Bill Sorel Portfolio Founder and Senior Advisor of TriQuest LLC

Who Am I? Experience exceptional results from a professional trainer, project manager, facilitator, and consultant with over 20 years experience developing thousands of people across the United States with the U. S. Postal Service. Complemented with a B.S. in Business Administration and an M.S. in Business with a concentration in Organizational Development, my track record includes the guiding, developing, facilitating and leading of successful teams like yours. TriQuest specializes in work with groups focused on continuous process improvement, skills training, and organizational development. Take a look at some of my many successes.

Collection Mail Process Improvement Inefficiencies in mail collection, transportation, and preparation 6 days a week from hundreds of post offices caused processing delays and inconsistent service performance. Past efforts to improve were never sustained. I coordinated the search for and replication of "best practices". I facilitated an executive team effort, organized and monitored implementation plans, provided operational analysis, and communicated progress to leadership. This resulted in improved service performance, reduced work hours, and increased operational performance. The District became a national service leader as a result of this effort. The team was awarded the Postmaster General/CEO Award for Excellence.

Vehicle Maintenance Process Improvement The Area Vehicle Maintenance Manager wished to raise his already national-best operations to the next level of performance and to develop standardized work processes. After consulting with management, I organized a leadership meeting of maintenance facilities managers and provided training to establish an understanding of process management and their role in implementing "best practices". The managers were able to organize an area-wide effort to initiate process management in four pilot sites. One team saved $80,000 in its first year and won the Postmaster General/CEO Award for team excellence. The team process management system was scheduled for national replication. This project was also a finalist for the USA/RIT Quality Cup Award honoring successful team efforts across America.

Automation Operation Improvement The District leadership needed to develop a process management system for a key automated equipment operation involving 20 supervisors and managers, over 100 operators and maintenance staff, and 15 large, sophisticated high-speed machines on three tours of operation. I organized the team, facilitated the development of the process management system, and conceptualized the approach to implement the system. I also integrated data collection and analysis in the operation, developed and delivered training to all employees in the system, monitored the application, and presented the results to management. This effort improved operational productivity and efficiency 20%, reduced operating costs, and improved the quality of the products and services generated. This same approach was applied to smaller mail sorting equipment in post offices across upstate NY.

Safety Observation Process The District leadership needed to reduce the number of accidents experienced. I persuaded management to develop a process to reduce/eliminate unsafe practices and conceptualized a program for improvement. I led a team in the creation of the Safety Observation Process. We developed and installed computerized tracking, integrated training, documented and analyzed data, communicated the results of safety compliance efforts and coordinated compliance reviews. We led the region with a renewed emphasis on prevention. The safety team was able to document training, data analysis, and the effectiveness of accident prevention activities in OSHA reviews. Bottom line, this effort significantly reduced accident frequency for the thousands of employees working in the Albany District.

Centralized Attendance Control As project manager, I organized, installed, and managed a centralized attendance control office that was staffed 24/7, 365 days a year using a computerized attendance management system. Our office handled call-ins for six plants and eleven large post offices that, in total, employed almost 4000 employees. We trained all management employees on use of the system, communicated the new call-in process to all employees, managed Family medical Leave Act (FMLA) requests, and actively worked with supervisors to manage leave abuse. In 2004, I transitioned our operation to a new, national automated call-in process entitled electronic Resource Management System (eRMS), a process still in use today.

Strategic Planning - Northeast Area The executive staff enlisted my help to develop strategic plans to improve organizational performance across the seven state region. I coordinated this effort in five sites across the Northeast Area with multiple teams of union, management association, and operations leadership. Organized the selection of skilled facilitators. I developed and delivered a three-day problem solving and planning tools training class. I also directed and implemented plans for the session in New York where I coached facilitators, consulted with team leadership, and intervened to resolve conflict. I coordinated an area-wide leadership proposal review, prioritization, and implementation. Teams produced over 100 proposals and were instrumental in improvements to wide-ranging operational efficiency, customer satisfaction, and employee participation. Most of the proposals were adopted or revised and implemented as the Northeast Area strategic plan.

Executive Development The organization leadership needed process management training to learn this state-of-the-art method of conducting business and to provide development for corporate succession planning. I consulted with management and reviewed and modified the existing curricula to meet the company's specific needs. I delivered the training class. Three of the trainees were promoted to Vice-Presidents within two years and they led major national efforts to continuously improve work processes, performance, service to customers, and sales.

