Re: Should STC be on this list? Yes.

[Chuck Banks <chuck -at- ASL -dot- DL -dot- NEC -dot- COM>]

>Even large companies are questioning the cost of the STC conference,
>especially with the luke-warm reviews given this year's conference.

My employer usually sends a single person to STC conferences because
of Transportation and Lodging (T&L) costs.  NOT because of the cost
of the conference itself.

This year, because the conference was held in Dallas, we sent 5
people for the same money it costs to send only one to out of town
conferences.

With the costs of other job/business-oriented seminars I've seen
advertized at $400 to $500 per day, the $150 per day costs of the
STC conference and post conference workshops are bargains in anyone's
language.

Companies have been questioning the value of seminars versus local
college/university courses because of the increasing costs of T&L
and because of the perceived low return on investment.

If we want our employers to continue sending us to conferences
such as ITCC, we, the attendees, must demonstrate value for
investment.  We have to change our management's low opinion of
seminars and workshops or we'll find no support for such
activities.

Here are a few suggestions for post conference acitivites:

   -   Prepare a Trip Report on your conference experience and
       point out value you received from conference activities.
       Also suggest value to your employer and your coworkers.

   -   Place a copy of the Proceedings in your company library.

   -   Organize your notes and prepare a series of lunch time
       "brown bag" seminars to pass information, hints, ideas
       from the conference to your coworkers. (This is your
       chance to use those course development skills you've
       let attrophe or to develop such skills.)

   -   Conduct discussions/meetings with your coworkers and
       prepare action plans for implementing these good ideas
       in your department/section/group.

   -   Prepare and conduct seminars/discussions for your
       management and for the management development people
       in Human Resourses/Personnel.  (After all, you DID
       remember to attend some Management Stem seminars,
       didn't you?)

After all, if all your coworkers and managers think you brought
back from the seminar was a coffee cup and a tan, don't expect
to ever attend another one.


As for the reviews this conference received, I haven't seen
anything in print yet.  Those I networked with at the conference
(You DID attend the networking luncheons, didn't you?) were
favorably impressed with the content, location, and organization
of the conference.  Most attended one seminar that wasn't all
that they'd hoped (I know I did), but the rest were most
informative and sparked a number of ideas for improving work
methods, document design, etc., as did discussions at the
networking luncheons.

I enjoyed the conference and benefitted from the seminars I
attended.  Now, I'm trying to pass on as many of those benefits
as I can to my employer and coworkers.  That's why I attended
the conference.

Chuck Banks
--
__        ________     ______
|\\   |  ||          //              Chuck Banks
| \\  |  ||_______  ||               Senior Technical Writer
|  \\ |  ||         ||               NEC America, Inc.
|   \\|   \\______   \\______        E-Mail:      chuck -at- asl -dot- dl -dot- nec -dot- com
America, Incorporated                CompuServe:  72520,411