Success Stories
Government
"Need more courses with Mac. He used a good mix of humor, experience and knowledge to get his message out. (We enjoyed) Mac’s enthusiasm for his subject. His thoughts on empowerment of employees (helped our organization)."
—Employee from a 2005 Baldrige Winning Program
"Mac did an outstanding job working with us on development of our
strategic plan. His presentation style, knowledge and humor brought out the best in the members of our team who were chosen to develop our mission and vision for the next 8 years. His presentation to the Deputies at the General Land Office helped set the tone for working together to achieve our mutual goals. I look forward to more
opportunities to have him work with us!
—Larry L. Laine, Chief Clerk/Deputy Land Commissioner of the General Land Office
"What a great presenter, teacher and mentor! Mac McGuire is the guru of leadership. I have participated in both the UT Center for Performance Excellence Baldrige program with Mr. McGuire as well as the Leadership certification program. His approach is open, friendly and motivating. Mac is able to impart his extensive knowledge of leadership and business management through real-life scenarios that enable the class participant to grasp and understand the concept quickly. I was able to implement the strategies learned in his classes successfully. Mac McGuire elevates a person to the next level of thought and understanding in leadership, time management, strategic planning and performance excellence. Great fun and learning too! I was able to learn and grasp concepts through Mr. McGuire’s humorous approach and real-life situations. His openness makes you feel relaxed and comfortable which makes for a successful learning environment."
—Susan Weaver, CGAP, Internal Auditor II Williamson County Auditor ‘s Office
"Your sessions as a keynote speaker at two County Management Institutes were extremely well received by our members."
—Alice Kanelos, Education Project Manager, Texas Association of Counties
"Mac’s leadership abilities were invaluable to the State Energy Conservation Office as we developed the Strategic Plan for our organization. His level of expertise and insight are surpassed only by his enthusiasm for quality leadership. After attending Mac’s Leadership training programs, he was my first choice when looking for someone to help in the development of a Strategic Plan for our organization. As a direct result of his efforts, we now have a clearer picture of who we are and a concise road map for our future."
—Perry Been, Deputy Director, State Energy Conservation Office
"I have participated in several of Mr. McGuire’s training sessions on leadership development, team building, partnering and conflict resolution. Mac is the "best of the best!" His unique "real world" experience and education/training enable him to provide organizations with the tools to improve performance and enhance customer service. His unique "real world" experience and education/training enable him to provide organizations with the tools to improve performance and enhance customer service. I recommend Mr. McGuire to help take your business to the next level!"
—Robert D. Erwin, P.E. , Fort Hood Housing Program Manager
"After completing Level I and Level II of Mac McGuire’s Leadership Program I must say that it was one of the most beneficial programs I’ve experienced. Mac’s approach makes it clear that leadership is a learned behavior enhanced by active participation and practice. The program is full of well-researched valuable insights regarding leadership that can apply to leadership opportunities in the public sector, private industry as well as personal interactions. His meaningful advice, positive communication techniques and humor made this a very enjoyable course. It’s presented in straightforward classic "Mac style". Excellent for seasoned leaders as well as emerging leaders."
—Dona Madlock, Manager of a large state agency
"Mac has provided customized leadership training for the past 3 years. All of the employees who have participated in the training have extremely positive things to say about the classes. They can’t wait to use the things they learn in their day-to-day work environment. It is always a pleasure to publicize a ‘Mac McGuire’ class, because almost everyone in the agency has heard others praise him and can hardly wait to sign up."
—Debbi Bailey, Human Resources, Large State Agency
For Profit
"Mac has a unique gift of being able to present a complex subject in language and examples that anyone can understand. With Mac, our Baldrige training sessions were fun, learning experiences."
—Terry May, President and CEO, Mesa Products, Inc., 2006 National Baldrige Award Winner
"Mac, your work continues to be of the highest caliber, thorough and complete, and certainly customer centric."
—Kent Hemingson, Program Manager, IBM
"Mac brings a level of focus and resolution to "partnering" and strategic planning that gets an organization moving smartly in the right direction."
—Ed Veiga, Director, Actus Lend Lease Program
"Mac did an outstanding job of facilitating focusing our strategic planning efforts for a successful future."
—Richard P. Slaughter, Slaughter Associates, Inc.
"Mac has strong technical knowledge. He also posses the real life experiences to help his students understand how to apply the training to their jobs. We found his classes very worthwhile."
—Evelyn Nugent, Executive Vice President, TradeOne Marketing, Inc.
"Mac McGuire worked with my company in our pursuit of two quality awards and we won both awards thanks to his expertise. Mac is clearly among the very best in organizational improvement and strategic planning."
—John Braun, President and CEO, Braun and Butler Construction Company
"I have worked with Mac McGuire on several consulting jobs. Mac is a first class professional with a rare combination of people skills, communication skills, and personal integrity. Mac understands people, organizations, and leadership as well as anyone I know. He likes to solve problems and is totally focused on getting the right results for the client. Mac has outstanding insight and discernment into the real sources and causes of organizational problems. Best of all, Mac is enjoyable to be around. He has a great sense of humor and relates well to all kinds of people. I strongly recommend Mac McGuire to you and your organization."
