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Operations Research and Development,managing director of theTurner-Fairbank Highway ResearchCenter, and deputyassociate administra-tor for research anddevelopment.Originally from Iowa,
 Francis “Frank” B. Francois
, executive di-rector of the AmericanAssociation of StateHighway and Transpor-tation Officials(AASHTO), will speak atthe banquet and awardsceremony August 19. Be-fore assuming managementof AASHTO affairs in 1980,he spent 18 years as a memberof the County Council of Prince George’s County, Mary-land, an elected position inwhich he worked closely with transportation, publicworks, environmental, and community develop-ment issues.Registration brochures are in the mail. To read ordownload an online copy of the brochure, whichincludes a complete list of speakers and papers to bepresented, go to http://www.ctre.iastate.edu/ bulletin/crossreg.pdf.Crossroads 2000 is sponsored by the Center forTransportation Research and Education (CTRE) atIowa State University and the Iowa Department of Transportation.If you have questions about the conference,contact Sharon Prochnow at CTRE,515-294-8103, sharon@ctre.iastate.edu.
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mainte-nance, regional and stateintelligent transportationsystems (ITS) planning,methods in traveldemand modeling,urban ITS deployment,computerized methodsfor crash analysis—these are just a fewtopics to be covered bymore than 70 presen-tations in five con-current sessions atthe Crossroads 2000research confer-ence. The confer-ence will beAugust 19–20,1998, at IowaState University.Researchers fromacross the country will presentpapers at this second biennial event. Participantswill select sessions according to their interests.Topics cover a range of transportation issues andinclude basic and applied research. A different ITSissue will be addressed in each concurrent session.A complete conference proceedings will be avail-able at the conference for all attendees.Two special guest speakers will address conferenceparticipants:
 Robert Betsold 
, associate administrator for researchand development with the Federal HighwayAdministration, has over 30 years of varied high-way experience. He has served as the engineer man-ager for the Chicago Crosstown Expressway,deputy director for environment and design in theChicago region, director of the Office of Imple-mentation and the Office of Safety and Traffic
2Technology champion2Management tips on CD3The golden rule of personnelmanagement: employee discipline4Web sites to visit4Effect of mix times on finished concrete4ISRMSA members swap ideas5Exploiting benefits of thinmaintenance surfaces5Vernon Marks retires6Deploying ITS in Des Moines8Motor grader extras8Refresher MoGO training on CD9Tip from the field: clean solution9Safety short: signing workshop10Battling sign vandalism11Conference calendar11Winter expo, snow plow roadeo11Midwest equipment innovationsexhibition
 
TECHNOLOGY NEWS 
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JUN-JUL 1998 
The preparation of thisnewsletter was financed through theLocal Technical Assistance Program(LTAP). LTAP is a nationwideeffort financed jointly in Iowa bythe Federal HighwayAdministration and the IowaDepartment of Transportation.The mission of Iowa’s LTAP:To foster a safe, efficient,environmentally soundtransportation system by improvingskills and knowledge of localtransportation providers throughtraining, technical assistance, andtechnology transfer, to improve thequality of life for Iowans.Subscriptions to
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ECHNOLOGY NEWS 
are free, andwe welcome your comments,questions, and suggestions. Tosubscribe, or to obtain permissionto reprint articles, contact the editorat the address below.Center for TransportationResearch and Education2625 N. Loop Drive, Suite 2100Ames, Iowa 50010-8615Telephone: 515-294-8103Fax: 515-294-0467http://www.ctre.iastate.edu/ Tom MazeDirectortom@ctre.iastate.eduDuane SmithAssociate Director for Outreachdesmith@iastate.eduMarcia Brink Editormarcia@ctre.iastate.eduTom McDonaldSafety Circuit Ridertmcdonald@ctre.iastate.eduSharon ProchnowProgram Coordinatorsharon@ctre.iastate.eduStan RingLibrary Coordinatorstan@ctre.iastate.eduMichele RegenoldAssistant Editormichele@ctre.iastate.eduThe opinions, findings, orrecommendations expressedhere are those of theCenter for TransportationResearch and Educationand do not necessarily reflectthe views of the FederalHighway Administration or theIowa Department of Transportation.Iowa State University and theCenter for TransportationResearch and Educationprovide equal opportunities andcomply with ADA requirements inprograms and employment. Callthe Affirmative ActionOffice at 515-294-7612to report discrimination.
