Ask Coach: How To Get The Most From Attending A Professional Conference

By Hardin Byars, executive coach with HTG Peer Groups

Q: “How can I ensure an ROI on investments such as professional conferences?”

Coach: Follow a process like the one I outline below:

Step 1: Start with the end in mind!

Said differently, what will make you say, “Dude, I am so glad I took my team to the conference?” As simple as that sounds, many leaders don’t spend the time to think about what success looks like for an event. You are about to make a significant investment — travel plus opportunity costs — wouldn’t it make sense to know if an attractive return were in the offing? Once you have determined the objective, choose your team accordingly. Remember, team composition should produce both corporate benefit as well as individual professional development.

Step 2: Communicate

Smart leaders not only have clarity on the objective, but they effectively communicate it to the team who is attending. Team members need both to understand the objective and to be able to articulate its value to the company and themselves. Since each role is different, teammates need to know why they were chosen as well as the expectations of participation, including post-event. Don’t assume understanding!

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