This week your humble editor attended the National Association for Innovative Lighting Distributors Conference in Reno, NV. NAILD is a growing organization and they do a lot right. In the past 12 months they have added nine new distributors and eight new manufacturers including big names such as Deco, H.E Williams, Hubbell Lighting, Saylite and Standard Products. This is clearly an organization that is growing and providing value to its members and vendors.
NAILD has a networking event called Organized Casual Conference (OCC)—this is where the Innovative Lighting Distributors can meet one-on-one with manufacturers for 15 minutes. It is an extremely popular event and well received by all participants. The format is table top with chairs, so it allows for much two-way conversation.
NAILD has always had great speakers. Adam Lilien, Business Development Manager for Lighting at UL, spoke about the new UL Recommended Practice and Design Guide. Hats off to NAILD management for securing this timely talk as it is the first public discussion since the draft RP went out for comments late last week. NAILD members got to hear first hand why this new RP is so important to our industry and the reasons why we are seeing it from UL instead of IES. As the industry begins to understand the benefit of Circadian Stimulus, NAILD members will have a distinct advantage of being first. EdisonReport reported on CS this week and you can read the information here.
Paul Pompeo gave a great talk about techniques to recruit and retain top talent. He also distinguished between needs of Generation X’rs and Millennials. Understanding that they have different goals and objectives allows companies to tailor compensation packages and recruiting techniques accordingly. In addition, Pompeo offered tips on keeping recruits during the window after they accept the offer and before the first day. If a recruit asks for the offer in writing—before giving a verbal acceptance—there is a 75% chance that the candidate will not accept the job. Pompeo’s tips he gave were relevant for both Innovative Distributors and Luminaire Manufacturers.
I was unable to attend the DLC discussion, but we heard great things about the talk Axel Pearson gave on the QPL 5.0 draft, Horticultural Lighting QPL as well as the new Networked Lighting Controls QPL. Several NAILD members told me that the update was very informative.
NAILD has a 90 second product sprint, where companies pitch their best product and the lighting distributors vote to determine the best products. 2019 Winners are:
- Best luminaire: Solar LED Area Light from Olympia Lighting
- Best lamp: LED SmartPort from Keystone Technologies
- Best Control: DUOLED from Standard Products
- Best Ballast: Advance Express from Signify
- Best Accessory: Newest Angel Hangar from Gripple
- Best Overall: LED SmartPort from Keystone Technologies
We congratulate NAILD for improving their conference in past few years and for Innovative Lighting Distributors interested in growth and best practices, this is a must-attend event.