Golfdom, January 2016

Starter NEWS NOTES AND QUOTES NEWS N TES MUST ATTEND MEETINGS 2015 SYNGENTA BUSINESS INSTITUTE COVERS THE CUTTING EDGE The 2015 Syngenta Business Institute SBI was held Dec 7 10 at the historic Graylyn International Conference Center at Wake Forest University in Winston Salem N C The event brought together 25 standout superintendents from across the country all with a drive for excellence and a commitment to lifelong learning Ken Middaugh Ph D director of Wake Forests School of Business led the program along with colleagues William Davis Ph D Sherry Moss Ph D and Amy Wallis Ph D The content of the program was cutting edge covering everything from accounting to generational management skills with a spirited dose of one on one negotiations training that has become part of the folklore of SBI One thing that stood out as an attendee is the unique mix of green industry media personalities superintendents and the Syngenta SBI team There is plenty of time to network study and reflect throughout the program The synergy of the event is farreaching and the learning and social experiences are bigger than the items on the agenda You hear past attendees rave about the program but until you have had a midnight Graylyn SBI ice cream experience you still have room to grow personally and professionally If you are a superintendent looking for a one of a kind learning experience attending a future SBI event should be on your bucket list 8 Golfdom January 2016 Golfdom com PHOTO COURTESY SYNGENTA ISTOCK COM WELLGLAD SLAP OF THE HAND EPA VIOLATED PROPAGANDA LAW Playing with social media can be like playing with fire sometimes and it recently burned the Environmental Protection Agency EPA A social media effort by the EPA to support the Waters of the United States WOTUS rule was found to have violated federal laws according to a report from the Government Accountability Office GAO released Dec 14 2015 The EPAs social media push on Twitter Facebook YouTube and Thunderclap violated two federal laws covert propaganda and the use of federal resources to conduct grassroots lobbying The GAO suggested in its report that the EPA should calculate how much money the staff spent on the social media campaign and include it in a report to President Obama and Congress acknowledging the violations By Anthony L WiLLiAms CGCs CGm JOIN THE TEAM MCHUGH JOINS FLORATINE STAFF Floratine has named Pat McHugh CGCS as its corporate agronomist for the Southeast U S region McHugh has more than 41 years of turfgrass experience and will be responsible for evaluating customers turfgrass and soil conditions to help them develop customized nutrition programs that best fit their specific needs McHugh has been a certified superintendent for more than 27 years He also is the founder of North Carolina Turf Support an organization that specializes in providing services for turf nutrition physical and chemical properties of soil and water analysis We are extremely proud to have Pat join our team said Kevin Cavanaugh CEO of Floratine Pats skills and knowledge have been trusted by turfgrass professionals around the world for decades I am confident that combining his expertise with our innovative turf solutions will have a positive impact on both our products and our customer experience Attendees of the 2015 Syngenta Business Institute recently held in Winston Salem N C squeeze in for a group photo