Pro Partner Conference Sponsors Weigh In on Industry Support and Innovation

Running an HVAC business is no easy job. It’s often an all-hands-on-deck kind of job, where working with partners both inside and outside of HVAC is required to keep things running smoothly, customers happy and employees feeling good, too.
Come March 2022, Rheem is honored to bring together elite HVAC business owners from across the country and the key industry players that help them successfully manage their businesses at the 2022 Pro Partner International Conference in Las Vegas. Known as the industry’s premier event, the Pro Partner Conference works to power the future of HVAC and forge lasting businesses.
Financial education, technology advancements, and business protection—the companies heading to Las Vegas for the Pro Partner Conference as sponsors are dedicated to the success and livelihood of every contractor who walks through our doors. We asked them what it means to run a successful HVAC business in today’s world. Here’s what they had to say.
Tap into your support networks.

Building, maintaining, and growing a business is not a one-person task. It’s essential to leverage the support available to continue to meet market demand, learn and grow.
Meet AIG Protection Plus, our Pro Partner Conference Titanium Sponsor
Dedicated to mitigating risk and helping grow HVAC businesses, AIG provides a labor warranty program that offers innovative solutions that support a “customer for life” model and brand protection.
“We really want contractors to feel that they’re fully supported in all aspects of their business,” says Billy Leonard, Vice President, AIG Warranty HVAC Division. AIG has worked with Rheem for over a decade, supporting contractors through all of the industry challenges over the years—including now.
“It’s a known issue, not just in our industry but globally, that there is a lot of instability in terms of escalating costs, raw materials, general workforce instability, changing market landscape,” Leonard says. “Contractors that are looking at escalating labor costs are having to pass that along to customers, and they’re seeing the negative consumer experiences that result from that. That’s where AIG can help.” For example, AIG recently announced price decreases across the board, with an increase in reimbursements, to help contractors mitigate risk and build loyalty among customers. “AIG continues to demonstrate its commitment to grow and support the HVAC industry. This past year we have grown our team—more than doubled it. We are invested in our partnership with Rheem to provide the best customer experience with education, resources, tools, and support that our dealers need,” adds Kelly Goodman, National Account Manager at AIG.
Leonard says that the Pro Partner Conference is the perfect opportunity to come together, provide support to each other and find new ways to tackle challenges together. “This is all about learning and taking advantage of the resources available,” he says. “There’s a lot of fun to be had at this event, and I think we’re all going to enjoy it, but we should also go into it with a strategy to accomplish things, to learn, to better ourselves, to pick up new ways of doing things that can grow our businesses and take care of customers. Pro Powered just means that you’re aspiring to do things the right way, the best way, and come to the conference to find out how to be a better Pro.
Pay attention to new industry standards.
Between homeowners’ increased demand for sustainability and the upcoming 2023 energy efficiency regulations, contractors and business owners will need to understand how every part of their HVAC systems work in concert, especially as it relates to going green.
Meet Emerson, Pro Partner Conference Palladium Sponsor
Delivering dependable performance improved productivity and advanced energy efficiency, Emerson enhances comfort in commercial and residential spaces through reliable, innovative, and regulation-ready HVAC systems and controls.“The HVACR industry is facing complex challenges in this time of significant regulatory changes,” says John Schneider, President of Emerson’s HVACR Technologies Americas business. “Emerson’s deep technical expertise, resources, support, and regulation-ready technology like our Copeland compressors help our partners, contractors, and technicians navigate these changes with confidence, ensuring they are ready to meet new efficiency and refrigerant regulations.
“Sustainability and efficiency are always top-of-mind when developing new products and we are always evaluating technological advancements that can help drive energy efficiencies,” he says. “It’s incredibly important for us to stay at the forefront of these upcoming changes and understand the impact they will have on the environment and our customers.”
Stay on top of innovation.
Because HVAC is always changing and growing, contractors and business owners must stay on top of industry innovations and news. That means engaging in trainings to learn more about not only the products and systems powering innovation but also the people behind it.
Meet the LG Component Solutions Business Unit, Pro Partner Conference Platinum Sponsor
Specializing in compressors and motors for all applications, LG offers solutions for HVAC, refrigeration and home appliances.“LG compressors and motors are excited to be a supplier in Rheem’s products. We’ve had Rheem and RUUD as a target for some time now, and it’s exciting to be a partner in their business. We have engineers that are brilliant when it comes to vapor-compression technology,” says Mike Robertson, Senior Account Manager at LG Electronics. The recently launched high-efficiency R1 compressor is part of that inventive wave, with new vapor compression technology that acts as a fusion between rotary and scroll technology. “It’s rethinking compression as a whole,” Robertson says.
