Things are changing at Kissimee, Fla.-based Micro Key Solutions. And yet the company’s mission to support its clients’ businesses through focused and continuous development hasn’t wavered. The provider of central station and back-end management software held its 19th annual Users Conference at the Rosen Plaza Hotel in Orlando, Florida, February 7 to 10, 2012.

This was the first conference with new president Victoria Ferro at the helm. And no time was wasted in letting attendees know about a renewed focus on communication and partnership that Ferro’s leadership is centered on. “One of the things I was most excited about going into this conference was really demonstrating to our customers our new invigorated team and to really impress upon them how important their partnership is to Micro Key and vice versa,” Ferro told SDM.

Among many new enhancements, Micro Key added widgets to both the central station and managerial sides of its Millenium platform. The widgets are customizable and allow managers to see a quick snapshot of performance.

Other enhancements discussed throughout the conference included adding electronic signature capabilities to Micro Key’s WebTech mobile tool, improved integration with Google Maps, a financial reports feature specifically requested by customers, and several practical features.

Two of the most popular sessions were the Action Plans discussions, really digging into a new guided dialogue feature for dispatchers that Micro Key announced at last year’s conference.

Ferro emphasized that Micro Key provides education and training to its clients year-round through webinars and its Micro Key University program.

Ferro added that she is making a big push for education this year to ensure users are always gaining the most efficiency and productivity out of using Millennium. “The enhancement features that we demonstrate are the result of years’ worth of development,” she said. “It’s really important for users to participate either at the conference or at our post-conference webinars in order to see how the software has evolved. That’s going to help them grow their business without having to add additional staff. That’s really what the bottom line of our software is about.”

Six sponsoring partners of Micro Key presented complementary solutions during the conference. Among them was U.S. Fleet Tracking, with whom Micro Key is working on integration of GPS services for installer and maintenance fleets.

On Thursday, the dueling piano bar, Howl at the Moon, became the conference stage. Customers and Micro Key staff represented their companies with pride, dancing, singing and exchanging playful barbs on an announcement board. And a newly written anthem to a Beatles’ tune, “Come Together, Micro Key,” expressed what everyone present had already witnessed: users and developers working together.

Ferro commented that the interaction with customers during this short week every year really helps guide the company’s steps. “We get responses from the enhancements we created,” she said. “We get some feedback on how they’ve implemented it in their business and how it’s increased their efficiency and productivity. And we also get a sense of direction of where the security alarm industry is going and where our customers’ needs are technologically.”