The day in San Diego started off overcast and a bit chilly, with folks slowly making their way from the new Hilton to the San Diego Convention Center.  Oh, since I love good deals—just a quick word on the Hilton San Diego Bayfront.  What a fabulous hotel (at great rates)!  This waterfront hotel is brand-spanking new, combining casual luxury with the usual best-in-class Hilton service.  If you plan on going to a convention in San Diego or if you're booking a convention in San Diego, the Hilton San Diego Bayfront is the place to be.

The ISM Conference really gets into full gear on Monday, but there were a number of "kick-off" events for folks arriving on Sunday.  There seems to be a large number of attendees already here, but the ISM folks and their volunteers made registration a breeze.  The conference is in the new part of the San Diego Convention Center, with plenty of signage to get people headed to where they need to be.

I attended a particularly good session today conducted by Bob Engel of Resources Global Professionals who talked about 10 Best Practices for Supply Management Organizations.  Bob focused not just on procurement, but the entire supply chain.  His second recommended best practice is "Align and Staff the Supply Management Organization," where he cautioned attendees to have the "right mentality" by ensuring they're aligning themselves with the goals of the organization.  He also mentioned that he is seeing an emerging trend that contract management responsibilities are more and more being taken out of the business units and being placed into supply management functions.