I left the 2013 TechServe Alliance Conference with an extra pep in my step! This year marked my first TechServe Alliance Conference (here’s Leslie Vickrey’s recap of last year’s conference), although I had heard what a motivating, informational and valuable three-day event this is for years from my colleagues and clients. Keeping with the Las Vegas reputation, we did not slow down for the entire three days! Kudos to the TechServe Alliance team for orchestrating sessions that opened our minds to new ideas, confirmed thinking on others, and allowed attendees to hear from both leaders in the industry and colleagues sharing their stories.

1. Powerful, Forward-Thinking, Inspiring
Three Key Takeaways from the TechServe Alliance 2013 IT & Engineering Staffing
Conference and Tradeshow
I left the 2013 TechServe Alliance Conference with an extra pep in my step! This year
marked my first TechServe Alliance Conference (here’s Leslie Vickrey’s recap of last
year’s conference), although I had heard what a motivating, informational and
valuable three-day event this is for years from my colleagues and clients. Keeping with
the Las Vegas reputation, we did not slow down for the entire three days! Kudos to the
TechServe Alliance team for orchestrating sessions that opened our minds to new
ideas, confirmed thinking on others, and allowed
attendees to hear from both leaders in the industry
and colleagues sharing their stories.
Highlights of the 2013 TechServe Alliance
Conference
One of the conference highlights for me personally
was the opportunity to meet friends of ClearEdge
face-to-face. We all lead such busy lives that a
chance to join existing, past and potentially future
clients and partners for the information-packed
sessions and social opportunities throughout the
three-day event was extremely enjoyable and
rewarding.
Certain messages presented at the conference really resonated with me, including the
importance of attracting passive candidates, the expanding space of talent acquisition
technology and ways to recruit today’s tech-savvy talent. And during the Women’s
Executive Lunch, it was valuable to hear women from varying levels of leadership in
the industry – from veterans to up-and-comers – discuss topics of importance like
talent and client retention, performance metrics, career influence and marketing
trends. In addition, the following three key takeaways left an especially lasting
impression:
1. How you treat people drives behavior. The keynote delivered by Bill
Strickland, president and CEO of Manchester Bidwell Corporation, silenced the
main banquet hall as he spoke of his passion for believing in people – regardless
of social status, race or ethnicity. He captured our attention with his graceful,
simple messages about believing in people – realizing that people are assets
and not liabilities. He encouraged everyone to look at the solution and not the
problem – to fix things! His passion for the poor is remarkable. In fact, he said,
“Don’t give up on the poor kids, they might end up being a commencement
speaker,” referring to himself. I loved that line as an example of everything we
hope for in our society – giving people chances to make a difference, improve
their lives and the lives of those around them. His focus on treating EVERYONE
the same — as it increases the likelihood of something good happening — and

2. his encouragement to make friends in every town you visit really resonated
with me. These simple reminders are extremely powerful…we just have to
listen! It was an extraordinary presentation that was buzzed about for the
duration of the conference. If you are ever in need of a motivational speaker
for an event, I highly suggest Bill. He will move your audience.
2. Be the “Susan Boyle” of staffing. Eric Gregg, CEO and founder of Inavero,
moderated a panel discussion with leaders of four staffing companies, including
Consultis, CN-TEC, Hollstadt and
the Addison Group, where they
discussed challenges in IT
staffing today such as:
onboarding talent, attracting
passive candidates and
identifying “A” list talent,
among others. The final
message was the one that really
stuck in my mind, though. The
importance of surprising your
clients, candidates and even
your own employees – being the
“Susan Boyle” of staffing. Susan
surprised the world with her
performance a few years ago on
Britain’s Got Talent, and that’s why we remember her. So, things most
businesspeople don’t see anymore, like hand-written thank you notes, a gift
card out of the blue as a thank you for being a loyal client or candidate, doing
what you say you are going to do – these types of small “surprises” can make a
big impact. They can also contribute to building and maintaining a strong
company culture, which is another key area of success mentioned by the panel.
Isn’t it always a great feeling to work for a company that surprises and
delights? Really, it’s the simple things that take no time at all, but tend to get
pushed back on the never-ending to-do list – yet go a long way in raising levels
of satisfaction across the board.
3. Want prospects to know you exist? Make at least nine “touches.” And most
people give up after five! Jack Daly won the award for most energetic and
attention-grabbing speaker. Wow! His messages were simple, but so significant.
With clients being the most important focus since they give you business, they
refer you to more business and they market for you – we need to be sure we
are touching them regularly with value-add information. “If your touches are
all about you and your company, you’re blowing it,” said Daly. Touch prospects
and clients with industry information and ideas, subscribe to industry
magazines, attend conferences like TechServe, look for ways to find
information that is relevant to their business and communicate it in a variety of
ways. Personal visits (what he called “belly-to-belly”), emails, voicemail, social
media – use a variety of communication avenues to be in front of your clients
and prospects. Make sure you also learn as much about the person as possible –
according to Daly, if you bond with someone on the personal side, you trump

3. the competitor. He also talked about the importance of creating competitive
advantage – don’t say the same thing as everyone else. It’s common to hear
general things like we’ve got experience, we have knowledge, we are
competitive, we will make you money. Instead, articulate why a prospect
should choose you and your company over competitors with key differentiators
and proof for each of them. If you can prove why you are a better choice with
specificity and uniqueness, your odds are much greater. Daly also
recommended a few books worth reading – including: The Go-Getter by Patrick
Kyne and Getting Naked: A Business Fable About Shedding the Three Fears That
Sabotage Client Loyalty by Patrick Lencioni. Based on Jack’s incredible
presentation, I’ll definitely be picking them up!
This list of key takeaways could really go on and on. The conference was packed with
numerous valuable sessions and opportunities for conversation. I welcome you to share
your key takeaways in the comments section below. Also, TechServe members can log
on to TechServe Connect, the private social networking site for TechServe Alliance
members to keep the conversation going about Conference topics, as well as other
areas of interest.
Here’s to a great finish to 2013 and a successful year ahead!