What is I-O?

Industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology is the scientific study of the workplace. Rigor and methods of psychology are applied to issues of critical relevance to business, including talent management, coaching, assessment, selection, training, organizational development, performance, and work-life balance.

How We Support Ourselves: Financing the SIOP Conference

Donald M. Truxillo, SIOP Conference Chair
Portland State University

John Cornwell, SIOP Financial Officer
Loyola University New Orleans

A number of members have noted that the SIOP conference is a great deal in terms of what they get for their money. But where does the financial support for the conference come from? The goal is to keep the SIOP conference self-supporting. There are several revenue sources for the conference, but well focus on the three biggest: registration fees, conference exhibitors, and promotions.

Registration Fees

By far the largest revenue stream for the conference is registration fees. Setting fees for the conference is a tricky business in that you have to estimate the fees based on projected conference attendancesomething that is always an unknown. In addition, there are sometimes additional conference costs for a particular location or a particular year. 

For the 2005 conference in Los Angeles, we have made a conservative estimate of attendance and set the advance registration fee for members at $120 to be sure the conference operates in the black. Of course, this is still far cheaper than most other professional meetings.

Conference Sponsors

The sponsors who display their wares in the Exhibit Hall are another major income stream for the conferencewithout them, our registration fees would skyrocket! Note that in addition to the regular booths this year, well also have four demo booths where exhibitors will be able to demonstrate their products and services away from the noise and distractions of the usual exhibits. The demo booths will also be a source of revenue used to offset conference costs.

Promotions

A third source of income is the promotions associated with the conference such as the conference bags with the goodies stuffed inside and the T-shirts. The sponsors of these items provide substantial support for the conference and allow us to save on registration fees.

As a final note: If youd like to learn more about the hows and whys of the SIOP conference, be sure to look for the how the conference works session at the L.A. conference. Members of your Conference Committee will be there to answer your questions. 

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