Water Cooler Audio Library
Miss the last call? Listen to past Water Cooler conferences in our Audio Library:
Peering Into the Crystal Ball: 2022 Industry Outlook
In this session, the panel provided insights regarding what they believe the industry will look like in the coming year, anticipated challenges, new opportunities to be had and how to navigate the new world of virtual selling and remote work.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Dave Doherty, President, Digi-Key Electronics; Greg Pace, President, Ohmite Manufacturing Co; Dave Wilkes, President, Westmark Electronics Inc.
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Planning for 2022
This session revolved around the anticipated changes and challenges our industry will face as we move into 2022. The discussion included insights from a rep, manufacturer and distributor as to how they are budgeting for the new year, how they forecast supply chain issues and lead times, their concerns regarding double bookings, implementing new technology upgrades and how they will deal with a hybrid work environment.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Mark Motsinger, President of Wallace Electronic Sales; Steve Nolan, Vice-President of Sales & Business Development of Advanced Thermal Solutions Inc.; and Matt Waite, President & CEO of Dove Electronic Components
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2022 ERA Conference Preview — What to Expect
Attendees were provided a peek behind the curtain regarding planning for the 2022 ERA Conference, to be hosted Feb. 27 – March 1 in Austin, TX. The core conference committee members were on hand to present information covering keynote and general session speakers, breakout session content, networking and social activities, and the overall conference schedule.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Adam Anderson, CPMR, Norris & Associates Inc.; Lori Bruno, Luscombe Engineering of San Francisco; Ellen Coan, CPMR, C C Electro Sales, Inc.; Matt Cohen, CPMR, C C Electro Sales Inc.; John Guetens, E-T-A Circuit Breakers; John Hutson, CPMR, The MacInnis Group; Holly Myers, CPMR, Genie Group; Perry Thornton, Pinnacle Marketing Inc.; and Bryan White, CPMR, Catalyst Unity Solutions
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Maintaining a Company Culture in a Remote Environment
This session focused on the challenges that organizations face in maintaining a company culture in a remote environment, including effectively staying connected with employees; employee morale and mental health issues; and navigating the current empowered employee environment.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Seamus Dolan, Director of Sales, Crouzet; John Hutson, CPMR, President, MacInnis Group; and Riad Nizam, President, Master Electronics
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Employee Retention
This discussion focused on what companies are doing to retain talent, maintaining a company culture and what candidates looking for in new job opportunities.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: John O’Brien, CPMR, Vice President of Coakley, Boyd and Abbett, and President of the ERA Executive Committee; and Carla Mahrt, President of JJM Search, an electronics industry executive recruiter.
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A Sneak Peek at the 2021 ERA Virtual Sales Training Event
This session provided insights into the ERA Virtual Sales Training Event, “Sharpen Your Sales Skills in Today’s Market,” scheduled Sept. 21-23, 2021. The discussion included an overview of the educational program, session topics and speakers; useful takeaways, best practices and key tools for attendees; a walk through the event site and virtual environment; and Q&A.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Ellen Coan, CPMR, Vice President Operations for C C Electro Sales Inc. and ERA Sr. Vice President/Education; Erin Collins, ERA Events Coordinator, Hugh Daly, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for METZ CONNECT USA Inc. Gary Smith, CPMR, President of G.L. Smith Associates Inc.
EDS Is Canceled. What Now?
This discussion provided the opportunity to share tactical ideas about what reps, distributors and manufacturers can do to “replace” EDS 2021, which would have been the first in-person industry event of the year. The session focused on new professional experiences that can replace face-to-face meetings; how to maintain and build business relationships in a remote world; and why face-to-face still matters for fostering and developing mature professional relationships.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Mike Calabria, President, CEO and Board of Directors at Abracon LLC; Mike Swenson, President of Mel Foster Company; and Mike Walker, Vice President of Sales for Allied Electronics & Automation.
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Navigating the Supply Chain Storm
This discussion focused on:
• How did we get here? Lessons learned
• How do we get out of it? Evaluating risks, building agility
• What’s next? Trends, best practices
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: David Paulson, Global Vice President, Avnet United and Avnet Velocity; Dennis Reed, Sr. Research Analyst, Edgewater Research; and Don Hnatyshin, Senior Vice President, Chief Supply Chain Officer at Molex
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Open Mic Session
This discussion was open to all industry citizens – ERA members and not yet members — sharing different unscripted ideas and business challenges. There were also updates on the upcoming ERA Virtual Sales Training, EDS 2021 and the 2022 ERA Conference.
