An opportunity awaits you this summer (yes summer will arrive). It is the greatest gathering in the world of your peers in the residential foundation industry. Perhaps the hardest thing to visualize is the impact traveling to a convention can have on your daily business and we have certainly fielded that response numerous times. Yet, hundreds of times we have experienced the opposite as companies have found this to be an opportunity to meet new contractors, renew old friendships, and to find out what is working and what is not from a sharing and caring peer group with similar interests, challenges, and goals. I am, of course, referring to the CFA’s Annual Summer Convention.

The vast amount of knowledge that can be gained by one-on-one or small group face-to-face exchanges can easily get lost in this fast paced electronic era. Tweets, email, and web pages convey only the basic information. They do not offer the opportunity for relationship building, for interaction, to see the expression on the face or interpret the meaning of a change in voice inflection or volume. They do not allow the depth of understanding and type of relationships that can be made by meeting someone only known by their voice or their email address. Only face-to face interaction can give you that level of relationship.

I urge you to try making a commitment this year to attend Convention. Whether you are a CFA member or an industry professional reading this invitation, come learn from others and share your knowledge. It will be your most valuable investment this year and will return dividends well beyond the cost of attending.

While it can be, you need not spend time away from your family. The CFA has long been focused on the positive aspects of business + family with many multigenerational companies. This year, the event will be held in the upper Midwest at the Kalahari Resort in Sandusky, Ohio, a playground for families during your time off (or while you are learning) and at a location within driving distance of a strong percentage of the traditional residential foundation industry.

While the location entices you to a vacation atmosphere, it is the event itself that delivers the punch with top notch and relevant education from experts and peers. Equipment, such as concrete pumps, telebelts, truck cranes and rebar manipulation will reappear this year with the technology show always provided. The first day of education will be focused on the latest concrete codes & standards through the leadership of industry voice, Brent Anderson. We have provided a synopsis of the education schedule in this edition of our magazine and a short form of our registration for you to make the decision sooner than later.

While there might be bigger gatherings, there are none more focused on methods and ways to make your businesses more profitable. Make the effort, take the time and invest a small amount of resources for your business. As several of our past attendees have remarked: “If you don’t learn enough to pay for attendance several times over, you simply weren’t paying attention.”

CFA Executive Director
Ed Sauter, esauter@cfawalls.org