Technology Show gets personal
Personal productivity and implementing technology solutions in bar associations are the focus of the 2003 NABE Administration & Finance Section Technology Show, which is being held in Seattle, WA in conjunction with the NABE Midyear Meeting on February 4, 2003. Instead of talking about high level technology trends and future uses, this year’s program committee is focusing on presenting real-life solutions for bar leaders — in both their professional and personal lives.
"When we were looking at previous shows and early drafts for this meeting, we realized that it was probably a bit too technical for everybody," said Kari Hartman of the Indianapolis Bar Association and a member of the meeting’s planning committee. "What we are focusing on this meeting is personal and bar productivity in terms of technology — actually using technology instead of talking about it."
Hartman said the committee’s emphasis on practical solutions helped shape the track programming open to attendees. The first track, dealing with personal productivity will deal with such topics such as managing email, working with handheld devices such as Palms or Pocket PC’s, and will feature John Maley, a lawyer in the Indianapolis area who is known for his organizational ability.
"John has been able to use technology to make the most of his life both personally and professionally — he is able to make the most of his day and we are hoping his programs will enable bar staff to use his advice to organize their personal life and bring back ideas to their bar association," said Hartman.
Another track of programming will deal with the Web and how it can streamline bar operations such as voting, communications and CLE. Securing Web sites will also be discussed.
"Most organizations tend to look very closely at securing their hardware while leaving their Web applications relatively unsecured," said David Simms, the District of Columbia’s Web Editor who will be speaking in two workshops. "Doing that is like locking the front door of your house while leaving the back door wide open," he said.
Finally, Jim Calloway of the Oklahoma Bar Association will lead a series of discussions regarding technology disaster avoidance and recovery.
"What is most important for any bar association to have is a written policy," said Calloway. "You might think you can wing it, but you can’t," said Calloway "Have a written policy that spells out everything."
Being held in Seattle, any discussion about technology would be incomplete without a mention about Microsoft, headquartered in nearby Redmond, WA. A field trip to Microsoft’s headquarters is being planned.
"I really think the highlight of the show will be the trip to Microsoft," said Craig Combs, chair of the Administration and Finance Section. "In addition, we’ve got a good lineup of speakers and topics with a wide variety of topics to be discussed."