ASM Strategic Plan

ASM Strategic Planning ReportSummary of Key Results

As of July 19, 2016

About this report

In June 2016, the ASM Trustees, key staff members, and invited guests met for ASM’s annual strategic planning meeting. This report contains the key results of that meeting, which will inform ASM’s Strategic Plan, as well as ASM’s FY 2017 Annual Operating Plan.

The Trustees and staff are building upon the results in this report as they finalize the ASM Strategic Plan. The Plan is scheduled to be completed by January 23, 2017, when the directions and initiatives detailed in this report will be operationalized by the FY 2017 Annual Operating Plan. The FY 2017 AOP will provide bottoms-up descriptions of programs and timeframes and identify sources of revenue against resources, with full projected P&L, Balance Sheet, and Cash Statement for 2017.

The FY 2017 AOP will also provide bottoms-up views of 2018 and 2019 deliverables in fulfillment of the ASM Strategic Plan. Bill Frazier, ASM’s President, is leading this effort in partnership with Bill Mahoney, Managing Director, and with support from ASM’s Management Team.

Contents

The report contains:

• A summary of key results

• An analysis of past ASM Strategic Plans: 2002 to present, completed by Bill Frazier, then ASM Vice President (as of July 2016).

• Strategic planning results organized into three topics of importance to ASM’s future:

• Enhance Full-Paid and Student Membership

• Exemplify Technical Excellence

• Establish Strategic Collaborations and Partnerships

• For each topic, this report contains:

• A big, hairy, audacious goal (BHAG) that defines the future state that ASM aspires to achieve.

• Objectives that define quantitative, time-based achievements ASM should achieve in pursuit of its BHAG

• Challenges associated with achieving the objectives.

• Action plans for overcoming the key challenges and achieving objectives

Strategic Planning Summary of BHAGs, Objectives, and Action Plans – 2016-2017

Membership Technical Excellence

Strategic Collaborations and

Partnerships

BHAG ASM membership is the obvious choice

for anyone interested in materials

ASM will be the recognized world leader

for materials information!

ASM will expand its strategic

partnerships and collaborations in

order to provide enhance value.

Objectives • Enhance Full-Paid and Student

Membership

• Enhance membership diversity

• Enhance member engagement

• Increase the speed and volume of

content creation and its dissemination.

• Establish ASM as the “thought leader”

in emerging engineered materials

• Enhance content accessibility

• Facilitate member-to-member

technical interactions

• Increase partnerships with

manufacturing institutes

• Increase partnerships with other

materials data providers

• Increase education courses offered

with partner Societies

Action Plans We will:

1. Provide enhanced resources of value

to students transitioning into the

work place and existing working

professionals

2. Unlock the value of ASM Content

and redesign the website for

usability and access.

3. Expand and strengthen the technical

content offered by ASM.

4. Create a tailored membership model

to encourage non-material

professional participation.

5. Improve ASM brand identity and

awareness

We will:

1. Develop a new, sustainable business

model for technical product creation

and delivery.

2. Implement streamlined content

management and delivery

infrastructure and processes.

3. Establish a (Wiki-like) member driven

content creation and review process.

4. Publish authoritative technical reports

(bi-annually) on emerging

technologies.

5. Implement tools that members use to

connect, collaborate and share real

world advise with peers.

We will :

1. Engage with the national network

of manufacturing institutes in

order to provide value added

content.

2. Assess the needs of our potential

strategic partners in order to build

win-win relationships.

3. Partner with key sources of

materials data.

4. Evaluate business models for

providing open source materials

data.

G:\Executive\Strategic Planning\2016-2017\ASM Objectives 2016-2017

An analysis of past ASM Strategic Plans: 2003 to 2015

This analysis shows a constancy of purpose and little change in the ASM mission, vision, values, and critical issues

Enhance Full-Paid and Student Membership

BHAG and Objectives

BHAG:

ASM membership is the obvious choice for anyone interested in materials.

Objectives: 1. Double full-paid membership

• In 5 years in US

• In 2 years globally

2. Achieve 80% active member engagement in 5 years

3. Increase diversity in disciplines, gender, age, and industries in 1 year


Most Critical Challenges

• Lack of clear identity or branding awareness

o (e.g., Does ASM sell books?)

