Conference Reform Requires Cultivating Leaders With Moral Purpose To Make A Difference January 8, 2019 by Jeff Hurt Many conferences are stuck in the rut of legacy routines, age-old rituals and cloned programming. Conference organizers and its advisors replicate the past maintaining the traditions and well-established procedures of yesteryear. The event is nothing more than a zombie conference—a conference that appears to be alive yet in reality creates the walking undead. If you … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference purpose, conference reform, conference vision, leaders, leadership, make a difference, moral purpose, restructuring, transformation, transformative, trasaction, walking undead, zombie conference
Nurturing Conference Experiences That Foster Skillful Collaboration To Create Progress February 4, 2016 by Jeff Hurt We can’t solve today’s and tomorrow’s problems with yesterday’s thinking says Dan Pink. Most of us only know one way to address our challenges. Our problem solving skills, our communication strategies and our capacity to bend our ideas as we bridge gaps have not evolved fast enough. We think there is only a right and … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , collaboration, collaborative learning, conversations, fearless conversations, transformation, transformational conferences, transformational learning
Conferences During Hinge Times January 11, 2016 by Jeff Hurt We are living in a world of hinge time. Our conferences are planned to educate attendees for an era that no longer exists. The challenges our attendees face are vastly different from the ones of the past. Most of our conference attendees were educated on how to be right. We focus on individual and collective … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , collaboration, collaborative learning, conversations, fearless conversations, transformation, transformational conferences, transformational learning
Your Rigid Thinking May Block Conference Improvements July 7, 2015 by Jeff Hurt Did you learn how to ride a bicycle as a kid? We often say, “Well, it’s just like riding a bicycle. Once you learn how, you’ll never forget.” But what if you had to forget everything you learned about riding a bicycle? What if you had to unlearn and start over? Could you learn, unlearn … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference reinvention, mindset, revolutionary conference, strategic thinking, transformation
Your Conference Renewal Begins With Wondering April 22, 2015 by Jeff Hurt Where does true conference improvement begin? The conference revitalization process is probably very different than many of your past experiences. It’s so different that we have to view it through new lenses. By taking charge of your own understanding of conference improvement and transformation, you begin a new journey. You are exploring uncharted territory. You … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference improvement, conference organizer, conference planning, conference planning team, culture of learning, inquiry, meeting planner, meeting professional, reflection, strategy, transformation, wonderings
Four Commitments That Block Conference Reinvention December 22, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Some conferences keep pace with changing times. Others seem stuck in a time warp. Tradition led them to success in the past and they expect it will in the future. Most organizations respond to changing times in some way. Many respond by increasing the flurry of activity that has resulted in past success. Usually, that’s … [Read more…] Filed Under: Experience Design Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference reinvention, mindset, revolutionary conference, strategic thinking, transformation
Your Conference Needs To Offer Transformational Learning Not Informational Learning September 25, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Which word describes the type of conference education sessions you prefer to attend? Pick one. Informed or transformed? The Best Learning At Conferences For me, I want to be more than just informed. I can be informed by reading information online. I don’t need to travel to a conference to become informed. I prefer a … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , adult learning, adult learning principles, adult learning strategies, conference best practices, informational learning, transformation, transformational learning
What Do You Want Your Conference Customers To Become? July 9, 2014 by Jeff Hurt “It’s not the attendees’ job to know what they want,” paraphrase of Apple cofounder Steve Jobs. “Larry [Page] is into making people what he wants them to be—which is a little smarter,” former Google Executive (from author’s private correspondence).” So who do you want your conference customers to become? Adopting The Ask In Conference Design … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , Attendee Acquisition, attracting attendees, conference best practices, transformation