Go digital, financing included.
It’s no secret that the digital world has been on the rise for years, but the pandemic has accelerated the digital boom.
Meet Synchrony, Pro Partner Conference Platinum Sponsor
With more than 25,000 relationships with dealers and distributors, Synchrony is our KwikComfort Residential financing partner and one of the United States’ largest providers of private label credit cards based on purchase volume and receivables.
According to Synchrony’s eighth Major Purchase Journey study from August 2021, about 59% of home improvement purchasers start their purchase research online, and 51% will visit contractor websites as part of that research. About 50% of potential customers will also decide on their payment method before shopping.“Much of that research is happening before they’ve even talked to a dealer, so you need to have a strong web presence,” says Jeff Surratt, Senior Vice President and General Manager Home Specialty at Synchrony. “Financing and payment options should also be part of your digital web presence, because if customers determine financing to be the best option for them to make a purchase and don’t see it during their research process, you may not make their shortlist of who they call for a quote.
But contractors must also think about the way they talk about financing and how to do so strategically. “If you look at a lot of consumer websites, they are good but not necessarily what consumers are looking for. Don’t just say ‘financing available,’ and that’s it,” Surratt says. “We have a host of best practices and data-based insights that help dealers maximize their digital impact.”
Integrating financing online might sound like a complicated process, but it doesn’t have to be. Synchrony offers solutions such as Synchrony Transact, a paperless education and sales solution, and a direct-to-device credit application that allows customers to fill out their information with more privacy.“Pro Partner dealers are some of the most engaged dealers in the industry,” Surratt says. “We want to hear what’s going on, we want to understand what they need and what we can do to help them more.
Consider yourself a home-health advisor.
Coming off the pandemic, many homeowners are interacting with their homes in a much different, more connected way.
Meet Resideo, Pro Partner Conference Diamond Sponsor
A global provider of intuitive, connected home solutions, Resideo offers solutions that protect and conserve all of a home’s critical systems, from HVAC to water, energy, and security.“We used to always think about connectivity in the home as a way to see what was going on when you weren’t there. Say, how you can look at a thermostat and control the temperature when you’re not at home,” says Luke Piram, Strategic Account Representative at Resideo. “Now, we’re seeing that consumers really do care what’s going on in the home even when they are at home. They are interested in energy usage, how can they shut off lights and control appliances—anything they can do to control their space from a single connected app.”
For contractors, that means understanding how every HVAC unit fits in with homeowners’ overall home systems, such as lighting, security cameras, and even the garage door opener.
“It’s a new world for us. The days of a contractor going and selling a system that consisted of a furnace, air conditioner, and new thermostat—those days are over,” Piram says. “Today’s contractor is called upon to be a home advisor and an integrator, meaning that they’re called upon to counsel and sit with their customer to explain what they’re buying and then sell them the auxiliary products so that person can use their home in a more effective matter. To us, that’s what Pro Powered means. The contractor is now elevated to a new position, and we have to support that.”
Act on your values
HVAC is evolving, and if contractors want their businesses to grow with it, they need to understand the nuances of the industry today—and tomorrow—and how their values support new initiatives.
Meet Chemours, Pro Partner Conference Gold Sponsor
With a 200-year-old legacy, Chemours is creating a safer, convenient, sustainable and cleaner world through the power of chemistry.
“We make essential products crucial to energy, communications, infrastructure, transportation, and healthcare and more. In a year when the world needed our essential chemistry more than ever, we continued to deliver while still progressing toward our 2030 Corporate Responsibility Commitment goals,” says Minjin Kim, Global Marketing Program Manager at Chemours. “We reflected on what corporate responsibility and responsible chemistry mean in our changing world. That led us to expand our ambition. We took action to deepen our commitment to inclusivity. We broadened our definition of safety. We even set ourselves a more ambitious emissions reduction goal to reach by 2030.
“For Chemours, the Pro Partner Conference represents an opportunity for industry leaders to truly demonstrate their efforts in building sustainable solutions to support zero carbon emission goals around the world, while also ensuring the HVAC industry has a safe transition to new, long-term refrigerant solutions,” she says. “Companies like Rheem, Ruud, Chemours, and many others in the industry are continuing to partner and invest in products that drive environmental and economic benefits through innovation.”
At the end of the day, Rheem is focused on providing the best resources to empower HVAC contractors to get their businesses off the ground or to take them to the next level. We hope you’ll take the next step and join us at the Pro Partner Conference in Las Vegas come March. Register today or learn more at propartnerconference.com.