QAI Hosts Successful User Conference in Annapolis, Maryland

Fourth Annual Conference Offered Good Mix of Informational Sessions and Entertaining Activities

On May 29, 2009, Quality Associates, Inc. (QAI) and its subsidiary DocPoint Solutions gladly welcomed more than 85 clients, 25 vendors of document and content management professionals, and Microsoft SharePoint end users to its annual User Conference.

The event was heldat the Marriott Waterfront Hotel in historic, downtown Annapolis. The day was filled with educational sessions designed to increase professionals’ knowledge of Microsoft SharePoint and electronic content management (ECM). The event also provided an opportunity for end users to network with each other, meet with several professional partners of QAI and DocPoint, and talk with QAI’s staff in a relaxed environment.

Next, Kim Nelson, executive director for e-government at Microsoft, gave the keynote presentation “In a World Where Shift Happens, How Do You Manage Your Content.” She kicked off her speech with a video about the constantly changing information world. The video presented many facts about the informational demands of our current environment. Her point? In a world in which we are challenged by the vast number of ways we communicate across the enterprise, companies must constantly adjust to keep track of needed information.

Kimberly Nelson, Microsoft

Nelson said while most companies have accurate record keeping for email records, most are not tracking Instant Messages, Tweets, Facebook accounts, and other online activity.  She explained all this information should be tracked by companies, but most are not currently doing so. Nelson emphasized once a company begins tracking its information correctly, it needs a proper document management system, such as SharePoint, to manage content in a storable, searchable database.

Throughout the day, conference attendees had the opportunity to interact with technology partners of QAI and DocPoint Solutions through an exhibitor fair.

This exposition gave attendees the chance to see the latest solutions from the companies’ partners.

The User Conference was made possible through generous sponsorships by Platinum Sponsor Fujitsu and Gold Partner Kofax, as well as BÖWE BELL + HOWE, Kodak, Canon, KnowledgeLake, NSi, and Atalasoft.

During lunch, the weather permitted attendees to enjoy a sunshine-filled meal on the hotel’s large balcony overlooking the Annapolis harbor. Lunch included several pastas, savory roast beef, salads, and dessert. The gourmet lunch and steel drum music were sponsored by Pussers and Orlando Phillips.

Conference sponsors generously donated an array of door prize raffle items, which were given away after lunch. Prizes included two Fujitsu ScanSnap scanners, two Kodak EasyShare Cameras, and two iPods. Fujitsu, Eastman Kodak, Bowe Bell & Howell, and NewWave Technologies provided these items.

After lunch, David VanDerEems, director of imaging operations, Iron Mountain, kicked off the afternoon’s presentations with the speech “Iron Mountain’s Future Perspective for Document Management.” During his session, VanDerEems spoke about the future of document storage and retrieval and how Iron Mountain is helping through partnerships with companies such as QAI. He emphasized new approaches in content and information management can save money and resources, guarantee compliance with government regulations concerning physical documentation retrieval, and serve as peace of mind that there is a back-up in the event of a disaster.

Next, David Licht, senior director, global regulatory and safety operations at Allergan – a large multi-specialty health care company with offices around the globe – gave a customer testimonial about the work that Allergan has been doing with QAI and DocPoint Solutions in “Allergan’s International Electronic Archiving Project for Global Regulatory Affairs.”

Before Allergan brought on QAI and DocPoint, the company scanned and archived all its scientific, financial, and human resources documentation in their headquarters building – which added up to an amazing 1 million pages. To process the paperwork in their offices in Europe, they solicited help from QAI and DocPoint. The project was not only vast in scope, but also portrayed the new complexities of local country registrations and multiple languages. In the end, the project encompassed 2.4 million pages in 31 countries and took over nine months to complete.

With the business of the day complete, attendees could look forward to the fun afternoon activities.  Tucker Thompson, owner of t2p.tv, motivated everyone for an afternoon of sailing. He presented a video of race sailing highlights and then gave all attendees a “crash course” in sailing basics. In this course they learned the parts of the ship, the names of the sails, and how exactly a ship sails using only the wind as power.

Next, attendees boarded the two 125’ schooners, the Woodwind and Woodwind II, which were bestowed with the temporary names Quality Associates and DocPoint Solutions for fun. Skirting the bay’s impending storms – which made an impressive backdrop – the hour-long cruise took the attendees past some of Annapolis’s most historic points, including the Naval Academy.

Once back on land, all attendees were invited to chat with colleagues, relax, and enjoy the scenic waterfront during a happy hour of drinks and hors d’oeuvres, sponsored by Fujitsu, in the Marriott’s Harbor View Room.

Scott Swidersky, director, information systems division, QAI, and President, DocPoint Solutions, commented on the experience. “We wanted to combine fun, learning, and networking all into one day-long event. I think we accomplished that between our dedicated speakers, our fun activities and the weather holding off just enough to allow for everything to come together. Annapolis is a beautiful location for these conferences, and provides many opportunities for a great event. We want to thank all of our guests, as well as our sponsors, because they are what made this event a truly special occasion.”

Interested in attending future QAI events? Please contact Lora Martin.