FROM THE EDITOR/ARCHIVE

• Thank you Jude Anders!

  August 3, 2023

  In the land of WSJ Society, a heartfelt note, A thank-you to Jude Anders, who steered the boat. For years he served as Editor of the site, Guiding with wisdom, bringing stories to light. Now stepping forth, with a humble heart, Comes Otto, with ChatGPT, ready to start. In Jude’s footsteps, I’ll try to tread, […]

• It’s Time to Move On

  July 9, 2021

  Since the start of WSJSociety.com in 2012 I’ve enjoyed being the editor, getting to know all of you better, and helping out where we could all do something good. However, the time has come to move along. As of the July 15, our election meeting, I will be leaving my role as website editor and […]

• Mentors … great memories, … greater impact!

  February 20, 2021

    Early in my JCI career, I coached soccer at the Bavarian Soccer Club. I coached in the youth leagues, starting with the Under-8’s progressing to to the Under-17’s. That fellow on the right in the picture, Gebhardt Winbiel was my mentor. After his playing years and coaching the major team, Gebhardt  started the youth […]

• What a year, and, ‘miles to go’!

  January 29, 2021

  Here we are, a full year of pandemic behind us and more to come. I hope you and those dear to you are doing well. My prayers go out to all who have lost someone to COVID-19 or to the many ways it has created damage to people and our society. On the other hand, […]

• Find Your Good and Do It!

  December 17, 2019

  December 18, 2019 The year’s not quite over yet, but I’ve already found my favorite quote of 2019: “Find your good and do it!” That’s Jon Bon Jovi’s closing comment on this CBS News story on the JBJ Soul Kitchen located in Red Bank New Jersey. The theme for the restaurant is that everyone is […]

• 2020 Plans are Available

  October 16, 2019

  October 16, 2019 It appears that the 2020 healthcare plan offerings are loaded on the Mercer Marketplace 365+/JCI website. I visited the site this morning to do another trial run, i.e.  Shop & Compare/ Medical Plans in preparation for our re-scheduled consultation session. I’ve done this several times before with only the 2019 plans available just […]

• Changes for ‘Medicare Eligible’ Retirees of Johnson Controls!

  October 11, 2019

  Those of us who are ‘Medicare eligible’ and still participating in the Johnson Controls Retiree Group Healthcare Plan received a surprising letter in  late August. We learned that the group plan for us will be terminated as of January 1, 2020. And, that the company has engaged Mercer Health & Benefits Administration, LLC to provide […]

• Breaking News?

  August 27, 2019

    Breaking News (Tony Owusu, The Street, 8/19/2019) “Milton Friedman was wrong” (Eric Posner, The Atlantic, 8/23/2019) The 200 CEO’s of the Business Roundtable have issued their new Statement of the Purpose of a Corporation! The new statement recognizes that … “While each of our individual companies serves its own corporate purpose, we share a […]

• “The Second Mountain” by David Brooks

  April 27, 2019

  April 27, 2019 Paula and I have a practice of reading David Brooks’ books, enjoying them and learning along the way. His latest is called “The Second Mountain.” It’s his take on life’s journey. Paula has it on request from the library. Today our son sent a link to this video, David Brooks talking about […]

• Motivation in Retirement

  February 16, 2019

  February 16, 2019 It’s the middle of winter in Wisconsin, and it’s been very cold. This time of year my morning exercise routine goes indoors, weights and treadmill accompanied by YouTube Videos or TED Talks.  I have a theme each year for these, gardening, vintage radio restoration, and WordPress are themes from past years. This […]

• Merry Christmas to All

  December 22, 2018

  December 22, 2018 This has been a challenging year all around. We’ve gained some new friends, but we’ve also lost some long time friends and colleagues. Overall, people pulling together, helping one another, seems to be rarer than ever. And, the loudest voices seem to be those that take from our shared investment in each […]

• People investing in each other …

  October 14, 2018

  October 14, 2018 People investing in each other … something special! This past year I was involved in mentoring a startup company based on technology developed at UW – Madison. I really enjoyed it and learned a lot along the way. I was mentoring a PhD student exploring the commercial opportunities for her research work. […]

