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 »

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 »