The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2018 - 4

FROM THE PRESIDENT-ELECT
TED R. WOZNIAK
ted@tedwozniak.net

NOLA-Bound:
ATA59

A

TA59 is less than four months
away so it's not too soon to start
making plans to come to The
Big Easy for four days of top-notch
professional development training,
numerous networking opportunities, and
the chance to catch up with old friends
and make new ones. (And let's not forget
the beignets, étouffée, jambalaya, and a
cornucopia of other foods from around
the world that will be yours to enjoy only
a short walk from the conference hotel!)
Conference registration is open, so reserve
your hotel room now at the very attractive
New Orleans Marriott. Remember, if you
make your reservations at the conference
hotel by October 22, you could be one of
five lucky attendees selected at random
to win one free night at the hotel! Need
a little more incentive before making a
decision? Here's just a small preview of
what's in store for you at ATA59!
Advanced Training: Advanced Skills and
Training (AST) Day takes place Wednesday,
October 24. This "conference-before-theconference" will offer intensive three-hour
training sessions on interpreting, technology,
neural machine translation, productivity
boosters, and, again this year, preparation
workshops for the Spanish>English and
English>Spanish certification exams. (There
will be two exam sittings at the conference
for those who are ready.)
Over 170 Educational Sessions: As
always, ATA's Annual Conference will be
chock full of educational and networking
opportunities. Over 170 sessions have
been selected through a rigorous peer4

The ATA Chronicle | July/August 2018

review process to provide you with
training in almost every facet of our
profession. In addition to the regular
sessions by your peers, 15 distinguished
speakers have been invited to impart
their expertise and perspectives to you.
As we've learned from past conference
surveys, 91% of attendees report gaining a
new skill by attending the conference.
Networking, Networking, and More
Networking: While education and
training are great and are alone worth
the registration fee, I know many of you
attend the conference to get more work
and expand your client base. Previous
conference surveys show that 98% of
conference attendees made new contacts
at the conference. To help you get more
work, the Job Fair has been extended to
two nights to allow more time to connect
with representatives from language
services companies. You can also network
and gain valuable business knowledge at
the ever-popular Brainstorm Networking
session and Business Practices Happy
Hour, as well as make new contacts at
the Welcome Celebration and in the
Exhibit Hall. Seasoned attendees can also
help newcomers by participating in the
Buddies Welcome Newbies program.

Previous conference surveys
show that 98% of conference
attendees made new contacts at
the conference.

Connect with Attendees Before,
During, and After the Conference:
There's an app for that! Once the
conference app is available, make sure
you download it and complete your
profile, including uploading your résumé.
Not only will this put you in contact with
about 1,600 attendees, but also with
representatives from language services
companies. In addition, you can only
provide feedback on the sessions you
attend using the app. Your feedback is
vital and is used every year during the
session selection process for the upcoming
conference, so please submit your session
reviews. The mobile app works on

Android and iOS devices, and the online
version works in all browsers.
The Food! Nor should you pass up on the
after-hours opportunities! This is "Nawlins
ya'll" and we know how to let the good
times roll! If you can't find a delicious
meal in New Orleans, you can't find your
nose in the dark. According to The New
Orleans Menu (https://nomenu.com), there
are about 150 restaurants in the French
Quarter alone. Add in the Central Business
District, the Bywater, Marigny, and the
Garden District-all easily reached by taxi
or ridesharing services-and you have
another 200 dining options from which to
choose. And that's just the areas quickly
reached from the conference hotel.

NOT SURE?
Still on the fence about whether or not
to attend? Then visit the conference
website (www.atanet.org/conf/2018)
to see what past attendees have to say
about the value of attendance and get
more details about the networking and
education opportunities that await you in
New Orleans. If you still aren't sure the
conference is worth the investment, check
out www.atanet.org/conf/2018/attend for
even more "Reasons to attend."
So, make your plans to attend ATA59
and come meet me in NOLA. My
investments in attending ATA conferences
have been paid back many times over. I'm
sure yours will be as well!

MORE INFORMATION ON ATA59
ATA 59th Annual Conference Website
www.atanet.org/conf/2018
ATA59 Advanced Skills and Training Day
www.atanet.org/conf/2018/astday
ATA59 Networking Opportunities
www.atanet.org/conf/2018/networking
AT59 Registration Information
www.atanet.org/conf/2018/registration
New Orleans Marriott Reservations
www.atanet.org/conf/2018/hotel
New Orleans Menu
https://nomenu.com
New Orleans Official Guide
www.neworleansonline.com

www.atanet.org
https://www.nomenu.com http://www.atanet.org/conf/2018 http://www.atanet.org/conf/2018/attend http://www.atanet.org/conf/2018 http://www.atanet.org/conf/2018/astday http://www.atanet.org/conf/2018/networking http://www.atanet.org/conf/2018/registration http://www.atanet.org/conf/2018/hotel https://www.nomenu.com http://www.neworleansonline.com http://www.atanet.org
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2018
