CGI Forum 2009 Location: Are You Joining Us in San Antonio?

There is always a lot of enthusiasm surrounding the revelation of the next year's CGI Forum location, and this year was no exception! Famous for its River Walk, the Alamo, and the Spurs, San Antonio's distinctive beauty, heritage, and culture are the perfect backdrop for CGI Forum 2009! Our team is excited to bring our unique event to this unique city deep in the heart of Texas.

Dates: October 25-28, 2009
Location: San Antonio's Marriott Rivercenter

At last year's event, over 400 AMS Advantage users helped us mark the 30^th anniversary of the CGI Forum. We looked back over the history of the product as technology, legislation, and business trends evolved, and we reflected on the growth of our vibrant user community. With an eye to the future, we revealed new software modules, new user interface improvements, and expanded system capabilities that will continue to help your organization improve efficiency.

We are thrilled to report that 100% of attendees agreed that the Forum provided new ideas that they could take home to improve performance in their organization. "It's important to come to the Forum because you learn a lot about what's coming up with the application, including vendor tools that work with AMS Advantage to help us do our jobs better," said Diana Thomas, City of Austin, TX. "But most important, is the chance to talk to other clients. We share a lot of common experiences, get to talk through issues and learn about solutions we haven't thought of yet."

Her peers agreed, sharing their "ah ha" moments from CGI Forum 2008:

• Bedilla Ayala, Prince William County Schools, VA: "Time and leave was a big revelation for me, hearing other people's experiences. Demonstrations and training are one valuable tool, but it's not the same as coming to the Forum and seeing examples, hearing what other organizations are experiencing and learning from your peers."
• Cathy Linsbeck, Southwest Florida Water Management District, FL: "The audit capability in Salary and Benefits Forecasting. (One of the components of Performance Budgeting). We're looking for the ability to automate and have performance measurements because as governments are looked at closer and closer, everybody wants to know what they're getting for their money and PB has some opportunities."
• Doug Cotnoir, State of Maine: "The CGI Forum is a fantastic opportunity to learn about how other state and local governments are using the applications. We get the opportunity to interact with CGI, not only the people who sell the product, but the experts who write the code and implement the product which is invaluable."

Copies of the session materials from CGI Forum 2008 are available on the AMS Advantage Support Center wesite at https://support.cgi-ams.com/advantage/. Just click on Discussion Gateway/All Client Categories and scroll down to view the "CGI Forum – the Annual AMS Advantage Users Conference" area. We have also posted the closing video so you can see a summary of last year's event.

It may still be cold outside, but it is never too early to start thinking about CGI Forum 2009. Especially for Joanne Debelius from Baltimore County Public Schools, Maryland who won the drawing for a free CGI Forum 2009 registration. Congratulations!

Mark your calendars to join Joanne, the CGI team, and the rest of your peers for CGI Forum 2009 in San Antonio!

For questions about CGI Forum 2009, or to confirm that you are on our mailing list, please contact Michelle Rives at Michelle.Rives@cgi.com.