Ready, Set, Meet and Greet!

From after-hours cocktail gatherings to industry-specific

seminars, each day Southwest Florida professionals seize the opportunity to

make important connections. Whom you know can pay off, and local networking

events are set up with that in mind. We asked area professionals: What local

networking events do you find most useful and why?

Gary Aubuchon, president, Aubuchon Homes and Miloff Aubuchon

Realty Group, Cape Coral:

Two networking events are useful to me. At the Cape Coral

Chamber of Commerce’s Business After Hours, you can network and converse

without structure. The event has been so successful it went from once to twice

a month.

The Cape Coral Construction Industry Association’s monthly

general membership meeting is beneficial for almost the opposite reason. The

meeting is structured, but you are able to network with the movers and shakers,

and at the same time, outside speakers are brought in to provide information relevant

to the industry.

C.J. Hueston, president, Corporate Dimensions, Naples:

Leadership Collier is a fantastic networking entity. They

offer events for participants and program alumni. What makes Leadership Collier

great is it attracts the community’s current leaders as well as up-and-coming

leaders. I recently attended a Leadership Collier After Five event that focused

on leaders in different industries such as banking, engineering and

hospitality.

Tom Woodyard, commercial adviser with Grubb & Ellis/VIP–D’Alessandro,

Fort Myers:

I find MarketWatch, held in January at Harborside, to be the

top networking event every year. Business and real estate people discuss trends

and sales for the year and determine the key players in our field. It attracts

hundreds of people. The food is pretty good, too.

The Real Estate Investment Society’s monthly meetings keep

us up-to-date with land use and government changes important to our industry.

Steve Hagewood, senior art director, Legris &

Associates, Naples:

I have to plug the monthly luncheon program put on by the

Advertising Federation of Southwest Florida, the local chapter of the American

Advertising Federation. The luncheon offers networking opportunities and

features regional professionals as speakers.

—Laura Davis