Tis the Season (for a great Conference)

Spring is here.  After a long Minnesota winter it is very welcome.  But that isn’t the season I am most excited about.

Nope.  I am ready for Conference Season!  The next few months will see associations and corporate teams gather in multiples.  From the annual event to the impromptu off site, busy professionals will be getting together to connect, communicate, collaborate and set the course for forward progress in their business.  I assume a little fun will be had along the way.

I recall a couple years ago hearing about the conference model dying.  The premise being that with emerging technology there would simply be increasingly less need to have a conference style event.  That premise didn’t deliver on the promise and as someone who attends 30+ conferences a year there is increasing interest the live event.  No doubt, expectations around the experience are on the rise.  Quality content and connections are a baseline requirement.  But today, people have a real need and desire to come together and share with like minded people.  I am fortunate to have two such opportunities this week.

Today, I’ll be in Little Rock talking about Passion & Purpose at the CUPA Southern Region Conference.  Then it’s immediately off to the SHRM Talent & Staffing Conference to spend a couple days with a Rock Star community in San Diego.  I simply cannot wait to be part of the conversation about the most critical issue facing just about every business as we emerge from this recession:  TALENT!

I had an opportunity to have a pre-conference conversation with SHRM about the event.  Part of that conversation included some thoughts about how to get the most out of the conference experience as an attendee.  My key thought is opt in and participate! Online.  Offline.  Tweet Up.  At breakfast.  In the evening.  Take it all in!  If you leave with 3 key ideas to take action on in the next 100 days (TAN PLAN) and 3 new, meaningful connections then the experience will have been very worthwhile.

If you aren’t able to join in the fun this week our intention is to continue the conversation online (we think it is important).  I’ll be teaming up with Don MacPherson of Modern Survey later this month for the Engage – Inspire – Empower webinar event.  We’ll explore the latest research and mega trends on Employee Engagement and provide some specific, actionable take away for business leaders.  The data alone is worth the price of admission (FREE)!  Plan to join us on Tuesday, April 26 at 11:00 am central time (register here). Don’s latest post on the value of values is also well worth the read.

Looking forward to a great season!  Hope we connect along the way!