Special Guest Facilitators:
ERA Chairman of the Board, Chuck Tanzola, CPMR, of Fusion Sourcing Group Inc. and ERA Sr. Vice President/Education Ellen Coan, CPMR, of C C Electro Sales Inc.
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Innovative Marketing Strategies
This discussion focused on how the pandemic changed marketing in the electronics industry, reimagining your marketing strategies beyond NPI and why a marketing strategist is essential for your team.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Ken Bellero, President of Schaffner EMC Inc.; Tom Griffin, CPMR, President of Catalyst Unity Solutions; and Graham Kilshaw, CEO of Lectrix
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What Buyers Want
This conversation focused on how the role of buyer/supply chain professionals has evolved during the pandemic, what they expect from reps and channel partners and lessons learned over the past year.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-facilitators: Jim Davis, Purchasing Manager, GM Nameplate; and Andrea Tibbitts, Commodity Manager, NPI & Sourcing, Flux Power
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Rep Territories — Blurring the Lines
The current state of rep territories and what our guest panelists believe are the driving factors behind the shifts that cross traditional rep territories.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-facilitators: Robert Logan of Kruvand Associates Inc.; David Norris of Norris & Associates Inc.; Gregory Pace of Ohmite Mfg. Co.; and Christoph Wolf of RECOM Power
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Open Mic Session
This session featured an open forum discussion giving attendees the opportunity to share different unscripted ideas and business challenges.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
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New Employee Initiatives in a Virtual World
This discussion focused on employee recruitment; hiring and onboarding; training/retaining, and Q&A from participants.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Carla Mahrt, President of JJM Search, Gary Zullo, Sales Director for Arrow Electronics; and Shane Zutz, Vice President, Human Resources, for Digi-Key Electronics.
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Reopening Rules of Engagement
This panel-led discussion focused on possible customer and state rules for face-to-face meetings and what you can expect as you navigate today’s business environment.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Ken Bellero, President of Schaffner EMC; Joe Braun, CPMR, Partner and Field Sales Representative for EK Micro; Adam Glazer, partner at Schoenberg Finkel Beederman Bell Glazer and ERA Legal Counsel; and Craig Sanderson, VP Supplier Marketing & Product Management at Sager Electronics.
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Cybersecurity — How to Keep Your Company Safe in an Unsafe World
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Bob Kill, President and CEO of Enterprise Minnesota; John Connelly, Vice President of Consulting for Enterprise Minnesota; and Scott Singer, President of CyberNINES
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Strategies for Success for Manufacturers’ Rep Firms of All Sizes
This moderator-led deep-dive discussion of the breakout session featured at the 2021 ERA Virtual Conference focuses on best practices, new opportunities and customer segments.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Dave Norris, president of Norris & Associates; Tim Kilfoil, president of JF Kilfoil Company; Jim Gleason, managing partner of FJM Inc.; and V.J. Ladd, co-owner of Apogee Solutions Group.
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Post Pandemic Planning: Reopening in the New Abnormal
This ERA Water Cooler session focused on what this industry will look like as it starts to open back up. The panelists discussed various topics including potential travel, customer visits, training, safety requirements, and budget planning.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Jennifer Eby, Founding Partner of MaRCTech2, Inc; Al Wright, Regional Sales Manager for Laird Performance Materials and Mike Smith, VP of Sales for Hughes Peters
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Video Recording
ERA 2021 Virtual Conference ‘Boot Camp’
This ERA Water Cooler session focused on how to get the most out of YOUR ERA Virtual Conference experience. The session covered the navigation, speakers, content, exhibitors, sponsors, games, and more.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Craig Anderson, President and Owner of Sumer Inc. and Conference Committee Chair; Neda Simeonova, Communications Director for ERA, and Erin Collins, Events Coordinator for ERA.
Branding Your Company Through the Use of Interactive Video
This ERA Water Cooler session focused on using interactive training videos to brand your company and differentiate from competitors. The panelists discussed the various options in using video, the use of social media tools, cost-effective software tools, and using analytics to measure results.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Rob Tavi, Managing Director of IBS Electronics, Inc; Alan Ahern, President of Crowley Associates and Tom Griffin, CPMR, Managing Director of Catalyst Unity Solutions.
