No need to go it alone

Managing a business, especially a recycling-related business this decade, is a multifaceted endeavor that requires extraordinary amounts of time and attention. Getting away from the office or plant, whether for a vacation or a conference, can seem like an intolerable interruption.

At the Recycling Today Media Group, however, we believe we can offer several reasons why our annual fall conferences will provide numerous bottom-line benefits for those who make the commitment to attend.

First, the details. We are offering three venues for recyclers and waste management professionals to gather in the fall of 2016: 1) in Chicago for the Paper & Plastic Recycling Conference North America, Oct. 19-21; 2) in Rotterdam, Netherlands, for the co-located and concurrent Paper Recycling Conference Europe and Plastics Recycling Conference Europe, Nov. 2-3; and 3) in Long Beach, California, for the Renewable Energy from Waste Conference, Nov. 14-16.

The schedules for all of these events, available by visiting www.RecyclingTodayEvents.com, demonstrate the list of vital topics to be discussed.

Presentations in Chicago, Rotterdam and Long Beach all provide insights into trends and new operating methods influencing the industry—insights that ideally provide bottom-line, profit-and-loss reasons to attend one or more of the conferences this year.

When we market the conferences, we inevitably refer to the value of the networking that takes place, and we structure our events to offer maximum networking opportunities.

When one thinks of networking, certainly the ability to find a new trading, buying or selling connection comes to mind first. Ideally, those kinds of results await all or most attendees.

Subtler, but perhaps just as important, is the value of talking to fellow business owners and managers who are facing the same challenges and dealing with the same problems as the attendee who was reluctant to leave his or her desk for two or three days.

Camaraderie can be hard to find within one’s own organization if one is expected to make difficult decisions that can affect everybody else in the building. Seeking advice and looking for what has worked elsewhere can be done from an office chair, but a gathering of people who are having similar experiences can provide an even better setting.

Whether you can travel to Chicago or Rotterdam (or, if your responsibilities involve waste-to-energy processes, to Long Beach), consider the merits of not going it alone and finding kindred spirits at a Recycling Today Media Group event.