Ideas and Enthusiasm Abound at Successful Annual Industry Conference
The 2008 GMAC Annual Industry Conference (AIC), Diverse Perspectives - Like Minds, is now history, but its effects will be felt for a long time to come in the insights that participants took home. GMAC President and CEO Dave Wilson told the AIC audience to be on the lookout for an idea a day that could help their work. Judging from the buzz in the hallways and sessions, participants likely returned to their campuses with notepads full of inspiration.
A brief wrap-up can’t do justice to the meeting’s breadth, but here are some highlights:
- Ideas galore. George Yip’s opening keynote provided ideas for crafting a global B-school strategy. In her closing keynote Tamara Erickson offered constructive insights on innovation and collaboration. In between, from a session that explored increasing demands for services from part-time MBA students to one that offered insights on curriculum integration, a plethora of breakouts were packed with creative ideas and inspiration.
- Colleagues and friends. Hallway hugs and coffee-break chatter were two outward signs that participants were connecting with each other to share ideas and colleagueship.
- “My GMAC” is your GMAC. To help make sure we’re on target in serving your needs, a series of well-received sessions was designed for GMAC staff to hear issues and concerns from professionals in the field. Interactive conversations at conference information booths were also part of “My GMAC.”
- TeamMBA awards. Student community work was so big this year that not one but two schools took top honors in the second annual TeamMBA award competition (see separate story).
- Protecting GMAT security. In the opening session, Dave Wilson showed a hard drive that had been confiscated from ScoreTop, a Web site that illegally distributed intellectual property related to the GMAT. GMAC won the hard drive—and ScoreTop’s URL—as part of the successful prosecution and shutdown of the site. (see separate story.)
- Speed networking. Building on its long tradition of welcoming new colleagues, GMAC this year sponsored a well-received chance for newcomers to “speed network.” In practice, “G-Match” offered nearly 150 first-time conference attendees the chance to meet six new colleagues in just half an hour.
- Partying to a Latin beat. Conferees celebrated in inimitable GMAC fashion with great food, fortune-telling, and friends during an evening fiesta at Carnivale, a Latin-theme Chicago restaurant.
- Farewell to Sandy. With two standing ovations, GMAC said farewell to Sandy Mitchell, retiring after many successful years directing GMAC’s professional learning programs, including the Annual Industry Conference.
Look for details about AIC sessions, copies of handouts, and more online at www.gmac.com/annualindustryconference/.
Take special note that the session on Understanding Group Identity and How it Strengthens Student Loyalty, which was cancelled in Chicago due to speaker travel delays, will be offered on September 25 as a webinar. Look for information on this session in the coming weeks at www.gmac.com/gmac/schoolservices/conferencesandevents.
The best takeaways from the AIC? Great ideas you can use on campus. The chance to reconnect with old friends. Opportunities to add new colleagues to your professional network. Most of all, perhaps, time to step back from daily routines to” frame the intriguing questions”—to draw a line from George Yip—that will inform our work in the year ahead.
Speaking of which—next year’s Annual Industry Conference takes place June 18-20, 2009, in Baltimore. We’ll see you then, if not before.
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