Oh, What a World: Training 2022 Expo in Review
At the end of February, IACET exhibited at Training 2022 Conference and Expo, our team’s first major outing since the COVID-19 Pandemic re-shaped our “rules” of connection. Armed with IACET’s infamous stress balls, sunglasses, hand sanitizers, and a few extra surprises, we joined over 1000 trainers and professionals at Disney’s Coronado Springs to both celebrate a return to in-person events and to share experiences and lessons learned over the last three years.
In my opinion, this first paragraph could be replaced with any conference or training we’ll attend this year, but in hindsight, what sticks out the most about Training 2022 is the relentless optimism and untapped potential we heard we heard from consultants, vendors, contractors, and training organizations across the world. We heard stories of success and engagement, shared concerns on the future of the field, and bonded over future-focused innovations built on the successes of our past.
With our Standard emphasizing the immediate usage of post-course feedback, it’s no surprise to anyone that IACET’s booth was packed, busy from the Hall’s open to close, as we advocated for the limitless potential of the IACET Standard in prospective Accredited Providers worldwide. We connected with trainings arms and organizations in Finance, Healthcare, Higher Education, Construction, and more, emphasizing the role of IACET as both an accrediting body and standards developing organization in the field of adult education. And while the Standard and IACET’s multiple guidelines (including Conference, Distance Learning, Badging, and Competency Based Training, for those readers keeping count!) are a value proposition in and of themselves, many prospective Providers and future Affiliates were left stunned when learning about IACET’s holistic community.
By virtue of the Standard and the way we connect with programs and partners, IACET’s emphasis and focus is on the control and creation functions of an organization’s training arm, meaning that IACET accreditation is a supplemental value add to any organization’s training capabilities. We connect and engage with hundreds of industries served while embracing learners of all types, leveraging the niched expertise of our Providers and the industries they serve to raise the entire continuing education and training field’s expertise.
At the end of the day, this is our greatest value proposition — a commitment from our team to yours that as the IACET community grows, so too will our emphasize of cross-functional engagement, leveraging your expertise to empower learners worldwide. For those of you who are already part of this community, we’re thrilled you’re here, and for those of you who are preparing to embark on the Accreditation journey, welcome — there’s never been a better time to become an Accredited Provider.
About the Author
Bradley A. Davis is an intentional project manager and cross-functional collaborator, he has worked over the last decade in the non-profit association space, bringing innovation and intentional data and content strategy to shape organizations supporting Military History, Government Service, Education, and Cross-Enterprise Healthcare spaces. His leadership philosophy — emphasizing meeting SMEs, contractors, staff, clients, members, and prospective personas where they are, wherever they are — has ensured strong connections across his various work environments, promoting life-long value throughout constituent’s tenure with his various employers. In his down time, Bradley enjoys reading, cooking, and wine tasting in Northern Virginia alongside his partner, in addition to supporting a variety of non-profit organizations as a recurring volunteer.