With the 2023 release of AutoCAD software, Autodesk has expanded and improved its advisory engine known as My Insights. When introduced, this feature was delivered to the AutoCAD user by serving personalized productivity insights based on product usage data. Now, Autodesk is exploring how CAD, building information modeling (BIM), and IT managers can also benefit from access to the product usage data from the industry and from within their companies and teams. Imagine having a line of sight into how and where products are used, where training is needed, what efficiency opportunities are being missed, and how CAD standards are being followed—and being able to make better technology decisions, all supported by data. In this roundtable session, we’ll do more than imagine—you’ll be able to brainstorm, explore, and learn from other industry experts, technology managers, and Autodesk data specialists about how we can expand the My Insights feature to better meet your needs.

Come join us for a civil industry-focused CAD-manager discussion panel with some of the industry's most experienced CAD managers. Learn from managers from both small and large firms as we cover a full range of issues, including software implementation and customization, training and support, and challenges in bridging the gap between end users, management, and software. There will be a series of questions submitted to the panel before class, and we'll also take some questions from the audience. The mediator will be Brian Levendowski, support manager, CAD Technology Center.

In today's ultra-competitive market, executing a good strategic plan makes the difference between being out in front or just keeping pace with the competition. All too often those great, well thought out plans stumble during execution because they were poorly understood or poorly communicated downstream. Who takes the blame for that? You do. Here's how to save time, save money, and save frustration: If you understand where your company is headed and how they want to get there (i.e., their strategic plan) then identifying how to support it is much easier. This class gives technology managers, like you, a basic set of tools for developing strategic plans for their teams that align with and support the overall goals of the firm. And, hopefully along with that, you can show the folks up the ladder that you understand the bigger picture and your role in it.

There's a perfect storm of technology change driving the construction revolution today. Mobile devices, Internet of Things, sensors, and drones are continuously capturing construction job-site data and the cloud is aggregating this data. Machine-learning applications such as BIM 360 IQ software help construction project teams analyze risk from this data in real time and take corrective actions. Layton Construction and Autodesk have been collaborating and working together for the past year to apply the BIM 360 IQ machine-learning system for construction safety. In this session, Cooper Darling-an assistant project manager from Layton Construction-will be sharing his project manager experiences involved in helping identify and reduce safety risks on a construction job site with the aid of assistive technologies such as machine learning. Cooper is also part of Layton's National Safety Leadership Team, and he's helping champion the processes and standards based on BIM 360 software for Layton.

Have you ever said to yourself, “We pay for modern software tools, CAD managers, IT, hardware, implementation,and training, but I can’t help feeling we aren’t getting all the productivity we should have.”? In my experience, most senior management staffs have thought this at some point—but why? In this class, we’ll explore the role senior management can play in making new tools perform through motivation, CAD management intervention, implementing mission goals, customer interaction, and expectation management. Along the way, we’ll explore the key failure modes that impede technology productivity that CAD managers and users often miss. These include poor user psychology, contractual barriers, negative peer pressure, and lack of mission focus. Make no mistake, senior management really does have a role in rolling out new software technology, and this session will help you understand that role better so you can get the most from your software environment.

Several questions arose when the roles of CAD manager and (more so) building information modeling (BIM) manager became regular parts of design firms: Should this manager work on projects too? Should this person have a billable expectation? Should this role be a practitioner or someone completely unique? Should the manager be part of an architectural studio or an engineering group, or should they sit outside the design teams? Many of these questions were debated early on, and as the industry evolved, so did the CAD and BIM manager roles. What were once isolated roles became several people in a group, and responsibilities expanded from a focused software-type management to a larger umbrella of technology. With this evolution, should we again consider these questions? The one that is particularly interesting is where does this team/group sit, and who do they report to? Is it the design and project side? Is it IT? Or is it somewhere else? Please join this roundtable to share your experiences and opinions.

Most IT professionals struggle to understand CAD, Building Information Modeling (BIM), or engineering workflow, not to mention manage those specialized technologies. Most CAD/BIM managers/administrators are power users who started as a drafter or engineer but lack advanced IT skills. Both skill sets are highly valued assets in any organization, but when the two come together, some amazing things can start to happen—Distributed File System Replication, Domain Name System (DNS), Active Directory, Group Policy, Security Groups, Sites and Services, User Account Control, DNS Aliases, Shadow Copy, and the list goes on. As an IT professional, do you understand how these technologies can affect and benefit your CAD/BIM users? As a CAD/BIM manager/administrator, do you know how to capitalize on these technologies or even what they are or why you should care? This session will explain how these 2 groups can come together and capitalize on IT to accelerate your users and not hinder them.

As technology, applications, and solutions continue to expand into the realm of building information modeling (BIM), the BIM manager is more critical than ever and has taken on new roles and responsibilities. At first glance, a BIM manager is in charge of various tasks related to BIM efforts in their respective organization. More than ever, we see the role of BIM manager to also be that of a thought leader and solutions expert. In this session, we’ll take a look at the role of BIM manager, how that role fits in today's fast-paced environment, and how to transition to such a role within an organization. During the session, we’ll share common processes, applications, add-ons, and other tools to help the transition to the role of BIM manager and to help customize the role to fit your organization’s unique requirements and projects.

CAD and BIM managers deserve professional recognition. Gathering together will enable that to happen. Getting CAD and BIM managers to define their roles will encourage growth in the industry. At this time it is every man for himself and no standards exist for what is expected from a CAD or BIM manager. Companies do not know what they are looking for and managers have no measures to prove their capabilities. Is it time to create a community of CAD/BIM managers with certifications or guidelines for quality?