• The Power of Moments …

  November 16, 2017

  November 16, 2017 At lunch today I started to read the latest book by Chip and Dan Heath, “The Power of Moments”. They’re best selling authors of “Switch” and “Made to Stick.”  I enjoyed those, so I am eager to experience their latest ideas. On the inside cover they describe the contents of the book […]

• Something New@WSJSociety.com

  June 13, 2017

  I think that it’s time for some fun. You may have found the “Who do you know?” collection in the Photo Gallery. It contains a selection of photos submitted by members recalling their career experiences at Johnson Controls. Selected photos from the collection are featured on the Front Page also. The current featured photo is of […]

• How about some resources?

  February 23, 2017

  Update: January 6,  2020 The Resources page currently supports only those company resources related to benefits and the contacts for the WSJ Society. The extended lists are no longer available.   This is a busy time of the year for me, and I love it! (Paula does our taxes, so that’s not it.) One of […]

• Whoa! We’re having some problems!

  January 12, 2017

  January 18, 2017 Update: There have been some continuing issues but they should not be evident to you. I am receiving your comments and requests for help, but I have to use a work around to reply. I’ll send them to your email from my personal email. Everything else at the WSJSociety.com seems to be working […]

• Happy New Year to All!

  December 30, 2016

  I hope you all are enjoying your holidays … …. and best wishes to you for the New Year 2017. This year, 2016, had some good things, and some not so good. It was great to see all of those who were at Reunion 2016 and the 2016 luncheons. We also received a good number […]

• Better Together — How we do this …

  November 16, 2016

  November 16, 2016 I’ve used the tag line “Better Together” for the last several years as a way of expressing a benefit of member participation in the WSJ Society. My use came after reading the book “Better Together: Restoring the American Community” by Robert Putnam and Lewis Feldstein and published in 2003. The idea is really […]

• Second look at “Resilience”

  November 1, 2016

  In my last From the Editor I gave the idea of ‘resilience’ a second place to ‘flourish’ as a driving force for our website content. As that was being published, I learned a lesson on the value of ‘resilience’ as a driving force for personal well-being. In her book, “Super Better: A Revolutionary Approach to […]

• Let’s Promote Well-being

  September 19, 2016

  Involvement with the green building movement in the 1990’s sent me on a path to discover a meaning of “sustainability.” The most commonly quoted definition referenced achieving “aspirations” today and in the future. That’s a broad concept, not very measurable. I remember liking the idea of creating environments in which all life could “thrive.” But I didn’t have a […]

• Why Do This?

  September 2, 2016

  “A life is about its events; it’s about challenges met and overcome — or not; it’s about successes and failures. But more than all of these put together, it’s about how we touch and are touched by the people we meet. It’s all about people. … “ Colin Powell, “It Worked for Me: In Life […]

• A NOTE ON THE MERGER

  August 6, 2016

  One of our members called to alert me to information she received from a Wells Fargo rep regarding selling her JCI shares they held for her. Wells Fargo has apparently set August 18th as the last day they would sell JCI shares they hold for their clients. From that day on, all JCI shares they […]

• This journey continues …

  June 10, 2016

  Update (Posted June 26): It’s Doors Open for the Summer Luncheon, come and enjoy the story of this great Milwaukee event! Here’s the detail info: Summer Luncheon. This has been a very busy Spring at WSJSociety.com. As mentioned in the last From the Editor and in the Newsletter, in March we introduced several major changes to […]

• Checkout the Front Page

  March 28, 2016

   We’re on the way! It took a bit longer than I expected, but I guess that’s the way with coding! The Hub has been expanded and created with a new format to make it more friendly. Also, checkout the Front Page for our new, expanded coverage of news. We hit two items on our Progress […]

• Ready to Test & Learn

  March 13, 2016

  March 13, 2016 If you haven’t yet gone to The HUB, please check it out! It represents the first step in our Test & Learn process. And, please let me know what you think of the changes. Do you like it? Is it easier to find the information you want on the website? Based upon your […]

