As my flight takes me toward home following the completion of the 2010 NASTD Southern Region Seminar in , I am writing to pass along a few thoughts.
First may I express my sincere gratitude to the organizers of this dynamic event? It was three days of powerful information, energetic networking and an investment of time well spent for both corporate affiliates and NASTD state members who participated.
Special thanks are due to Roger Graves for his leadership and excellent management of the proceedings. As program chair, Don McDaniel put together an exceptional array of speakers and content that kept us informed and engaged.
Thank you to Tom Fletcher for the hospitality of the fine city of and the members of his organization who volunteered and made the event run like clockwork.
As always the NASTD staff was the bedrock of the success with particular recognition due to Pam Johnson. Pam is unexcelled in her ability to locate world-class venues that don’t break the bank. She sets a high standard for smooth logistics and exceptional management of the many details so important to making sure that everyone gets value from the investment of time and money required to take advantage of the NASTD events.
During the three days participants shared in information that was both informative and often inspiring.
Among the highlights of the program we heard the Honorable Jean Hoefer Toal, the first female chief justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court describe how communications technologies transformed the way that the courts and law enforcement do business in South Carolina. We heard Justice Toal say that this nationally recognized project held many challenges and successes. Justice Toal implored us that in today’s ubiquitous communications environment we should never let a person’s formal educational credentials cloud our expectations of what a person can accomplish. She told of how some of the least educationally credentialed members of the court system staff became power users of the transformative tools deployed across the many rural counties of the state.
We heard exciting news about the progress of federal grant programs that are distributing billions of dollars for infrastructure and communications technology improvements from two key executives of the programs: Cynthia Schultz, Director of Compliance and Audits of the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program and Irene Flannery, Acting Associate Chief of the Wireline Competiiton Bureau of the FCC.
We heard lots of different perspectives on the key issue of data center consolidation and the emerging topic of “Government from the cloud” from both state member perspectives and corporate affiliates.
Eight corporate affiliates were able to increase their return on investment from the conference by participating in the one of the two information packed affiliate panel discussions.
The 2010 NASTD Southern Region Seminar will serve as a keystone event for the series of NASTD regional events which will take us next to for the 2010 NASTD Eastern Region Seminar. Information and the developing agenda for the Eastern Region event please click here.
Corporate Affiliate members who would like to participate in the opportunities that this agenda creates to share information with attendees are encouraged to contact members of the Corporate Affiliate Council executive committee, Bulent Taskan, Caroline Rinker or myself or conference program chair Ruthann Sullivan to learn about opportunities to participate in topic areas to be covered during the seminar.
The NASTD conferences are an unparalleled opportunity to interact with colleagues, strengthen exiting professional networks, build new networks, and learn new and often inspiring things. For sponsors and participating companies few other events during 2010 will give the quality and interaction with both colleagues and key decision makers involved in technology recommendations and procurements than those available through the National Association of State Technology Directors.
I look forward to seeing many of you there.
If you have colleagues or business associates who are not members of NASTD and who would like to learn more about this dynamic and worthwhile organization, please have the drop me a line (gclinch@avaya.com).