If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about solutions. Albert Einstein
The ABA TechShow, which I had the honor of co-chairing this year, wrapped up on April 5, 2025, in Chicago, marking its 40th anniversary. The conference featured over 70 educational sessions, high-energy networking receptions, dozens of “lunch and learn” events, and even an 80s-themed anniversary party to commemorate four decades of innovation.
We came into this year with the challenge of moving the Show from downtown Chicago to the expansive McCormick Place Convention Center. McCormick is a few minutes from downtown but has ample hotels and several restaurants. Our biggest fear was frankly that people would find the walk from those hotels—all indoors—daunting and that this might affect not only the attendance but also the experience of those there. I’m happy to say that we were by and large wrong:
• Record-breaking attendance
• Highest number of exhibitors and sponsors ever
• Positive feedback on the open venue and skyline views—a striking change from our former basement-level setting.
Yes, there was some grumbling about the roughly 6-minute walk but people were also happy about the new open looking venue with views of Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline.
Most of the comments I did hear about the distance were more in jest: people joked about getting their steps in or being able to skip a workout I view these kinds of comments as more a positive than negative.
(And yes there were a few negative “get off my grass” type comments by those who look for the bad in every change).
At the end of the day, most shows are about the content
But at the end of the day, most shows are about
