This year, I’ll be at the CIPD Annual Conference and Exhibition and I’ll be joining a panel of thought leaders to talk about the subject of technology, analytics and evidence-based decisions. Eek… Suddenly my imposter syndrome kicks in and questions, am I really a thought leader on this topic? Well, I have plenty of experience and decided to step out of my comfort zone and write my first ever blog, sharing my thoughts about the event itself as well as the topics of aligning the people strategy to the business objectives and data-based decision making. I hope it makes for interesting reading and gives you some food for thought in advance of the conference and our session.
In recent years, I’ve really started to embrace my networking opportunities. I’m just one person, and we’re just one team, and whilst we have achieved some phenomenal things and had some great ideas, there is always more to learn from other experts across the industry. Sometimes it doesn’t always feel right to take the time out of work, or pay that fee to be there, but here’s what I have learnt about these events:
Celebrate the people – by their very nature, the delegates at these events are the people you want to be talking to. They’re engaged, passionate individuals who are also keen to learn from others and share their experiences – they are usually people who are well connected to the outside world, and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve learnt new things through a chance conversation with the person sitting next to me at a conference.
Embrace the networking – it’s not an easy task for many of us. My advice is ‘SMILE. It’s almost impossible for them not to smile back. It nearly always breaks the ice and even if it doesn’t create a connection or conversation, what’s the worst that’s happened? You’ve made someone’s day a little sunnier! Remember it’s much easier to network when there’s a purpose, and we all have a similar purpose at the event. Another way to make the networking easier is to pre-arrange to meet some of your prior colleagues or connections, then you know you have times in the day where you will have strength in numbers!
Reflection – this is a chance for you to really step away from the day job and take some time to listen and learn. It’s a chance to understand best practice and to learn from others’ mistakes. It’s a chance to think about the work you’re doing and the priorities that you’re setting and consider if they need some attention.
Well-being – This is a chance to breathe. It’s a proven fact that continued learning is good for our health, changing our environment is good for our well-being, and changing the people who surround us broadens our thinking and helps to create a positive mindset. This is an investment in you and your future.
Suppliers – It’s fair to say that exhibitions can be perceived in two ways,
“Those suppliers are out to get me, they want to sell me something and I need to avoid them at all costs.” (I have been in this mindset once or twice.)
“Wow, all of these suppliers are together in one place. Let me plan in advance to understand which suppliers might be useful – not only does this save me a lot of time, but enables me to easily compare and contrast. They also seem to have a lot of insight from other companies that could really help me.”
I can’t pretend that I’ll always be in mindset two, but an exhibition really is a great way for us to identify potential solutions and understand the pitfalls that others’ have experienced – and whenever I’ve gone in with mindset two, I’ve always had a much better day.
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