At IAMC's Oklahoma City Professional Forum, which took place September 13-17, the attendees heard from high-level corporate managers, such as Michelin N.A. President Dick Wilkerson, and were treated to fine networking venues, such as the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum. A post-conference survey of the attendees reveals that this Forum was one of IAMC's best.

According to the survey, the Oklahoma City event tied for highest "Professional Forum Overall" rating with Charleston at 86 points out of a possible 100. This rating category tends to incorporate attendees' perceptions of the educational programs, the headquarters hotel, the surrounding environs and the networking events. Occasionally, the weather also can influence this number. These items came together in Oklahoma City to deliver a high score.

IAMC surveys the attendees after each Professional Forum to measure their perceptions of the quality of the overall event as well as individual workshops and networking events.

Of the broad survey questions, second in importance to the Forum Overall rating is that for "Education Program Overall." For this, Oklahoma City's rating is the best in the last two years and the third best of IAMC's 13 Forums. The survey suggests that Oklahoma City's strong education score stemmed from a number of programs featuring industry presenters, including four corporate top managers.

This top-management panel addressed the Forum's Tuesday opening session: (l-r) David Thompson, president, OPUBCO Communications Group; John Richels, president, Devon Energy Corp.; William Peacher, COO, NORDAM Repair Group.

The five top-rated education programs ranked by the scores given them by Active-member attendees are as follows:

What made these programs winners to the Oklahoma City attendees is most likely their strong focus on corporate issues from the standpoint of corporate managers. Of the 11 presenters in the five programs, 10 work for the companies whose experience they described. The Active members rated the top-ranked program, Dick Wilkerson's presentation, 9.3 out of a possible 10 points, on average. (Note: 52 percent of all Active attendees responded to the post-conference survey.)

Note that all of the top five programs were presented by corporate management and real estate professionals - no paid speakers in this group. Although the hired speaker will remain an important element of Forum education programs, the Oklahoma City attendees clearly liked the first-hand experience and the first-person perspectives they received from the corporate managers.

IAMC's discussion programs, such as "Peer to Peer" and "Get Some Help," are always popular with the attendees. On this point, Ann Harts, corporate real estate officer, Sitel, says, "I am really impressed with IAMC and what it has to bring to the corporate real estate person. IAMC Forums provide me with 'brain food' and many conference take-aways. We discuss current issues that are impacting corporate real estate managers and our companies. Everyone participated in the Peer-to-Peer discussion, and we exchanged contact information for further off-line conversations. Kudos to everyone at IAMC."

As strong as the Forum's educational programs were, the networking events were just as impressive. Actives gave the Forum Networking Environment an overall rating of 9.1. Here are the top four events as ranked by the Active members' average scores:

The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum was a gem of a facility for a reception and dinner. It was large enough for the attendees to spread out and wander through in small groups and contained many interesting and well-composed exhibits. There was good music in the dining hall and a great meal. The Active members rated this event a 9.5 out of 10, on average.

Networking at the Oklahoma Museum of art: (l-r) Rayo Bhumgara of Weston Solutions, Craig Brace of Cummins, Todd Clark of Cummins; and Mike Wolff of Project Solutions Group.

Networking is a "bread and butter" Forum deliverable for most attendees. In addition to their hard work on the education programs, conference planners take pains to create networking events that work for real estate industry buyers and sellers. Keith Taylor, economic development director for James City County, Virginia, has had some success meeting the right people at Professional Forums. He says, "In its quest to identify and follow up on the more traditional kinds of economic development projects among its business targets, James City County, Va., has been a regular participant at IAMC's Fall Forums. Well, it works! During the most recent Forum [in Oklahoma City], I was able to make critical follow-up contacts on, not one, but two active projects at the welcome reception alone."

While the corporate Active members have special programs at each Forum dedicated exclusively to them and their needs, this can pay off for all attendees by attracting more Actives to the Forums. IAMC promotes a culture of collegial networking. Daniel Smith, principal of Big Industrial, LLC, has seen this work. He says, "As a first-time attendee to the recent IAMC Forum [in Oklahoma City], I was extremely pleased with the sincere openness to networking by corporate real estate executives. I also was reacquainted with many long-time friends in the economic development, construction, and related fields."

Not all of the survey questions fall neatly into either the education or networking categories. Here are several additional questions and their scores that may add to your understanding of how the attendees appreciated the Forum:

• Actives gave this statement an 8.9 survey rating out of 10: "At Oklahoma City, I acquired information & insights I can use on my job."
• Actives gave this statement a 9.3: "At Oklahoma City, I could meet and talk to the people I wanted to meet."
• Actives gave this statement a 9.3: "I enjoyed the Oklahoma City Forum."
• Actives gave the Sunday IAMC Informational Meeting an 8.9; total respondents gave it an 8.8.
• IAMC Staff Performance received its second highest rating ever, 93, only one point below the record of 94 set in Phoenix (Spring 2008).

In conclusion, the Oklahoma City Professional Forum exceeded most expectations. The "Professional Forum-overall" survey score equaled the highest achieved by IAMC's 13 Professional Forums. The "education program-overall" score ranked third among all Forums. The Oklahoma City event was one of IAMC's best Forums yet.