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PUGM Celebrates 25th Anniversary in Style

By Amy Oldham
September 20, 2023


We not only hosted the Protector User Group Meeting (PUGM) in Nashville last week, but we also marked a significant milestone, as this was its 25th consecutive annual occurrence! It's always a pleasure being with customers; however, this year was truly special for so many reasons. Half the delegates had participated in one or more previous PUGMs—they return year after year due to the event's value and benefit to their fraud management initiatives. But we were thrilled to welcome many newcomers to this annual fraud management educational conference as well. Best of all, we were honored to have two former customers attend the event and celebrate with us!

The 25th annual PUGM official got underway at noon September 11 at the Music City Center. Equinox CEO and founder Byron Middendorf welcomed representatives, shared opening remarks, and introduced the company's employees who were participating, speaking, or administering the event. As has become tradition, we snapped a group photo. We also captured conference highlights as a photo gallery you can view.

The 25th Anniversary PUGM Crew Equinox looks forward to this educational event all year Byron got things underway on day 1 with customer and employee introductions PUGM provides a wide variety of educational sessions and discussions Equinox says 'family first' and means it Break times offer great networking opportunities Byron and Amy are honored to be pictured with the former King of Rules PUGM has speakers from every department, including development There is always great conversation as we gather around the table together Christi loves meeting and working with folks from all sectors of telecom David and Leo made a surprise appearance as part of the 25th PUGM The networking dinner offered several popular arcade games David catches up with Ernest and Renee during the event We are so grateful Mary and Jaime could join us for PUGM2023 Byron couldn't resist taking a turn on the mechanical bull We are all grateful Byron hit the mat instead of going through the front window Amy O and Renee carry on an annual tradition We simply cannot wait to see you again next year!
  • The 25th Anniversary PUGM Crew
  • Equinox looks forward to this educational event all year
  • Byron got things underway on day 1 with customer and employee introductions
  • PUGM provides a wide variety of educational sessions and discussions
  • Equinox says 'family first' and means it
  • Break times offer great networking opportunities
  • Byron and Amy are honored to be pictured with the former King of Rules
  • PUGM has speakers from every department, including development
  • There is always great conversation as we gather around the table together
  • Christi loves meeting and working with folks from all sectors of telecom
  • David and Leo made a surprise appearance as part of the 25th PUGM
  • The networking dinner offered several popular arcade games
  • David catches up with Ernest and Renee during the event
  • We are so grateful Mary and Jaime could join us for PUGM2023
  • Byron couldn't resist taking a turn on the mechanical bull
  • We are all grateful Byron hit the mat instead of going through the front window
  • Amy O and Renee carry on an annual tradition
  • We simply cannot wait to see you again next year!





This year's agenda was significantly different than in years past. As always, team members from the sales, support, training, project management, and development divisions presented and demonstrated various aspects of the application. However, the new 2-day format necessitated changes to the event's structure in terms of session length and content. Because Protector 11 is a totally rearchitected and reimagined version of the automated fraud management solution (FMS), this year's conference included a much more in-depth look at the technical components that power the system's most popular and sometimes misunderstood features. Post-convention survey results definitively showed support and enthusiasm for these changes and provided wonderful suggestions for additional training topics we'll cover in the coming year. Another aspect attendees appreciated is having industry experts Jaime Zetterstrom and Ryan Karnas (SOMOS) provide insight on the importance of DNO (do not originate) tools and KYC/T (know your customers/traffic) best practices. We are so very grateful both of them could participate and contribute to this meaningful discussion.

After the first day of education sessions wrapped, the group walked a couple blocks from the convention center for a night of networking, cheering on opposing teams for Monday night football, and gaming at the Nashville Underground. Afterward, most folks took advantage of the beautiful weather to check out the live music and honky-tonk scene along Nashville's world-famous downtown district.

We're already planning and putting together PUGM 2024. Look for an official 'Save the Date' announcement after the start of the year with dates and initial details for the 26th annual Protector User Group Meeting. Until then, consider joining us for the TeleLink User Group Meeting April 9-10, 2024 at the Music City Center.

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 amazing husband and awesome adult son, 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.