Forms Talk

Rx for Healthcare Forms Professionals

• Network with healthcare forms professionals to explore challenges, opportunities, similarities and differences.
• 1.5h q3 months via LiveMeeting
• Register online (FREE)
• Repeat as necessary

Prescribing member:
Sheila Bermiller, CFSP, Coordinator - BFMA Heathcare Industry Group

Join in a Healthcare Industry Group discussion July 15, 2008 from 10:00a to 11:30a (PST). Time is running out; register online TODAY to reserve your virtual seat! You will receive an eMail invitation with conference information prior to the meeting.

For more information regarding this group, upcoming events, or to suggest topics  please contact Sheila Bermiller.

Insurance, Finance and Government industry groups are being formed. If you are interested in taking a leadership role in BFMA and have experience in any of these areas, please contact Beth Curry, Director, Member Relations, for more information.

Tell me about the benefits

By: DJ Brown 
VP, Chapter/Member Relations

Someone may have asked you, what are the member benefits that BFMA has to offer? Well, let's just take a look at this topic...

The education, experience and networking found through BFMA can directly benefit anyone who has involvement with data capture and management. Of course, BFMA is a natural for those who design paper or electronic forms or processes. But it is also valuable for those who make decisions surrounding data management. They may help with database administration or web interface design and implementation. All of these individuals will find great value in the education and information offered by the very experienced presenters that BFMA offers. Truly, there is nothing else like BFMA anywhere.

In the coming issues of Forms Talk we will explore the specific benefits of being a BFMA member. Stay tuned! And, if you'd care to share, feel free to tag on here to share your favorite benefit.

Industry Groups on the Move

By: DJ Brown
VP, Membership

Industry Groups are under development! The currently established groups are Healthcare, Insurance, and Government. We would like to thank each of you who responded to the Industry Group survey. This information will help us develop programs that benefit you!

Industry Groups will facilitate communication amongst members with like experiences and needs. Each Industry Group will be moderated by a coordinator.

We would like to welcome Sheila Bermiller as the Healthcare Industry Group Coordinator. The next Healthcare Industry Group meeting will be held in July. For more information regarding this group and upcoming events, please contact Sheila Bermiller.

We saw exceptional participation in the Symposium hosted meetings for Insurance and Government groups. If you are interested in taking a leadership role in BFMA and have experience in either of these areas, please contact Beth Curry for more information.

Industry Talk

By: DJ Brown 
VP, Membership

Our first Industry Group meetings at Symposium in Las Vegas were a great success. We are working to develop event offerings that will provide BFMA members with opportunities to network and communicate with others in their industry.

We have received much feedback from our Industry Group survey that will assist us in this endeavor. If you were unable to complete the survey before, we would still like to hear from you! Click Here to Complete the Survey

We will continue to post upcoming events for the Industry Groups... so stay tuned!

Recognition Awards

By: Al Howick
VP Chapter & Member Relations

Submit your BFMA Member & Chapter Award Points now!

We want to celebrate and recognize your efforts and involvement in the forms industry and education, plus individual and chapter activities.   In May, as part of the 50th Anniversary celebration at Symposium Las Vegas, awards and recognition will be presented to selected recipients. 

You deserve to be recognized!  A recent email was sent to all members giving links on the BFMA Website to the appropriate application form for each award.  Individuals and chapters accumulate points for a wide variety of events and contribution in time and talent.  Submission for the Member Award Program and the Chapter Award Program can be emailed to aladd@mchs.com.  Recommendations for recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Awards (Joe Warner Award & Award of Excellence), Recognition of Excellence (In the Workplace & In Communication) and the Foundation recognition of Premier Chapter Educational Programming can be emailed to leaanne.fuchs@personix.fiserv.com.

Many members are not part of a local chapter but are very active in BFMA.  Please submit a point summary to Alice if this describes you.  Several of you have been long time members and know who has contributed to BFMA so you're well qualified to recommend Achievement winners to Lea Anne. 

