STORIS, a leading supplier of Retail Software Solutions and Services for Big Ticket retailers, reports their 2014 User Conference (UC14) ‘The Difference is You’ was a success. The conference, held at the Wyndham Hamilton Park Hotel in New Jersey October 8th through October 10th, was completely sold out with over 175 retail attendees and 8 vendor partners.
The conference focused on the STORIS Clients as a differentiator in their 25 years of success in both the industry, and as a top employer in the State of New Jersey. This year’s event kicked off with a Welcoming Reception where Clients, Employees and Vendors networked and enjoyed a Casino Night themed cocktail event. On the morning of the first full day Doug Culmone, Chief Operating Officer at STORIS, delivered a comprehensive “Welcome Address” that highlighted recent product improvements, company accomplishments, key client additions and STORIS’ technology roadmap. A Superhero themed film starring STORIS employees was premiered. The video recapped STORIS’ corporate values and introduced the exciting new Windows® 8 Touch Capabilities, added to the STORIS eRoam Mobile Solutions Suite. Complementing the STORIS eRoam iPad application, this Windows® 8 integrated touch technology makes the complete STORIS Vision9 software package accessible through any Windows® 8 tablet on-the-go.
Don Surdoval, Chief Executive Officer, discussed how technology has become a crucial investment to retailers and that STORIS values its long-term Client partnerships. “STORIS is not just a software product or group of employees, it is a community with a common goal of seeking improvement. It is customers working with us to improve our products and services, and customers looking to us to help improve their operations and solve problems.” Don wrapped up the opening by reflecting on STORIS’ recent “Best Place To Work in NJ” award and commenting, “If we’re the best place to work, then our customers are the best people to work for.”
UC14 proceeded as a highly educational and enjoyable event offering over 35 seminars and collaboration sessions to STORIS Clients. The selection of sessions covered a wide range of topics and varying levels of participation. Conference seminar categories included functional and technical topics, in addition to collaboration and business training focused sessions. A ‘Consultant’s Corner’ was also available for clients to seek assistance and engage one-on-one with STORIS’ experienced consulting, training and client services specialists throughout the conference.
Seminar topics included: Reimagining Payment Processing, an open forum exploring how to improve the payment application process for Clients utilizing extended receivables; The View You Want for the Data You Need, an overview of the capabilities of STORIS’ unique reporting tool Personal Report Viewer; Excel with Data Importing, a review of processes, benefits, and how to use Excel to save time importing data;Improving Your Vision with AU, a session covering best practices for keeping up to date and managing Automatic Updates (AU); Appliance Retailer Panel Discussions, an open discussion about the unique challenges faced by retailers in the appliance industry; Furniture Retailer Roundtable, a collaboration session where suggestions were discussed to improve operational efficiency and growth, Principles of Project Management; a business training seminar sharing the basic techniques and best practices for managing projects successfully.
In addition to the educational opportunities, a Product Pavilion showcased STORIS’ latest products and featured third-party partner sponsors. Attending sponsors included ecUtopia, MicroD, Rocket, Dispatch Track, AcceptanceNOW & Tender Retail. Although the focus of the conference was on education and collaboration, the group took the second evening off and ventured into New York City to network and socialize offsite.
Overall, STORIS Clients and Partners had an enjoyable and productive conference. STORIS Client and conference attendee, Tom Berta from FFO Home of Muldrow, OK expressed “You said that we (Clients) were the difference, and you showed it through your actions. The conference was not only informative (and very much so), but it was more enjoyable than I can put into words. Thank you so very much, and hats off to everyone.”
About STORIS Inc. Founded in 1989, STORIS continues to be the leading provider of Retail Software Solutions and Services to Big Ticket retailers of ALL sizes. STORIS’ Vision9 software solution provides retailers with a single ERP solution including point of sale, supply chain management, customer care, accounting, business intelligence and more. For more information, please visit http://www.storis.com/
