had one thing in common: a high percentage of key seats in the company held by ineffective people.
- People either share your core values or they don’t. They can’t be taught. Someone with a poor work ethic may be able to hide it for awhile, but eventually it comes out. A corner-cutter is always a corner-cutter.
- The “right” people do not need to be tightly managed. That’s not to say that they don’t need to be trained or mentored. But, with good instructions and training, the “right” people will do the job better without being micromanaged. If you are a micro-manager because you feel that you have no other choice, you’ve made poor hiring decisions.
- “Right” people don’t have a job; they have responsibilities. For them, job descriptions are somewhat irrelevant. They understand the concept of doing whatever it takes, and you don’t have to explain it to them.
- The “right” people have only one response to a commitment: fulfillment. They carry through on what they say they will do without you harping on it.
- The “right” people have a passion for your business. You can’t create that in them. You might motivate them with a reward for awhile, but you can’t create passion. It’s intrinsic.

Do you have the “right” people in your key seats today? If not, what are you going to do to get the right people there? When it’s time to hire again, how can your interviews help you discern who is “right” and who is not?

I know that it’s easy for me to talk about this when I don’t have to walk a mile in your shoes. I don’t know what it’s like to have sales drop by 75%. I don’t know what it’s like to hire manual laborers at minimum wage. I don’t know what it’s like to have employees not show up for work on Monday because they are drunk, high or in jail. All that’s true. But what I do know is that we all want our businesses to thrive. We want them to be better next year than they are today. And when we once again are setting records for sales, we’ll still have goals for the company to do better.

And I know this: there has never been a better opportunity to re-make your company. And if you don’t put thought into it right now, you will find yourself with exactly the same company next year and the next. I encourage you to visit http://www.jimcollins.com/ for more on the importance of finding the right people, how to be a better leader (which is, in turn, more attractive to better employees), and how to take your company from good to great. The resources on that site are free.

NLBMDA Commends Congress for Rejecting Limits on the Mortgage Interest Deduction

From NLBMDA

The National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association (NLBMDA) commended the members of the House and Senate for rejecting an Obama Administration budget proposal that would have placed limits on the home mortgage interest deduction for higher-income wage earners. Opposition to the change was among the critical main issues NLBMDA members raised with their members of Congress during the association's annual Legislative Conference in March.

As originally proposed, the change, starting in 2011, would have impacted households with adjusted gross incomes of $250,000 and would only allow write-offs at a 28 percent marginal tax bracket rate. For example, someone in the 35 percent bracket that has $20,000 of mortgage interest, property tax and charitable deductions, which are all targeted in the budget proposal, would currently be able to write off 35 percent of the $20,000 -- $7,000. Capped at the 28 percent rate, the write off would shrink to $5,600.

"This proposal could have further depressed the housing market since potential buyers would have had to factor in lower tax benefits, which could have lead to further devaluation of homes and opened the door to further assaults on the mortgage interest deduction," said NLBMDA President and CEO Michael O'Brien.

The House and Senate Budget Committees included specific language in the budget resolution that they were not including the limits in the mortgage interest deduction. However, the issue many not be settled since Congress is still in the early stages of budget negotiations.

"NLBMDA members will need to remain vigilant and continue to contract their members of Congress to assure that this misguided proposal, which could severely dampen any housing recovery, is not enacted," said O'Brien.

Summer Management Conference: What Will You Do for Fun?

The North Georgia mountains offer a wide variety of recreational opportunities and you'll want to take advantage of it during our Summer Management Conference at The Ridges Resort & Club at Lake Chatuge. As they say on their website:

Every day at The Ridges Resort & Club Lake Chatuge offers new delights,
whether your preferred sport is golf or fly fishing. Your group can choose from
a wide range of activities including horseback riding, nature walks, or just
relaxing in our pool and hot tubs. Nearby, set off on a whitewater rafting or
kayaking adventure in the pristine Nantahala National Forest. Whatever your
interests, our team will help you create an enjoyable visit.