As technology, applications, and solutions continue to expand into the realm of BIM (Building Information Modeling), the BIM manager is more critical than ever and has taken on new roles and responsibilities. At first glance, BIM managers are in charge of various tasks related to BIM efforts in their respective organizations. More so than ever, we see the role of BIM manager to also be that of a thought leader and solutions expert. In this session, we'll take a look at the role of BIM manager, how it fits in today's fast-paced environment, and we'll discuss how to transition to such a role within an organization.

This award-winning panel is back again with new topics to discuss and insights to share. This year, the panel will comprise a diverse group of CAD managers who are widely respected as leaders in their field. They will focus on connectivity, which can mean many things to a CAD manager. Topics will range from technology and data to the even more challenging human aspects of teams and workflows. Hear their unique perspective and learn about solutions to challenges faced by CAD managers from organizations of all sizes and backgrounds. Join us for a panel discussion that has become an anticipated AU tradition. You won’t want to miss this chance to hear the important lessons learned from decades of experience—from four CAD managers who have been there and done that.

In the current architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry, many companies have a BIM manager position. However, the title has different definitions and responsibilities within each organization. In this roundtable discussion, we will come together to discuss how your organization views the role of BIM manager.

Have you been working as your company's unofficial CAD Manager, and don't have any official authority with management? In this class, join other individuals who are in a similar situation or other full time CAD managers for this roundtable discussion. Learn tips from others on how to turn an unofficial position into an official position. Engage in a lively discussion where you can learn from others and share your experience on CAD support and CAD management.

Whether you are looking for a BIM Manager or want a job as a BIM Manager, but you have no idea where to start - This class is for you. Without a doubt, BIM management requires an extremely diverse set of management skills and toolsets. This roll is often called upon to provide tips, tricks, technologies, tools, and strategies to better manage the company's BIM environment. A BIM Manager needs to have the ability to tackle problem identification, problem solving, user motivation, senior management support, budgeting, training program justification, objection handling and more. I hope that this class will give you a few insights and resources to help you hire the BIM Manager you need or give you the resources to be the best BIM Manager possible.

Over the past 7 years, hundreds of Associated Engineering production staff members across our 23 offices have been using AutoCAD software’s Sheet Set Manager (SSM) to efficiently coordinate project drawing packages. Throughout that time frame, we have continually adapted and fine-tuned our Sheet Set Manager templates (and support files) to not only provide flexibility for utilizing internal, project, or client-specific CAD standards, but also for ensuring conformance and standardization for all AutoCAD (and AutoCAD software-based) software output. Sheet Set Manager can greatly impact productivity while reducing repetition, user frustration, project budgets, and schedules. Please join us for this class, as we will be discussing 6 “key” Sheet Set Manager strategies that have proven to successfully assist CAD managers, project CAD leaders, and production management through incorporating this powerful productivity tool throughout development, implementation, and ongoing support.

This course starts with the assumption that many CAD / Building Information Modeling (BIM) managers have little to no direct managerial authority over the staffers they support, yet they're still expected to get results. To make things worse, many times these managers are also engineers, architects, or designers working under severe time constraints while expected to remain billable. This course will present strategies for peer-to-peer interaction with users and project managers that can help you persuade people to comply with key CAD/BIM management directives such as standards, file storage, training, and interdepartmental coordination. If you fit the peer-to-peer CAD/BIM manager profile, you're sure to pick up some solid ideas you can use immediately. And even if you do have full managerial authority, you can still benefit from using some of these collaborative and persuasive strategies. This class is designed for managers of numerous disciplines.

The tools and ancillary programs that CAD managers use seem to miss out when it comes to updates and new features. In fact, some of these tools haven’t been updated in years. This roundtable discussion will focus on what feature changes or improvements would make the CAD manager’s job more efficient. Tools and features to be discussed will include (but will not be limited to): Reference Manager, Sheet Set Manager, Standards Manager, eTransmit, and Fields. Attendees will be expected to actively participate, as an AutoCAD Product Team member will attend, so this is an opportunity to have the CAD manager’s voice heard!

This is your chance to have a direct dialog with a panel of Inventor product managers. This session will focus on the strategy and vision that drives Inventor software. The hosted panel will give you some insight into the “why” and “what” of the functionality that makes it into Inventor. Attendees will hear responses from the panel, as well as get the chance to ask Inventor product managers direct questions. This is a great session to take along with the "Ask the Inventor Developer" class.

Many CAD and Building Information Modeling (BIM) managers have little to no direct managerial authority over the staffers they support, yet they're still expected to get results. To make things worse, many times these managers are also engineers, architects, or designers working under severe time constraints while expected to remain billable. This discussion will focus on strategies for peer-to-peer interaction with users and project managers that can help you persuade people to comply with key CAD/BIM management directives like standards, file storage, training, and interdepartmental coordination. If you fit the peer-to-peer CAD/BIM-manager profile you're sure to pick up some solid ideas you can use immediately. And even if you do have full managerial authority, you can still benefit from using some of these collaborative and persuasive strategies. This class is designed for managers of multiple disciplines.

Previous CAD-manager wish-list sessions focused on the ancillary tools and programs that come with AutoCAD software, but haven’t been updated or improved since their release. We've discussed desired improvements to things like Reference Manager, Sheet Set Manager, Standards Checker, eTransmit, and Fields. In the 2018 edition, we’ll focus on your ideas for a perfect CAD management world. We’ll discuss your various bottlenecks and challenges, and what you, as the CAD manager would like to see as solutions. These solutions may be updates to current tools, or something that may not even exist (yet!). Attendees will be expected to actively participate, as an AutoCAD Product Team member will attend, so this is an opportunity to have the CAD manager’s voice heard!