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Throughout the course of the year, Whalley Computer Associates, in conjunction with several of our manufacturers and partners, conduct numerous informational events. These events are comprised of various formats, which provide a forum for learning about new technology, industry trends, and other issues that we believe will benefit our clients. In the past, such events have been hosted with industry leaders such as APC, Cisco, Citrix, Compaq, CTC, EMC, Microsoft, and several others. Typically, Whalley Computer Associates will host between 4-6 events per year. That number grows each year as we receive positive responses from our clients and the demand for more events increases. The most commonly held events at WCA are “Chalk Talks,” “Lunch and Learns,” standard seminars, as well as our “New Technology” show and our most recent addition, “Mac Expo.”
Our Chalk Talks and Lunch and Learn events are the most frequently held events at Whalley Computer Associates. These events usually focus on a single technology or product. Whalley Computer Associates will invite one vendor, and about 10-15 clients per session to our Southwick facility. In our corporate headquarters in Southwick, we have facilities that allow us and the vendors to present a slide presentation, utilize white-board technology, as well as network services such as Internet access. These informal sessions are designed to be as interactive as possible. Whalley Computer Associates' clients concur that the information provided by our vendors and Whalley Computer Associates is very informative. They appreciate the ability to interact with other Whalley Computer Associates clients who may have similar issues and concerns. Normally we hold a morning and an afternoon session, which allow the very busy, IS professional to only be away from the office for a short period of time. The last two sessions were focused around thin client technology, and VPNs. For the near future, we have events planned with Microsoft to discuss licensing issues, and Cisco to discuss voice over IP.
The longest running event at Whalley Computer Associates is our Standard Seminar Series. Once or twice a year, we bring together about 4-6 vendors and manufactures to discuss related topics and technologies. During these seminars, we invite our partners to present a brief overview of their product or service. After each presentation, we have a sit down lunch, then open up the day for product demonstrations, and individual conversations. This event typically encompasses most of the day, if the attendees stay for the afternoon session. The feedback from the clients on these events has been very positive, as we normally get several vendors together for the day, and ask them to stay focused during their presentations. As mentioned earlier, these events usually have a “theme” to which several diverse vendors can all relate. In the past we have discussed, remote access computing, Internet access and security and fault tolerance. We have also adopted a segment dealing with the business aspect of technology, such as total cost of ownership, lost productivity, and other financial considerations.
Monthly Disaster Recovery Roundtable Discussions on the third Thursday of every month, WCA hosts a disaster recovery/business continuance roundtable. Nineteen executives from large and small corporations throughout New England discuss every imaginable topic related to business continuance.
New participants are welcome. The session and lunch are provided free of charge. One manufacturer is allowed 30 minutes each month to present one of the latest products or services that may enhance your business continuance plan.
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