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Keynote speech
ISA NorCal Technical Conference 2004

California Maritime Academy, Vallejo, California
May 12, 2004

Keynote Speaker - Jim Pinto

The future of the instrumentation business -
How it affects supply-chain intermediaries

• How and where "disintermediation" affects the industrial controls business.
• How one can prevent, or recover from, getting disintermediated.
• ISA must make changes if it is going to survive as a member based organization.

Those of us who attended the Wednesday evening dinner and got to listen to Jim Pinto speak had a real treat. Jim is a well-known "Futurist" and his crystal ball is pretty good. He spoke about the future of companies in the instrumentation and process controls business and the changes that were impacting "intermediaries" in the supply chain.

Jim used a new word: "Disintermediation." He defned it as the elimination of the intermediary in a business process whose cost exceeds the value they provide. He pointed to trends, driven by the Internet, in businesses such as real-estate agents, stockbrokers and travel-agents where jobs are disappearing rapidly. The information and services they provide are now freely available at minimal cost.

Jim spoke about how and where disintermediation affects the industrial controls business and how one can prevent, or recover from, getting disintermediated. He also spoke of the changes ISA must make if it is going to survive as a member based organization.

Jim also spoke at the lunch on Thursday. Both talks were informative and directed toward "waking up" the audience to the changes going on in their business. All in all, Jim's talks were very thought provoking and motivational.