IDSA National - Chicago 8/21 - 8/24 - Who's going?!?!

Its that time again. Who will be at the IDSA national? I will be there a bit late on the 21st but am looking forward to a good time. Anyone else?

J

Me!

Awesome Tim. It would be great to grab a drink!

J

May I ask, how do you justify the cost to your boss?

We budget for 1-2 conference each year. It is part of personal/professional growth. We also use it to find new external talent. If you look into the cost of other design conferences IDSA is reasonably priced. FUSE (major branding conference) is $3K just for admission.

J

I attend a few conferences a year, but specifically in the medical field. I need to be on top of the new posters and papers, they are a great starting point for a problem statement.

I like the idea of of finding new talent, locally, even here in the Chicagoland area, good talent is hard to find.

There will be one talk I will miss at the conference - Medical Design, What’s Best, Generalist or Specialist

While I am certainly qualified as a specialist, I don’t think it should be closed. Any generalist can easily adapt to a quality system a company creates for the FDA. It isn’t up to the designer to create or maintain the quality system. And while it is good knowledge to have, it only slows the design process, it does not change it.

I was hopping to attend this year as 3 other designers are going from my new company. But when i first got here i put in a request to attend the 4 day executive MPD seminar at North Western, and that was approved but it meant that i could not go to the IDSA conf this year, as i will be attending at least two more seminars this year(already defined).

Anyone out there attend this seminar?

I’ll be in Chicago that weekend. But not officially attending the conference. (Too new at my company to get approval for a conference.)

But still should make for a fun weekend with designers though.

I will be there, it would be great to put a few names with faces

Anything design related going on outside of the conference in Chicago while it’s going on? I live in Chicago but I won’t be attending.
Sort of a lolla after show sort of deal for designers might be cool. :slight_smile:

So it’s next week. Who else is going to be there?

J

I’ll be there for most of the week.

This is going to be my first IDSA conference, and I’ll hopefully be finding some leads for an ID position! Do you guys have any tips for making a good impression and getting interviews? My plan is pretty much talk to everyone I can and hand out a hundred business cards.

You pretty much nailed it. Have a point of view and be open to conversation. The key is to not be afraid to talk to people but not too pushy on wanting a job. Remember we are all there to have fun and to network. You will get more respect engaging conversations than soliciting yourself. With that said asking a professional to take a look at you portfolio is always welcome, just don’t lead with it.

My two cents.

J

Hi guys,

Ray from Core here, just wanted to direct your attention to an appropriate social gathering for Conference attendees & non-attendees alike:

Core77 Party
Bottom Lounge
1375 W. Lake St. Chicago
Thurs. Aug. 22, 9PM - 12AM

Full invite

See you there!

I’ll be around Wednesday night and Thursday.
Look forward to seeing some familiar faces and meeting some new folks.