So what are all those recreational opportunities? Well, The Ridges has a list of them, including links to relevant information, here. Here's a taste....

Swimming Pool
Beach Volley Ball
Horse Shoe Pits
Badminton
Fitness Center
18-Hole Championship Golf Course
400-Slip Marina
Water Sports, Boating & Other Activities
Tennis Courts
Hiawassee River Trout Lodge (Private Trout Fishing Stream)
Lodge Fishing Pier (poles available at front desk)
Audubon-listed Wildlife Sanctuary
Outdoor Playground
Walking Paths
Recreation Options Nearby:
Appalachian Trail & Nantahala National Forest
Miles of Hiking Trails
Biking
Whitewater Rafting
Kayaking
Horseback Riding

Watch this blog for more details!

Bob Janet: Play by the Profit Club Rules

It's a numbers game...

Play by the Profit Club Rules and you will Win

It is impossible to sell anyone anything unless they know you sell what they need to solve their problems, needs and wants. So all you have to do is get your business, yourself in front of the prospect. The more they see and hear about you the faster you will make the sale.

Profit Club Rule # 1

Be more aggressive than your competition and differentiate yourself and your business from the competition. Your competition is contacting your prospects too. You must out-market them. Contact the prospect more often, in different ways with more value. You must be noticed and remembered.

Profit Club Rule # 2

You can contact prospects as often as you like as long as you are delivering value that will improve their lives / business. So you cannot just constantly ask them for the sale.

Profit Club Rule # 3

Third party recommendations. Everyone likes to buy where others have been successful buying. Ask your satisfied customers to recommend you to the prospects.

Profit Club Rule # 4

When contacting a prospect always make sure you show them what is in it for them to do business with you.

Profit Club Rule # 5

Market to your Perfect Prospects until they BUY OR UNTIL THEY DIE.Your Perfect Prospect is the customer you can make the most amount of money from with the least amount of cost (time and money cost).

Join Bob Janet's Profit Club

Bob Janet will be speaking at the CSA Summer Management Conference in July. Click here for more information about the Summer Management Conference.

Marvin's announces plans for new Georgia-based store

Marvin’s Building Materials and Home Centers announced plans to open a new store in Summerville, Ga. The store will soon be under construction at a vacant former Wal-Mart site and is expected to open in late July, the company said.

The store will feature a 37,000-sq.-ft. home center with an attached lawn and garden center and drive-through lumberyard. It will offer a complete line of building materials, electrical, plumbing, paint, millwork, hardware, tools, and lawn and garden products. Read more.

Georgia HB 482 Inventory Tax Relief

Gov. Sonny Perdue signed HB 482 into law this week, which gives hope for inventory tax relief in Georgia. Removal of this tax has been one of CSA’s top legislative priorities. The bill calls for a statewide referendum to vote the tax up or down. Unfortunately, the vote only pertains to the state’s portion of the inventory tax, which is 10-15% of the total inventory tax, depending on the county. The lion’s share of this tax is levied by counties.

If the referendum is successful, then our next priority will be to eliminate the county portion of this tax.

From NLBMDA Legislative Affairs Federal

NLBMDA Participates in Congressional Health Care Roundtable

With health care reform the next priority on the new Administration's "to do" list, debate is heating up on Capitol Hill. Half a dozen hearings have been held in the committees of jurisdiction over various aspects of the plan, and NLBMDA Director of Government Affairs Colleen Levine participated in a House Small Business Committee Democratic Roundtable on health care reform last week. Levine and other participants, including representatives from the National Retail Federation, National Association of Realtors, National Roofing Contractors Association and other industry and medical organizations, urged support for market-based reforms that increase competition and lower costs without imposing costly mandates on already struggling business owners. Read more.

Federal Budget Outline Passes Congress without Estate Tax Relief

The final House-Senate compromise on the FY2010 budget resolution passed last week on a largely party-line vote. Unfortunately, the Lincoln-Kyl estate tax relief included in the Senate-passed version was stripped from the final bill. Read more.