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Are We Working at Home or Living at Work? Time Management and Task Prioritization Tips
This ERA Water Cooler session focused on tips and tricks for time management. Learn how to take back control of your schedule, best practices for starting your day on the right foot, email prioritization, and managing projects while working at home.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Monica Highfill, Vice President Sales – Americas for KEMET Electronics Corporation; and Mark Zack, Vice President Business Development for TTI Inc.
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Supply Chain Challenges in the New Abnormal
This ERA Water Cooler session focused on the alignment of the supply chain from the customer up to the manufacturer. Listen in for more on forecasting and the outside challenges as well as automation tools that help enable supply chain velocity.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: John Beaver, President at GSA Manufacturers Rep Firm; Robert Derringer, Director, Global Channel for Crouzet North America; and Mike Rankins, Director of Supply Chain for Digikey
Planning and Goal Setting in 2021
This ERA Water Cooler session focused on learning from 2020 as we plan to thrive in 2021. 2020 was a pivotal year as everyone adapted and met the needs to survive in the virtual world. 2021 will bring about more challenges. The panelists discussed budgeting goals, performance development and training, forecasting, succession planning, talent acquisition, market analysis, and more.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Tony Roybal, President, Americas Electronic Components of Avnet; Mark Conley, President and CEO of O’Donnell Associates North.
Startups, Incubators, and Accelerators: How Best to Navigate this Complex but Necessary World!
This ERA Water Cooler session focused on the world of startups and the best practices for reps and distributors to support their needs. The panelists discussed evaluating the criteria for continued support, the process of vetting startups, as well as how and where to find startups.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Stacey Weismiller, Program Manager for Second Muse and Jeff Bergstein, President of Jeff Bergstein Consulting
Media Expert Panel – Tips for Trusted Industry News Among the Chaos
Sifting through news today can be overwhelming. Where do you turn to for trusted resources? How can you speak up and be “heard?” This Water Cooler dives into timely accurate news sources as well as news board suggestions. Learn how to verify news while removing bias as the panel of media experts unpacks the news content analysis.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Steve Cholas, Vice President/Business Development for Big Zeta; Barb Jorgenson, Editor-in-Chief for Aspencore (formerly EPSNews); and Bolaji Ojo, CEO of DataSights GmbH, media executive.
Staying Connected to Your Employees
Over the course of the year, how we stay connected to employees has changed drastically. In this water cooler session, learn about communicating with staff, keeping up morale, maintaining a personal touch, and promoting balance while sustaining expectations and productivity in the remote work environment. The discussion also includes how to manage performance reviews virtually, onboarding tips and challenges, and finding new talent remotely.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: John O’Brien, VP for Coakley, Boyd and Abbett; Gary Zullo, Director of Sales, Passive, Electromechanical and Interconnect for Arrow Electronics; and John Guetens, North American Sales Manager for E-T-A Circuit Breakers.
Refreshing your company’s website and digital image is more important now than ever before. Learn valuable tips, where and how to start improving your digital image during this conversation from two experts from Upright, an ERA Recognized Resource. This in-depth discussion touches on topics such as what are people looking for in your website, how to enhance your company’s digital image and add calls to action, how to evaluate the effectiveness of your website, social media best practices, and ways to improve your SEO.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Emma Gaedeke, Co-Founder and Director, Upright Labs for Upright and Danielle Gaglioti, Co-Founder and Innovation Lead for Upright
Two manufacturers share their views on the pandemic. Learn what manufacturers expect from their reps and from the channel, as well as what they think reps could be doing better. Gain valuable manufacturer’s insight on other topics, including how to be creative with building (digital) relationships, how best to approach virtual opportunities, and the manufacturer’s outlook on travel and the return of face-to-face meetings.
Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Gary Mountford, Vice President, Head of Sales Americas, C&K Components and Kris Whitehouse, Vice President Sales Americas, Omron Electronic Components
Two reps share their experiences in finding new opportunities and maintaining business in today’s challenging business environment. The discussion included tips on how to engage new customers, how to add more value than ever to existing customers, tricks for reaching someone you don’t know, how to lead targeted conversations with solutions, and what successful things they are doing now that will carry over into the post-COVID world.
