Accomplishments Report 2017

Accomplishments Report 2017 7 In response to 2016 survey, which exposed a trend among ATSSAmembers who said their greatest challenge was finding and retaining qualified employees, a forum was held to address the wide- spread issue faced by employers in the roadway safety industry. DuringATSSA’sMidyearMeeting inAugust of 2017, the Open Forum on Hiring and Retaining Qualified Workers was held to provide event attendees the opportunity to hear from two speakers about chal- lenges and successes they have experi- enced with hiring and retention. ATSSA holds first Open Forum on Hiring and Retaining QualifiedWorkers ATSSA sponsors first Roadway Safety Data Open Forum ATSSA held its first Roadway Data SafetyOpen Forumduring its 47thAnnual Convention & Traffic Expo. The initiative targeted companies, agencies, authorities and organizations involved in the collec- tion, storage and analysis of crash and roadway infrastructure safety data. During the open forum, attendees received detailed briefings on two new U.S. DOT safety data initiatives, a presen- tation discussing the current impact of enhanced road safety data in developing state-level strategic highway safety plans and a final presentation examining the role of data in better understanding the impact of Connected Automated Vehicles (CAVs) on future infrastructure planning. Forumattendees shared their own expe- riences and discussed recruitment chal- lenges and methods, retention issues, and vocalized ways ATSSA might help in these areas. Following the open forum, ATSSA formed an internal team that worked on several follow-up items addressed at the forum and explored possible suppor tive measures. Two such measures were: • Business sessions were developed as part of the educational sessions offered at ATSSA’s Annual Convention & Traffic Expo, and one in particular, “How Employees are Looking at You WhileYou’reLooking for Them,” directly addresses issues with hiring and retention; and • A focus group for subcontractors was developed to gather more feedback and address various topics and questions stemming from the open forum held at the Midyear Meeting. In 2018, ATSSA’s internal team will continue to work on addressing issues with hiring and retaining qualified workers, among other challenges that ATSSA members may face. pavement markings, signals and work zone devices. Improved roadway infra- structure and crashdatawill be invaluable in better understanding the needs of CAVs as part of strategic planning and asset management processes. In 2017, ATSSA developed its second Roadway Safety Data Open Forum for 2018. The second forum focused on the tools and techniques used to organize crash data, the process through which crash countermeasures are evaluated and assigned value, and how these data sets are used to prioritize road safety investment. At the end of the presentations, partic- ipants had an opportunity to share their thoughts on the proposed data forum. The important role of crash and infra- structure data analysis in the roadway safety industry cannot be overstated. Congress, for example, requires that states develop “data-driven” strategic highway safety plans prior to allocating projects authorized under the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP). Recent developments in Automated Vehicle (AV) technologies stretch our understanding of how new machine technologies inter face with signs, President of Guidemark, Inc. Doug Dolinar (front left), President of Time Strip- ing, Inc. Cindy Williams and ATSSA’s Vice President of Government Relations Nate Smith attended the open forum on hiring and retaining qualified workers during ATSSA’s annual Midyear Meeting on Aug. 23 in Louisville, Kentucky. ATSSA’s Vice President of Member Services Donna Clark provided opening remarks and introduced the discussion topic to forum attendees. Member Engagement

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