By Sara Abrons, CTS

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending CEDIA’s Management Conference in New Orleans, LA for the first time. I have to say… if you are a business owner, you should seriously consider attending this conference next year, if you aren’t already. Not only is it (the only?) business conference geared specifically toward ESCs, but it is also your best opportunity for networking all year. With only a few hundred people, you get to know and become friends with other people in the industry in a way you don’t have the time or opportunity at CEDIA Expo or other huge tradeshows — they’re just too big. I know it’s Speaking of which, although a lot of manufacturers are in attendance, I’m surprised there aren’t more. You’re missing your best chance to get to know, network with, and sell to decision makers in person all year.

Anyway, if you weren’t able to attend, I was there covering the show. You can find the Tweets I posted by searching Twitter: go to http://search.twitter.com and search for hashtag #CEDIAmc. I also interviewed on video some of the attendees, and video’ed some of the classes and keynotes, which you can find on our CEDIA Management Conference OnDemand Powered by rAVe NOW Web site here.

If you watch only one thing on the site, watch Richard Millson’s breakout session called Building a Powerhouse: Growth. This class, which was about efficiency and standardization in business practices, was the one that really blew the minds of all the attendees. Millson, a first time teacher at the Management Conference, is an ESC in Canada and might be the most organized and efficient small business owner I’ve ever heard speak. His class can be summarized by something he said: “Efficiency is the key to becoming a powerhouse. Become efficient by implementing repeatable processes and creating standards.” You can download his document outlining what he covered in class here.

My one criticism of the conference is that the schedule was so packed that there was less downtime and chances for networking and getting to know people than it seems like there’s been in years past. CEDIA told me this was specifically at the request of the attendees, who said they are busy and wanted it less spread out so they could get back to their businesses. I don’t think I’m alone in thinking it was a bit too tight of a schedule, so I’ll be interested to see what they choose to do next year. Either way, it’s worth your time and your money.

Sara Abrons is the editor of rAVe [Publications]. Contact her at sara@ravepubs.com