—Donald McLachlin, President and CEO, McLachlin & Associates Consulting
Not for Profit
"Mac McGuire provided informative and inspirational education sessions to my client, Austin Museum of Art. He’s engaging and responsive to client needs."
—Marcia Silverberg, HR Directions
"I received nothing but positive comments from the supervisors who attended the training. They found it informative and applicable to the situations they deal with on a daily basis. Your energy and sense of humor in presenting the information and kept them interested and involved. Fantastic job! We’re looking forward to being able to have you deliver more training in the future."
—Debbie L. Maynor, Director of Human Resources, City of Killeen
"Mac McGuire is warm, personable, and passionate about helping people, which is reflected in his teaching style. Using humor and heartfelt personal stories to drive home a point, he always captures and holds my interest. I have taken several of Mr. McGuire’s seminars while completing the Leadership Training Certificate at UT and always came away with new insights and key principles ready to place into action. I would highly recommend his classes to anyone."
—Ardis Simcik, Williamson County Internal Auditor, Georgetown, TX
"The Life & Time Management seminar was outstanding. This session provided interaction with co-workers and managers that has improved communication for the long haul. As a result, productivity has improved. Mr. McGuire’s style is at once friendly and open while being direct and informative, He stays on tasks and you know you have come away with valuable tools that you will use at work and in your personal life.”
—Kathy Wierzowiecki, Internal Audit Director, Williamson County
"Mac’s dynamic, energetic approach to leadership is insightful and appropriate for organizations needing a new approach to working smarter. His enthusiasm and straight talk allowed us to focus on positive change."
—Luanne Blair, Management/Program Analyst, Customer Applications Development Division, IRS
Education
"If it weren’t for Mac McGuire I would have never become involved in the Baldrige System as it relates to education. Meeting him in the Spring of 1998 was indeed a life-changing event. Mac’s personality and energy combined with his passion, knowledge, and willingness to work hard has made a difference in my life, the lives I touched as a principal, and now those I touch as a consultant. Mac doesn’t know the words "no" or "can’t". He inspires, ignites, and gets results."
—Janelle Sanders, Principal, Round Rock Independent School District, Round Rock, Texas
"I called on Mac to help my office write its first-ever strategic plan early in 2003, soon after I began my role as director of the Distance Education Center. He took my staff off-site for two days of really intense work, and they came back with a plan that beautifully organizes our priorities in terms of short- and long-term goals and objectives. Frankly, I didn’t expect such thorough, thoughtful work to get done in only two days, but Mac’s focus and his gentle humor kept everyone on task and eager to produce a document they would be proud of."
—Susan Toalson, Director, Distance Education Center, Continuing and Extended Education The University of Texas at Austin
"Mac McGuire’s ‘Ten Commandments of Leadership’ provides an insightful and humorous cumulation of the critical attributes for effective leaders. This is exactly what we needed to "refocus" and to "reflect" upon our leadership capacities. Our Georgetown ISD principals and administrative team found the time spent productive and valuable. This training should be mandatory for all persons in leadership positions!”
—Linda Simonson, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction, Georgetown ISD
"I first became acquainted with Mac McGuire when our department merged with the UT Quality Center in 1998 and Mac was conducting their training sessions. I have since become one of Mac’s biggest fans, and he has many. He has become one of the best trainers/facilitators in the Professional Development Center (PDC). He has helped us develop our leadership training and he is the most successful contract trainer used by the PDC. His end-of-course evaluations have raised the bar for the department and this success has contributed to the financial success of the PDC. Mac is the most knowledgeable, experienced, dedicated, likeable guy I’ve ever met and we here at the PDC truly appreciate his support."
—Bob Novello, Director, Professional Development Center, Continued & Extended Education Division
The University of Texas at Austin
Health Care
"Mac knows Baldrige. He knows how to help an organization focus on what is important. He knows how to relate to everyone at all levels of the organization, from the Board to the front line. And he knows how to have a good time doing it. If you are looking for a professional partner on your journey to excellence, someone who can educate and motivate your leadership and your staff, get the "Mac attack", Mac McGuire on your team. I’m sure glad we did."
—G. Mark Montgomery, MD, MMM, CPE, Vice President, Quality and Medical Affairs St Joseph Health System, 2007 Texas Quality Award Winner
Religious
"Mac McGuire’s seminar on "Leadership Principles for the 21st Century Church" benefited the members of the association. He combines great content, practical knowledge, and presentation style to provide a high impact-training event. His knowledge and experience in developing effective organizations have been very beneficial."
Clint Anderson, Director, Williamson Baptist Association
Process Success Stories
Challenge/Problem: The Texas National Guard was experiencing problems moving forward and keeping up with the changes of our business (military).
Solution: Mac led a coalition which decided to win the National Malcolm Baldrige Award for National Guard States known as the Army Performance Improvement Criteria (APIC).
Results: The Texas National Guard won the Army Chief of Staff Honorable Mention Award in our first year 1996 and won fourth place in 1997. In 1998 and 1999, the Texas National Guard won second place of 54 possible entries. This winning returned over $500,000 to Texas and the taxpayers because of our dedication to duty, efficient business practices, and prioritized spending.
