Please tell us what kinds of programs you would like to have during the upcoming year! We are here to serve you. As the new chair of the programs committee and on behalf of all its members, I would like your continuous feedback and your active participation. Please take a few minutes and share your opinions on:

• What did you like about IMC programs last year?
• What did you not like about IMC programs last year?
• What topics would you like to see covered in the upcoming year?
• Do you have any favorite speakers you'd like to hear from?

Also, if you would like to help out in any capacity -- large or small -- to help us put our programs together, we would love to have your participation. We can use greeters, facilities and equipment coordinators, and many other smiling faces. Come and have some fun with your peers!

-Azita Arvani, IMC Chapter Programs & Events azita@arvanigroup.com (310) 260-8558

We are pleased to announce that IMC Southern California will be hosting its first area breakfast beginning this September in Pasadena. Michelle Dortch, President of Acacia Leadership Consulting, has been elected V.P./Breakfast Chair. While details are still being worked out regarding date, time, location and speakers/events, things are being put in place to launch it this fall. If you are in the Pasadena area, please come and join in. More details will follow in our upcoming newsletters and mailings.

27th Annual Conference of Management Consultants
Reno, Nevada October 23-26, 2004

As an expert in your field, you know how critical it is to be knowledgeable and stay up to date on the latest trends, thinking, and regulations that govern your industry.

As a consultant, it's just as important to have the know-how and skills to build and run a successful, thriving practice. You develop professionally by your own experience and by learning how others do it. That's why we have confab. It's all about how to be better as a consultant.

This October is your opportunity to share "Up-to- the-minute ideas for your practice and your clients!" Please joine us to share knowledge and experience with management consultants at the IMC-USA National Confab 2004. Celebrating our 27th year, this highly respected professional conference is attended by management consultants from throughout the United States and Canada.

Mark your calendars now. Information can be found at www.imcusa.org. Members will be receiving registration in the mail.

In the very near future, one of the committees of the chapter will be conducting a survey of our readers, members and participants. We would be grateful for your participation and honest responsiveness. Since the chapter wishes to design its activities and offerings to you - the professional consultant to management - it is critical that we know what you want, what will serve you best and how things that we do can be improved. So, please, when you are contacted with the survey do your best to bring us up to date on you, your practice, your interests, things we could be doing better, things we should discontinue. In essence, we want to know what will work for you!

IMC Southern California is considering upgrading our website to make it more user-friendly, useful for a variety of functions, and even more functional. If you are a designer who would be interested in helping us to accomplish this task, please contact our V. P. of Marketing, Dale DeHart. Our website is a critical communication tool for our constituencies and for our clients, so we would like it to be as useful and valuable as possible. You can contact Dale by telephone at (805)482-2170 x11 or by email at dale.dehart@sohoprospecting.com.

If you have been thinking about becoming a member of IMC, but have never joined, now is a great time to do so. Fees are pro-rated through the end of the year and the initiation fee has been waived, so it is a special opportunity. Get all the details at: www.imcusa.org/join.acgi.

Many people are attracted to the possibility of becoming a professional management consultant, but haven't the foggiest idea of how to get started and be successful doing it. Many people have asked the more experienced consultants in the chapter to mentor them through the start up period. Margaret Chock - one of our brightest, most educated and experienced consultants - has agreed to formalize a process whereby new IMC members can arrange to be mentored by experienced consultants in the chapter. CMCs and other qualified consultants will be the mentors - based upon criteria chosen by the new member. Look for all the details to be available within the next two or three months.

Bill Birnbaum, CMC, has authored, "Strategic Thinking: A Four Piece Puzzle." In this, his most recent book, Bill shares his lessons learned during 24 hears helping clients develop their business strategy. He offers techniques for:

• Achieving and maintaining focus
• Understanding and responding to markets and customers
• Leading people
• Managing both projects and processes

His anecdotal stories demonstrate:

• The three dimensions of success in launching any new product or service.
• Why every competitor - other than the market leader - must do something different.
• How one simple question can help you uncover the most important activities in any particular organization.
• When it's actually beneficial to manage by neglect. And why?
• Why the 80-20 rule works just 80 percent of the time. When to use it. And when not to use it.
• The significant difference between managing a process and managing a project.
• And which best fits any particular organization.

Bill's book is available from bookstores and on-line book sellers. For credit card orders, it's also available on his web site at: www.BirnbaumAssociates.com

It is the intention of the Board of Directors to communicate in the best possible manner with each of our newsletter readers, event participants and members. In order to do this well, we really could use your help.

At the very bottom left of this newsletter is a link "update your profile". When you read this, please scroll down and click on that link and update your information with us so that we have the most current contact information for you.

In the update section, you have the option of selecting which mailings you will receive from us, so that you can get all breakfast announcements, the notice about your local breakfast meetings, chapter meetings, or whatever you choose. Please help us help you by checking your information now.

We are looking for someone who would like to host our SFV/Ventura area breakfast meetings. Please contact Dennis McCue CMC if you are interested in helping with that!