It's been almost two years since all our events and conferences had to go online. To me, this disruption was a huge blessing in disguise - suddenly we all felt it in every Zoom-meeting-tired-bone of our bodies: we cannot go on doing events as we have for decades: keynotes with endless PowerPoint slides full of text-font size 10; plainly read out remarks by yet another C-leveler; panels of six or more (white, old, male) panelists repeating their same old platitudes; no interaction whatsoever; no meaningful outcome.
If this did not work in the "old world", in the online world it was a straight path to the "Exit this meeting" button.
Entering the world of online events made it evident that we have to change the way we do events. Two years later, we are once more required to reinvent the way we gather - in hybrid events.
Media Apparat PHQ GmbH and Habegger Austria are two of the leading companies for events in Austria. I am thrilled to be part of their brand new Masterclass series on how to do hybrid events with my input on how to design and moderate them, alongside experts like Andreas Göltl, Bernhard Hendling or Gerhard Hauser.
Because here's the thing: the topics that are often enough tackled at conferences (climate change, a global pandemic, disruptive technologies... you name it!) are far too important to be listened to halfheartedly whilst scrolling down our newsfeeds. The people that give their time (and often money) to come to conferences are far too valuable to be missed. The outcome that a meaningful gathering can create is far too crucial to be left out.
So we finally need to design events in a way that creates the fertile ground that is so much needed for a meaningful outcome to happen. Events can be the place to create connection and trust, open us up to exchange and learning, and eventually lead to collaborative action. So instead of letting them be yet another time-blocker in our calendars, let's use the potential of events and come together in a way that matters.
Register for the free masterclass (in German!) here hybrid.mediaapparat.com