Ron Wagner President ACTE

Ron Wagner's Speech

Good morning everyone, it is a pleasure to be here today to welcome all of you to the ACTE Global Conference. I know that there are many members here from all over the world as well as many prestigious guests and colleagues. Another reason why I am so happy to be here today is that this is the fourth consecutive day that I have been able to stay in one city without getting on an airplane!

Let me start by saying that one of the reasons that I am here today is to try to give you an idea of what I see as ACTE's goals and objectives, as well as some of the accomplishments we have made this past year in the midst of all the industry issues we face. But before I do that I want to talk a little bit about all the chaos and confusion we face every day in our jobs.

Just last week I was on an early morning flight to Seattle to visit a customer. As usual, I immediately settled into my seat and began to read one of the business magazines I had stuffed into my briefcase. I had just focused in on an article about the staggering economy, the market nose diving and the impact this has had on tech companies, or as I call it, the tech wreck. Suddenly, the businessman seated next to me leaned over and said, " I noticed the article that you are reading, won't it be great when this whole thing settles down and business gets back to normal?"

It got me thinking … "What would it be like if things actually did calm down?" Just imagine………..

• Businesses start adjusting to life in the new economy
• Investors become optimistic again
• Even, my retirement fund comes out of the intensive care unit and is elevated to stable condition.

Everything is just going great, even in the travel industry:

• We've learned to accept 'disintermediation' as just another seven-letter word.
• The consolidation of travel suppliers has provided added value for corporation and for the traveler.
• And, you no longer have to call ahead to see if your plane is late, canceled or if the airline went on strike!

Suddenly, I snapped back into reality! Kind of like this……………