Roughly 350 members of the United Association of Equipment Leasing (UAEL) turned up in Tucson, AZ, for that group’s Annual Conference & Exposition.

If the choice of venue — The Hilton El Conquistador Golf and Tennis Resort — was any indication, the folks at the UAEL clearly have no problem mixing business with pleasure; and there were plenty of both to keep participants busy through the weekend.

The combination conference and expo — which ran from Oct. 4-7 — featured one full day of exhibits from more than 50 companies (the Monitor included) followed by a day of sessions covering topics such as credit, accounting and leasing law.

“Leading companies in our industries shared priceless insight this year into their business and our industry via interactive and lively panel discussions,” said incoming UAEL president Paul Knowlton. “The funding and service provider’s space was sold out, and loads of information on processes, policies and pricing was exchanged. Many participants commented that this conference was particularly strong on networking opportunities.”

This year’s event took the theme “Making Connections,” a slogan that rang true for many of the attendees. AMSTAT Capital’s Louise A. Jennings, a newcomer to the conference, said she came with networking in mind, but managed to have fun along the way.

“I am a broker and my main goal was to find specific lenders to fill our current funding voids and I believe I accomplished that,” said Jennings, “The conference was at a beautiful location, well attended and the attendees seemed positive and enthusiastic.”

When questioned, UAEL regulars were equally enthused. “I thought the conference was well attended by a diverse group in the industry and offered a venue for virtually anyone in equipment leasing that wants to network and attend educational and informative business sessions,” said Allan Levine, COO of Madison Capital.

Seated amidst the high desert of southern Arizona’s Oro Valley — on the edge of Catalina State Park — Hilton’s El Conquistador resort offered the perfect mix of rustic charm and modern amenities. When not working, attendees could enjoy hiking, tennis, swimming and horseback riding.

But by far the main attractions were El Conquistador’s two 18-hole — and one 9-hole — golf courses, which made comparing golf scores a common activity at the many networking functions.

The first of these — a welcoming reception held on the evening of Oct. 4 and hosted by Premier Lease & Loan — 
drew hundreds of guests to “Sunset Point” on the hotel grounds for food, drink and some stargazing.

But the conference didn’t officially begin until Friday Oct. 5 with an early morning keynote address by sales guru Rick Farrell. The president of Tangent Knowledge Systems, Farrell has spent 25 years perfecting his sales methods, which he shared with UAEL attendees. Farrell emphasized the need to retool the sales organization to meet the realities of the new economy. The message — stay fresh, stay focused and don’t be afraid to change — was not lost on this audience.

Despite the many distractions the El Conquistador had to offer, the exhibit floor was packed with people throughout the day on Friday. Attendees and exhibitors alike moved slowly from booth to booth, meeting with old friends and making new ones.

Once again, UAEL membership director Bill Grohe (pictured above) served as the master of ceremonies, microphone in hand, making sure attendees were keeping appointments and acting as matchmaker for those who didn’t have any. Meanwhile, corresponding panel discussions were conducted throughout the day along the perimeter of the exhibit hall.

As it did last year, the association encouraged attendees to pre-arrange 20-minute meetings in order to maximize networking time.

Commenting after the show, Grohe said he was happy with the turnout and was hearing good things from participants. “We’re very pleased with this year’s event,” he said. “It’s a great venue, the sessions were all good and informative, and we’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback.”

As it does each year, The UAEL Annual Conference & Exposition closed with the election of next year’s executive officers and board members.

In addition to First Republic Bank’s Knowlton, who will serve through 2008 as president, also elected were: Brent Hall, from Pinnacle Business Finance as vice president; Jim Merrilees from Quiktrak, as secretary/treasurer; and Brad Peterson, from PredictiFund, who is immediate past president.

Joining the board this year are: Jim Brady, from ABCO Leasing; Chris Enbom, from Allegiant Partners Inc.; Bill Griffith, from Padco Financial Services; Oren Hall, from Agility Solutions; Brad Kissler, from Strada Capital; Stephanie Manganaro, from LeaseTeam; Eric Paton, from TechLease; Amy Spragg, from Pacifica Capital; Hugh Swandel, from Swandel & Associates; Chris Walker, from GreatAmerica Leasing; and Irwin Wittlin, Hemar, from Rousso & Heald.

Next year’s conference will be held from Sept. 25-28, 2008 in Denver.
— Christopher Moraff

A week before and 2,400 miles away, those who took the trip to the Marriott at Glenpointe in Teaneck, NJ, on Monday, Sept. 24 for EAEL’s 2007 Fall Expo, done in partnership with the NAELB, were in for a treat, as they witnessed a different agenda at this year’s event. Approximately 265 attendees experienced not the normal workshops and sessions, but instead a day of three presentations broken up by about 35 professionally produced “commercials” that spread the word on the Expo’s exhibitors and sponsors.

According to Shari Lipski, EAEL’s Expo chairperson, the commercials — 25 to 30 second videos — were a hit with attendees. “The commercials were played at different times throughout the morning in between the different presentations… The commercials went off absolutely perfectly.”

In order to show these commercials, sponsors and exhibitors provided the EAEL with logos and marketing information about their specific company as well as photographs. Each company was able to take its video with them and use them as they wish, whether it wants to send it as a marketing tool or place it on the company website. “That was a perk, basically,” Lipski said. “That was the value add that they got from a marketing perspective to get in front of everyone that was there.” It helped establish current and future contacts, she added.

Spencer Richman, director on the NAELB board, said the new format was interesting. “In prior years to recognize sponsors, we just read the names or had them on a banner. But this was a great way to thank them for being sponsors or supporters, but also gave them a chance to say what they do. It wasn’t anything you couldn’t have gotten if you went to their booth, but it was a different way to highlight it and recognize the companies.”

Compared to industry headlines and commentaries in the past few months, you might think the mood at this year’s fall conferences would have been negative, but according to both Lipski and Richman, the conversations at this year’s expo were very upbeat.

“There was no talk of bad dealings or anything like that,” Lipski commented. “There were a lot of discussions by funding sources about transactions and programs with new clients and so forth.” There was also talk, she added, about what the associations are planning for the upcoming year.

Richman agreed. “The mood was pretty upbeat. Nobody seemed to be preaching doom and gloom about the industry. In general, people were saying their business was good.”

Along with the commercials, there were three presentations throughout the morning. The first, the keynote, was titled, “Winning Leadership — Every Second Counts,” by Jim Boeheim, Syracuse University’s basketball coach. “Jim gave an outline on how he hires players and what he’s looking at to build his team and build his business and win championships, and how that correlates to the business world,” Lipski said.

The second speaker, ELFA’s Dennis Brown, presented “Bureaucracy and Leasing — Getting Involved Matters.” Richman said, “What was so good about Dennis, was that what he spoke about was directly related to the industry… It was very enlightening because I had no idea the kinds of things he and his group are trying to do for this industry.”

Andrew Steggles, chief information officer of the Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS), gave the third presentation called “Get Your Google Going,” addressing how important it is for companies to utilize the free Web tools that are available online. In the afternoon, attendees were free to meet the more than 40 exhibitors on hand, which packed the exhibit area.

All in all, Richman said, the event “was successful. Everyone that was there seemed to be having a good time and doing the networking, which is the main reason people go.” As far as the partnership between EAEL and NAELB, “I think it is a good idea that we collaborate together because I think it provides an opportunity for both associations to cross reference each other on a show like this. It benefits both of us. There’s no conflict of interest.”
— Amanda Gutshall