Given the impact of the market you may encounter budget restrictions which will require you to give serious thought as to whether to invest in a performance measurement conference in 2010. We want to propose some criteria you may want to consider when comparing alternative events:
 
 

1.  Are the speakers primarily vendors or practitioners? Most attendees want to hear a mix, though they generally prefer to hear primarily from practitioners, at least that's our experience. See how the speakers stack up in the conferences you're considering. (Note: PMAR has a mix, though most of our speakers are practitioners).
2. What do you get for your investment? Many conferences have cut back themselves on what they provide: for example, many conferences no longer give their attendees binders with copies of the slides. (Note: we always provide binders with slides, plus much more, including audio CDs and conference transcripts! For example, all attendees at PMAR get a gift for attending).
3. Are the speakers the same year-to-year? some conferences prefer to keep the same set of speakers, introducing a few new ones each year. While it is good to see some consistency, especially when speakers are good, most attendees appreciate seeing some new faces. (Note: we rotate more than 70% of our speakers at each conference, retaining just a few who get extremely high marks each year).
4. Do the topics change or remain pretty much the same year-to-year? Our industry is dynamic, and so the topics should be too.
5. What's the cost of the event? It is a simple process to compare each conference's pricing. (PMAR continues to be the cost savings leader from our own review; we provide high quality topics and speakers for a very low price, especially relative to other promoters).
6. What conferece do the vendors prefer? A good gauge is the number of vendors that cosponsor the event: If the vendors don't find much value, chances are the attendees won't either.
7. How many attend? Obviously number speak a great deal.
8. Does the conference offer a money-back guarantee? Who should bear the risk that the conference may not be that good, the promoter or the attendees? (Our events always offer a money-back guarantee: we believe it is unfair to make the attendee carry the risk).
9. Do a value comparison. Value equals benefits divided by price. Evaluate the alternatives from a value perspective.
10. Is the conference designed to stimulate thought and advance the attendee's knowledge of performance measurement (PMAR is!). 

"I have found PMAR conferences invaluable. These conferences have not only provided me with the necessary up to date skills, they have exposed me to the "Frontiers of Recent Developments" in Performance Measurement, Attribution and Risk.

Speakers at these conferences are not only leading pioneers in their respective subjects, but are chosen very carefully, so that conference attendees can benefit immensely from their presentations.

PMAR conferences to me, are "Second to none". I strongly recommend these conferences to anyone engaged in the business of risk, portfolio performance measurement and attribution."

Cephas Masikini, Ph.D
Head, Portfolio Analytics
TD Wealth Management

"PMAR is a valuable conference that provides informative topics & material on the various facets of investment performance & attribution.
Topics are always timely & relevant as the industry evolves & grows with challenging dimensions."

Jenny Tsouvalis
Vice President
OMERS

"PMAR has become the must attend performance and risk conference. From the timely topics to the world class speakers, this conference has it all. It is also entertaining and well organized. Run, don't walk to this conference."

Tom Jacobs
Waddell & Reed

33 Clyde Road, Suite 103, Somerset, NJ 08873
Tel. 732-873-5700 Fax: 732-873-3997