Expo-2It takes a village. The Congress Expo quickly became just that—a hub of interaction, information, and commerce at its Grand Opening Wednesday afternoon.

On Monday, the cavernous 224,000-square-foot floor of the Expo Hall at the Long Beach Convention Center looked like an empty airplane hangar. Forty-eight hours later, however, the gaping space was transfigured into a hive of activity as dozens of vendors set up shop and thousands of convention-goers buzzed about.

Companies ranging from ADP to Workday set up kiosks, booths, and displays of all the latest innovations in the payroll universe.

“It’s great just to see what’s available,” said Abbey Moran, Domestic Payroll Director of Booz Allen in Herndon, Virginia. “No matter what vendor you have, there are always pluses and minuses to every system. Knowing what your options are is important.”

Sandra Morrison, the Chair of the Board for the Canadian Payroll Association, said the Expo was valuable for education.

“You can always learn something,” she said. “Also, you can see what’s coming ahead.”

Throughout the Expo, shouts of joy would erupt from winners of various prize giveaways that came at the end of most vendor presentations.

One of those winners was Yesame Asfaw, a Senior Tax Analyst at Entertainment Partners in Burbank, California, after she scored a gleaming Coach bag after a demo by rapid! Disbursements, which was featuring its on-demand payment option and a new disbursement program.

“I came to three demos to win,” she said while showing off the bag to several colleagues.

Attendees could also choose flat screen TVs or Liz Frank bags.

“Congress is our favorite event of the year,” said Chris Ruppel, a co-founder of rapid! and General Manager of Wages and Corporate Disbursement. “It is a great event each year and this year is no different.”

Front and center at the Expo was ADP, which was holding demos and panel discussions. ADP led the way in swag, with umbrellas, stickers, and bags given to trivia contest winners. There were also continual giveaways of prizes such as Sony wireless headphones with Bluetooth and GoPro cameras.

“The main thing is the Wisely paycard solutions we’re showcasing,” said Eric Hubbell, HCM Business Consultant for ADP.

The most colorful outfitter in the Expo was Workday, which was giving away colorful capes as part of a partnership with the Capes4Heroes charity for kids with disabilities. Workday was donating $5 for each attendee who took a selfie wearing a cape and posted it on social media.

Towards the back of the hall was the APA Solutions Center. There, a constant flow of professionals interested in earning their CPP and FPC could find information.

“Everyone is asking what it takes to become certified,” said Rali Petrova, Certification Manager for APA. “We have demonstrations of online products. This is my favorite spot.”

Tina Rites, Capital Payroll Manager at Keller Foundations, stopped by to look at the APA Digital Bookshelf.

“I learned something,” she said. “It’s a good resource.”