The most amazing aspect of the grandest payroll event is that no matter how many times one attends, Congress is always new and invigorating. The 35th Annual Congress in Orlando, Florida was no exception. It was exceptional.
Education at Congress
The educational offerings were relevant and vibrant! All of the sessions provided new learning approaches and technology to assist our mastery of ongoing challenges. Every workshop was facilitated by enthusiastic and interesting instructors. The workshops I attended were interactive, and I was able to learn about the challenges my colleagues deal with daily. There were 18 different categories of workshops that ranged from leadership to payroll processing. The quality and variety of the learning options gets better every year.
Bringing Home New Ideas
The best part of Congress is hearing new ideas for best practices or strategies for problem solving. I love hearing new business trends, as it keeps me fresh and allows me to bring home new ideas to my employer. The technology APA used this year was different than in years past. Our badges held the key to our attendance and did not need to be scanned this year…how over the top!
The Chicago Chapter smiles brightly after winning 2nd place in the 2017 Chapter of the Year Contest.
General Sessions That Were Not to be Missed
All of the general session keynote speakers were outstanding and included:
- Mark Schulman, a famous drummer who performed with some of the best. His energetic presentation, the footage of Pink, and his music added to the joy of his rock star message while payroll rocked Orlando.
- Russell Simmons, who spoke about ‘Success Through Stillness’, showed us how to achieve stillness for our own well-being.
- Jeff Civillico, a juggler and a Las Vegas entertainer, titillated the entire audience with his wit, talent, and message about work that matters.
- Mel Robbins shared her secret to breakthrough performance with her 5 second rule, which I am betting several of us are employing in our lives today.
- Linda Larsen was our emcee and closing general session speaker. She spoke about dealing with grumps and negative people to help bring happy thoughts to the unsmiling people we encounter.
The Expo and Entertainment
Of course, there was the huge Expo Hall which is where we see the latest and greatest technology as well as the new products that will “rock” our payroll lives. The evening entertainment included lots of rockin’ fun! The closing party shook the dance floor with an eight-person band, and a DJ kept the floor full of dancers until past midnight.
Incredible Networking
Finally, there was the indescribable networking. We see old friends and colleagues from around the country, and now the world. I was astounded by the number of people who attended from other countries. In fact, I sat next to a woman who was there from China and was both teaching payroll in China and attending workshops. We meet people in our industry to be our mentors, or to become their mentors, and we also meet people whom we instantly connect with. It is so much fun to reach out to first time attendees and let them know they are among the friendliest and most fun loving to make them feel welcome.
The Chicago Chapter Rocks
And last, but NEVER least, the unbelievable Chicago Chapter. The year after winning Chapter of the Year in 2016, we won second place this year for the Chapter of the Year Contest!
Congratulations to all of the members and officers for what you do that makes the chapter so wonderful. Oh yes, we are payroll champions!
My battery was definitely charged, and I left Orlando feeling educated, invigorated, appreciated, and motivated. Once again, the APA “rocked” my world!
