Association Viewpoint

The 54th Annual ARMA International Conference & Expo ended in October,
closing festivities from Orlando. Attendees reported they had great one-
on-one time with key opinion leaders and old friends, all while enjoying
the cutting-edge education that has come to symbolize the event.

If you didn’t make it to the ARMA International Conference & Expo this year, there are many ways to catch up and feel like you were a part of the action. Some of the most popular conference education sessions were recorded and are being offered for sale as Web seminars. While the sessions are available for everyone to purchase, ARMA International members can use their discount to get access to these sessions, which cover some of the hottest topics in information management. A list of session titles can be found at www.arma.org/conference.

Free options for catching up on conference activities also abound. ARMA International launched two additional podcast channels during the conference, both available at www.arma.org/podcast. The 2009 Conference & Expo podcast brings listeners to the expo floor, where vendors shared the latest technology, tools and services, along with trends and tips from industry leaders. The second podcast announced during the event was an interview series with Prudential Financial, winner of the prestigious ARMA International Cobalt Award, which recognizes excellence in managing records and information at an organizational level.

ARMA International also used the conference to launch a free, year-round "virtual conference." Just like a physical conference, the ARMA International iConference (http://iconference.arma.org) is a tool for getting in on the conversations that are shaping the information management profession. Individual groups within iConference discuss topics such as e-discovery, ESI (electronically stored information) and compliance, and industry-related issues, such as pharmaceuticals, U.S. government and energy. Many of the conversations taking place in these groups continue the on-site industry roundtable discussions held live during the 2009 conference.

Plans are already under way for next year’s event. ARMA International’s 55th Conference & Expo will be Nov. 7-10, 2010, at Moscone Center in downtown San Francisco.