November 2–3, 2007 Gamma Theta chapter at the University of Missouri - Rolla hosted more than sixty HKN members from nine chapters across the country for a student leadership conference entitled "Leadership for a New Century."
The conference kicked off Friday evening with a welcome pizza party and an enthusiastic game of HKN Jeopardy. Chapters competed against each other to answer HKN trivia and ECE basics. It was a great ice breaker and the winners enjoyed their candy prizes.
Saturday included a full day of panels and keynote addresses. The morning started with an outgoing address by Joel DeBoer, Burns & McDonnell, who analyzed future laws of leadership by through comparisons to "Back to the Future." He coined the term Engileader — that an engineer must not only have technical capabilities but also leadership skills in order to succeed in the professional world — with the hope that it would one day be entered into Wikipedia and used in everyday conversation.
The group then broke into small groups for "Circuit Charades" and had a good laugh as each team acted out a common circuit for the group to guess the name. It took a lot of creativity and energy to perform in front of the large group but everyone was able to relax and meet HKN members from other chapters. Points were tallied and the winners received an "Easy Button" and a UMR mug.
Dr. Ann Miller gave the luncheon keynote address, "Leadership Lessons from Industry and Government." The students appreciated her insights into the real world and her stories of practical experience. Following lunch, the group regrouped to hear Matt Bender, Dynetics, discuss "Adapting to Changing Technology." Matt's primary message was to never stop learning. For engineers especially, it is important to keep up with the latest trends and technology to succeed.
Three afternoon breakout sessions broke the participants into smaller groups. Russ Harrison, IEEE, discussed public policy. His session was one of the favorites from the conference as attendees got to see engineering from a totally different, non-technical perspective. Elizabeth Johnston, Potentials Magazine, shared her insights regarding career management for a recent graduate. She discussed how to make a good first impression and techniques for portraying a professional demeanor. The third breakout session was run by Dr. Kevin Schneider, AdTran, who evaluated the differences between research and development, something many recent graduates contemplate when starting their job searches.
As always the Chapter Development Panel, led by chapter presidents from Outstanding Chapter Award winning schools, provided a dynamic discussion about successful chapter management. Recruiting, retention, fundraising, and member communication are key topics that affect every chapter. Interesting ideas were brainstormed and shared among the group and hopefully everyone was able to take home some new
ideas to implement in their home chapter.
The World of 2030 panel included distinguished professionals who offered a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences. The panel gave insights as to the problems they have faced in an ever-changing industry and discussed how to adapt to the new technologies that are developed daily.
Dr. Kevin Schneider, Chief Technology Officer, Adtran, closed the conference with his dinner keynote, "Keys to Success: Observations on the Attributes of Engineering Leaders." Dr. Schneider defines success as making a positive difference in some way; being respected by those who work for you, you work with, and you work for; enjoying what you do; and being recognized for your contributions. He expanded on the keys to success: communication skills; genuineness; dedication; awareness; a positive environment; the ability to make hard decisions; and the willingness to try something new, even if you might fail.
Thank you to the student organizers of this successful, insightful conference. The officers and members of Gamma Theta chapter were gracious hosts and planned an excellent conference on a timely topic important to all HKN members - leadership in the next century.
Thank you also to our generous sponsors - AdTran, Dynetics, Burns & McDonnell, and Garmin. Because of their support and the generous contributions of HKN alumni, there was no registration fee for student participants.