How We Rated the Platforms

For now, the platforms are listed alphabetically and rated. Ratings are subjective and based on reviews from event organizers and attendees that we found scrapping the web for Featured Customers and Event Manager Blogs. Ratings are based on compiling numbers from these sources, with the average taken. Your comments based on your familiarity with the platforms will add to the ongoing ratings.

Joel E. Rubin is a seasoned executive, entrepreneur, and operator. He spent twenty-three years with The Princeton Review, a publicly traded educational services company. His most recent position was as Senior Vice President and COO of the Test Preparation Division, where he oversaw all business operations for the network of 54 field offices in the US and Canada. He also worked with the company as a franchise operator and owner, Vice President of Operations, and Vice President of Financial Systems.

Since 2010, Joel has served as CFO of Living in Digital Times, a family-owned tradeshow management and event planning company. Joel facilitated the sale of the business in 2019, and currently serves as CFO of Solving for Tech and Design Concepts DMC, both conference and event planning businesses.

Joel received his B.A. in English Literature from Washington University in St. Louis, and lives in Bergen County, New Jersey. He served as a twice-elected member of the Norwood Board of Education,

including a term as President of the Board, and was Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Lincoln College of New England. Most recently, he devoted his time to his temple as Co-President of Kol Dorot, a new congregation formed through his efforts to merge two existing congregations.

Chona Freeman has been leading the Living in Digital Times Digital Marketing efforts since its inception in 2006. Her design skills and web development experience allow for a knockout “brand” experience for all our conferences and events. From website creation to registration systems, from blog management to high-impact signage and creative design, Chona is a virtual Renaissance Woman with an eye for design and a knack for digital integration for high-impact results.

Kaare Christian has been producing the Last Gadget Standing and Mobile Apps Showdown competitions at CES for the last five years. He’s also involved in the KAPi awards, Young Innovators to Watch, and many other LIDT activities. Prior to LIDT, Mr. Christian worked with the Young People’s Chorus of New York, helping to manage concerts at most major NYC halls including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, the Kaufmann Concert Hall at the 92nd St Y, and many others. Mr. Christian has a background in biomedical engineering, and was a principal at Optical Imaging Ltd. for over ten years, and before that he worked in the Wiesel Laboratory at the Rockefeller University. He also has a background in photography, including a stint with WWLP in Springfield Mass as a TV news photographer. He is the author of a dozen books on programming and technology. Outside the tech world, Mr. Christian is a founder of the Roe Jan Watershed Community, a regular contributor to the Hudson River Almanac, and an avid paddler and outdoors enthusiast. He’s the father of three, married to Robin Raskin, and he is still trying to locate his smart watch.

Before joining Solving for Tech, Abby Kanarek, was Vice President of Operations at Living in Digital Times and has never met a showroom floor or conference schedule hard enough to bring her to her knees. With almost twenty years of experience in conference and event planning, her organizational skills are exceptional which made her well-equipped to coordinate the Living in Digital Times exhibitor space, conferences, and competitions.

In her previous life, Abby worked for many years in the field of education. In addition to teaching test preparation classes, she has written materials to help prepare students for state grade-level tests, Advanced Placement tests, and college entrance tests for The Princeton Review. She’s also been a lobbyist, a legislative aide, a bank designer, a bicycle salesperson, a private college counselor, a graduate student, a law school student, and a two-time winner of the Balls and Strikes Rotisserie Baseball League. Abby holds an undergraduate degree from Syracuse University and a Ph.D. from the University of California, Irvine

Alfred Poor is a technology speaker and writer with an international reputation. Over the past forty years, he has covered a range of industries from personal computers to displays to health technology. He was a Contributing Editor with PC Magazine for more than 22 years and was on the masthead of at least a half dozen other major computer and technology magazines. A graduate of Harvard College, he is the author or co-author of more than a dozen books, including titles from Microsoft Press and Addison-Wesley. He has built his career on his skill at making complex concepts accessible to people, through the written word as well as on-site and online events. 

Alfred is in demand as a speaker at on-site and online events. He was the Keynote Speaker and Honorary Program Chair of The Digital Health Show in Melbourne, Australia. He has spoken at the Digital Health Summit at CES in Las Vegas for the past six years. Among his upcoming engagements, he will be the Summit Co-Host for the three-day NG Healthcare Summit in December and will be presenting an online program for the First Flight Society in December as well. He is also a partner in charge of the online experience for the Techfluence series of online tradeshows for the technology media. Additional information is available at https://alfredpoor.com.

Julie began her career as an actress in New York City. After two decades of producing, directing and acting, she migrated into the world of high-end event planning, producing events, parties, weddings and Bar Mitzvahs in numerous city venues including the World Trade Center, the 21 Club, the New York Palace, etc.  In 2011, she joined Robin Raskin at Living in Digital Times, taking the responsibility of producing the annual CES FitnessTech Summit, subsequently producing the CES Wearable Technology Summit as well.  Along the way, Julie has become a spearhead and conduit not only for the FitnessTech and Wearable Technology communities, she has been invited to share her experience and insight everywhere from Wall Street seminars to various events and conferences around the world. She is excited to be joining Robin on her latest undertaking and looks forward to helping her find the next great “virtual” innovation.