Guest Post by Amy Cohen, Director of Marketing

We all hear that change is good and while I usually agree, I must admit that changing our live customer event to a virtual event was not one I was originally on board with. To say we have the greatest customers is an understatement. Which is why the entire Aquire team looks forward each year to hosting the Aquire User Conference. The event is filled with great sessions, workshops, networking and product training, but more importantly it’s the energy and the buzz you get from being around people that love your product as much as you do that makes it such a special event. read more »

Guest Post By Tom McKeown, President of Aquire

I spent three days last week attending the 2009 ASUG SAPPHIRE USA show in Orlando. As I registered, someone told me total attendance was somewhere between eight and ten thousand. Walking the floor, it seemed to me the population was less than that. But from both the standpoint of company marquees and interest in purchasing something, the quality of the attendees was very good – a positive trend I have found at several tradeshows this spring. read more »

While we are on the topic of customers…Dollars are tight these days and so many of our customers were concerned they wouldn’t make this year’s annual customer conference because training and travel budgets were greatly reduced. That is why the team decided to take this year’s conference to the Web. read more »

The return trip home from the IHRIM conference gave me time to reflect on the last few days. I visit, and we exhibit at, a lot of conferences and tradeshows. IHRIM is, and really always has been, a unique experience. The energy and community between the attendees is wonderful and contagious. Even though the economy is tough, these professionals know they need to invest in themselves and their businesses. read more »

Unfortunately, I found last week’s SAPHR 2009 conference content uninspiring. The sessions were redundant, covered by so many other shows, including last year’s SAPHR show.

It’s a shame, because those people who did have to fight for their travel budget deserved a lot more. It makes you wonder what will happen to their budgeting for next year. Many people were frustrated. read more »