There are a few major conferences/conventions each year that are well publicized. One of the biggest is the ISSA/INTERCLEAN Convention and Trade Show being held this year in Orlando, Florida the week of November 3, 2014. Co-located with this event is the annual Building Service Contractors Association International (BSCAI) and IEHA trade shows.

 

IEHA is held the weekend prior to ISSA. Then ISSA has most of their training element the first part of the week with the trade show as a bridge for BSCAI and to conduct its training sessions in the latter part of the week. 

 

If you are a relatively small company or have a small budget, you may be tempted to pass on these events due to the costs involved and lack of time to participate. It is very important that you consider attendance as an investment in your company or department and realize that failing to attend such events can cost you in many ways. Often one or more sessions or hearing a particular keynote speaker will more than pay for the trip. Remember that attendance for only a few days is better than passing because you cannot attend for all days. 

 

Following are a few tips on attending a large conference/convention:

 

1. Research the entire event and determine the topics and days that would most benefit you and your team. For example, if you are just getting started you may be focused on how to bid whereas if you are a larger company you may be more interested in advanced workloading and staffing.

 

2. Be sure to schedule in at least one day or more for the trade show element since you can get not only see but experience much of the new technology from vendors from around the world.

 

3. You can learn more about this event by using a search engine to find their web site or others with information about the event. 

 

Your comments and questions are important. I hope to hear from you soon. Until then, keep it clean…

 

Mickey Crowe has been involved in the industry for over 35 years. He is a trainer, speaker and consultant. You can reach Mickey at 678.314.2171 or CTCG50@comcast.net.


posted on 7/7/2014