ST. LOUIS, Aug. 31, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED) today opened registration for its 2015 Eastern Region Conference, taking place November 9-11 at the Renaissance Orlando SeaWorld in Orlando, Fla.

Eastern Region Vice President George Vorwick, Chief Executive Officer, United Electric Supply, will lead this year’s event under the theme of “Success is Learned.”

Once again, the first day will be devoted to education sessions. The networking showcase for new manufacturers and allied partners is also back for the first two days of the conference.

New this year, immediately following the General Session, attendees are invited to participate in lively expert-facilitated roundtable discussions covering a variety of topics including:

  • Driving Change in Your Organization – Dirk Beveridge, facilitator
  • Sales Compensation – Michael Marks, facilitator
  • How to Recruit Your Next Top Salesperson – Allison Olden, facilitator
  • Getting the Most Out of Your Distributor Relationships at NAED Meetings – Scott Costa, facilitator

The Eastern Region Conference keynote speaker is Robert Stephens, Geek Squad founder and former CTO of Best Buy. With $200, a bicycle and a subsequent collaboration with Best Buy, Stephens transformed the small, cryptic world of tech support into something both glamorous and accessible when he founded the Geek Squad in 1994. He will be presenting “Beyond Social Media: The Sharing Economy” where he will offer insight on upcoming development both on and off the web, and reveal why he predicts that the biggest trend of the coming decade will be the “Sharing Economy,” outlining what that means for society and business, and why he’s betting on it.

NAED’s scheduled sessions will include:

  • Electrical Supply Chain Distribution – Developing an Agile Construction Partnership – Lonny Simonian, professor, California Polytechnic State University
  • Rethinking Distributor-Manufacturer Relationships in the Age of Rapid Innovation – Dirk Beveridge, president, UnleashWD
  • Government Affairs: Brave New Regulatory World – Ed Orlet, vice president, Government Affairs, NAED
  • Special Pricing Authorization Practices: The Present Conundrum & the Path Forward – Michael Marks, principal, Indian River Consulting Group
  • PAR Benchmarking Analytics: How to Better Understand & Apply the Results – Scott Hackworth, certified public accountant, senior vice president, Industry Insights, Inc. Hackworth will also be available for one-on-one discussions and analysis of the NAED PAR Report®.

Visit www.naed.org/easternregionconference to register. The early bird registration deadline is September 28. For more information, contact the NAED Conference Department at (888) 791-2512.

NAED is the trade association for the $70+ billion electrical distribution industry. Through networking, education, research, and benchmarking, NAED helps electrical distributors increase profitability and improve the channel. NAED’s membership operates in more than 5,100 locations internationally.

CONTACT: Cathy Bryson
         (314) 991-9000, [email protected]