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nameplate was designed byJennifer Reed.
 Printed on Recycled Paper
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Blue Ribbon Task Forcereport on transportation in 1995, one recommenda-tion was that a “technology champion” be estab-lished in Iowa. As that champion, the IowaTransportation Agency Computer and Communi-cations (ITACC) group, formed in 1997, promotesimproved communications and information sharingamong Iowa’s transportation jurisdictions.ITACC’s main objective is to facilitate the use of technology in order to more efficiently provideIowa’s citizens with a seamless, safe, and efficientnetwork of roads and highways.ITACC’s goals include the following:•Encourage and facilitate information and servicesharing among Iowa’s transportation jurisdictions.•Recommend information technology standardsand data communications protocols to facilitateinformation sharing.•Identify and advocate methods of datatransmission.•Facilitate and coordinate training and knowl-edge about sharing.•Serve as a forum for jurisdictions to shareknowledge and keep each other apprised of in-formation technology advances, initiatives, fi-nancial assistance, and other opportunities.ITACC members meet three times a year. At theirMay 1998 meeting they agreed that one of theirprojects will be a World Wide Web site hosted bythe Iowa Department of Transportation (IowaDOT). Details will be worked out at their nextmeeting.The group’s other main project is to catalog everyinformation technology project underway in cities,counties, and the state. The catalog will function asa clearinghouse of information. Each project willinclude a summary and a contact person for moreinformation.Examples of projects that will be cataloged include•at the state level, the Iowa DOT’s electronicrecordkeeping and GIS linear referencingsystem.•at the city level, a new electronic public infor-mation kiosk at a Hy-Vee grocery store in Ames.The kiosk will be a satellite to the city’s andlibrary’s World Wide Web sites and provide arange of services from one location.•at the county level, an electronic pavement man-agement system.ITACC encourages you to report information tech-nology projects at the state level to Barb Espeland,Office of Data Services, Iowa DOT, 515-239-1583;at the city level to Scott Williams, Public WorksDepartment, Ames, 515-239-5276; and at thecounty level to Keith White, Sac County Engineer,712-662-7687.
Technology champion
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has for loan twonew interactive CDs in a “SuccessfulSupervision” series. Produced by thenational Local Technical Assistance Program, theCDs are designed specifically for road supervisors.One CD deals with management issues such asplanning, authority, selecting employees, decisionmaking, and time management. Delegation andproblem solving are especially emphasized.The management CD offers plenty of practical tipssuch as how to handle conflict and how to imple-ment the 20/80 concept of delegation, which sug-gests supervisors delegate 80 percent of work totheir employees. The remaining 20 percent shouldbe work only the supervisor can handle.The second CD discusses leadership and motiva-tional techniques, including understandingemployees, disciplining employees, and developingteam work. This CD encourages a democratic, teamoriented management style and shows how otherstyles are less productive.A third CD about communication will be availablefor loan in a few weeks.To borrow the CDs and a CD-I player for onemonth, contact Stan Ring, library coordinator,515-294-9481, stan@ctre.iastate.edu.
Management tips on CDfor road supervisors
“Technology champion” was adapted from an articleby Blake Redfield, traffic supervisor from Council Bluffs, which originally appeared in the spring 1998issue of 
Safety Lines
 , the newsletter of the Iowa TrafficControl and Safety Association.
