By CRM staff
Toronto, Ontario — May 16, 2019 — In less than a week, repairers all across Canada will be gathered together to discuss the future of the industry at the Canadian Collision Industry Forum conference in Halifax.
On May 23 to 24, the Halifax Marriott Habourfront Hotel is expected to be filled with around 400 repairers from all across Canada and packed with panels, a chance for networking and presentations discussing, new technology, industry recruitment, business management, and OEM certification.
“CCIF Halifax will be another not-to-be-missed event for all industry stakeholders with topics on technology, training, management, etc.,” said CCIF director Caroline Lacasse.
General manager of CARSTAR Fredericton Steve Knox, who is also a member of the CCIF steering committee is one of the many repairers excited to attend the event. “Although it won’t be as big in attendance as the CCIF in Toronto, every one of the conferences is as important as the next,” he said.
Knox explained that the biggest topic of discussion at this year’s conference in Halifax will most likely be the involvement OEMs have on the collision repair community and what the value is in certification at this point. “It’s a subject that has been right on the tip of everybody’s tongue,” he said.
Just before lunch on May 23, Tsawwassen Collision and CCIF steering committee member Peter Sziklai will be discussing a report from the CCIF subcommittee concerning accreditation and certification.
Following the open remarks addressed by Lacasse, CCIF chair Patrice Marcil will be discussing updates from the Industry-education connection project, and Leanne Jefferies from Collision Care will be updating the crowd on the Haiti Arise project.
The next topic will be presented in a panel discussion from Cormack Recruitment’s Annabelle Cormack, talking about how to hire managerial staff. Then, the director of automotive service sales at Podium, Tyler Brunatti will be taking the stage and showing attendees how to interact with their customers through text messaging.
Not only will the state of the industry be discussed but the overall future, including the integration of new technologies and how it will impact the industry overall. “The whole conference will be about the collision industry planning for tomorrow,” Knox said.
The discussions and reactions from this conference will help the steering committee plan for the next CCIF conference in Calgary on Sept. 26 to 27.
