The Representor, Executive Commentary, Spring 2008 Do you REALLY know about and use ERA's educational resources? by Thomas J. Shanahan, ERA Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer
Every once in a while, it's wise to clear out the cobwebs and take a new look at what's available to you as ERA members. Because it ties in so well with a new project of ERA's, let's focus in this issue on educational programs and resources. Thanks to the recommendations of Ted Curtin, CPMR, ERA's senior vice president/membership, and our Marketing Committee, ERA is now undertaking a new initiative to request a few minutes at manufacturers' national and regional sales meetings to make all reps aware of the many educational opportunities available through our association - to both members and non-members. The manufacturers whose reps have already approached them with this request have responded in an overwhelmingly positive way. We have to assume that is because savvy sales executives know that reps who are committed to continuing education are more productive allies in their field sales efforts. ERA has a quick-read, one-page flyer that we are providing to reps and manufacturers for distribution at sales meetings. Our goal is simple: if we can "touch" more reps and bring more participants into our educational programs, everybody wins. So what exactly are we touting in these sales meetings? Here's a quick list. CPMR (Certified Professional Manufacturers' Representative) program - The 20-year-old CPMR program is sponsored by our Manufacturers' Representatives Educational Research Foundation (MRERF) and is the professional standard for rep firm owners, managers and designated successors. Conducted each January at Arizona State University, this is a three-year curriculum (with one week of classes each year), covering all the fine points of managing a quality rep firm.		Thomas J. Shanahan ERA Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer tshanahan@era.org 800-776-7377 or 312-527-3050, Ext. 218 Manufacturers: If you are willing to spend just a few minutes at your next sales meeting to make ALL your reps aware of ERA's educational opportunities, please e-mail info@era.org.

CSP (Certified Sales Professional) program - The CSP program, also offered by MRERF, is a comprehensive training course for rep firm salespeople. It is conducted in multiple cities each year. (See the MRERF ad on the inside back cover of this issue for the 2008 CSP program dates.)

ERA Conference - ERA's flagship educational event delivers many hours of programming on industry and rep-manufacturer partnership topics. The 2008 conference audio and PowerPoint presentation files are now available on our Web site at www.era.org. For conference attendees, there is no charge to download the files. For those who missed the conference, there is a small fee to access more than 12 hours of recorded programming and the accompanying PowerPoint files.

ERA Webinars - The first series of six ERA Webinars has concluded, and all audio and presentation files are now available at minimal cost. (See the ad on the inside front cover of this issue for subjects and pricing.) The next series of live, interactive Webinars, which are conducted by phone and on-line, will begin this spring and run through the summer, so please watch for that announcement and all the details.

ERA University - Hundreds of on-line classes covering business and general interest topics are available through ERA University. Each class includes 24 hours of instruction in 12 class sessions that participants can access at their convenience. For details, go to our Web site (www.era.org), and click on Education and Professional Development.

Publications and Guidelines - ERA's Web site continues to provide (at no cost) dozens of publications, business guidelines, white papers and other helpful resources for both reps and manufacturers. To review the list and make your selections, go to our home page and click on Publications.

Chapter programs - ERA chapters are the source of local educational programming and networking for our members.

This is indeed a quick list, and it does not even mention The Representor, our surveys, our programs at trade shows and other ERA educational initiatives. The key question is: how well are YOU using these resources?

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2008 Electronics Representatives Association (ERA), Chicago, IL 60611
Originally printed in the Spring 2008 issue of The Representor
Cannot be reprinted without the permission of the Electronics Representatives Association (ERA)