 
TECHNOLOGY NEWS 
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JUN-JUL 1998 
Center for Transportation Research and Education 
CTRE  
LTAP Advisory Board
The people listed below helpguide and direct the policiesand activities of the Center forTransportation Research andEducation’s Local TechnicalAssistance Program (LTAP)The board meets at leastannually.Contact any of the advisorycommittee members tocomment, make suggestions, orask questions about any aspectof LTAP.Saleem BaigLocal SystemsIowa Department of TransportationTelephone: 515-239-1051Gary FoxTraffic andTransportation DirectorCity of Des MoinesTelephone: 515-283-4973Kevin GilchristSenior Transportation PlannerDes Moines MetropolitanPlanning OrganizationTelephone: 515-237-1316Neil GuessCity EngineerCity of NewtonTelephone: 515-792-6622Becky HiattIowa Division, FederalHighway AdministrationTelephone: 515-233-7321Raymond HollandCity EngineerCity of Bettendorf Telephone: 319-344-4055Harold JensenStory County EngineerTelephone: 515-382-6581Larry JesseLocal SystemsIowa Department of TransportationTelephone: 515-239-1528Bob SperryWebster County EngineerTelephone: 515-576-3281
Alan Estvold, Montgomery County Engineer
This is the final article in a three-part series onpersonnel management.
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ISCIPLINING
 
EMPLOYEES
. No managerrelishes it, and few of us are good at it.The golden rule of personnel manage-ment can help supervisors deal effectively withemployee misconduct or poor performance and canrelieve some of the stress associated with disciplin-ing an employee.In this context, the golden rule of personnel man-agement becomes “Discipline employees as theywould like to be disciplined.”This does not mean overlooking employee prob-lems. Most employees want to know if they’re notdoing their job right. But they want to be told tact-fully and respectfully, in private. They want tounderstand exactly what you expect from them.They want a chance to correct their performance.Properly managed, problem situations can often beturned around, and you’ll end up with happier,more productive employees.Some situations require stronger discipline or evendismissal, and managers should not shirk theseduties. To use the golden rule of management indisciplinary situations, managers should rememberthe three Fs of employee discipline: Be fair. Be firm.Be final.
Be fair.
Managers must always follow personnelpolicies regarding employee discipline. However,being fair does not necessarily mean using the samedisciplinary action for the same infraction.Although using a wide range of disciplinary actionsmay open a manager to grievance proceedings, notwo employees are exactly alike and no two infrac-tions are exactly alike. A diligent, well-intentionedemployee may respond to different corrective mea-sures than those required for an insubordinate em-ployee. In either case, the discipline should beappropriate to the situation and should be welldocumented. The quickest way to lose a grievanceproceeding is to fail to have proper documentation.
Be firm.
If you’re angry about a situation, wait untilyou’ve cooled off to talk to the employee. Be pre-pared for the employee to react angrily, but don’tback off or let him or her gain the upper hand. Berespectful but consistent.
Be final.
Make sure employees understand what isexpected in regard to skills or behavior and what theconsequences will be if they fail. You may want toestablish a time frame for an employee to makechanges or improve performance. Then followthrough on the time frame and consequences you’veestablished.Unfortunately, managing employees as they wouldlike to be managed will not always result in produc-tive personnel. No matter what you do, someemployees may not have the skills to perform theirduties, or they may not be suited by temperamentfor their position. Some employees may be unwill-ing or unable to modify behavior that interfereswith their own or other employees’ productivity.I would venture to suggest that you may sometimesdo an employee a favor by letting him or her go. Anemployee may not be suited for this line of work ormay need a serious wake-up call to change personalbehavior. It is difficult to dismiss someone for lack of technical skills, but some employees may not beable to do their work no matter how much trainingthey receive. An employee who can’t perform the job is an employee who is miserable on the job.With dismissal as with other forms of employee dis-cipline, always follow company policies and docu-ment the process.Remember the golden rule of personnel manage-ment: Manage employees they way
they
would liketo be managed. This requires tailoring your style tofit the various personalities of your employees, butthe results will generally be a productive, motivatedstaff.
 Alan Estvold is a professional engineer and land sur-veyor. He has a bachelor of science degree in civil engi-neering from North Dakota State University and amaster of arts degree in management from BellevueUniversity.
The golden rule of personnel management:employee discipline
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