NEW YORK, NY (July 31, 2007)—Michael C. Fina, a leading provider of worldwide corporate employee recognition programs, announced today that Edward Ford, Senior Vice President of Total Recognition, has been named a Trustee of The Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement. 

The Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement was founded at the Department of Integrated Marketing Communications in the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.  The Forum studies the interdisciplinary elements of people performance management, measures their impact on organizational success and creates a curriculum based on research findings for academic and professional use.

“Ed’s unique leadership skills in the industry have earned him national and international recognition and accolades as an authority in the design, implementation and measurement of Total Recognition Programs,” said George Fina, President of Michael C. Fina. “We are delighted that he has been named a Trustee of The Forum and know that he will make an outstanding contribution to the success of the organization.”

Ford has been a practitioner in the recognition industry for more than 25 years. He joined Michael C. Fina in January 2004. Previously, he was President and Founder of FMTrecognition.

In addition to consulting with hundreds of organizations, Ford has presented countless educational seminars, symposiums and workshops. Since 1995, over 10,000 Human Resource professionals – in 20 major U.S. cities, Canada and the U.K. – have attended his international workshops and seminars on the concept of Total Recognition. Ford is the author of the “Official Recognition Workbook – A New Mandate for Employee Recognition Programs.” In addition, he has published a Workbook on the definition and design of nomination, on-the-spot and peer-to-peer programs, with 30 award-winning case studies.

As a pioneer in the recognition industry, Ford has recently published “Guidelines for a Total Recognition Strategy,” and has authored numerous innovative HR articles for a variety of publications. Ford loves to challenge human resources to re-examine current recognition practices and specifically recommends the “best ways to recognize and reward employees.”

In addition to providing captivating public seminars, Ford presently heads up a Total Recognition Team, which performs on-location assessments, certification of facilitators, train-the-trainer, and designs custom Total Recognition Programs.

Ford received a BS in Industrial Psychology from Brigham Young University and selected graduate studies at the University of Chicago and the Wharton School of Business. He is an active member of WorldatWork and SHRM.

Forum activities include:

• Conducting and coordinating research in the area of people performance management.
• Developing a corporate education program leading to an eventual textbook on people performance management.
• Tracking and helping disseminate academic research already being conducted in the U.S. and around the world.
• Creating a clearinghouse for research on all aspects of the field, both soliciting and helping to disseminate research in the field.
• Establishing the basis for a formal educational curriculum in the area of people performance management, to equip tomorrow's business leaders with the expertise needed to maximize organizational performance through people.