The National Association of Electrical Distributors’ first ever virtual conference, which took place yesterday, has been announced an overwhelming success by NAED President, Tom Naber and many NAED members. The event was announced in March, shortly after the 2020 National Meeting to take place in Philadelphia was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The four-hour NAED 2020 Virtual National Conference, which was open to members and non-members alike had almost 1,000 unique log-ins,” said Naber. “And, a short survey after the conference revealed that 92% of viewers planned to implement new learnings gained from the conference into their day-to-day work life.”
The free event provided an opportunity for those across the electrical distribution industry, and globe, to listen to educational speakers covering a range of business trends and best practices during this unprecedented time.
Dirk Beveridge, founder of UnleashedWD, podcast host, and author served as the moderator of the event. Speakers included: Tom Ridge, the Former United States Secretary of Homeland Security and current alliantgroup Chairman of Cybersecurity and Technology; Alan Beaulieu, Ph.D. President, ITR Economics; Michael Marks, Principal, Indian River Consulting Group; and William Putsis, Ph.D. Professor of Marketing, Economics and Business Strategy at the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
During the event, George Vorwick, President and CEO United Electric Supply, and Chairman of the NAED Board of Directors, gave a speech on the State of the Industry then handed his gavel to incoming Chair, Wes Smith, the President of Mayer.
“We launched this conference because during these challenging times, people look to their Associations for guidance and support,” said Naber. “NAED has been working tirelessly to provide all kinds of resources for members to use, to help them navigate through some unprecedented circumstances.”
A recording of the entire event is now available at naedlive.org.
A special thanks goes out to Eaton, Atkore International, ABB, Legrand Millbank, Nucor Republic Conduit, Siemens, Square D and Zekelman Industries for sponsorship of the event.