Conference Cruise 2004

October 7-11, 2004

The 2004 Annual APNA Conference in October was unusual. It was an unusual venue and had an unusual format. To everyone's delight, the jury is in and the result is that it was a fabulous conference, full of learning, networking and fun.

The highlights: Instead of having a parade of speakers discussing various topics of interest to agency owners, we decided to examine thoroughly one agency that is going through growth pains and financial difficulties. We selected this agency from our collective imaginations and gave it a myriad of problems we all confront. Our fearless leader and guide, coaching us through our analysis was Jerry Osteryoung, Ph.D., a finance professor at Florida State University and the head of the Entrepreneurship Program in the College of Business.

We had lectures (yes, even on a cruise boat!) and then organized ourselves in groups, each spending group time to come up with solutions to help "Oceana Naniczar" (aka Stephanie Breedlove - quite an actress!) and her distressed nanny agency overcome her difficulties and sail into profitability. The exercise enabled us to learn from Jerry and then use these lessons to impact employee management, financial management, and business planning. At the end, we presented our findings, and interestingly, each of the work groups came up with different solutions.

But all work and no play...
Feedback over the years (after each of our annual conferences) showed a strong need for participants to have more time to meet, learn from, have a drink with and network with other agency owners. Check out the pictures of our 2004 conference. I think we succeeded.

Many thanks to Royal Caribbean's Enchantment of the Seas - a fantastic cruise ship.

And many, many thanks to our sponsors: Breedlove and Associates and GTM, the Household Experts, for their unending support and generosity.

If anyone would like a copy of Dr. Osteryoung's book, "Jerry's Recipes for Success: An Entrepreneurial Cookbook," contact Barbara Marcus ( bsmarcus@parentsinapinch.com This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it ).

Conference Testimonials

Idea of a cruise - inspirational
Content of seminars - well considered and very useful
Speakers - knowledgeable, enthusiastic and interesting
Participants - smart, diverse, motivated and fun
Atmosphere - warm, inclusive and welcoming
Organization - excellent
Would I like to attend an APNA conference again and again?  YES!
Denyse Kapelus, Professional Nannies Institute

I value greatly the opportunity to network, exchange ideas and really get to know and share thoughts in a small group setting.  I also enjoyed this year's conference as it was truly a mix of business and relaxation.  See you all next year!
Laura Patterson, MBF Agency

This annual conference was exceptional because it successfully incorporated knowledge, networking and fun.
Deb Houghton, Love-N-Care, Inc.

This was my first conference and I have learned so much from it as far as how other companies work and their ideas for marketing.  Talking about ways to improve our business has been invaluable.....I would recommend every agency out there to join APNA and be part of a great team!  Thank you for everything!
Sonya Reasoner, We Care Nannies & Beyond

The conference was conducted with a standard of excellence.  APNA is a wonderful organization for agency owners and managers and also placement counselors to join to take their business to the next level.  "Iron sharpens iron and one man (or woman) sharpens another".  Agencies need to help one another and the APNA conference is an outstanding opportunity to grow in many areas.
Lexy Capp, Nannies & Housekeepers, USA

APNA had an excellent speaker with perfect expertise for the group.  I found so much value in his (Jerry Osteryoung) leading the discussions, and in the group's input.  We have so many wonderful members with decades of experience.  What a fabulous resource!
Jessica Sjolseth, Marketing Director, MBF Agency