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Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Kingsland Coombs, CPMR, CSP, President, Control Sales and Greg Miner, President and CEO, Thorson Rocky Mountain
A valuable conversation with attorney Andrew Bell, from long-time ERA counsel resource, Schoenberg Finkel Beederman Bell and Glazer LLC, covering updates and details surrounding current legal and tax topic such as PPP loans, economic nexus laws, succession planning, and valuing/selling/buying a rep company. If you would like to contact Andrew regarding a legal question, his contact info follows:
Phone: 312-648-2300
Email: andrew.bell@sfbbg.com
Website: https://www.sfbbg.com
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Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Andrew D. Bell, Attorney, Schoenberg Finkel Beederman Bell and Glazer LLC
An in-depth discussion on using data analytics to create actions, administer efficiencies, increase the timeliness of getting information, track split commissions, and to help connect the dots to ensure that you are getting paid. Learn about data system alignment, the synergy of CRM management systems and POS management, using data to forecast and grow your sales, and most importantly, the benefits of using data analytics to benefit the customer.
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Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Michael Budde Jr., Vice President, Budde Marketing Systems, and John Mitchell, Founder, Repfabric
An energetic and insightful conversation with Linda Clemons, Sales and Body Language Expert (and top rated speaker at the 2019 ERA Conference) who tackles the timely topics of virtual call etiquette and how to keep people engaged during video conferencing. Linda gives valuable tips and takeaways regarding how to present your best self virtually, how to read body language and how to “see” what your customers are really thinking during video calls. Also discussed are extra verbal suggestions, how to set the tone to keep customers engaged, how to open a “cold” video call, and most importantly how to constantly add value during this time when we cannot meet in-person. You can learn more about Linda on her website at https://www.lindaclemons.com or connect with her on LinkedIn.
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Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Guest Speaker: Linda Clemons, Sales and Body Language Expert
Gain valuable insight on what ERA National has been up to since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. This special update features reports from the ERA Executive Committee, covering current ERA goals and initiatives, chapter activities, events updates, manufacturer and distributor perspectives, as well as various ways that ERA is working to support its members during these challenging times.
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Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators, ERA XCOM: Ken Bellero, Schaffner EMC; Cameron English, English Technical Sales; Bob Evans, EK Micro; David Fitzgerald, WESCO Sales Group Inc.; Tom Griffin, Catalyst Unity Sales; David Norris, Norris & Associates Inc.; John O’Brien, Coakley Boyd & Abbett Inc.; Craig Sanderson, Sager Electronics; and Chuck Tanzola, Fusion Sourcing Group Inc.
A give-and-take conversation with call attendees asking questions about what’s on their minds. An open discussion amongst the group giving their perspectives and opinions on topics such as expectations on when in-person sales calls will begin again, how ERA Chapters are working to staying active, cybersecurity, hiring the next generation, delivering sample sales kits, and how lack of travel has impacted efficiencies.
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Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
An interactive discussion featuring Microsoft experts from Cloud 9 Infosystems Inc. focusing on an overview of Microsoft Office 365 and its uses, the difference between One Drive, SharePoint and Teams and the benefits of all, collaboration and sharing of files, security features and how third party apps work within the Microsoft Office 365 platforms.
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Facilitator: Stephanie Tierney, ERA Membership Director
Co-Facilitators: Chetan Malavia, CEO, Cloud 9 Infosystems Inc., Richard Barclay, Sales Director, Cloud 9 Infosystems Inc., Ashwin Ganesan, Associate Cloud Engineer, Cloud 9 Infosystems Inc., Dennis Swenson, Principal Consultant, Cloud 9 Infosystems Inc.
Perspectives from a Rep, Manufacturer and Distributor regarding what they think tomorrow will look like for themselves as well as the customer, how they have recently enhanced their digital online image, preparations they are making for a potential second wave of COVID-19, new and effective ways that they are communicating with their customers, and their plans for upcoming in-person meetings.
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Facilitator: Walter Tobin, ERA CEO
Co-Facilitators: Bryan Teen, President at Tech Marketing; Steve Nolan, Vice President of Sales and Business Development at Advanced Thermal Solutions, Inc., and Sean Sisson, Vice President North America & Latin America at RUTRONIK Electronics Worldwide
