I’m sure many of you are looking forward to attending the Fall ERE Expo in
Washington D.C. in a couple of weeks.  For some of you, it may be the first time; for others, you may have attended before – in either case, if you are involved in recruitment, it definitely will be the place to be… 

I have had the opportunity to meet some of you at previous conferences and  hope to meet other new faces at the upcoming conference.  In case you haven’t guessed yet, I have the honor of serving as the Chairperson of the event this fall.  In my spare time, I am employed as the Director of Workforce Planning for HealthEast Care System in St Paul MN; an organization with 7,000 employees deep in the throes of recruiting and retaining a competent health care workforce.  

In the past, some of the chairmen have been Dr John Sullivan, Gerry Crispin and Jeremy Eskenazi.  While I have some pretty big shoes to fill, it’s exciting to be the first practitioner to serve in this role but I will need your help to make this an outstanding event. 

I’ve recently had the opportunity to talk with most of the speakers and have been able to see their presentations.  I know that you will come away with new information and many great ideas.  You are encouraged to ask questions of the speakers either during their presentation or as you encounter them in the exhibit hall or the hospitality hours. This is your opportunity to get as much as you can from them.   

The best advice I can give you to maximize this event is network, network, and network! Review the participants list prior to the conference and find out who you want to meet – maybe its someone in your industry, hopefully its not.  Who do you want to steal ideas from (sorry I do it all the time and adapt to my needs) – now is your chance.  Take advantage of the opportunity to meet these people and start a dialogue. 

The same holds true for the vendors.  You never know when you’re going to need some of the services that the vendors provide, so create those relationships in anticipation of this.     

I do have to steal the idea/advice from Jeremy that he offered for the spring ERE. It’s so much easier to network and meet other people if you place your name tag on your right lapel.  You shake hands with your right hand and it is then a natural movement to view a person’s nametag as you make eye contact – without looking at their midsection to see a nametag hanging from a lanyard. (Thanks, Jeremy) 

Finally, be sure to bring your credit cards or your checkbook to participate in the silent auction.  The proceeds go to the ERE Foundation which provides educational support to disadvantaged youth in the US and abroad. Some of the things you will be able to bid on are:    iPhone, iPods, Digital Camera, Telephone Sourcing Learning Series, Exec Talent in Asia Conference and more. The top bid wins the prize (I won a conference located in
Hawaii last year – not bad)….  

Take a minute and share any questions or comments that you have: what you are looking for from this conference, who would you like to meet – or what sites are you going to see in Washington.   Looking forward to meeting everyone in a couple of weeks. 

Trudy Knoepke-Campbell

ERE Conference Chairperson