Heading to Las Vegas to Get a Read on the Industry’s Pulse

This week I’ll be at the annual conference of the International Association of Information Technology Asset Managers, or IAITAM, for short. It’s appropriate that the conference is held in Las Vegas, because when it comes to the subject of ITAM, it’s all about reducing risk.

Each year, I particularly look forward to this event, since it’s the best single place to get a read on the industry, judge how everyone is feeling and listen to the various conversations. What’s being called the Great Recession has of course hit our industry along with the rest of the economy, and I’m eager to learn how people are coping, and what strategies they’re using to ride out the downturn. I’ll report some of what I’ve learned at the conference in upcoming posts.

I’ve attended these conferences in the past, and this year the focus is on being green. Of course, Redemtech was a pioneer in this area. We were green long before it was the cool thing to do. That’s given us a nice head start. As it happens, our president, Bob Houghton, will be among the featured speakers at the conference.

One of the main subjects I’ll be especially listening for is the extent to which most organizations, given the challenging economy, are thinking about the long term even in their short-term planning. In other words, are they factoring in how they might extend their equipment lifecycles, which will ultimately positively impact their remarketing returns at end of life? I think the prudent organizations continue to focus on this issue.

Here’s hoping I’ll have some good news to report on that and related fronts. Meanwhile, I’d love to hear your thoughts.