Vol. 15, No. 19 - September 25, 2009
8150 Leesburg Pike, Suite 700, Vienna, VA 22182
703-242-4670; Fax 703-242-4675
www.csaaintl.org

This issue of the CSAA Signals is brought to you by our sponsor:

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Table of Contents

• CSAA and Bold Technologies Announce Partnership
• Don't miss the CSAA Sales Webinar
• CSAA 2009 Annual Meeting Reminders
• Take a Friend to Lunch on Us!
• Exclusive CSAA 2009 Annual Meeting Lounge – Athens
• Reminder: CSAA BY-laws Change
• 2010 Annual Meeting Survey

CSAA and Bold Technologies Announce Partnership
to Promote Industry Excellence

The Central Station Alarm Association (CSAA) and Bold Technologies (www.boldgroup.com) have established a partnership to promote industry excellence through Bold's sponsorship of CSAA’s Five Diamond Certification. Bold's Business Development Director Chuck Speck was on hand at the 2009 CSAA Fall Operations Management Seminar in Addison, TX to make the announcement.

“Bold is committed to ongoing excellence and the betterment of the Security Industry.  This program opens doors for Central Stations of any size to achieve a distinguished honor and encourages industry involvement and awareness. The Five Diamond Certification promotes higher standards in our industry and is something we can readily stand behind,” said Speck. 

Under this new program, Bold will remove the financial barrier by sponsoring the Central Station’s training efforts and consult with them as they work toward achieving Five Diamond Certification.  Bold will take on the cost of training associated with having the operators achieve these standards for all new Manitou customers. 

“This joint effort was conceived with the intention of taking the burden off of Central Stations as they outline the future of their businesses.  The thought process was that if their efforts are to improve the community, we share that goal and we would love to be a part of it,” added Speck.

CSAA Executive Vice President Steve Doyle was pleased with the collaborative program.  “This is a very enlightened and forward thinking approach that Bold has taken in helping our nation’s central stations raise the bar for operator training standards.  This is precisely the sort of cooperative effort that propels our industry forward with new programs and new initiatives.  We applaud Bold for their creative thinking in ways to help us help ourselves,” said Doyle.

Alarm Detection Systems has seen the benefits of this program, and their Operations Manager Rick Raper had only positive things to say about their experience, “We try to set our standards very high and being Five Diamond allows us to exceed those standards.  It keeps our operators up to date and the training courses are very beneficial.  The courses set a high bar and really give the operators a sense of accomplishment.”  Raper also pointed out that their operators proudly wear the CSAA Certified Operator badge that they received once they complete their training on their sleeve.

CSAA’s Five Diamond Program is a balanced certification program designed to achieve differentiation in the marketplace.  It is awarded to Central Stations who commit to the Five Points of Excellence, as defined by CSAA: a commitment to random inspections by 3rd parties such as UL or FM, commitment to highest central station levels, commitment to ongoing job-related training, commitment to participating in CSAA Membership and its activities and commitment to false alarm reduction.  There are currently just over 100 Central Stations who have received the certification, the first being awarded in 2003.

Don't miss the CSAA Sales Webinar
It's on Us!

Don't miss Bob Harris' blockbuster webinar on increasing your net profit. The seminar providse solutions to the situation explored in an article in the latest issue of the CSAA Dispatch, "The Truth Hurts."

Bring your whole sales team or anyone with customer services responsibilities. The free webinar will take place on Thursday, October 8, at 1:30pm - 3:00pm ET.

It is easy to participate -- all that is needed is a computer and a phone or a audio-enabled computer. There is no limit on how many people can participate from your company.

Below is the information to register to this webinar. Feel free to forward this information to others in your company.

• Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/622385514. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.
  
  System Requirements:
  PC-based attendees: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista
  Macintosh®-based attendees: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

If you have any questions about this webinar, please contact Celia Besore at 703-242-4670, Ext. 16 or communications@csaaintl.org.

