2013 COSTHA Annual Forum - Justification Toolkit

As the world emerges from the global economic downturn of the last few years it is critical for us to re-evaluate our safety and compliance programs to ensure they are sustainable and be prepared to meet the challenges of the new economy.  Attendance at this forum can be a valuable tool in helping you meet those challenges.

 

Below is some helpful information to justify the value of attending the
2013 COSTHA Annual Forum & Expo.

The Justification Toolkit includes:

• Reasons to Attend
• Networking Opportunities
• Justification Letter for your Manager
• General Tips
• While in San Diego
• Upon Your Return

 

Reasons to Attend

Here is some helpful information that demonstrates the value of attending the 2013 COSTHA Annual Forum:

• Learn, explore, and exchange Ideas while you network with industry leaders, regulators, and other hazardous materials/dangerous goods professionals. Review the Exhibit Hall here.
• Avoid costly fines and save money with advance notification of changes to domestic and international regulations
• Benchmark, interact, and enhance your knowledge and avoid expensive mistakes
• Collaborate on best practices with other hazardous materials/dangerous goods professionals
• Enjoy the industry’s top presenters of dangerous goods transportation compliance bursting with valuable information
• Meet DOT training requirements with help from hazardous materials/dangerous goods training provided by leading experts in the field
• Sharpen your skills to save you and your company time and money
• Visit exhibits of the latest technology and regulatory compliance publications, products, and services
• Attend popular industry roundtables

 

Networking Opportunities

 

You won't want to miss the networking opportunities at the 2013 COSTHA Annual Forum. In today's challenging economic environment, when you have to pick and choose travel and meeting attendance carefully, make sure you choose this business critical conference - The Leader in Value for You and Your Company. Below are some tips to help you get the most valuable networking experience from the 2013 COSTHA Annual Forum:

• Scan the list of speakers and attendees and decide who you want to meet with.
• Know what your organization's goals and targets are before you arrive at the meetings.
• Interact with industry contacts facing the same issues as your organization.

• Attend the Sunday Night Ice Breaker in San Diego and take advantage of this informal networking opportunity (first time attendees will not want to miss this).

• Visit the exhibit hall, for access to vendor contacts showcasing tools which you can evaluate for potential future use.
• Sign up for training to meet your training requirements and attend workshops showcasing best practices that will immediately benefit your group. 
• Read name tags to explore networking opportunities, especially when you are standing in line.
• Introduce yourself each time you sit down or approach a new group of people.  Keep your business cards at hand, and give them out generously.

• Set goals at the onset of each event to meet at least one new person, learn at least one useful thing, and have a substantive discussion with a new acquaintance.
• If you make a contact with someone, make sure you follow up afterward, or follow up with information promised immediately. Make yourself a follow up plan, including contact names, company information, how you met, and your follow up action plans.

• Make the connection, don't leave it to chance.

 

Letter to your Manager

Click here to download a letter (Microsoft Word) in which you can customize and use to give to your manager to help justify your attendance at the 2013 COSTHA Annual Forum & Expo in San Diego, CA.

 

General Tips

• Be ready with a plan that shows who will cover for you while you are attending the Forum.
• Don't spend all your time with the people you already know, take the time to get to know new people.  This is a great opportunity to put faces to names.
• Turn your cell phone to vibrate or off, so that you are not distracted when networking with people.
• Don’t be shy about asking advice on nearby attractions.
• Fill out the conference evaluation forms.  Your input helps the conference planning team with future events you may want to attend.
• Arrive in plenty of time for scheduled events.  Take a seat upfront, introduce yourself to those around you and get settled.  If the speaker has arrived early, you may have a chance to introduce yourself.
• Come prepared to ask questions or share experiences if asked.
• Dress in layers.  You may find you’re going from too much air conditioning to hot hallways.  Temperatures can vary widely and there is little forum organizers can do to satisfy everyone.
• Bring at least one change of shoes (changing socks or stockings for evening events helps, too).
• Prepare a prepaid courier slip to send materials back to the office.
• Make sure to pack plenty of business cards.
• Plan your forum’s days ahead of time.  Make any appointments you can in advance, and sign up early for seminars.  Get to know the forum locations (Exhibit Hall, Training rooms, dining and coffee break areas, restrooms, and lobby stores or snack machines).
• Use the exhibit hall map to plan a strategic approach to seeing the suppliers you want to see and collect the information you want.  Review the Exhibit Hall here.
• Pack a shoulder bag sturdy enough to hold notebooks, folders and anything you may accumulate at the forum.
• Read up on any industry news and updates to understand what’s affecting the people you’ll be meeting with.
• Don’t forget to charge all your electronics including cell phones, iPhones, digital cameras, digital readers, music players and more.  Consider a universal charging mat instead of packing a half dozen cords.
• Back up your laptop before traveling.  You never know what can happen while you’re on the road.