Challenge/Problem: The shop foreman at the Combined Support Maintenance Shop Number 2 wanted his shop to be the best in the National Guard Maintenance Community nationwide.
Solution: A committee was formed, led by Mac, to study the problems and benchmarked the best state, which was Michigan. We worked toward strategic planning and developed a new direction for the shop. We interviewed the customers and found they needed training in their expectations. In 1993, we began a massive, intensive training program for the internal customers as well.
Results: This solution has lead to an 80% reduction in customer complaints and 70% less work/waste. Cost avoidance savings is moderately set at over $2 million per year for the last three years in rework and over $40K in the customer complaint area. The shop has won the Level I, II and III awards for Quality operations from the Greater Austin Quality Council. No longer is Michigan Number 1, Texas is! The Shop Superintendent was promoted to full Colonel for his efforts.
Challenge/Problem: Military personnel were not receiving orders in a timely manner.
Solution: Mac led a team to address the issue, plan improvement, and implement the new process. We gathered the data and determined where the major problems were. Several steps were eliminated from the process because they did not add value.
Results: The entire process was reengineered with a cost savings of over $15 million in the first year. This led to other teams being established with a cost savings of over $1 million on four other processes.
Challenge/Problem: The shop officer at the Combined Support Shop Number 1 at Fort Worth was tasked to begin a new procedure to rebuild trucks for the National Guard Bureau.
Solution: A team was assembled and a process outlined that would be the most effective. The workers, not the managers, were instrumental in coming up with the best process.
Results: By using Total Quality Management techniques, we were able to save $10K per truck from current depot prices. This led to a cost savings of over $500K annually since 1993. It also led to the acquisition of 100 jobs at an annual rate of $2,700 per month or $1.62 million annually. At a rate of four economic turnovers per year, this has an economic impact of over $6.48 million to the local area. It is still ongoing.
Challenge/Problem: The Adjutant General wanted to begin a track-rebuilding program at the Mobilization And Training Equipment Site (MATES) located at North Fort Hood, Texas.
Solution: A team was created to plan the transition to rebuilding from a normal maintenance activity. The team used TQM principles. We carefully examined the process and “just-in-time” (JIT) inventory procedures used at depot maintenance facilities.
Results: The program began in 1995 and we are rebuilding tracked vehicles at the rate of 50 per year with a cost savings of $15K per track over depot prices. This was a cost savings to the Guard of $750K annually. We acquired 40 new jobs at a rate of $1.296 million annually. At a rate of four economic turnovers per year it adds $5.184 million to the annual economic impact to the local economy.
Challenge/Problem: The Adjutant General wanted our organization to partner with corporate America and develop better ways to do our jobs and save the taxpayers money.
Solution: A partnership was formed with the University of Texas, Greater Austin Quality Council, and Dell Computers (now Dell, Inc). Dell Inc. was in the process of championing a new problem solving process involving the latest information. Later known as the Dell QUEST Problem Solving Model, this model enhanced a number of organizations.
Results: In the first year, the partnership led to a cost savings of over $10 million with public and corporate teams.
Challenge/Problem: LTC McGuire was sent to a battalion as the commander to improve combat and administrative operations.
Solution: LTC McGuire assigned a team to improve operations. LTC McGuire served as the chairperson of the team. We interviewed the soldiers as to what we might be able to do better as a command.
Results: We accomplished 100% external customer satisfaction for two consecutive years. The command was at 98% strength and dropping upon my assignment. At the conclusion of my command, the strength level was over 114%, second highest battalion strength in the entire 49th Armored Division. We saved 35 soldiers which costs us over $256K to train. An overall cost savings of $8.96 million over two years.
Challenge/Problem: The Texas Army National Guard was losing a significant amount of supplies. The critical leader was the company commander.
Solution: After review and consultation with a number of company commanders, LTC McGuire was given the responsibilities of developing a curriculum that would enhance Company Commander’s knowledge and reduce the losses of equipment.
Results: Actual cost savings from the course that was taught for three years is difficult to calculate. Based upon conservative figures, it is believed that over $5 million was saved annually for three years through better management practices.
Challenge/Problem: Implement the Total Quality Management (TQM) Program for the Texas National Guard statewide.
Solution: LTC McGuire was assigned at the TQM Coordinator for the State of Texas. LTC McGuire taught courses for 15 Army battalions, 3 Army brigades, 3 major Air Commands, and over 25K soldiers in the state.
Results: Because of the implementation of TQM and the assistance of a host of people, it is estimated that we have saved over $42 million from 1993 to 2000.
Challenge/Problem: The Officer in Charge Course was sorely lacking of needed content at our National Guard Professional Education Center (PEC) ( Guard College ).
Solution: LTC McGuire targeting the needed content developed a new curriculum.
Results: This program lead to a savings of three days per month per each person attending based upon input from the students and some survey data or $3.024 million annually, $12.096 million in four years the class was being taught. In the course, LTC McGuire taught for four years as Senior Course Officer and received the highest ratings ever for an instructor. The weeklong class received the highest ratings for any course taught at PEC since inception in 1977.