Five tips to convince your boss to send you to AIA25

Want to attend AIA25 but need to make the business case to your manager to cover the cost? Here are talking points to help you convince your boss it’s a worthwhile investment for the company.

You—and your firm—will benefit from the insights you’ll gain by attending AIA25. These five tips will help you draft your pitch so you can ask with confidence.

• Ask early—your boss may need to get approval from other decision-makers.
• Use direct language—“I’d like to attend AIA25. Here’s what I’ll learn and how it will benefit the company” vs. “What do you think of me attending AIA25?”
• Use personal examples to make your ask specific to you and your company.

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Talking points to help you craft your pitch

 

The industry’s best CE

We’ve packed the schedule with HSW, GBCI, RIBA, and AIA LU credits to fuel your knowledge, professional growth, and creativity. Through seminars, workshops, tours, expo credit, and more, you’ll earn your CE for the year and master new skills from renowned speakers and leading architects, designers, and building product manufacturers. You can also follow one of our five curated CE tracks for more in-depth learning.

When you return to work, you’ll bring back knowledge and skills you can use immediately to help keep your firm competitive for immediate and long-term success.

Tip: Make a list of your top session picks and map them back to a project or growth areas for your firm. Offer to recap takeaways for the rest of the office after you return!

Unparalleled networking

Who you can meet is just as important as what you can learn.

There’s no better platform to network your firm’s services than AIA25. There are opportunities all across the conference and the expo floor to connect with fellow architects, designers, and AEC industry professionals to build lasting relationships that can lead to future collaborations, partnerships, and business opportunities.

With 15,000+ expected attendees, hundreds of speakers, and 600 brands at the expo, you can bring back the contacts that drive new work.

Tip: Include who you’ll meet as part of your pitch. 600 Building product manufacturers, hundreds of speakers, and the AIA and AEC communities will all be there.

Major cost savings

Don’t forget to mention discounts!

• Register early to lock in your early bird discount (April 9 deadline) before rates increase, plus take advantage of substantial discounts for AIA members.
• Book your hotel room in AIA’s official hotel block to know you’re getting the lowest Boston hotel rates, guaranteed.

Tip: Beyond cost, let your boss know you’ll still be productive on-site. The AIA25 schedule is designed so you can take calls, check email, or work on projects between sessions. There’s also free Wi-Fi.

Sessions beneficial to your firm’s goals

With 450+ sessions and five specialized tracks on current topics defining the industry, you can select the sessions/tracks that are most beneficial. For example, if your firm is struggling to win new work in today’s market, check out the Business & Firm Prosperity Track, designed to help your firm achieve operational success and profitability. Or does your boss want you to take on more of a leadership role? Check out our Career Advancement & Leadership Track, designed to help you hone your leadership skills.

Let your boss know you’ll be taking the sessions that tie to your firm’s long-term and short-term goals or strategic plan.

Tip: Take advantage of location! Offer to meet with current clients, prospect for new clients, or follow-up on projects, which will save time and travel costs by only making one trip.

Return on investment

Your presence at AIA25 is a brand presence for your firm. It’s an opportunity to be seen by other leading firms and brands and reinforce your company’s reputation as a forward-thinking organization. The knowledge, insights, connections, and exposure gained from attending AIA25 will have a tangible impact on your firm’s bottom line.

Tip: Remind your boss about the value of getting visibility for your firm and finding potential design partners and specialty consultants for future projects.