While in San Diego

Average temperatures in April: Daytime highs of 68 degrees and Nighttime lows of 55 degrees

• Flower Fields Ranunculus Tours, every year from early March to early May, The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch blossom into a spectacular sea of brightly colored ranunculus flowers.

• Visit the San Diego Zoo - click here for more information.

• Put on your bathing suit, grab your towel and head to one of San Diego's 33 beaches, all open to the public, and perfect for body surfing, boogie boarding, building sandcastles, collecting seashells and basking in the sun.

• Soak up the international flavor at the House of Pacific Relations in Balboa Park with the International Cottages' Lawn Programs. 

• Catch a magnificent Pacific sunset and watch sea lions play along the shoreline at La Jolla Cove, one of the most spectacular natural settings in the world. 

• Visit Seaport Village during the weekends for free entertainment and hours of leisurely strolling and window-shopping. 

• Stroll through the 16½-block historic Gaslamp Quarter's turn-of-the-century Victorian architecture in downtown San Diego. 
• Stargaze outside the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center.
• Take a scenic drive to Mt. Laguna to hike, bike or picnic while enjoying the fresh mountain air whispering through the pines.  http://www.julianca.com/
• Enjoy gallery hopping and light fare on the second Saturday of each month when North Park's Ray Street galleries welcome guests to Ray at Night, where art work by local painters, photographers and sculptors are on display.  http://raystreet.com/events/
• Check out the California Surf Museum on Highway 101 in Oceanside, which houses a permanent collection of historic boards, photographs and videos.  Explore its colorful and educational display on the sport of surfing and the legends who braved the waters over generations.  http://www.surfmuseum.org/
• Take a walk through Balboa Park, the largest urban cultural park in the United States, and discover its beautiful Spanish Colonial-Revival architecture and glorious gardens. 
• Visit the Museum of Contemporary Art, located in both the downtown San Diego and also in La Jolla. Free daily admission for military and guests 25 years and younger.

  45. Witness the living legacy of California's birthplace at Old Town State Historic Park, San Diego's first "downtown." 

• Visit the U.S. Olympic Training Center, the nation's first warm weather, year-round Olympic training facility, located in Chula Vista.  Free tours of the 150-acre lakefront facility are offered at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; tours begin at the Copley Visitor Center. http://www2.teamusa.org/About-the-USOC/Training-Centers-and-Sites/Chula-Vista.aspx

 

Upon Your Return

• Focus on what you will specifically bring back to the organization as return for the investment.
• Organize your cards and send e-mails, thank-you notes or promised information as soon as possible.  Don’t let the important contacts you made slip away.
• Review your notes and make an action plan to utilize what you learned at the sessions.  Share information with other staff members, include notes in a report or put them on your planning calendar
• Offer to prepare and deliver a short presentation and Q&A to your colleagues to share what you learned. That way others in your unit will get the benefits of your attendance, too. Share the syllabus and speaker handouts with your colleagues. As an attendee, you have unlimited access to materials posted by speakers.
• Consider preparing a formal report for your boss or team, with details explaining the value of the forum.  This is a simple way to make their reporting chores a little easier.