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By Amy Oldham
November 6, 2018
We just wrapped up our 20th annual Protector User Group Meeting (PUGM) last month. We have the absolute best customers in the world, and we sure had a great time getting together with them in Nashville!
The 2018 gathering occurred October 22 to 24 and attracted representatives from 18 different companies across every sector of the telecommunications space. More than half the attendees this year were returning conference veterans, which speaks volumes about the value and benefit our customers receive from it each year. We were also thrilled to have 13 first-time attendees, which included two new companies and two special guests. This mix fostered many collaborative discussions, much networking, and lots of exchanged ideas. We sure did enjoy getting to know the new customers and first-time attenders, and we swelled with pride as the veterans quickly integrated the newcomers into the Equinox community.
Our mission to help telecom carriers protect and optimize revenue by bolstering their fraud management initiatives is evident in the way we plan and execute this annual event. Every support and training service we offer is geared toward this mission—and the Protector User Group serves as a yearly milestone for measuring the previous year's programs, gathering feedback from the user community, and kicking off the coming year's initiatives. Because we design the conference to benefit everyone whose job entails fighting fraud, it promotes comradery among all participants and provides a relaxed environment for information sharing. It's a unique situation, as these companies are often competitors in the business world, yet they share a special connection as part of the global Equinox family.
Per tradition, we took a group photo on the second day of the event. We also captured many of the highlights for the entire event and saved them in a photo gallery that you can view.
The 2018 PUGM was packed with all the crowd favorites, such as in-depth Protector training sessions, a system walk-through of new features, and the Wish List, along with several new features. For the first time ever, Adam Panagia, from AT&T Global Fraud Management Organization, presented an informative 'Old Fraud, New Methods' topic. Another addition to the lineup was an interactive dashboard session with senior developer Derek Drake. Back by popular demand from years past, the agenda included an expert customer fraud panel as well as a separate support department panel. The evaluation metrics showed that everyone loved the event and benefitted from it! Attendees gave high marks for both the content and value of the conference.
Aside from the education and training sessions, we hosted our traditional networking dinner on Tuesday evening. This year's group dinner involved a trip to Topgolf! Everyone agreed the food was tasty and the competition was fierce when it came to golf. After the golf games ended, a contingency of folks headed back downtown to Legend's for a little more socializing and a glimpse at the full downtown scene.
We can't wait to host the Protector User Group Meeting for 2019. We'll send an official 'Save the Date' announcement at the start of the year, with complete details and registration site posted 6 months before the event. We also invite you to Nashville this spring for the TeleLink User Group Meeting (April 23-24, 2019).
About the Author: Amy Oldham is in Corporate Communications at Equinox Information Systems, where she creates and maintains the company's technical documentation and all other customer-facing publications. Amy is also responsible for the company's newsletter, email campaigns, press releases, and social media presence. When not writing, Amy enjoys spending time with her family, playing tennis, attending Dave Matthews Band concerts, and swimming.
To learn more about Equinox, its products, and staff, visit www.equinoxis.com or call (615) 612-1200.