The New I.D.A.

I.D.A. president Mort Harris of Minnesota Inudstrial Tools shares his insight into the New I.D.A. and the new convention structure?

Q: What does I.D.A. hope to achieve with
this new convention management structure?

With the economy forcing our industry into a new economic reality, I.D.A. and ISMA had to examine our organizations’ place in the markets our respective members serve. For I.D.A., this has meant a hard look at who we are and how we can best serve our constituency. We now have a new mission and clear value proposition: “To better industrial distributors, enabling them to better serve customers through the delivery of top notch educational programs, quality networking opportunities, knowledge-based information and advocacy for the industry.” Every initiative I.D.A. undertakes from here forward will address one of these four cornerstone values.

The new structure will enable I.D.A. to provide all these values to our members through innovative programming and the enhancement of successful programs such as the distributor conference booth program. In addition, we have invited non-traditional suppliers to actively participate this year, giving our members unprecedented access to additional markets within the channel.

Q: Is that why you opened the 
I.D.A./ISMA fall convention to all manufacturers?
One of the goals of the realignment is to give both associations the opportunity to serve their diverse membership needs through convention structures, ISMA’s for a broad, inclusive industry event in which I.D.A. individual members would participate, and I.D.A.’s for a more focused industry channel event in which individual ISMA members would participate in addition to other suppliers marketing through I.D.A. members.

I.D.A. chose to invite non-traditional manufacturers to the fall convention to expose our member distributors to a broader channel with which they can, and must, do business in order to stay competitive in this challenging economy. The feedback we have received from the membership has been overwhelmingly positive. For the first time at an I.D.A./ISMA convention, members have the opportunity to explore new markets never made available to them before in this venue. For similar reasons, ISMA has indicated it plans to invite non-I.D.A. distributors to the spring convention.

Q: Is the fall convention the first to debut 
supplier and distributor conference booth programs?
Yes. For the first time at an I.D.A./ISMA convention, ISMA members will be joined by non-traditional suppliers such as offshore manufacturers, master distributors and resellers, marketing/buying groups, manufacturer representatives and technology providers in a supplier booth program specifically showcasing new products and suppliers in new markets.

With the economy forcing many distributors to find new supply sources, this new program gives distributors access to alternative manufacturers and other suppliers they have never been able to see before in this venue. It also gives these non-traditional suppliers a venue to promote their new products in front of an audience they’ve never been able to capture.

Q: What else will be different 
about the fall industry convention?
Our associate member technology providers have risen to the occasion to provide attendees with top-quality programming during our Technology Inforums. Each company developed its own content, and we are confident both distributor and supplier attendees will be able to take the knowledge they gain from these sessions and apply it to their business.

The end-user panel is another quality addition to the fall program, and another first for I.D.A./ISMA conventions. Seldom do distributors and manufacturers have an opportunity to ask questions and hear candid answers from customer purchasing managers representing a cross-section of end-users. Attendees will leave this convention with a greater understanding of issues that affect purchasing decisions, allowing them to better tailor value-added programs.

The full-day workshop prior to the convention is another new feature we hope to continue. It’s a bonus educational opportunity for anyone who can get to Chicago a day early.

Q. Should I.D.A. members be concerned about non-I.D.A. distributors being invited to the spring convention?
Absolutely not. I.D.A. and ISMA are working together to grow the membership of both organizations. For I.D.A., this is a great opportunity to identify prospective members and introduce them to all the value we provide. For I.D.A. members, this new segment of our industry will provide an even larger group of peers from which they can network and learn best practices.

I.D.A. members will still receive a preferred registration rate and will be invited to attend I.D.A.-only networking events. During the fall convention, I.D.A. and ISMA members will be easily recognizable by their organization’s logo on their name badges and on their booth signage. We anticipate that ISMA will offer the same benefit for the spring convention.

Q: What other differences will there be 
between the two convention programs?
The fall convention will attract a more diverse representation of suppliers that I.D.A. members must now do business with in order to be value-added suppliers. Conversely, the spring convention will attract distributors from outside our channel to provide maximum value to ISMA members.

As always, the fall convention is a business-focused event. We meet in Chicago in late fall to provide attendees a centrally located venue with few distractions so they can spend valuable time away from their office actually building their business. Our education sessions are designed to provide the maximum value for attendees by focusing on the issues facing them every day — sales allocation, operations, management. As new technology increasingly becomes a must-have for successful distributors and suppliers, our Technology Inforums will grow in scope and importance. Our new supplier booth program will bring non-traditional suppliers to the table so distributors can have a wide range of opportunities for building business in new markets. And, the distributor conference booth program will continue to provide distributors an unparalleled opportunity to meet with their suppliers to plan for the coming year. In short, the fall convention will strengthen its emphasis on cost effectiveness, content and convenience.

Q: Of this new arrangement, what other 
significant changes will be noticeable to the member?
With the joint focus of I.D.A. and ISMA shifted away from conventions, many new potentially beneficial opportunities will present themselves for both organizations. I think if you look at how this fall convention and the upcoming spring convention programs have evolved since the change, you can see the benefit of this realignment first hand. I.D.A. and ISMA can now provide the kinds of programs our respective memberships need to be successful in this challenging marketplace.

For I.D.A., the realignment has been a catalyst to re-inventing ourselves as a true resource for our members in this new economic climate. With our new mission and four-pronged value proposition, I.D.A. members will begin to see an increased focus on value-added education, affinity programs that provide real cost savings, educational sessions providing solutions to operational and economic challenges, enhanced networking opportunities with traditional suppliers as well as suppliers in new and emerging markets, and industry information providing distributors the knowledge to make educated decisions on positioning their firms for success.

Q: How will you know if these 
changes are successful or if they need tuning?
The same way we determined which new features to add — we ask the members. Our convention survey will ask attendees’ opinions about program content and speakers as well as the booth programs and networking opportunities. We will also do a more comprehensive survey after the convention to determine what programs they would like to see in the future and how I.D.A. can be a better partner to them at the convention. This is a new convention model, and we will continually enhance it to provide even more value for those who attend. We encourage all attendees to tell us what they think.

Q: What can we expect at future fall conventions?
Ultimately, we will let the members decide what they want. We anticipate the end-user panel will be a very popular session, as well as the supplier booth program and Technology Inforums. Our goal is to continually provide programming to meet members’ evolving needs.

In the short term, we have taken steps to improve existing programs and you will see that continue. Our new Education & Communications Committee has developed speaker and content guidelines to make the educational sessions more interactive and valuable to those attending. Some of those recommendations have been implemented at this convention, such as setting the workshops in roundtable format.

Read the question and answer session with ISMA president Hardy Hamaan.

This article originally appeared in the I.D.A./ISMA Fall Convention 2002 issue of Progressive Distributor. Copyright 2002.

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