Dear Colleagues and Friends,

Since 1975, I have been practicing service and support, working as a consultant, and now delivering education through the Help Desk Professionals Conference.  For years, people have been helping me learn as much as possible about our industry.  Well, it's pay back time. The 7th Annual Conference for Help Desk Professionals in October is my personal way to "pay it forward", to try to give back all that I have been given over the years.

I can't imagine a better way to say thank you then to bring together industry experts to share their wealth of knowledge with others. Having this conference gives us the opportunity to work with an incredible team to deliver an absolutely can't-miss event where learning and sharing information is the primary focus.

High Tech High Touch Solutions is offering the highest quality, content-rich Help Desk and Service Desk conference available.  PINK Elephant is collaborating with us, to bring to the event this year, timely industry expertise and the training and resources to pursue various highly relevant ITIL certifications while at this event.  Join us this year so we can together further evolve your service and support business through sharing in the wealth of specific and applicable information.

We're featuring some of the most recognized names!

We have the most recognized names in the help desk industry in one event.  You will not only have the opportunity to learn from their vast knowledge and expertise in the field by attending their presentations but you will also have the opportunity to hold informal discussions with these folks.  And of course, there are many, many more great speakers delivering presentations at HDP 2005, as well as these folks.

Malcolm Fry  -  George Spalding  -  Pete McGarahan  -  Brenda Iniguez  -  Patrick Bultema  -  Kurt Johnson  -  Char LaBounty  -  Daryl Covey  -  David Stockwell  -  Mary Kay Wegner  -  Brad Worthley  -  Bill Price  -  Eric Rabinowitz  -  Rick Joslin  -  Mary Lou Blakely  -  Dru Phelps

Check out the program they are delivering!

Be sure to sign up early.  We limit our event to 350 seats to ensure a valuable learning experience and afford opportunities to build strong relationships. The sooner you sign up, the better chance you'll have to be part of this exclusive opportunity.  These seats are already going fast.

We were able to negotiate some incredible room rates at the resort, The Hotel del Coronado.  There are a limited number, so we encourage you to make your reservations early.  You can call the Hotel del Coronado directly at 800-HOTELDEL. You must tell them you are attending the Help Desk Conference to get our very special room rates and the generous package that is included.

This event promises to be spectacular and unique in many ways!  I want you to become some of the first to fully transform your Help Desk into a Service Desk and make it truly an indispensable asset to your corporation.  Register now before all of the seats are sold out and get a great early-bird discount.

I look forward to seeing you in San Diego.

Ivy Meadors
CEO, High Tech High Touch Solutions, Inc.
Chair and Conference Owner

Don’t miss a single copy of the weekly “HDP Previews”:  Each week we will feature a speaker and a vendor who will share valuable content to whet your appetite to attend one of the most significant Help Desk & Service Desks event ever.  Please pass these on to a friend.

Stay in touch by joining our mailing list. 

TIPS FROM THIS WEEK’S FEATURED SPEAKER:
Mary Kay Wegner, Manager, City of Redmond

Mary Kay is an up and coming legend in our industry.  She is someone who cares deeply about the people who work in Help Desks and emphasizes their deserved recognition.  As a Help Desk Manager, she continually stresses the importance and value of her staff to the rest of the organization, as well as giving her staff the appreciation they deserve.

Mary Kay is delivering a pre-con that will give a complete overview of ITIL for those wanting to get exposure to the methodology, particularly for those just starting out.  As a practitioner, and one of your peers, you will hear the information from a real-world perspective. She has her ITIL Essentials certification and is prepared to give you lots of really good information to help you get started.

Radical Leadership – Challenging the Status Quo by Mary Kay Wegner

Radical leaders are, among other things, the caretakers of culture. Spending time developing a clear picture of what you want your organization to look like is actually where radical leadership begins. Can you imagine a culture where talent thrives; where people respond to challenge with creativity; and embrace change with confidence and flexibility? What would that look like? How do you get there? Consider the following illustration:

There’s a feeling you get after someone says something unexpected in a meeting. It’s a perceptible pause, as you and everyone else in the room take a moment to process what just happened. Maybe it was an innocent question that opened up a gap you hadn’t considered before, or maybe someone threw out a direct challenge to your ideas. Just as you move from hesitation to careful consideration, you see the same reaction taking shape in the room. It might have been something everyone was thinking, but no one had the nerve to say. But because someone gave voice to their thoughts, the entire discussion has changed direction for the better. Momentum and enthusiasm build; ideas and possibilities flow.

So it is with radical leaders. When the status quo is challenged, and someone says what needs to be said, you suddenly become more aware of your own complacency. You brought your own assumptions to the table, which now seem so misplaced. Radical leaders lead by example and draw others into the process. Their methods may be subtle or they may be direct, but the message is the same: ask questions, embrace the unknown, take risks and make it safe for others to do the same.

Radical leaders create gentle landings because without them we might never try again when we falter. Healthy debate and risk taking aren’t just encouraged, they are expected. Radical leaders question conventional wisdom, setting the pace and providing the tools for others to follow. They aren’t afraid to be clear and passionate about where their own vision leads them.

For more to challenge your own conventional wisdom, see:

“Flight of the Buffalo, Soaring to Excellence, Learning to Let Employees Lead” by James A. Belasco and Ralph Stayer

“First, Break All the Rules, What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently” by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman

“The Radical Leap: A Personal Lesson in Extreme Leadership" by Steve Farber

"The 8th Habit from Effectiveness to Greatness" by Steven Covey