• Lack of user-friendly website for delivering products & services to members

• Limited ability to access students via:

o “Material Advantage” student program

o Collaborative activities with other societies

• Inadequate view/transparency of ASM and the benefits they offer as a professional organization

• Lack of non-metal focus areas

o Both a reality and the perception of others


Action Plan 1:Improve outreach and access to students


Key Approaches/Tasks Metrics Timeline Funding Ownership

Converse with Material Advantage (MA) group to

discuss key ASM challenges, propose solutions to

measure and increase membership conversions

Determine metrics to

measure membership

conversions

Cost equivalent of

staff time

Identify ASM champions within universities that have

MA chapters or materials science and engineering

programs

Recommend professional societies suited to mutually

beneficial collaborative activities

Total the number of

champions

Cost equivalent of

staff time

Drew Fleming

Form an ASM student committee to support State Board

of Trustees (SBOT) initiatives

Acquire approval from

Board to form student

committee

1 month Cost equivalent of

staff time

Drew Fleming

Engage students by developing programs and metrics

within local chapters

Convert students via ASM International Leadership Days

events

Cost equivalent of

staff time

Nicole Hale

Partner with other outreach organizations (e.g., For

Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology

[FIRST], Project Lead The Way [PLTW])

Action Plan 2:Digitize all ASM content and redesign website for usability and access



Digitize all ASM content

Hire a professional to re-organize website for optimal

speed and quality

Conduct user

testing/polling

March 2017

Employ user testing to improve website accessibility and

navigability

Poll website users to

determine key website

functionalities

Propose plan:

October 2017

Initiate new

website

platform:

March 2017

$1.5 million Burak Akyuz

(President, Failure

Analysis Society)

Action Plan 3:Strengthen content and profile for non-metal information and affiliate societies



Investigate partnership opportunities with other

technical societies (e.g., The American Ceramics Society

[ACerS], The Society of Petroleum Engineers [SPE])

Develop and measure

benchmarks of

partnership

involvement

6-12 months $10,000 for ASM

staff time/travel

Tom Dudley

Identify missing focus areas and establish new ASM

Affiliates

Attend conferences to meet with Boards of Directors

(BODs) and other technical societies, and generate

interest in partnerships with new ASM Affiliates

1-2 years $20,000 for ASM

staff time/travel

Tom Dudley

Action Plan 4:Create tiered membership models



Create a membership tier for secondary school teachers

which provides access to content tailored to their

specific interests

Count number of paying

teacher members

1 year Content creation;

Website structure

ASM Materials

Education

Foundation

Create a membership tier for engineers who specifically

seek limited (or targeted) content and access

Offer membership with eligibility toward two other

professional societies at the cost of a standard, single

ASM membership

After potential

ASM re-

branding (see

action plan #5)

Gather and analyze data on each tier level Count number of paying

members by tier

Action Plan 5:Improve ASM brand identity and awareness



Re-brand “ASM” as “The Affiliated Societies of

Materials”

Less than 1

year

Cost to hire

branding

consultant

ASM Marketing

Director

Increase visibility of ASM Vision, Mission, Value, and

Focus areas on website; public relations documents;

emails, magazines; and social media

Generate list of areas to

modify for each

communication outlet

3 months after

re-branding

Cost equivalent of

ASM staff time

ASM Marketing

Director leads a

team to address

the website and

critical components

of the Strategic

Plan

Leverage relationships with groups (e.g., America

Makes) to publicize ASM International’s new

brand/organization

Count “mentions” in

other groups’ content

No cost

Action Plan 6:Increase articulation and recognition of benefits of ASM membership



Evaluate member benefits of different member levels

(see Action Plan #4)

Ensure member benefits appropriately scale with higher

member dues

Examine presence of

focus groups at

Leadership Days and

MS&T (Materials

Science & Technology)

Conference

6 months Minimal ASM Membership

Committee

Evaluate list of member benefits for better

promotion/increased awareness

Perform analysis of

membership activity as

a function of different

benefits

12 months Minimal ASM Membership

Committee

Enhance search engine optimization (SEO) for member

benefits to promote interest in membership

Examine website

statistics

12 months $100,000;Additional costs

may be incurred as

a result of IT

upgrades

ASM Marketing

Director

Exemplify Technical Excellence

BHAG and Objectives

BHAG:

ASM will be the recognized world leader for materials information!

