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 | ID editors Jack Keough and Victoria Fraza Kickham were on hand to cover the recent 29th Annual Convention & Trade Show of the Specialty Tools & Fasteners Distributors Assn., held Nov. 6-8 in Baltimore. Here are their reports highlighting the convention activities.
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STAFDA sees record turnout in Baltimore | Sponsored by 
| The Specialty Tools & Fasteners Distributors Assn. held its largest convention ever this week, with nearly 4,800 people attending the group’s 29th Annual Convention & Trade Show in Baltimore. Held Sunday through Tuesday, Nov. 6-8, the event took place at the Baltimore Convention Center, with attendees filling rooms in six of the city’s major hotels.
There was also a record 815 booths at this year’s STAFDA Trade Show.
STAFDA executive director Georgia Foley revealed those statistics during the convention’s General Session on Monday, Nov. 7. She also told attendees that STAFDA membership increased to 2,655 companies this year, including 1,162 distributors, 1,143 associates, 329 manufacturer’s representatives, and 21 affiliates.
Foley also noted the changing face of the STAFDA membership. Many new members are in building materials, safety, MRO and pure industrial markets, as opposed to the association’s traditional construction base.
Other highlights of the General Session included a keynote presentation by former Secretary of State Colin Powell, and State-of-the-Industry addresses by STAFDA president Marshall Jones and manufacturer member Ed Gericke, senior vice president-sales & marketing for Werner Co.
Powell focused his remarks on leadership, Jones focused on the manufacturer-distributor relationship, and Gericke talked about the state of the construction market. | | |
Powell delivers keynote address | Sponsored by 
| Former Secretary of State Colin Powell took center stage at the STAFDA convention, delivering the keynote address on Monday morning, Nov. 7. In his one-hour talk entitled “Leadership: Taking Charge,” Powell covered national security, technology, global socio-economic change, and U.S. foreign policy—all in the context of what it takes to be a leader.
Powell addressed national security issues by saying that changes made to U.S. policies since 9/11 are vital, but that they should be balanced with the openness and freedom that define America. Giving the world the impression that outsiders aren’t welcome here is the wrong approach, he said, noting that when foreigners see and experience the real America, “Then, the terrorists will not win.”
Powell said that leaders at all levels should have a sense of mission and purpose, and that they must demonstrate their commitment to that mission and purpose to everyone in their organization.
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned…it’s that leadership is leadership is leadership. It’s all about creating conditions for followers,” Powell said
He pointed to the U.S. military’s success in Afghanistan and America’s ongoing role in Iraq as two examples of leadership.
“We should be so proud of what our young men and women did for the Afghan people,” he said, pointing to the removal of the Taliban, the election of the new Afghan government, and strides made in women’s rights in that country. Those remarks were met with rousing applause from the audience.
And while Powell said mistakes were made early in the process in Iraq, “Now is now, and we’ve got to stay the course,” he said. “We have to stay the course and not walk out on the Iraqi people.”
He concluded by saying that, “Solving problems is what leadership is all about,” and noting that while there is much anti-American sentiment in the world today, people still look to the United States with respect, sometimes with resentment, and ultimately with trust. | | |
Estate tax, legal reform top legislative agenda Small business lobbyists will be focused on permanently repealing the Estate Tax and curtailing frivolous lawsuits when Congress begins its 2006 session. That’s according to John Satagaj, president of the Small Business Legislative Council, which advocates for small business issues on behalf of the STAFDA and other trade groups.
Satagaj gave an update on the SBLC’s activities for the remainder of this year and for 2006 during the General Session at STAFDA’s recent convention in Baltimore. He said permanent repeal of the Estate Tax is top on the list next year after being sidelined due to this year’s hurricanes and the need to deal with their cleanup and re-building efforts.
He said tax relief is on the minds of political leaders this year, and that he’s hopeful some recent business tax incentives that are coming to an end will be extended.
As for legal reform, Satagaj pointed to successes in class action and bankruptcy reform as “two ways we kicked the lawyers,” this year.
Health care is an issue he’s not hopeful about, however, saying that, “Unfortunately, Congress just isn’t there yet.”
Satagaj said there are between 42 million and 43 million uninsured people in the United States and that, sadly, he thinks it will take that number rising to 50 million in order for Congress to move on the issue. | | |
Technology advances | The Technology and Consultants Fair at this year’s convention was one of the group’s largest, with 28 vendors showcasing their latest products. Particularly significant was that 13 companies participated for the first time. Companies displayed their latest offerings in computer hardware, software systems, e-commerce, global tracking and data capture. Twelve STAFDA consultants in areas ranging from credit and collections to legal and tax issues were also on hand to assist members with specific questions.
Two workshops were also offered as part of the fair. John Schriebfeder, of Effective Inventory Management, explained “the true meaning of inventory turnover” and showed how to use measurements that combine turnover and profitability. He also asked distributors to consider simplifying their product offerings to obtain a higher degree of profitability.
Bob Footlik, an expert in warehousing management, described how a warehouse can be used as a marketing tool. Footlik detailed a number of ways to improve a warehousing operation. He stressed the importance of improving warehouse lighting to reduce the number of picking and shipping errors. | | |
The right incentive | One of the highest attended workshops was conducted by Michael Marks of the Indian River Consulting Group. Marks focused on the results of a study his company conducted of nearly 600 distributors across all lines of trade concerning sales force compensation.
One of his key findings was “that there is absolutely no relationship between a company’s sales incentive plan structure and its gain or loss in market share.” Marks emphasized that any incentive plan for salespeople must be aligned with the company’s corporate and sales objectives. He also said that every sales manager must discuss territory performance with every salesperson at least once monthly.
Next year’s STAFDA convention will take place in Las Vegas, Nov. 13-15, 2006. | | |
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