Theresa L. Utlaut, Q&P Chair

The Quality and Productivity (Q&P) Section had a successful 2012 due to the enthusiasm of our members and many volunteers. Thank you! We have a busy 2013 planned.

As you may know, 2013 is the International Year of Statistics, an event that will be celebrated by thousands of organizations worldwide. The Q&P section is one of these organizations and has set a goal of visiting at least 100 classrooms to help achieve one of the goals of Statistics2013: nurturing statistics as a profession, especially among young people. We are encouraging all our members to help celebrate Statistics2013 by visiting local grade schools, high schools, and universities and letting students know just how cool the statistics profession is and will continue to be for years. We encourage our members to share their experiences with other Q&P members through either the Q&P ASA Community or the Q&P LinkedIn group.

In addition to our involvement in Statistics2013, there are a number of conferences planned this year. The 30th Quality and Productivity Research Conference (QPRC) will be held at the GE Global Research headquarters in Niskayuna, New York, June 5–7. A short course taught by Stefan Steiner, a professor at the University of Waterloo, will be held on June 4. The theme of the conference is “Extracting Knowledge from a Sea of Data.” Papers can be submitted to Martha Gardner at martha.gardner@ge.com. The abstract submission deadline is March 1.

In conjunction with the QPRC, the Mary G. and Joseph Natrella Scholarship provides a $3,500 grant, $500 travel stipend, and complimentary registration for the conference and pre-conference tutorial to students pursuing full-time graduate work in statistics. The recipient will give a presentation on their graduate research work at the QPRC. Applications are due March 1. Visit the Natrella Scholarship website for application materials and more information.

The 57th Fall Technical Conference will be held October 17–18 in San Antonio, Texas, at the Hyatt Regency. If you are interested in presenting an applied or expository paper in any of three parallel sessions—Statistics, Quality Control, or Tutorial/Case Studies—contact Willis Jensen at wjensen@wlgore.com or Bob Wilkinson at Robert.Wilkinson@lubrizol.com. The abstract submission deadline is February 28.

The Conference on Statistical Practice is another conference that may be of interest to many of our members. The conference will be held at the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel February 21–23.

To encourage graduate students to participate in JSM and get involved in Q&P activities, the section will offer up to three $400 travel grants to students attending the 2013 Joint Statistical Meetings in August. Contact Ming Li at limi@ge.com with questions or to request an application. Applications will be accepted through March 31.

If you are looking for ways to improve your skills, consider attending one of the Q&P/SPES jointly sponsored web-based training classes. These webinars are offered on a periodic basis throughout the year and announced through the Q&P/SPES communities on the ASA website.

In 2012, the following four webinars were offered:

• Design of Experiments: New Methods and How to Use Them, led by Doug Montgomery and Brad Jones
• Flexible and Powerful Approaches to Process Optimization Using Bayesian Methods, led by John Peterson
• Correlated Component Regression: A New Method for Analyzing Big Data or Small Data Containing Many Correlated Predictors, led by Jay Magidson
• Monte Carlo Methods and Bayesian Computation in R, led by Jim Albert

If you have ideas for future offerings, contact the sections webinar coordinator, Ananda Jayawardhana, at ananda@pittstate.edu.

Q&P would not be able to sponsor these events and activities without the support of our members. We are always looking for people willing to volunteer their time to an appointed position or offer expertise in a short course, webinar, roundtable luncheon, or similar event. The quality of our events relies on the support of individuals in the statistical community. If you interested, send an email to theresa.l.utlaut@intel.com.