Objectives: 1. Accessible Content: Provide accessible content for specific

information under 60 seconds by June 2017/EOY (Priority #1)

2. Content Creation: Develop a schema for updatable, peer reviewed information within a 60 day review cycle by December 2018

3. Ask the Expert”: Develop an “Ask the Expert” capability for a case study topic by October 2017 (Priority # 2)

4. Thought Leadership: Publish an authoritative (Bi-annual) report on emerging engineered materials by March 2018

Establish Technical Excellence


• Overarching Challenge: Lack resources $, people, capabilities and expertise

• Content is not accessible

o Need a business model aligned with priorities and metrics.

o The volume and types of data are large

o Need to understand the competitive market

o Lack of an infrastructure to access data

• Content Creation: Resistance to change culture

• “Ask the Expert”: Lack of a “youth Friendly” communication interface to materials information

• Thought Leadership: Lack of coordination of resources that deal with emerging technologies e.g. ASM and affiliates


Action Plan 1:Increase resources and capabilities to support technical content



Stabilize existing infrastructure Focus on fixed high

priority needs:

• Membership

• Shipping

• Commerce

functionalities

October/

November

2016

TBD Ron Aderhold

Develop plan for cloud-based infrastructure Complete a balanced

plan for in-house vs.

cloud-based

infrastructure

November

2016

$100,000 Ron Aderhold

Integrate content engineering solutions: member

segmentation, journal metrics, analytics, taxonomy

Complete a content

engineering plan

March 2017 $500,000 Scott Henry,

Ron Aderhold

Launch new website Revise ASM website and

ensure it is operational

June 2017 $1.0 million Ron Aderhold

Action Plan 2:Create new business model for technical content access and delivery



Understand customer needs to determine desired

content and format

Establish format

requirements for three

key data types

6 months Consultation

services: ~$15,000

Scott Henry

Analyze existing cost models and practices for content

dissemination

Develop a white paper

report on dissemination

practices and cost based

on existing content

model with applicable

return on investment

(ROI)

6 months $50,000 Ron Aderhold,

Scott Henry,

Veronica Becker

Develop and review plan with Board of Trustees (BOT) Receive approval from

BOT

June 2017

(BOT meeting)

TBD Ron Aderhold

Implement plan Meet ASM ROI

Objective

June 2018 TBD Ron Aderhold,

Scott Henry,

Veronica Becker

Action Plan 3:Change content creation culture to increase contributions and speed



Establish a prototype for an interactive “wiki-type”

authoring system (ASM Desk Editions)

Select software and

convert content

1.5 years $50,000 (or

monthly SAAS fee)

ASM H.S.

Committee

Ron Aderhold,

Scott Henry

Promote and support online authoring

Have a target of 20 articles

Update articles and

ensure system works

successfully

2 years Cost equivalent of

staff time

Content

Development Staff

(Karen Marken)

Evaluate success of new authoring prototype

Refine and scale up prototype

TBD TBD

Action Plan 4:Establish effective user interface for obtaining information



Research best approaches for an “Ask the Expert”

platform based on usability, cost, and relevance

Identify 3 realistic

approaches

September

2016

TBD Ron Aderhold

Conduct brief membership survey to solicit feedback on

best platforms

o Target for survey dissemination: October

2016 at MS&T

• Analyze survey

responses

• Begin with target

response of 6%

December

2016

TBD (Determined

by prior step)

Ron Aderhold

Select platform and initial subject/focus area (e.g., Heat

Treat)

Conduct successful

vetting (e.g., phone

screen) with this group

January 2017 TBD Participants of

Technical

Excellence

Workshop group

Implement “Ask the Expert” platform for initial subject

area

Announce platform in Advanced Materials & Processes

(AM&P) and other relevant media

June 2017 TBD Ron Aderhold

Report to Board of Trustees (BOT) Measure positive

feedback and number

of users

October 2017 Ron Aderhold

Action Plan 5:Author bi-annual reports on emerging technologies, with close coordination with Affiliate Societies



Define process and develop template for gathering

inputs from members

— Q3 2016 Cost equivalent of

staff time

Amber Black

(Emerging

Technologies

Awareness

Committee [ETAC]

Chair), Scott Henry

(Staff Liaison)

Reach out to both ASM and its Affiliate members to

understand participation level of contributors to bi-

annual report

Complete inclusive

roster

Q3 2016 Cost equivalent of

staff time

ETAC and a

recruited editor

Facilitate focus group meeting to generate prioritized list

of technologies

Hold meeting and

generate report

Q4 2016 $25,000 ETAC

Write, peer review, edit, and format report

o Potential model to follow is the Wohlers

Report (i.e., additive manufacturing)

Complete report Q1/Q2 2017 $25,000 TBD

Disseminate and publish “Emerging Technologies

Report”

Publish reports Bi-annually TBD TBD

Establish Strategic Collaborations and Partnerships

BHAG and Objectives

BHAG:

Establish collaboration and business model(s) for “open source” integration of ASM information and data.

