From the Desk of R. Christine Hershey: Making the Most of Conference Season

This time of year it feels like each day brings a new invitation to a national conference or multi-day symposium that promises to reinvigorate our work force, stir our momentum and boost our success rates. But with so many choices – and such busy schedules in our own organizations, are conferences worth the high price spent in time and money to attend? Here are a few tips my colleagues and I use to evaluate which conferences to pursue and how to make the most of them once you’re there. Most importantly, be clear about your objectives for attending before you go, and be sure you or whomever you’re sending is the right person to represent your organization’s brand.

Choose wisely

Every conference has a value to the right participant. For those in the early stages of their careers, does the conference provide appropriate opportunities for professional development? For executives, is there a high-level, innovative agenda that will recharge and inspire you and therefore your staff? Would you do better to stay at home and watch a TED talk on the same topic? Don’t just go because everyone else is going, but choose conferences that help you achieve your strategic goals, both personally and organizationally.

At the CEO level, we like to say the richest experiences at conferences are in the halls as we often bump into people we’ve been trying to book lunch with for weeks. If it seems the other participants will make it worthwhile to take time away from your normal, hectic schedule, then you already have a great reason to attend. Try to space out the events you go to during the year, and if it seems worth the expense, use the opportunity to travel to new places and meet with new people.

Fill the days

When you do decide to attend a conference, don’t rely on hallway run-ins alone and do your homework before arriving. Make sure you’ve signed up for the appropriate track for your level, and research the attendee and participant list. Book meetings with targeted people for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Set goals for the number of people you want to meet each day. If you leave a conference having made two or three valuable professional relationships, you are on the right path. If you attend the conference with a colleague, be sure you don’t go to all the same sessions. Having the benefit of an additional person means you can cover more ground.

Remember, even if you’re not presenting at the conference, you’re publicly representing your organization. Build awareness for yourself and your organization’s brand by nailing your elevator pitch by the time you walk in the front door. You and your staff are your own best brand ambassadors!

Follow through

The only way that networking becomes advantageous is to follow through after meeting someone. Don’t forget to exchange business cards and establish next steps then and there if the opportunity is ripe. Within a week of returning home, reach out to your new contacts to keep that momentum going and strengthen those new relationships.

Conferences are also an important opportunity for knowledge sharing. Bring back to the office all those new ideas and the energy that was hopefully alive at the conference. You might have a brown bag lunch with the rest of your staff to share the highlights and takeaways so that everyone can learn for the price of one attendee.

Two to consider in our backyard

Of all the conferences coming up in the next few months, we’d like to highlight two in particular that we think would be of value, especially for those of us located in Southern California. Whether you’re looking to build civic engagement into your philanthropy or want to learn about new approaches to solving the most pressing issues facing nonprofits today – we encourage you to check them out and see if they might be a good fit for you:

SoCal Grantmakers 2015 Public Policy Conference, April 13, 2015. More details and registration available here.

Center for Nonprofit Management 501(c)onference, “Roads to Greater Impact,” June 2-3, 2015. Register here.