Earlier this year I had the pleasure of Co-chairing the Joint MRA Philly/Greater NY conference.  The conference was held in April in Center City Philadelphia and planning started back in October/November.  Being my first time planning a conference of this magnitude, my initial reaction was how will we get this done in time!  However, I soon found that my fellow Co-chair, Bob Granito (Of Interactive Media and member of the Greater NY Chapter) along with all the wonderful and dedicated volunteers were equally committed.  From the get go the entire committee proved to make the planning process engaging and seamless.   In the end it was fulfilling to see the planning and hard work from all come to fruition as many attendees mentioned they enjoyed the conference from beginning to end.  The conference itself was a full day event with 7 engaging speakers making up 5 thoughtful presentations:

• Steve Levine (Zeldis) and Jerry Valentine (AstraZenaca) discussed current trends in Disruptive Behavior.
• Michelle Murphy Niedziela, Ph.D of HCD Research discussed the 5 phases of Neuroscience.
• David Dutwin, Ph.D of SSRS gave the keynote discussing the future of survey research.
• Nina Hoe, Ph.D of Temple University presented on building a city-wide panel.
• John Hartman and John Shiela of Phoenix Marketing shared their research on wearable technology trends.

As I reflect on the planning stages, I am glad to have the experience under my belt as I transition to my new role as President of the Philly MRA.  I cannot thank all the board members from both chapters and volunteers who helped make the event a success.

-Rajesh Bhai