• From the Editor/ Check the Website Design Review

  February 13, 2016

  February 13, 2016 With some diligent work — at least I think so — we have a summary of the current design of website WSJSociety.com. You can check it out at WSJSociety.com Update/ Project Page. It may seem a bit  technical for some, but don’t worry, we can work through it. In the process some broken […]

• From the Editor/Customers = Members

  January 31, 2016

  January 31, 2016 Remember that our ‘customers’ are the members of the society. So far we’ve identified three groups of current members, Maggies, Rowdies, and Mickeys. Let’s look at how the services of the society address the interests of each of those groups. We can do that with the help of a Value Proposition Canvas generated for […]

• From the Editor/We have a draft!

  January 20, 2016

  January 20, 2016 OK, thanks to member input over the last several years, we have a draft Business Model Canvas for the WSJ Society. Click on that thumbnail image to see a larger image. Or, better yet, check it out with backup information on the project page: WSJSociety.com Update/ Project Page. In good startup form, the […]

• From the Editor/ Business Model Canvas

  January 9, 2016

  January 9, 2016/Updated January 17, 2016 WSJ Society Business Model/ Current Practice Note: All the documents referenced here are available at the project page:  WSJSociety.com Update/ Project Page The first step in our lean startup process will be to develop a common understanding of the current practice and member experience with the WSJ Society. We’ll do that […]

• From the Editor/ New Johnson Controls Website

  January 8, 2016

  January 8, 2016 Time to start a new year and we have a couple of bumps in the road. I was about to post the first step in WSJ Society/ Business Model when my computer disk crashed. That’s a first for me, but I did have a backup and only lost about a week’s work. […]

• From the Editor/ Time to Move Forward

  December 9, 2015

  December 9, 2015/Updated January 17, 2016 First I want to thank those who responded with their thoughts on a Vision Forward for the society. Your ideas are critical for the continued success of the Warren S Johnson Society. Since my last report, the Board has met to discuss a statement of mission for the society. […]

• From the Editor/ Vision/Forward Responses

  May 19, 2015

  May 19, 2015 Responses received to the request for your thoughts as posted online and in the last issue of the Newsletter included the following: What has the society done well? – Here’s how Dave Bigler put it: “You have kept us informed about the comings and goings of most of our group. I know […]

• From the Editor/ Vision/Forward #2: Volunteer

  March 13, 2015

    Last Update: March 13, 2015 A service organization promoting volunteer activities . . . Being involved in local communities is characteristic of the Johnson Controls community — company, employees and retirees. The many aspects of Community Focus and activities supported by the Johnson Controls Foundation, show the variety and global reach of company and […]

• From the Editor/ Vision/Forward #1: Begin Here . . .

  February 8, 2015

  The Society today . . . What do we do well? Last Update: March 13, 2015 The WSJ Society is a social group of people who share career experience at Johnson Controls. We have over 530 members and benefit from a very good relationship with Johnson Controls. The society has been in existence for 25 […]

• From the Editor/ 2015, What good can we do?

  January 8, 2015

  January 8, 2015 Hope that you all had a great time over the holidays. They seem to go by faster every year, all the more reason to make sure that we enjoy every moment. Now, to get the year started, let’s continue the discussion of just what we would like our WSJ Society to be going […]

• From the Editor/ December, A Good Time to Reflect

  December 1, 2014

  December 1, 2014 I’ve always found the month of December to be a special time to think about things. In the branch we were wrapping up the first quarter, hoping the holidays brought none of those below zero degree days that create boiler emergencies. While at 507 there was the relative quiet of that week […]

• From the Editor/ Reset: Let’s Continue the Discussion

  October 31, 2014

  October 31, 2014 We’re back! During most of October, WSJSociety.com was up and down. Chances are if you visited, you got an error message about how the system had a problem with the database. Remember all of those esoteric error messages we used to get on those early systems? I haven’t missed those, have you? […]