Objectives: 1. Complete collaboration needs assessment in 1 year

2. Partner with 6 manufacturing institutes in 1 year

3. Partner with 4 other data providers in 1 year

4. All ASM data and content is digital, searchable, and sponsored in 1 year

5. Conduct 4 education courses with partner Societies in 2 years



• Why would anybody choose ASM over Google as their material database gateway?

• Why would a technical society want to collaborate with us?

• How to tailor win/win situations with joint educational courses

• What is the value proposition for partnering with other data providers?

• Which manufacturing initiatives would be the best targets for partnering with manufacturing institutes?

• Why do researchers/students publish at other societies vs. ASM?


Action Plan 1:Conduct a partner needs assessment to inform partnership decisions



Prepare elevator pitch for partner approach (Already complete) 2 months Staff time: few

hours/days

ASM marketing

staff, with input

from this volunteer

group

Review and prioritize other technical societies to

approach (e.g., ASME, IEEE, SAE)

Complete prioritized list

with 5-6 targeted

partner needs

1 week Minimal ASM staff

time

Conduct top-level connections between ASM and

prioritized list of 5-6 targets (phone and in-person

interviews)

1. Conduct

president-to-

president or peer-

to-peer

discussions

2. Execute using

Managing

Director-to-

Managing

Director

connections

1. 1-3

months

2. 3-6

months

Travel support

($10,000)

Action Plan 2:Partner with key materials data sources



Partner with Citrine Conduct successful

demonstration

90 days TBD S. Henry

Form a Technical Excellence Group composed of ASM

and Affiliate Society members and employ an “Ask The

Expert” approach

Benchmark ASM databases to evaluate types and quality

of information

Complete assessment

report

January 1,

2017

$10,000 S. Henry

Determine specific partners and make specific proposals

to potential partners

Have four partner

agreements in place

18 months Cost equivalent of

staff time to

establish

partnerships

S. Henry

Reassess relationship with Granta Design and their

offerings

Make decision based on

assessment of Granta

Design’s ability to

enhance robustness of

ASM databases

90 days for

assessment

• Cost

equivalent

of staff time

• Travel:

$15,000

Tom Dudley

Action Plan 3:Partner with manufacturing institutes and other remanufacturing organizations



Identify NNMI Institutes/MEP candidates for

collaboration

Identify:

• Three U.S.

candidates

• Three

international

candidates

• USA: 6

months

• Internati

onal: 12

months

< $25,000 ASM National

Technology

Director

Identify initiatives/projects for collaboration

opportunities

• Have three key

initiatives

12 months ~$500,000 (down-

select to budget)

John Cerne

Organize joint conference with Manufacturing Institute

Collaborate on specific topic track(s)

Organize two ASM

conference venues

18 months < $15,000 Events committee

(Kelly Thomas?)

Integrate an ASM Fellow into Manufacturing Institute

(e.g., via industry cost-share) and use intel from

engagement to enhance ASM value proposition

Have one ASM Fellow in

USA

12 months ~$250,000 TBD

Action Plan 4:Develop strategy for providing best “open source” materials data gateway and business model



Coordinate best ways to collaborate with Google (e.g.,

how to operate with Google’s “back office” work style;

how to provide Google with access to ASM data)

Leverage possible personal connection with Google CEO

to set up meeting

Develop tight pitch

including strategic

options presented to

Google

6 months Cost of ASM staff

and Board

members

Board

committee/working

group

Determine business model for ASM “open source” data

(i.e., based on results of previous task)

o Member-only access?

o Ad revenues with open access?

o Other?

o “Freemium” model

o Push other potential products to purchase

Carry on from

above

approach

Need consulting

expertise on how

this should be

done ($

significant)

Board

committee/working

group

Finalizing the ASM Strategic Plan: Next Steps

Next Steps

• Technical area leads work with volunteer groups to refine action plans.

• ASM Management Team develops and delivers FY17 Annual Operating Plan (with views of 2018 and 2019) by January 2017

• Finalize ASM Strategic Plan by January 2017

G:\Executive\Strategic Planning\2016-2017\ASM Strategic Plan_2016-2017

Documents

ASM Strategic Plan