Rapid City, South Dakota met expectations as a small and charming city, but surprised with an efficiency and nimbleness that set the tone for an enriching 72 hours of "doing big things" at the EDSymposium22. Networking was an easy and natural start thanks to a shared hotel shuttle ride with a fellow SDA member of the Atlanta Chapter. Networking became exploration as we set off in a Jeep to discover Rapid City and visit the iconic Mt. Rushmore. As hairpin turns took us up and down the Black Hills, our conversation wove through personal histories; our passion for our administrative career; and the meaningful opportunities, like this one, available to SDA members. Like a networking amuse bouche, the insight and knowledge we shared made me hungry to meet and learn from the many other SDA members that would be arriving in the coming days.

Day1

As nervous as I was flying in, the collective energy of so many peer professionals in one place created a warm and welcoming environment that targeted outsiders, new members, and infrequent attendees in the best way - fostering camaraderie and relationship-building designed to quickly break the ice and ease nerves. By the time I chose my seat for the Leadership Workshops, I knew at least a third of the group.

Danielle Kennedy (founder and CEO at Kadima Leadership) oversaw the entire day of the Leadership Workshop Sessions and wasted not a single minute sharing her experience, wisdom, and downright brilliance with us. Her honesty, authenticity, and transparency leaves you certain that following her lead will make your wobbly wheel perfectly round in no time. If you don't know about the wobbly wheel, I recommend reaching out to Danielle because that exercise is exactly what your staff needs to break down barriers to communication and connecting, while balancing out both life and professional goals. The major takeaway for me was the idea of using "non-work-life" problem solving at work (and vice versa). Walking alongside us like a colleague and friend, Danielle shared tool after tool for tackling anything from everyday miscommunications to tense conversations about salaries for GenZ-ers. I left feeling as though my dream of becoming a COO is no longer a fantasy of my unconscious mind, but rather a finish line banner waving just off in the distance.

Everyone radiated professional confidence as we strolled over to the Journey Museum to share our thoughts on the day's sessions over a glass of wine and local I PAs. The Journey Museum helped us get to know Rapid City a little better, showing us how their community worked together to rebuild a flood­ devastated city. The correlation between being citizens of a town and members of a tight-knit professional society was not lost on us. After one day of learning and growing with these administrators, I already knew that if my career became flooded with difficulties, I could count on this group of knowledgeable and driven people to help me piece it back together.

Day2

Day two began with a fascinating dive into burgeoning technologies for architects and engineers, key performance indicators for success, and more noteworthy information from Simon Good head and Brian Flynn than I could quickly scribble down. Thank goodness my notes are supplemented with video recordings for multiple rewatches to catch every last crumb of expert advice.

Later, city-planners Sarah Hanzel and Garth Wadsworth provided a closer look at plans to grow Rapid City and connect its people through landscape, community building, and new ways of adapting to the area's unique needs. Following their inspirational session, Scott Butcher, a consultant with Stambaugh Ness, pushed the boundaries of "what we know" with "what's coming," during his A/E/C marketing session. I learned various ways to track market fluctuations and how to shift generational gears to better appeal to future consumers. I also learned that "geriatric millennial" (conveniently applicable to my birth ­year) is an actual term in chronology, used in marketing. Then, an in-depth panel-discussion on contracts helped me feel more comfortable with the contractual process and ready to step into those conversations at work. The legal jargon, industry-specific problems and solutions, and specialized terminology in this world of contracts originally made me feel as though I'm in over my head. By session's end, however, I somehow feel less intimidated. This panel of professionals share so much expertise that I'm motivated to investigate opportunities to become more involved in the contractual process at my own company.

Day3

How do we, as administrators, take all of this critical information and motivation and act on it to do big things? To answer that, I think back to what my peers shared in the "Where do we go from here?" session during our final day of the conference. This panel of three of my peers volunteered to share with the group what they're most excited for and next steps for them. When I think of them on stage, bravely opening up to the rest of us, I know the answer is that we do big things with the support of one another. I clapped and cheered, welled up with pride, and even wiped away a few tears out of appreciation for this group's honest thoughts, the lessons we all learned, and the inspiration we gave one another in three short days.

During the last evening of the conference, members gathered to celebrate at an awards banquet. Never missing an opportunity to share, learn, and grow, conversations about the symposium, our unique roles at work, and advice for how to achieve more continue to flow between us. Awards are given out, CDFA recipients are congratulated, and the best of SDA are acknowledged for all of the hard work and time they put into creating events like this one. I too take the time to appreciate each person I encounter there, because it was here I was encouraged to hone my skill to speak up, be bold, inspire others, and balance professional creativity with modes of efficiency and efficacy. It was these people who helped equip me with new ways of looking at my profession. It is the end of the conference, but the beginning of so many big things to come.

Wolfgang Umana, CDFA,  is the Office Manager and an Associate at GGN Landscape Architecture Ltd., based in Seattle, WA. He's worked at GGN's Washington DC studio since 2016 and oversees administration at both the DC and Seattle offices. Wolfgang holds a B.S. in Environmental Science and Public Policy and obtained his CDFA in November '21 after joining the SDA in September '21.