The 2008 Customer Reference Forum is just a few days away, and for those of you who can make it, I'm greatly looking forward to seeing you.

My overriding thought at the moment is that our reference community is maturing. For example:

-- We'll have more than 120 reference professionals in the room at the 2008 Forum. It sold out shortly after the end of early registration. Our last Forum in 2007 had 94 reference pros. The one before that, 73.

-- The range of great firms who are sending their reference people to this event is fabulous. IBM, Cisco, Oracle, Salesforce.com, HP, Microsoft, EMC, Intel, Research in Motion, Siemens, SAP, Network Appliance, ADP, BMC Software, Citrix Systems, SAS, Sun Microsystems, Symantec -- most of which are sending multiple people. For a full list of companies who are attending, please see below at the end of this newsletter.

-- Forrester Research, which has a growing interest in customer references -- particularly their value to analysts -- is sending one of its Senior Vice Presidents.

-- We'll have our first Chief Reference Officer (that I'm aware of): Intel's Rhett Livengood. Btw, he'll also be presenting on how the Intel reference program "gained a seat" at Sales and Marketing's executive table.

-- We'll have our first "Getting Started" track, addressed specifically to new reference professionals who are just starting up a reference program. These programs are catching on, and we have the resources to help the "newbies" get a running start, so it was a natural fit.

-- We continue to improve our popular Peer Exchange workshops, in which experienced reference pros exchange ideas and best practices in small workgroups. This year -- at the request of our Advisory Board -- no vendors will be in the room during the Peer Exchange workshops. We love our sponsors and vendors, but there are times when a reference pro just needs some time alone with her peers:)

All the best,
Bill

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"The Customer Reference Forum was incredibly valuable. I learned more in two days at the conference than I have in my first 9 months on the job!"
Liz Pedro, Customer Programs Manager, LANDesk

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CUSTOMER REFERENCE JOBS
Bearing Point, NetApp and Projectline Services are currently hiring for Customer Reference Professionals. For more information on these jobs click here.

We can let our community of more than 500+ reference pros know about your position opening. To post a job (for now, this service is free), please click here.

ADVICE
Check out our BEST PRACTICES REPORTS for tips on critical issues like: getting marquee customers to participate in a reference program; getting customers to reveal measurable benefits; developing customer communities; integrating your program with sales; gaining executive support, and more. For more information, please click here.

RESEARCH
Check out our SURVEYS of Reference Programs and the Managers who run them, here:

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2008 CUSTOMER REFERENCE FORUM:
COMPANIES ATTENDING

Actuate, ADP, Advent Software, Inc., Alcatel-Lucent, Amdocs, Ariba, Aspect Software, Avaya, Avocent Corporation, BEA, Blackbaud, Inc., BMC Software, Business Objects, CA, Cisco, Citrix Online, Citrix Systems, Cognos, CompuCom Systems, Inc., DayJet Corporation, Dell, Deltek, EMC, Epicor Software Corporatio, Experian, F5 Networks, Fair Isaac Corporation, Forrester Research, Fujitsu Consulting, Genesys, Harris Corporation, Broadcast Communications, Hewlett Packard, IBM, Infor, Informatica, Intel, Intrepid Learning Solutions, Juniper Networks, Lexmark International Inc., MarkMonitor, McAfee Inc., Microsoft, National Instruments, Network Appliance, Open Text Corporation, Oracle, PGP Corporation, Quantum, Qwest Communications, Red Hat, Research in Motion, RightNow Technologies, Riverbed Technology, Salesforce, SAP, SAS, Siemens Communications, Siemens PLM Software, Software AG, Sun Microsystems, Symantec, TomorrowNow, UC4 Software, Unisys, Verizon Business

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