Last week, I had the opportunity to attend the Wisconsin Illinois SAS Users Conference in Des Plaines, IL. The conference included a full day of presentations, followed by 2 days of training. This conference attracted a very lively group of around 150 SAS users from the surrounding area.

Presenters included LeRoy Bessler, Bessler Consulting and Research; Art Carpenter, California Occidental Consultants; Daniel Fuhrmann, University of Wisconsin –Milwaukee; Warren Kuhfeld, SAS Institute; Kevin Smith, SAS Institute; Mahindra Karunaratne, Abbvie; Edward Vonesh, Northwestern University; Timothy O’Brien, Loyola University Chicago; and Lucas Furlong, Assurant Health. Art Carpenter followed the day of presentations with two days of training in SAS Macro, DATA step techniques, data cleaning, and Reporting. With just a little investment of time and money, attendees came away with practical techniques and advice they could immediately apply to their work.

When Shelly Goodin asked me to write up my thoughts about the conference, I challenged myself to focus on things you couldn’t learn by reading the agenda:

• LeRoy Bessler and his volunteer staff did a great job of organizing the event and developing the agenda. Kudos to LeRoy, Craig Wildeman, Laura MacBride, David Bruckner, Michael Wilson, and the staff at the Des Plaines Elks Lodge for putting on such a great event!
• The presentations were very well attended, and the conversations during the breaks were lively. Many of the presenters stopped by the Exhibit Hall after their talks to continue the discussions with attendees. It was fascinating to hear the kinds of issues that people were working on and exciting to watch people help each other come up with good solutions and learn new techniques.
• The lunch provided by the Elks Lodge was terrific! And, in the afternoon, they provided homemade chocolate chip cookies. Quite a treat!
• It was great to meet so many new people and to visit with long-time colleagues, authors, and friends. One of the things I love about going to a conference is having the chance to talk with SAS users. Because the conference was compact, attendees could take full advantage of their breaks and really spend time talking with one another, with the presenters, and even with me, the SAS Publications rep.

If you’re looking for a great conference that offers interesting presentations and a fun environment, check out the events that WIILSU organizes. Just between you and me, I hope to get invited to WIILSU’s next conference!