Any questions - any confusion - contact Andy@BFMA.org or any member of the BFMA International Board.

Foster Student Involvement

By: Al Howick
VP Chapter & Member Relations

The recently announced new membership class for students provides chapters a whole new area for community involvement and educational sharing.  Read some ideas I have and then send me your ideas.  Together we will build the future of BFMA and get people to focus on the strategic issues related to forms management.

Where do you start?  The membership is available to full-time college students but that doesn't mean you can't engage with your local high school career centers.  Have you ever invited college bound seniors to a chapter event that features a program on a topic like process mapping or the strategic value of forms?  Most local schools are receptive to getting their students exposed to the "real world".  Another idea with students would be to have your BFMA members provide job shadowing opportunities at their company.

Do you have a local community college or 4-year institution in your metro area?  Often instructors welcome presentations as part curriculum from local business groups.  You can find out what courses may fit the expertise available in your chapter.  Keep an open mind - work flow, forms technology and strategy discussions apply to a wide range of academic fields.  What may be common knowledge - or common sense - to you is may be great insight to a student. 

Chapters should participate in these activities for two reasons.  First, to contribute to the community and the further education that is at the heart of BFMA.   Second, we really want to encourage college students to join BFMA and bring their ideas into our association.  They are the future of the workforce and of new technology.  Who better to gain knowledge from and share experience with than young adults currently in college?

Symposium for students!  Student members can attend Symposium with our discounted member rates.  Chapters can look at sponsoring student attendees with full or partial support to our 2008 event in Las Vegas.  Check with your local college to see if there are credit hours available for a student to attend this level of educational seminars.  It would be great to have a group of students from area colleges in Las Vegas participate in all or part of this year's Symposium.

Send your thoughts and suggestions for developing Student Member participation in your local chapter and at our national events.  Have a great month and hope to see you in Las Vegas - May 2008!

NW Chapter Events Calendar - February/March

By: Alice Ladd
Membership Council, Director of Chapter Relations

NW Chapter Events Calendar - February/March

All of the following meetings are located in Bellevue, WA at 5:30pm.

Meeting Date February 13, 2008 March 13, 2008

Topic Building and Maintaining Really Useful Websites without Knowing HTML    Excel, InfoPath, and SharePoint Integration

Speaker Rick Cordray, Image Technologies       Matthew Lonergan, Microsoft

Tami Bevan, CFSP, CFC 
BFMA NW Washington Chapter President 
Document Administration, Premera Blue Cross
Tel: 425-918-6038   Email: tami.bevan@premera.com
BFMA International www.bfma.org

New for Jan. 08 - Student & Alumni Memberships

By: Al Howick
VP Chapter & Member Relations

Are you - or do you know - a student studying technology or business process management?  Have you retired from the workforce and want to network / share your knowledge with people in similar industries?

College students taking a minimum of 8 credit hours can now become Student Members of BFMA for an annual fee of $50.  Retirees can now stay networked and share their knowledge as Alumni Members of BFMA for an annual fee of $50.

Anyone who is a current member and qualified in one of the new Member groups can pay the new annual fee at their next renewal.  All Student Members and Alumni Members will have full member benefits.  These include full access to Website resources and discounted registration to all BFMA educational events.

Student and Alumni members will find on-line training opportunities that do not require travel and provide information not available from any other organization.  BFMA uses on-line conference technology to connect people for discussions, education and industry focus groups.  This content supports the business and technology learning at the college level and keeps BFMA members and industry professionals knowledgeable about current trends.

Do not miss the training and networking events that are held face-to-face.  These include chapter events in many areas of the US - Institutes in Canada and the US - and the 'must attend' event, annual Symposium May 08 in Las Vegas.  Educational seminar sessions are paired with exposure to our many sponsors (see BFMA.org for complete details).

