Friday, February 10, 2012 ISSUE 44   HOME Ten Reasons to Attend An Association Conference in 2004 Dale Fehringer Have travel restrictions or reduced budgets prevented you from attending an association conference the past couple of years? Has an increased workload hampered your ability to keep up with the changes and new products in your profession? Does it look like you “might” have some funds next year for employee education? If the answer to any of those questions is “yes,” consider enhancing your skills and catching up on what’s new in your industry by attending an association conference. This checklist will help you define to your management the value gained by attending an association conference. 1. Effective use of training funds. With limited funds for education and training, most of us can only justify one or two training experiences next year. A conference makes good use of those limited dollars by allowing us to review all the new technology, attend multiple seminars and workshops, and share best practices with our industry peers – all in a single outing. 2. Professional growth. Conferences help us expand our knowledge base and skills, which will make us more valuable to current and future employers. 3. Learning. Most association conferences offer educational opportunities for all levels of experience. Check your association’s Web site and conference agenda to see if there are workshops, seminars, or other programs that would enhance your job skills. 4. Find out what’s new. Vendor booths at association conferences allow you to review the latest software and hardware in the least amount of time – and company representatives to explain it to us. 5. Share best practices. Many of us tend to use the techniques we are most comfortable with. Conferences offer a vast array of new techniques, and people who are willing to tell us how the techniques might help our company become more competitive. 6. Develop networks. Conferences offer a confluence of people with similar responsibilities, and provide excellent peer networking opportunities. 7. Access to experts. Conferences attract a group of senior industry practitioners who are willing to share their expertise with conference attendees by serving as speakers, workshop leaders, or in some other advice-giving capacity. 8. Seminars and workshops. In conference seminars and workshops, the educational topics are focused on your interests, and interactive formats allow you to work closely with the instructors. 9. Discounts. Many associations are offering discounts to new members, or to members who sign up early for conferences. Check with your association to see if discounts are available. 10. Help the association. The purpose of an association is to develop, expand and enhance the professional knowledge and status of the profession you belong to. Your participation in an association conference will not only support you professionally, but also helps the association maintain the resources to continue to provide valuable services to you and your industry. Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals (SCIP) will hold its 2004 Annual International Conference & Exhibit from March 22-25, 2004 at the Sheraton Boston Hotel and Hynes Convention Center in Boston, Massachusetts. If you need to stay ahead of the curve and focus on the future of competitive intelligence, understand where it's growing and where it's going, and ultimately better utilize intelligence to drive success for you and your organization, this is your conference. [PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION] There are no letters available. [POST]

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