Speaking Testimonials and Booking Info

Conferences and conventions should be filled with memorable stories and concepts that impact lives and help people change behavior and achieve success. Kay Sever has delivered those kinds of stories with a level of enthusiasm that is difficult to forget. Audiences have stated that her talk was “the best session” at the conference. She was voted the best speaker 5 years in a row for a state-wide teacher education program. Rather than deliver “canned” presentations, she is happy to work with your conference planners to customize the material and deliver a keynote that will touch attendees personally.

NOTE: If you are interested in WORKSHOPS, go to the WORKSHOP page on this site for more information.

Three Reasons to consider Kay as a speaker for your next event:

Kay is the only woman who consults in improvement for the mining industry. She has many funny and intriguing stories to share about getting things done with people and equipment, both personally and professionally.
Kay has worked in banking and mining for 34 years and has a unique ability to inspire, motivate and entertain as she relates courageous and unpopular choices that she made to pursue her career path.
Kay is the author of two editions of "Building An Opportunity Culture - Addressing The Barriers That Steal Profits and Prevent Sustainable Change", a bold and honest look at why change is difficult and why millions of dollars are forfeited in the midst of a structured focus on improvement. See "Products/Books" on this website for more information and the link to purchase it.

Selected Speaking Topics:

Change Management
Barriers to Change
Motivational Change
Taking Risks (Personally and Professionally)
Women and Success
Being Honest about What Needs To Be Fixed
Investing in Your Future
Why People Leave a Job - Reasons Never Discussed in an Exit Interview
Follow-Through - The Final Link to Success
Fear In The Workplace
No-Man's Land - Senior Management's Role in Change
Reaching A Career Goal with Little Family Support

Travels From: Phoenix, AZ

Contact Information: Email: kay@miningopportunity.com, Office: 480-545-9095, Cell: 480-223-2230

TESTIMONIALS: As the following testimonials indicate, she meets and often exceeds audience expectations:

AQA 2008 Annual Conference, "Su Doku Your Way to Organizational Effectiveness" - audience feedback:

"I will take a different approach in looking at processes, make sure I am looking at the Big Picture, and share the game with my cross-functional team. Excellent - it is apparent that she knows her stuff."
Earnestine Harrison, Assoc Dean of Instruction, Rio Salado College

This session "reaffirmed things that I [already] know. I will look at all the pieces and encourage others to do so. Kay was calm, beautiful, and had an engaging voice." "It changed how I understand barriers and address them throughout projects. Excellent connection to case studies and Su Doku. Thank You!"..."Very good, I was doubtful at first but she won me over."..."Reconfirmed the value of paying attention to the human side of quality. Good activity and relationship to workplace. Now I will consider a discussion about unintentional barriers." "Very interesting. I can relate this to I.T. - they always have their own agenda and control all I.T. improvements." "Simple demonstration of a powerful subject."
Anonymous

She "reinforced how much people mean to the process and potential success. I will change how a look at problem solving. Very enlightening."
Deborah Yunous, Quality Advisor, City of Mesa

"It addressed the people side of organizational effectiveness. I will examine how our department can remove barriers. I really enjoyed this presentation. It gave real life experiences, not just "models".
Ernestine Tesarek, Mgmt Asst, City of Mesa

SME 2008 Annual Conference Technical Session:

"Kay was funny, engaging, and stayed on point. Her lessons were practical in their expectations of the dynamic that often occurs between engineers and hourly staff, as well as the challenges encountered working inter-departmentally. In a short session she was able to impart information to people in a variety of professional positions that they could apply at work immediately and see results. It was a delight having Kay to speak, and we look forward to the opportunity to work with her in the future."
Katie Marten, 2007 Chair of Young Leaders, Society of MIning, Metallurgy and Exploration

I Think Mining: SME on the past, present, and future of mining: balancing the young and the old with good food by Jack Caldwell