Specter Switch Encourages Card Check Supporters

While Sen. Arlen Specter's dramatic move to the Democratic party was coupled with a pledge to continue to oppose the Employee Free Choice Act, the switch gave new life to compromise efforts as labor continues to press for the 60 votes they need in the Senate. Read more.

Mortgage Cramdown Bill Defeated

A scaled-down mortgage "cramdown" amendment by Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) to a housing finance bill, which would have allowed bankruptcy judges to modify certain mortgages on primary residences issued prior to Jan. 1, 2009, failed in the Senate last week by a vote of 45 to 51. Read more.

NLBMDA ALERT: FTC Grants Three-Month Delay in Enforcement of Red Flags Rule

From NLBMDA

The Federal Trade Commission has announced another delay in its enforcement of the "Red Flags" Rule, which requires creditors to have Identity Theft Prevention Programs. The FTC is now delaying enforcement of the new rule until August 1, 2009, to give creditors additional time in which to develop and implement written identity theft prevention programs. The original deadline was November 1, 2008.

On November 9, 2007, the FTC published the final Identity Theft Red Flags regulations and guidelines. The rule, promulgated pursuant to the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA), requires creditors to develop and implement written "identity theft prevention programs." The programs must provide for the identification, detection, and response to patterns, practices, or specific activities - known as "red flags" - that could indicate identity theft.

The FTC apparently agrees with NLBMDA and several other trade groups that voiced concerns with the FTC regarding ambiguities in the new rule and the lack of specific guidance from the FTC for businesses that may extend types of credit to its business customers.

"Given the ongoing debate about whether Congress wrote this provision too broadly, delaying enforcement of the Red Flags Rule will allow industries and associations to share guidance with their members, provide low-risk entities an opportunity to use the template in developing their programs, and give Congress time to consider the issue further," FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said.

NLBMDA has prepared a sample Red Flags Compliance Program for LBM dealers, which can be downloaded here. Additional information on the rule can be found on the NLBMDA website, www.dealer.org, in the "Government Affairs" section. See the full text of the FTC release announcing the delay in enforcement at: http://www2.ftc.gov/opa/2009/04/redflagsrule.shtm. They have also now established a compliance site for businesses at http://www.ftc.gov/redflagsrule.

LBM's Best-Kept Secret

CSA’s mission is to build strong independent dealers. Probably the best way we do that is through our dealer roundtables. We have about 50 dealers participating now, and all of them can attest to how their business has benefitted. We have several seats open in our roundtables and are actively seeking more participants. Following is an article written by Chris Rader, an industry consultant and good friend of CSA. In the article, Chris explains why joining a roundtable is a good idea. If you want more information on CSA’s roundtables, contact lisagolden@gocsa.com

Investing a bit of money and time in a roundtable will give you one of the best returns you can make in today's market.

Source: PROSALES Information ServicePublication date: March 24, 2009
By Chris Rader

In the past, I've looked in-depth at such issues as reducing expenses or boosting profitability, but I haven't looked at investments. In particular, how should we invest our money and time?

One of the best investments for a dealer in today's uncertain economy is to build relationships with other dealers that are fighting the fight. I feel that the best investment for a dealer today is to join an industry roundtable; the best-kept secret in the industry.

On a recent consulting trip, I spent time with "Bob," an LBM dealer. Bob was not a large dealer by any means; his sales totaled just over $4 million annually. But he ran his operation like a powerhouse dealer doing well over $100 million.

I could not believe how well Bob did all parts of his business; sales, accounting, and operations. He was efficiently measuring deliveries, and knew what it cost him to make a delivery. His showroom was crisp (Are your showrooms crisp?) and he had a very knowledgable, highly motivated talented staff. I reviewed his financials for holes and opportunities and found ratios and ROI that would be the envy of many larger dealers. In this economic climate, Bob was putting dollars on the bottom line beyond 10%.

What did Bob know that others in industry do not know? So I asked him. Read the rest.

