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EAI 2004 Fall
Meeting a Huge Success!
Excellence Alliance held its 8th
Annual Fall Meeting on October
20-22, 2004 at the Atrium Suites in Las Vegas, NV. The meeting
officially kicked off with a Welcome Reception on Wednesday.
Members and allies had an opportunity to get reacquainted
while
enjoying hors d'ouevres and cocktails.
The meeting continued Thursday morning
with a dynamic keynote
speaker, Matt Smith of The Contractor's Friend. Matt's speech
on
"Executing Excellence" was one of the highlights
of the meeting,
and in it he discussed the three roles of leadership, the
four elements
that are found in a great coach, how to make the transition
from a boss to a coach, and the universal enemies of performance.
Breakout sessions took place during
the morning and afternoon, and
included topics such as "Leadership Power!" and
"Staffing Power!"
by Al Levi of Appleseed Business, "The Top Secrets
of Retail Pricing"
and "The Real Value of Service Agreements" by
David Dombrowski
of EAI, "Managing Superstars" by Matt Smith, and
many others.
Another highlight of the meeting
was Thursday evening's Ally
Reception. Putting a spin on the traditional product showcase,
tabletop displays were set up around the perimeter of the
room
with drinks and appetizers served in the center. To increase
participation between the attendees and the exhibitors,
a
Scavenger Hunt was hosted, in which each attendee was
given a worksheet with questions provided by the exhibitors.
Those who answered the most questions correctly were entered
to win $500 in casino chips to the Hard Rock Casino. Exhibitors
were also encouraged to hold their own contests at their
booth,
and at the end of the evening, they were introduced to award
their prizes.
Rick Young of QuietFlex Manufacturing,
a first-time exhibitor with
EAI, said "As an exhibitor, this show was tremendous.
People were
genuinely interested in the products and took time to listen."
Also, in the weeks before the meeting, The News and York
International
had been holding a contest in which one lucky EAI member
would receive
a two-day "Business Makeover" from Al Levi of
Appleseed Business. The winner, Wayne Beck of Aladdin Heating
& Air Conditioning in Newbury Park, CA, was announced
at the Ally Reception.
Wayne Beck of Aladdin Heating & Air Conditioning
Robert Tunmire of Aire Serv spoke
on "Success That Matters" at Friday's breakfast.
During this presentation, Mr. Tunmire introduced the "Wheel
of Life,"
which helps evaluate six key areas of a person's life: financial/career,
physical, social/recreation, mental, spiritual/ethical,
and family.
Breakout sessions continued throughout
the day onFriday, leading up to the Annual Awards Banquet.
Awards were given to the Commercial and Residential
Members of the Year, which are contractors that have been
with EAI for more than one year and continuously make strides
to improve their business and the industry;
Shining Stars, which are members that have been with EAI
for less than one year and have shown great initiative in
using the services EAI offers; Manufacturer of the Year,
Distributor of the Year, and Business Services Provider
of the Year. This year's winners were:
Member of the Year Commercial
- Mechanical Systems of Dayton (Dayton, OH)
Member of the Year Residential
- R.N. Smith Sheet Metal Shop (Lancaster, OH)
Shining Stars
- C & G Heating & A/C (Torrington, CT)
- Service of Cincinnati (Cincinnati, OH)
Manufacturer of the Year
- York International Corp.
Distributor of the Year
- Baker Distributing Company
Business Services Provider of the Year
- Arzel Zoning Technology
Beginning a new tradition, EAI also
recognized those
contractors that have been members for five years or
more, which included 31 companies.
Contractors with over 5 Years as EAI Members
Left to right: Rocco Pace (Oliver); Don Schmitt (EAI);
Jeff Marl (Mechanical Service); Mike Beaver (Beaver
Bros.); Sue Ellen Rich (TDIndustries); Tim Cropp
(Cropp-Metcalfe); Robert Wilkos (Peaden); Eric Kuns
(Bruner); Trip Beaver (Beaver Bros.); Andy Rodenhiser
(Rodenhiser); Pete Szmurlo (Temperature Service)
EAI would like to thank our generous
sponsors for
making this the best meeting to date:
" York International Corp.
" NORDYNE
" Emerson Climate Technologies
" Arzel Zoning Technology
" Baker Distributing Company
" R.E. Michel Company
" Cintas Corporation
" Corporate Purchasing Solutions
" QuietFlex Manufacturing Company
" Thermo Pride
" United Refrigeration
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