A Publication of iSeries 400 Experts Total Information Service

COMMON slated to change education delivery in 2007

By Heather Ellwood
Monday January 30, 2006

      On January 14 and 15, 2006, the COMMON Board held its quarterly face-to-face meeting. During that meeting, the COMMON Education Team (CET) proposed a new education model that is slated to take effect in 2007.

      COMMON released the minutes of their quarterly meeting, and the following is a synopsis of the board’s discussion about CET’s proposed new model. “The model will take COMMON from two education conferences a year to many education events and other learning opportunities. The CET recommendation was based on research commissioned over the past 18 months to assess the attitudes, motivators, behaviors, and benefits sought by the changing iSeries community. Details are still being fleshed out. The new model will be announced at the 2006 Fall COMMON Conference in Miami.”

      The new educational model is still in the developmental stages, so Insider Weekly contacted COMMON president Beverly Russell and COMMON executive director Ralph Gervasi for comment. The following are Russell’s comments to Insider Weekly’s questions.

      Insider Weekly: Is COMMON developing a new model for delivering conference content — one that will change from the current two conferences a year to multiple regional events?

      Russell: Coming off of the organization’s best financial year in a decade, the COMMON Board has approved the innovative recommendations of the CET, which take the organization from two annual conference events to many education events and additional learning opportunities. All in all, the new model increases the number of user-driven iSeries education hours available and provides a wider variety of face-to-face and remote/virtual educational channels to meet the needs of COMMON’s varied and distinctly different member needs. The new model also provides exposure opportunities for third-party solution providers.

      IW: If this is the case, does this mean that COMMON will no longer be holding two large conferences per year, at five days each?

      Russell: Details of the new education model are still being fleshed out. The important point to keep in mind is that the new model will take the organization from two annual conference events to many education events and additional learning opportunities.

      I’d also like to point out that COMMON is already providing more learning opportunities for our members in 2006. We plan to hold 10 one- day seminars, a number of Webcasts, and of course our two semi-annual conferences, which are being held in Minneapolis, MN, in March and Miami Beach, FL, in September.

      IW: Can you discuss why COMMON is making this change?

      Russell: Over the past 18 months, COMMON has conducted a thorough member and iSeries industry research study. You can find more details on the findings of the study in the October 2005 and February 2006 issues of COMMON Connect. The articles are titled “What We Have Learned About Learning” (Part I and Part II). The new education model will be a direct result of the member and industry study findings.

      IW: When should people expect to see these changes take effect?

      Russell: The new education model will be launched no earlier than 2007 and will undoubtedly expand the value of COMMON membership.

      IW: How is COMMON expecting to benefit from this change (higher attendance, less expenses, etc.)?

      Russell: COMMON is evolving to better meet our members’ educational needs and their need for community, and to network and share ideas and solutions. Until details of the new model are fleshed out, it’s difficult to specifically address the issues you identify, but increasing the value received from a COMMON membership and increasing the education and networking opportunities will result in a satisfied and growing member base.

      IW: How will COMMON attendees benefit from this change?

      Russell: The COMMON membership will have additional learning opportunities. There will be many more education hours available and a variety of delivery mechanisms to choose from. This will allow them to maximize the value of their membership.