Supervisor Development Leadership required an objective process to develop and train supervisor candidates. I led a team in the creation of a program to select, develop, and place supervisory candidates throughout the district. I led and facilitated the plan development, consulted with leadership and functional experts, negotiated key program tenets with management and stakeholders, and communicated the pilot process to management and interested employees. The program became the template for a widely acclaimed national effort, the Associate Supervisor Program. This process greatly improved the quality of supervisor candidates.

Training Course Development Perfect Presentations I developed this course to strengthen people with the skills to present professionally. Through this development class, your people are better able to present products, proposals, thoughts or initiatives with the confidence to succeed. With this course, TriQuest can train up to 8 people in a classroom. This highly interactive and fun 15 hour presenter training class can be scheduled to meet the flexible needs of the modern workplace. Each participant will receive a personal performance assessment and a post-course personal development plan. And what do people say about this training? D. Bennett says: "As a seasoned professional, it was worthwhile to have a refresher on the topic of public speaking, Being able to practice speaking techniques in a 'safe' place was extremely valuable.” A. Lattin comments: "I really struggled with feeling good about my presentations. I am leaving the course with significantly increased confidence and knowledge to do effective presentations in the future.“ K. VanAken adds: "When I came into the course the first day, I was very concerned about my presentation skills. Bill was extremely helpful and supportive and I leave the class feeling confident that I can give a professional presentation without the anxiety I had prior to taking the course. Thank you!”

Statistical Process Control Headquarters commissioned a team to develop a training course to enhance the analytical skills of quality professionals, introduce state-of-the-art business theory, and demonstrate the application of statistical tools used in Six Sigma management systems. As part of this team effort, we crafted a complex and intensive training course and educated quality specialists nationally. The team delivered a professional product applying organizational examples to the material. I received master instructor status for this course and trained specialists to effectively apply these tools to workplace improvement efforts. This training course, Statistical Process Control Tools, improved the professional staff's ability to analyze data, identify problems, and make effective management decisions based on this information.

Business Writing I developed and delivered Postalwrite, an 18-hour training course designed to improve the business writing skills of management employees. The class, recognized nationally, was tailored to meet operational management needs. Today, this training has a new name -Write Right! No matter what the situation, the ability to communicate professionally in writing is essential. For many, it's been a long time since we received formal training to write. The age of texting and s has only served to further diminish our skill levels. The class now offers business writing training for up to 10 participants designed to provide the foundation to improve. This 16 hour employee development experience can be tailored to any unique organizational need. Whether writing customer or client responses, project reports, s, employee evaluations, or standard operating procedures, writing professionally gives you an edge. What They Said: “The course is excellent, very informative for me. Bill kept my interest and, by listening to him, brought out what I am lacking in the field of writing and how to better myself.” – Walt F. “This was one of the most informative and enjoyable courses I have taken. The course and instructor were excellent.” – Brian S. “I enjoyed this course very much and found it to be a helpful start to improving my writing skills.” – Joe F.

Volunteer Activity United Way It is important to give back to our community and I used my knowledge and skills to successfully facilitate a summer recreation committee and provide training to not-for-profit organizations. Recreation Committee Town of New Scotland

Degree & Certifications

It Was An Honor…. Recognition for development of City Letter Carrier Training Program Provided by Kenneth Prentiss, General Manager/Postmaster, Albany Division, 7/87 Recognition for development and coordination of Automation Focus Groups Provided by J.T.Weeker, Albany District Manager, 6/25/91 Finalist, Great Idea Contest: Recognition for development of Postalwrite, an 18-hour business writing course. Presented by Elwood Mosely, Assistant Postmaster General, Training & Development, 7/92. Special Achievement Award for advancements in Quality Process & Management by Participation Presented by J.T. Weeker, Albany District Manager, 5/93 Exceptional Individual Performance Award Recognition for important contributions to the Quality Process Presented by Norm Lorentz, Vice President, Quality, 8/97 Recognition for Collection Mail/Operation 010 Improvements Presented by Albany District Manager Anderson Hodges, 10/97 Corporate Succession Planning Candidate Selected by Vice President, Great Lakes Area Operations, J.T. Weeker, 3/98 Recognition-Outstanding personal performance. Provided by Albany District Manager Anderson Hodges, 9/98 Recognition for Regional Vehicle Maintenance Improvements Provided by William Bothwell, NEA Manager, Delivery Programs Support, 11/98 Outstanding Merit Review Evaluations: 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992.