The Business Technology Association will hold its 2023 BTA National Conference, co-hosted by BTA East and BTA Mid-America, Aug. 30-31 at the Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts. Open to office technology dealers from across the country, the event will feature: a keynote address by Mike Eruzione, captain of the “Miracle on Ice” U.S. Olympic hockey team; a featured speaker, SEAC John Wayne Troxell, retired U.S. Army senior noncommissioned officer; a vendor panel addressing slave labor in China and the supply chain; a diversification dealer panel; two additional educational sessions presented by industry leaders; five breakout sessions that include two panel discussions on unified communications; time to network with peers and exhibiting sponsors during breaks; and a dinner cruise aboard the Spirit of Boston.
The national conference will begin at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 30, with breakfast, followed by opening comments and the keynote address, “Miracle on Ice: Insight Into Leadership & Teamwork,” presented by Mike Eruzione, captain of the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” U.S. Olympic hockey team. In this keynote address, Eruzione will show attendees how they can draw on their teams’ experiences to take their dealerships to new heights, ensuring they are on pace to win in today’s competitive, ever-changing business environment.
After the keynote, BTA General Counsel Bob Goldberg will moderate the vendor panel, “Will Slave Labor Disrupt the Supply Chain?” During this panel, five industry leaders will present the latest on the situation with Ninestar and its subsidiaries, and project into the future. The panelists: Tami Beach, HP; Charles Brewer, Actionable Intelligence; Sam Errigo, Konica Minolta; Tricia Judge, International Imaging Technology Council (Int’l ITC); Mike Marusic, Sharp Imaging and Information Company of America.
Following the panel, attendees can choose to take advantage of exhibit time or attend one of three breakout sessions:
- “The New Office Battleground: Building a Successful Business for the Future of Office Print” session with Robert Palmer of IDC.
- “Prospecting to Win” session with Rick Lambert of selltowin and In2communications.
- A unified communications dealer panel, “Bridging the Gap: How Dealers are Empowering Businesses Through Unified Communications,” moderated by independent consultant Jim D’Emidio. The panelists: Mike Ardry, Automated Business Solutions, Warwick, Rhode Island; Brantly Fowler, Zeno Office Solutions Inc., Midland, Texas; and Danielle Wolowitz, Shore Business Solutions, Farmingdale, New Jersey.
Lunch will then be held from noon to 1 p.m. After lunch, dealer attendees will have time to visit with exhibitors and their peers, followed by an educational session, “Purpose & Culture,” led by John Lowery and Casey Lowery of Applied Innovation. More exhibit time and the final educational session of the day, a diversification dealer panel, will follow. The panel, “Making Strides: Inspiring Stories of Diversification,” will be moderated by Mike Boyle of BASE Technologies. The panelists: AJ Baggott, RJ Young Co., Nashville, Tennessee; Philip Houser, Document Solutions Inc., Albuquerque, New Mexico; Tim Renegar, Kelly Office Solutions, Winston-Salem, North Carolina; and Mark Van Den Hoek, Office Advantage, Mitchell, South Dakota.
The first day of the conference will wrap up from 6 to 9 p.m. with a dinner cruise aboard the Spirit of Boston.
The second day of the event will begin at 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 31, with breakfast, followed by the featured speaker session, “How to Transform Your Business,” presented by SEAC John Wayne Troxell, retired U.S. Army senior noncommissioned officer. After the featured session, attendees can choose to take advantage of the exhibit time or attend one of three breakout sessions:
- “The New Office Battleground: Building a Successful Business for the Future of Office Print” session with Robert Palmer of IDC.
- “LinkedIn to Win Team Road Map” session with Rick Lambert of selltowin and In2communications.
- A unified communications vendor panel, “UC Market Dynamics: How Vendors are Empowering Dealers Through Unified Communications,” moderated by independent consultant Jim D’Emidio. The panelists: Jon Brinton, Crexendo; Eric Tuttle, Intermedia; Anne Valaitis, Keypoint Intelligence; and Cody Walton, Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. Inc.
Following the breakout sessions, the final educational session will be held. Tami Beach of HP Inc. will present “The Impact of Megatrends on Your Dealership & Customers.” The event will conclude with closing comments and exhibitor prize drawings from noon until 12:15 p.m.
The 2023 BTA National Conference exhibiting sponsors: ACDI, ARCOA Group, Brother (lunch sponsor), ConnectWise, Cranel, Crexendo, Dealer Site Builder, Digitech Systems, Distribution Management, DLL, ECI Software Solutions, ecoprintQ, eGoldFax, Epson, First Citizens Bank, FP Mailing Solutions, GreatAmerica, HP, Hytec, IBPI, Image Star, Intermedia, iTS, International Imaging Technology Council; iTS, Katun, Keypoint Intelligence, Kodak Alaris (breakfast sponsor), Konica Minolta, Mars International, Miracle Service, MPS Monitor, MyQ, NA Trading and Technology, PEAC Solutions, Printepoint, Polek & Polek (dinner cruise sponsor), Quench, Ricoh, RISO, SalesChain, Sharp (featured speaker sponsor), Source Technologies, TD SYNNEX, Technology Assurance Group (TAG; breaks sponsor), Tigerpaw, Toshiba, U.S. Bank, Wells Fargo, White Cup, Xerox (reception sponsor) and Zultys (keynote sponsor).
BTA member dealers receive 2-for-1 registration to the national conference. BTA member dealer registration is $199, which includes the Wednesday and Thursday educational sessions; Wednesday breakfast, lunch and dinner cruise; and Thursday breakfast. An additional attendee from the same member dealership is $99. Non-member dealer registration is $249 per person.