Sign up now!  This is so new that the membership application has not been updated yet.  Just identify which of our three membership groups you qualify in - Standard, Student or Alumni.  Contact headquarters or any of the Board members with questions.

Meetings, Meetings...all around

By: DJ Brown

Membership Council, Director of Member Relations

Were you there with us? In the last few months, local and region meetings were the happening event for BFMA members! I was so glad to have the opportunity to meet many of you during the meetings. The exciting news is that for most of these meetings we used the online Live Meeting technology. So how did you like the new meeting format and content?

We conducted meetings at the Chapter level and at the Region level. There are many existing active chapters and many chapters revitalizing their activity throughout the various regions. We are working with the Region Coordinators to help these chapters hold local meetings in person and/or online. Have you heard from anyone in your area or from your Region Coordinator yet? We are also working at the Region level to allow those in areas with no local chapter to participate in regular meetings. Eventually these Region areas will resemble the standard chapter structure. The goal is to help you participate by bringing this information and these opportunities to YOU!

Why do some of these meetings overlap? Well, there will be Region meetings for each Region - even if they have active chapters. This allows you to connect with others in your general area of the country and to communicate with your Region Coordinator.

All BFMA members are welcomed to attend any other Region or Chapter meeting. Isn't that a great opportunity!  So watch for topics, demonstrations and presentations posted in the upcoming events of the Newsletter that interest you. Can't find what you're looking for - let us know and we'll get one scheduled!

We will talk to you soon!

Defining Chapter Board Postions...so what do you need me to do?

By: Alice Ladd

Membership Council, Director of Chapter Relations

In follow-up to the Regional and Chapter meetings that DJ Brown had mentioned; we at Membership Council wanted to share some excerpts from the BFMA Operating Guide as well as the Chapter Formation Guide. I encourage each member to review the articles and see how you can develop your membership.

The Chapter President manage and provide general leadership and direction to the functions of the BFMA Chapter, coordinate Chapter communications within the Association and officially represent BFMA locally within the professional community. Some of the duties include but are not limited to:

1.      Coordinates all administrative functions necessary to form the chapter.

2.      Appoints all chairs of committees.

3.      Leads the members in setting objectives and preparing for chartering.

4.      Presides at all meetings of the chapter.

5.      Communicates formation activities to the Regional Vice President and Association Headquarters.

The Chapter Vice President serves as the second highest elected officer of the Chapter. In the absence of the Chapter President, the Vice President shall perform the duties of the Chapter President. Some of the duties include but are not limited to:

1.      May direct the activities of one or more committees during the formation process.

2.      Performs all duties assigned by the President Pro Tem.

3.      Performs the duties of the President Pro Taem in their absence.

The Chapter Secretary serves to receive record and maintain all Chapter records. Maintain necessary correspondence as required for the proper functioning of the Chapter. Some of the duties include but are not limited to:

1.      Records and maintains minutes of chapter formation meetings.

2.      Receives and counts votes on all matters on which voting is required.

3.      Maintains a mailing list of members, potential members and Association members.       

              

The Chapter Treasurer serves as the financial officer of the Chapter. Receive, disburse, retain and account for all moneys from sources outlined in the Chapter Bylaws. Some of the duties include but are not limited to:

1.      Establishes and maintains bank account to handle funds during the chapter formation period (see Section H).

2.      Maintains records showing details or receipts and disbursements.

3.      Receives and reconciles bank statements.

4.      Collects payments for luncheons or dinner meetings.

5.      Prepares treasurers report for presentation at meetings of the chapter.

Our Regional and local Chapters will be holding elections soon, perhaps this is the time that you can volunteer at the Chapter level and become a member of the board. This type of commitment is a wonderful opportunity for you to gain experience, exposure and awareness of what it means to be on a board. Ultimately the decision is yours and how you wish to serve. BFMA is always looking for members who are ready to move onto the BFMA International Board, in other words the sky is the limit!

Got a question? Want to know more? Contact the Membership Council and we will be glad to help.