If you’re like me, you know the backbone of working in the business of football is your network. You get your job, and you get better at your job, through the people you know. It’s why I started the ITL Symposium and why I rarely miss chances to be among the people in the industry. This is why I’m not missing next week’s Personnel and Recruiting Symposium in Nashville, and I highly recommend you try to be there, too.

The list of sessions has been posted, and if you’ve been previously, you know that you can attend whatever session you want during the three days (half-day Monday, full day Tuesday, half-day Wednesday) of the event. Here are the six places you’ll be sure to find me next week.

  • How Will AI Change Scouting and Roster Building, presented by Teamworks (Monday, 4:45 p.m.): “AI” is the word on everyone’s lips these days; you may have heard that one college football blue blood team has even hired a Director of AI. As a guy who’s been accused of being old-fashioned, I look forward to hearing what direction AI is taking the game. I look forward to having my mind blown.
  • Social presented by Hudl (Monday, 6:30 p.m.): Look, if you can only make one session, it needs to be this one. Last year, I’d estimate there were 400 people in one giant room talking, renewing acquaintances and making new contacts. If you work in college or pro football, and you are serious about your career, you gotta be in this room Monday night.
  • Building a Front Office – Staff Structures (Tuesday, 11 a.m.): In my opinion, this is the most critical topic in the business that not enough people are talking about. If you listen to the podcast I co-host regularly, you know that everyone in the game is on an endless quest to find out the most efficient way of doing their respective jobs. I’m eager to hear what is discussed Tuesday morning.
  • Realities of NFL Scouting vs College Personnel (Tuesday, 4 p.m.): Though a lot of people don’t realize it, there’s a difference between player evaluation at the NFL level as opposed to college. Though this title is a little vague, I hope this addresses the vagaries of both — as well as how the jobs, pressures, demands differ.
  • Pro Liason Programming + Scout Relationships (Tuesday, 5 p.m.): There is an art to developing relationships, and the ups and downs of how NFL scouts and their college counterparts deal with each other is something we discuss and think about quite a bit. I’m eager to hear more from people in the industry about this topic.
  • Advancement Strategies for Young Professionals (Wednesday, 9:30 a.m.): Last year, the symposium kind of became a ghost town on Wednesday morning; as I recall, even some of the vendors left early. Maybe that’s why organizers have chosen to put three career development sessions on Wednesday morning. I chose to spotlight this one, but really, any of the three (the other two are “Career Development – Tips for Young Evaluators” and another one simply called “Career Development”) seem helpful. As someone who’s focused on helping others’ career development 24-7, I’m always looking for tips on how I can best help my people.

By the way, if you’re curious about who will be in Nashville next week, we’re compiling a list of college GMs who are confirmed for the Music City. It will be in the Friday Wrap later today. Register for it here. See you in Nashville.