Future of Boat Design panel at AMI Conference & Expo
After a week of successful exhibit hall visits, networking and educational sessions, the 2021 Virtual Association of Marina Industries (AMI) Conference & Expo neared the end of the major portion of its conference with a panel discussion, the Future of Boat Design, on February 4.
This session—moderated by Conference & Expo Master of Ceremonies, Jim Frye, CMM, Westrec Marinas—included Sean Marrero, chief strategy officer and president of Watershed Innovation, Correct Craft; Troy Kollmann, director, advanced engineering and technology for Brunswick Boat Group; Joe Maniscalco, Yamaha marine service division manager; and Steve Arnold, owner of Yarmouth Boat Yard, Moose Landing Marina and Freedom Boat Club of Maine.
“This was quite a valuable session for conference attendees and the marina industry overall,” said AMI Chair, Chris Petty, Suntex Marinas. “Changes such as the electrical requirements that were discussed are a big undertaking for marinas. Having this type of information is critical for successful planning. These types of projects can take years from design to installation, being able to properly plan allows us to continue to provide the best possible experience for our boaters with little interruption, which is extremely important. Boat and engine manufacturers are selling the lifestyle, but the marinas are tasked with delivering the lifestyle and creating the experience. Marinas play a very important role here.”
Educational sessions earlier that day included the second-day keynote, The Calm Person in the Boat: Leveraging Emotional Intelligence During COVID-19, presented by Dr. JP Pawliw-Fry. Dr. Pawliw-Fry is an emotional intelligence keynote speaker, leadership thought leader, peak performance expert, and co-author of the New York Times bestseller “Performing Under Pressure.”
The conference opened with a marine industry economic update by Anirban Basu, Sage Policy Group and was followed by sessions on strategies for dealing with long and short-term water level changes, tax planning for small businesses, and a follow-up to the keynote “Emotional Intelligence: The Key Ingredient to a Highly Engaged Culture”.
The extended portion of the conference continues on February 9-10, 2021, with sessions on “Top Ten Skills of a Service Superhero”, “Soft Skills are Power Skills: Hiring Right to Power the Best Customer Experience”, and “Boating: Managing Growth and Retention.”
At 2 p.m. on the 10th, the day concludes with regional roundtable discussions. Additional sessions are being held on February 16-17, 2021.