The technical sessions of the SME meeting in Salt Lake City that I sat in on this afternoon perfectly capture the past, present, and future of mining. First the future: Kay Sever President of OptimiZ Consulting spent the whole afternoon on process optimization in mining. She gave her mini-course at the invitation of Young Leaders group of the SME. And her course was well packed with young mining engineers–I must have been the only person in attendance over the age of thirty. She ably presented them the theory and practice of wringing the most profit and optimum performance out of a mine by applying the principles of quality management and control. If the young miners in attendance are harbingers of the future of mining, things will not be business as usual as these folk take over. Change is in the air. (February 25, 2008)

"This topic added value by emphasizing "not accepting things as the "norm". Start with drawing the "line in the sand" [as conceptually presented] so you can measure potential from there." I also gained insight into wastes and its costs and will be working to encourage human behaviors that will achieve that reduction in waste/failures that I want to see."

Anonymous

"This topic added value because it re-emphasized missed opportunities. I will be researching and distributing costs to all employees and improving feedback to operators because I attended your session."

Rob Leslie, Pit Supervisor, Robinson Nevada Mining Company

"This topic helped me emphasize opportunity we're passing up by delaying change management. I will be taking the time to really think about how the numbers are being presented and if we are presenting them ineffectively."

Eric Roller, Engineering Analyst, Freeport McMoRan

"This topic helped emphasize that we must look at the big picture and involve employeees at all levels. I will strive to look for more lost opportunities and quantify them for implementation and correction as a result of attending today."
Tom Hilderbrand, Manager of Process Engineering, Thiele Kaolin Co.

"This topic raised my awareness about how small improvements can make a big difference."

Chee Gan, Data Engineer, Freeport McMoRan

"This topic enlightened me about Opportunity Logs, as simple concept that everybody at an operation could utilize."

Joseph Lawsbery, Mine Operations General Superintendent, Robinson Nevada Mining Company

MineWest 2006
“You consistently engage the audience immediately and quickly connect with an issue at the heart of every participant’s concerns: how to increase employee productivity. Your examples are real-life, drawn from your 25 years in the mining industry and from over 10 years of focusing on productivity. At times hilarious, at other times sobering, you deliver an eye-opening look at the things organizations do which get in the way of employees trying to deliver their best, and offer practical solutions and perspectives on how to really get the most out of employees. Attendees consistently rank your talks “Excellent”. ”

Kim Davis, Event Manager, Mining Media, Inc.

IMA-NA 2006 Conferences
"Just a brief note to thank you again for making presentations at the Industrial Minerals Association - North America’s 2006 Technology Workshop and our 2006 Annual Meeting. The audiences at the two meetings were decidedly different, but you managed to deliver engaging presentations that hit the mark in both cases. Our Technology Workshop, as the name implies, is designed for technical personnel. Your presentation, “The Power of Process Optimums,” offered a systematic construct for improving processes, whatever they may be. Your encouragement of audience participation in illustrating the basic principles of your OptimiZ approach got everyone involved and on the same page.
Our Annual Meeting primarily benefits CEOs and senior executives. Your presentation at that venue, "Management’s Unintentional Sabotage of Continuous Improvement – Barriers that Hide Opportunity and Prevent Culture Change,” held up a mirror to well-intentioned executives who had their eyes opened to potential unintended consequences attending their best intentions. Kay, you gave us two lively presentations and I can only hope that all our meeting attendees took home as many insights as I did. Thanks again."
Mark G. Ellis, President, Industrial Minerals Association of North America

MineWest 2005

“Personally, I thought your speech at MineWest 05 last year was very informative. Knowing that the proprietary nature of your business prevented you from discussing case specifics, I think you were still able to offer mine managers practical advice on improving productivity. The most important point I took away from the conference was your example of getting different departments to communicate. On the surface the solution seemed simple, but sometimes internal politics prevent companies from achieving their goals.”
Steve Fiscor, Editor of Coal Age Magazine