CSAA 2009 Annual Meeting Reminders

With about one month to go to the start of the CSAA 2009 Annual Meeting in Athens, we want to provide you with a few reminders:

• Double check your passport to make certain that it is valid.  Remember that Greece requires that it be current for at least three months after the end of your stay.
• Make sure that you have received a confirmation of your registration for the meeting. (Letters were sent to all registrants. NO separate confirmations were made for tours.)
• Make sure that you have received a confirmation from the Grande Bretagne and that the arrival and departure dates correspond to your actual airline schedule.
• Get a seasonal flu shot.  There is a heightened sense of awareness of this year’s flu season.  Travel prepared.  
• Get prescriptions filled and bring an adequate supply with you to cover your travel schedule.  
• Greece is part of the European Economic Community and, therefore, uses the Euro for its currency.
• No irons are permitted in hotel rooms in Athens.  The hotel does have a valet service.
• The average high temperature over our meeting dates is 70 degrees F and the average low is 55 degrees F. You will need a sweater or light jacket for tours.

Take a Friend to Lunch on Us!

Don't forget to participate in CSAA's two-hour LUNCH BREAK Telethon each day from October 5 - October 9, 2009! It’s simple, it’s fun and it only takes two hours. In addition, CSAA is conducting a Member-Get-a-Member campaign until the end of the year.

Every time one of your referred colleagues join CSAA, we will send you a $100 gift certificate. How much “lunch money” can you get? The sky’s the limit.

Want some help with talking points? Contact Becky Lane, CSAA’s Director of Membership, at blane@csaaintl.org or 703-242-4670 x 18 for assistance and additional information, including names and phone numbers of interested contacts. We will assist you with the benefits and will forward you the appropriate membership application form.

Exclusive CSAA 2009 Annual Meeting Lounge – Athens

Looking for a place to meet up with friends before dinner, or a place to speak with a colleague about business?  CSAA has a special lounge area in the Grande Bretagne, exclusive to CSAA Annual Meeting attendees, on nights when no group activity is planned. This will allow our attendees to meet without the peak hour crowds of the hotel bar. No waiting in line.  Just charge what you order to your room.

This special CSAA Lounge will be in the hotel’s Royal Room and will be available during the following times:

• Friday, October 16 - 4:30pm – 7:30pm
• Sunday, October 18 - 4:30pm – 8:00pm
• Tuesday, October 20 - 4:30pm – 8:00pm

Be sure to attend the Opening Reception on Saturday, October 17, the Theme Night Dinner on Monday, October 19 and the President’s Dinner/Dance on Wednesday, October 21.  Pick-up your on-site program at registration for locations and times.

Reminder: CSAA BY-laws Change

In order to facilitate the widest voting participation of the previously announced by-laws change (see www.csaaintl.org/signals/csaa_signals_vol_15_no_17.htm#bylaws), the primary representative of each North American company has been sent a ballot by mail where the company can vote for or against the by-laws change.

The change to the CSAA By-laws will be voted on at the 2009 CSAA Annual Meeting during the CSAA General Membership Meeting on Monday, October 19, 2009. If you are not attending the CSAA Annual Meeting, don't forget to send your ballot by close of business Friday, October 9, 2009.

For an annotated version showing current and proposed version, visit www.csaaintl.org and click on the appropriate link on the “Hot News” section or click here.

For any questions, please contact CSAA Executive Vice President Steve Doyle at sdoyle@csaaintl.org or at 703-242-4670, Ext. 13.

2010 Annual Meeting Survey

CSAA First Vice President Ed Bonifas recently sent a letter and survey to each of the CSAA member primary contacts asking for their feedback on the location for next year's CSAA 60th Anniversary Annual meeting.

Many thanks to those companies that already returned the completed survey. While we have received many response, we want to hear from you!.

If you have not sent your survey yet, please take one minute to assist us to make this important decision by downloading and completing the survey linked below and faxing it back to Ed Bonifas at 630-299-1159. As mentioned before, TODAY is the deadline.

• 2010 CSAA Annual Meeting Survey

Thanks in advance for your help.