ECIA 2022 Executive Conference Planning Committee Selects Theme
“Bucking Normal: The Resilient Thrive Through Disruption”
ATLANTA – ECIA’s Executive Conference Planning Committee is pleased to announce the theme of the 2022 Executive Conference, which will take place October 23-25 at the Loews Chicago O’Hare Hotel after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic.
This year’s theme, Bucking Normal: The Resilient Thrive Through Disruption – reflects the growing realization in the industry that there likely will be no ‘return to normal’ after several years of global disruption.
“The conference theme was truly a collaborative effort,” explained Conference Chair Robert Derringer. “The committee resolved to develop a message indicative of where our industry is going and how we feel after two long years of quarantining, social distancing, and massive business disruption necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Blessed to have survived the pandemic – literally and in business – we tossed around the idea of ‘the new normal’ and quickly wanted to ‘kick it to the curb.’ Credit to Conference Co-chair, Tobi Cornell, for suggesting the phrase ‘bucking normal.’ This phrase gave the committee the kick it needed to fully engage its creative spirit and we were suddenly bouncing one bucking idea off another! Ultimately, we came to agree that what we want is to do more than survive; shift will keep happening and what we all desire is to be resilient and thrive through disruption,” he concluded.
“It has been a fun and engaging process creating the theme for this year’s conference,” added Tobi Cornell, Conference Co-Chair. “So much has changed in all our lives over the past two years, both personally and professionally. Many of the committee members noted that there doesn’t seem to be anything that would surprise us anymore. It is a world of constant change. Our group discussed how the meaning of ‘normal’ is really a fallacy, and that personal life and work are bucking the trends of what we are all used to. This brought life to the theme…what is bucking normal, anyway? So let’s talk about how we can enthusiastically move past what we think of as the way things ‘should’ be. Life will always change…and the resilient will thrive!”
So, there you have it: ’Bucking Normal – The Resilient Thrive in Disruption’.