• From the Editor September 2014

  September 1, 2014

  “We emerge out of relationships and live to bond with one another and connect to large ideas.” “The Social Animal” by David Brooks Time for some serious bonding! This is reunion month, our 25th Anniversary.  We’re celebrating on Saturday, September 27 at Corporate HQ — you’ll want to be there! Please remember that Reunion 2014 […]

• From the Editor August 2014

  August 21, 2014

  WOW! Did August fly by. Paula and I spent several weeks in our first job — grandma and grandpa. We had our toddler and our teen+ grandkids here for several weeks. The latter came with a boyfriend and girlfriend. It was a great time, but a lot of work.  We don’t get to spend much […]

• From the Editor July 2014

  July 4, 2014

  I hope that you all are having a great time this Fourth of July! It looks like it will be a good day here in Milwaukee. There were lots of people in Kletsch Park at 6:30 AM this morning. They were setting up for their day’s picnic and parade watching with family and friends. The […]

• From the Editor June 2014

  June 2, 2014

  “I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy.” Rabindrannath Tagore, poet from Calcutta, India 1861 – 1941 What a beautiful thought! It was the leading quote in a chapter on giving in a book that I read this last month. […]

• From the Editor May 2014

  April 30, 2014

  “I close my eyes, and I can still see my first soccer ball. Really, it was just a bunch of socks tied together. My friends and I would “borrow” them from our neighbors’ clotheslines, and kick our “ball” around for hours at a time.” (“Why Soccer Matters” by Pele) That was the start of one […]

• From the Editor April 2014

  April 1, 2014

  “It’s all about dreaming. If you don’t dream, you get old. You have to dream.” That’s the advice from Sugar Ray Leonard, motivational speaker — former boxing champion — and pretty fantastic person. The USA Weekend, March 28-30 featured Sugar Ray in its “Special Health Issue.” He was promoting staying fit, exercise and eating well, […]

• From the Editor, March 2014

  February 28, 2014

  On cold winter mornings, my exercise consists of an hour or so on the stationary bike and treadmill. It’s not as interesting as a walk in the park, so I get my mind going by listening to TED Talks. TED Talks introduce me to some very fantastic people doing some fantastic work. Some talks just […]

• From the Editor, February 2014

  January 31, 2014

  Let’s Talk about Retirement! “Retirement is a new, untried experience. For many people, it is the first time they have meaningful choices regarding time, space, and mission without a map or script.” (Nancy K Schlossberg, “Retire Smart, Retire Happy: Finding Your True Path in Life”) I don’t like the word “retirement.” It and “retiree” seem […]

• From the Editor, January 2014

  December 31, 2013

  Happy New Year! Well, this has been a very busy year for us. In addition to a good program year, we are four months into the development of WSJSociety.com, our online community center. Greg Pascucci, VP Membership, has put in some good work going over our membership roster and supporting new member registrations. Checkout his […]

• From the Editor, December 2013

  December 16, 2013

  It’s already December 16th! OK, the first thing I did was to put a reminder on my calendar to post a new article on the first of each month. Sorry for the delay this month. We are continuing to add new members and WSJSociety.com registrants, but at a slower rate that before. That’s not unexpected. […]

• From the Editor, November 2013

  November 1, 2013

  WSJ Society membership continues to grow. The number of members registered at WSJSociety.com has increased to 147, over 27% of active members. And, we had 3 of our former colleagues participate in the Fall Luncheon as guests. All signs of increased interest in the WSJ Society, or at least curiosity about what’s going on. Let’s […]

• From the Editor, October 2013

  October 7, 2013

  WSJSociety.com is almost two months along. There have been some good experiences and some frustrating ones. Membership is up a bit, 3% to 538; more than 24% of the membership, 131 have logged in to WSJSociety.com; and we have received more stories and notes from you than we have in a long time. You will […]

• From the Editor — Update!

  July 10, 2013

  Well, here we are, together again, trying to do some good, with a bit of new technology in the mix. That sounds like Johnson Controls, doesn’t it? WSJSociety.com is a start-up venture. Initiated to provide the members of the Warren S. Johnson Society with a means to stay connected and engaged. When this group is […]