Position Available: Crack Heads and Felons Please Apply

Jim Moody
CSA President

One of the many enjoyable aspects of my job is serving as the head of our self-insured worker’s compensation fund. But this week, my enthusiasm has been sapped by a settlement mediation for a claim that should never have happened.

Back when things were blowing and going, one of our member companies hired a fellow without really putting too much thought into it. No interview with senior leadership. No background check. Just needed a warm body to do manual labor, and that’s exactly what they got.

Unfortunately, the new employee had some baggage. He was a three-time convicted felon. He had been a crack user for four years. He had two previous back injuries resulting in worker’s comp settlements. He failed two grades in school and never went beyond 9th grade. By his own admission, he was illiterate. Not long after he was hired (surprise, surprise), he injured his back.

The amount we’ve paid for that claim is significant, as is the settlement, but the amount is not the important issue here. What’s important is that this claim was set in stone the moment this fellow was hired. The negligence wasn’t on his part for getting injured; it was on the dealer for hiring him in the first place. How useful could this fellow have been as an employee? Did the owner really get a full day’s work for a full day’s pay? How did he affect morale on the yard? What kind of danger did he pose to other workers or the facility itself?

Admittedly, this is an extreme example (though it is no exaggeration). But I really worry about how this industry is going to hire people when the good times return. Many of you (perhaps all of you!) have spent the past year or so paring down your payroll. It’s my impression that you used the opportunity to jettison those who were slackers, unsafe workers, and generally poor employees. You’ve also lost many good folks, but the bad ones are long gone. We might say most of you have a clean slate.

I’ve had some people tell me that there are masses waiting in the wings to come back into the building supply business. I wonder if that’s really the case. The longer we go without a housing recovery (and let’s be honest, while the economy is probably going to start recovering in 2009, we aren’t going to see appreciable increases in new home starts until 2010), the more our best experienced workers get assimilated into other sectors of the economy. I fear that all the good ones have jobs and only the bad ones are ready to come back when you have jobs for them.

As a leader in your business, now is the time to think about how you will hire when new positions are available again. Just as important as the hiring is the orientation, where you have the opportunity to educate the employee about his job and the industry, give him his first taste of corporate culture, and indoctrinate him on safety.

Most of us spend far too little time thinking about these things because we are too busy. Yet, few things are more important in setting us up for success or failure.

I recently attended a seminar with Jim Collins, author of “Good to Great” and “Built to Last.” I’ve written about him before and urge you to read his books. Next week, I’ll discuss some of the things I heard Collins say as it relates to hiring.

News You Can Use

Consumer Confidence Index Surges in April
The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index™, which had posted a slight increase in March, improved considerably in April. The Index now stands at 39.2, up from 26.9 in March. The Present Situation Index increased to 23.7 from 21.9 last month. The Expectations Index rose to 49.5 from 30.2 in March.


New Single Family Home Sales Edge Down in March, But So Do Inventories
Sales of new one-family houses in March 2009 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 356,000, according to estimates released last Friday by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This is 0.6 percent below the revised February rate of 358,000 and is 30.6 percent below the March 2008 estimate of 513,000.


2009 Annual Rankings of Housing's Giants Now Available
Professional Builder has released its annual list of the largest homebuilders. This year's list contains the top 350 companies.

Check it out now at housingzone.com


Activant Announces Next Generation LBM Business Management Solution
Activant Solutions Inc., a leading provider of lumber and building materials business management solutions, has introduced Activant Catalyst™ technologies, business management solutions that provide larger Lumber and Building Materials (LBM) dealers quick and easy access to the tools and information they need to effectively run their businesses. These new solutions combine Activant's functionally rich LBM business applications with Microsoft's easy-to-use .NET framework. The Activant Catalyst solution offers LBM dealers an intuitive user interface and advanced workflow in a tightly integrated package.


Is It Time to Load Up on Homebuilder Stocks?
Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine recently ran an article that discusses whether the timing (and pricing) is right to buy homebuilder stocks. The story urges caution, but lists the builders with the brightest prospects.
Read the story here