by Darcy Boerio

Earlier this month, I attended the Information Technology Alliance (ITA) Fall Collaborative in Indian Wells (Palm Springs area), CA. 

I’ve been a member of ITA since 2014, and I’ve attended nearly every one of the bi-annual conferences since then. 

Here are some observations from this one:

Keynotes

 

• Day One Keynote: The Future of Leadership by Cheryl Cran
• Day Two Keynote: Leadership Lessons from Virgin Galactic’s Journey to Space by Stephen Attenborough
• Bonus Keynote: Navigating the Economic Landscape: Insights and Impacts for Technology Professionals by Taylor St. Germaine

I thoroughly enjoyed all of them. I am easily bored during keynotes, but each speaker held my attention and left me feeling inspired, educated, and entertained. In talking with other attendees, the standout seemed to be Attenborough as many people I spoke to said the topic of space travel intrigued them.

 

On the eve of the US Presidential election, St. Germaine showed a billion charts and graphs and shared data-driven insights on topics such as what impact a Presidential election has on the economy as a whole, the effects of current trends in the world economy, the biggest threats to the US economy, and when we should expect our next downturn.

Bob Scott also took a few minutes to address the attendees for a last hurrah as he entered retirement, speaking of his time in the industry, saying, “The last 33 years have been fun”. I did manage to trap him for a few minutes at the bar (his best recommendation for hearing all the buzz at an event), and he gave me some words of wisdom about how to make Enterprise Software Express the best it can be in providing content that mid-market ERP professionals want to read!

 

Noteworthy Sessions for Consultants and Resellers

Empowering Growth: Finding and Spreading Business Process Knowledge – Attendees broke out into table groups and exchanged ideas on topics around tools and processes to encourage employees to share their knowledge with each other. 

Navigating the ERP Selection Consultant Landscape: Strategies for VARs and ISVs Partnering with Consultation Firms –  I wasn’t able to attend this session, but I heard it included some “lively” discussions – perhaps some VARs are not fans of the selection consultant process?

The Price is Right: The New Way to Approach Pricing for a Subscription Model –  A diverse panel representing Acumatica, Netsuite, and Sage VAR and publisher perspectives discussed strategies for subscription pricing models, renewals, discounting, and more.

Transforming Your Client Outcomes with Generative AI –  Four different publishers – including a representative from Microsoft – showed how their solutions incorporate AI. My takeaway is that there’s a pretty broad definition in the ERP software world of what qualifies as “AI”, and it’s lurking in places you didn’t even know you were using it!

 

Common themes throughout sessions across all tracks were leadership, AI, partnerships, recruiting/retention, and data analysis.

There are concurrent sessions, plus I also have a “day job”, so I can’t make it to every session, but you can view the full agenda here: ITA FAll 2024 Agenda

Advanced Networking

ITA has always had epic advanced networking opportunities, and this year was no exception. The Monday night party was an elegant outdoor affair with a live band that provided ambiance without being overpowering.

 

 

While some who look at these pictures may see the fedoras and think this was a Blytheco event, it was actually all part of the “Rat Pack” theme. The hats were a huge hit!

 

 

There was a sky viewing area where attendees could use powerful telescopes to view various objects in the clear desert sky.

 

 

We were able to look directly through the lens or just see the view from a tablet. This is the Barbell Nebula. 

 

Organizational News

 

 

President Geni Whitehouse thanked outgoing Board members Kim Austin and Todd Perlman for four years of service and announced new Board members and roles, including new additions Christi Whipple and Walt Goodfield and appointments of John Fleischer to Board Chair and Darcy Boerio to Vice Chair.

See story in CPA Practice Advisor

The ITA Board of Directors Walt Goodfield, Michael Pynch, Christi Whipple, Geni Whitehouse (President), Kane Polakoff, Darcy Boerio, Brian Terrell (not pictured John Fleischer and Irfan Dossani)

The next Collaborative will occur in Memphis at the famous Peabody Hotel in April. If you want to learn more about ITA, contact Geni Whitehouse – geni.whitehouse@italliance.com.