by The Sage
Speaking of bottom lines, why did APCO give its Telecommunicator of the Year Award after the opening luncheon, when almost three-fourths of the audience had left? I counted barely 200 persons in a banquet hall that holds over 1,000. In case you missed it--and most of you did--Ann Marie Kelsey was very gracious and deserving.
Did anyone not get the Ericsson connection to the Panthers? In case you didn't, they play at Ericsson Stadium, having paid several million dollars for the right to plaster signs all over the inside and outside of the place. Ticket holders to the first exhibition game received an elegant, commemorative coin in a plastic sleeve, while APCO booth visitors just got a pencil! Ericsson apparently also received first draft pick on the Panther cheerleaders for convention parties--an evening Ericsson bash for select APCO attendees featured the woman performing. Now, cheerleading is a perfectly honorable profession and nothing improper occurred, but I hardly see the connection between public safety radio systems, football, cheerleaders and government officials. My advice: let's leave these old-time selling techniques behind and focus on value and quality.
On the other hand, whose responsibility is it to stay focused? A trip to Charlotte-Mecklenburg's police comm center was enlightening: a memo from comm manager Cindy Conley was tacked to the wall, setting out the acceptable uniform during APCO conference week--the polo shirts donated by Plant Equipment Inc. (PEI) in nice blue and turquoise colors, with the company's name conspicuously on the back. Oh, and after the conference, those polo shirts will continue to be acceptable dress. This could be a first--a government agency allowing advertising on its uniform wear. What's next, "Eat at Joe's Diner" on the back of firefighters' turnouts?
Over at the conference center, I found proof that good food (gud fud) is the real indicator of a good time. At the first night's Bitchin' Beach Party, the arriving crowd scoured the scene for eats, only to find stale pretzels and dip. Whew! I've never arrived to see so many people leaving an event since the `68 Democratic Convention in Chicago!
On the plus side, Stan Harter received a well-deserved life membership. He's been a chapter president in three states and has seen more disasters that I've read about. The nice touch was that his friend John Powell asked to present his pin.
As usual, I spent some time just inside the west doors of the convention center (it was too hot and humid outside!) answering questions from well-wishers.
Pat from Pittsburgh,
Isn't Charlotte a great example of the American southern culture?
Hey Pat, you're drooling Mint Julep on my GTE souvenir T-shirt! Step back! Actually, I think the epitome of America is represented by that gigantic photo at the Unisys booth of an African American girl, in silhouette, holding an American flag. "She doesn't know it," said the text that ran in an ad accompanying the photo, "but the streets of her city are a lot safer thanks to Unisys." I've seen some calculated marketing, but this flag-waving, reverse guilt, child innocence type of stuff just jumps off the page at me. It also begs the answer: She doesn't know it because her house was still burglarized last night! Does this sell software? Aw-w-w, who knows?
Bill from Braxton,
What did you find the most interesting during the conference?
Hey, love your accent! Actually, what I found interesting is that APCO didn't invite Gregory Watchman to speak at opening ceremonies. You know him, right? Well, this guy has the potential to put your comm center in a world of hurt, real quick. He's the acting director of the federal OSHA, and plans to issue ergonomic guidelines later this year to reduce repetitive stress injuries. Guess what that will do for CAD dispatchers? Yup, big changes and big money. Some draft guidelines the agency tried to pass in 1995 would have cost industry $4.5 billion a year! No one knows yet what these guidelines will say, but training, job restructuring and mitigation are all on the list.
Earl from Easton,
So, what big news did you hear during the conference?
Well, Earl. Your car's been towed from the airport parking lot back home. Seriously, it was the Project 25 committee's decision to allow TDMA that will reap Ericsson millions of dollars, or at least give it a fighting chance next to Motorola. Imagine the company's reaction--thrill on one side, despair on the other. But the word around the convention was the so-called "competition" among Project 25 manufacturers was pretty much a sham anyway: some claimed Motorola is shipping circuit boards to Lincoln (Neb.) so Transcrypt can put them together and claim, "Hey, we make radios, too!" Now, I can't single anyone out for credit, but just let me say "thank you" to Don Pfohl of Mesa (Ariz.) for helping push the accelerator on this one.
See you'all in Albuquerque next year!