In October of this year, more than 1,800 people from 828 member companies joined IAM in New York City for our 63rd Annual Meeting & Expo. There in the Times Square, the heart of the city that truly never sleeps, over the course of four overflowing full days, we forged new connections, brought new life and smiles to old ones, and worked together to chart the course and plumb the depths of the channels our industry will navigate over the coming months and years.

This year’s Annual Meeting wasn’t simply business as usual; it was a strategic pause. Sharpen Your Focus – Discover. Innovate. Lead. was a challenge to cut through uncertainty, reconnect with purpose, and take a hard look at where the industry is headed. In the pages that follow, Julia O’Connor captures the intent behind that theme and how it came to life, from mainstage moments to breakout sessions, from policy insights to peer-to-peer problem-solving.

As Yogi Berra, one of baseball’s greatest catchers, who played for both New York teams, said, “The future ain’t what it used to be.” There’s a great deal of uncertainty out there, and no magical crystal ball is going to sort it out for us. We, as movers and forwarders and industry suppliers, instinctively know that when we get together in person and look at the obstacles from different perspectives, we start to answer those questions. We snap puzzle pieces into place, connect the dots, and chart the course for the coming year.

Once every year, for four days, we break free of our offices and warehouses, climb down from our trucks, put away our headsets, and do business as it can only be done face-to-face. They can be long days and tiring, even exhausting. But afterward, we return home with new clients, new friends, new technologies to explore; and a renewed vision, a sharper picture of the future that gives us confidence about our place in it and our ability to move forward in the right direction.

The energy of this year’s Annual Meeting demands a close look from the viewpoint of those who participated. In the following pages, we’ll show you what it really feels like to spend four days in close quarters with colleagues, partners and old friends at the industry’s largest gathering.