The Future of Virtual and Hybrid Events
Many government and industry leaders are growing more receptive to a future with virtual and hybrid events to increase accessibility. This week on FEDtalk, the panel discusses key elements to a successful event and the importance of incorporating virtual and hybrid formats.
Host Tony Vergnetti (FEDS Protection) joins Steven Mandurano, Communications and Marketing Director for the Senior Executives Association (SEA); Ryan Changcoco, Principal at Changcoco Consulting Group (CCG); Kandis Boyd, Vice President of the Federal Executive Institute Alumni Association (FEIAA); and Lisa Spinelli, Senior Content Manager at Association for Talent Development (ATD).
Online platforms were readily available to organizations before the pandemic. It might be hard to believe, but Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Livestream were not new platforms to the workforce in 2020. But COVID-19 ushered in a shift from physical events to the complex and rapidly evolving digital environment.
"You can't replace in person events with virtual events. It will never really replace that kind of energy or atmosphere or anything like that,” Changcoco remarked, “Once COVID hit, it was so easy to just let it happen, but I think the organizations [that] succeeded and thrived during it are the ones that kept forging ahead, finding different and newer ways to do what you do to bring the content here.”
The panelists illustrated when they understood the necessity for flexible events, even before the omnipresent Zoom fatigue set in. Knowing virtual events differed from physical ones, organizations scrambled to adjust event schedules aware attendees wouldn't stay seated at a screen for hours at a time. According to Spinelli, that change posed a considerable challenge for organizers.
“The biggest fear wasn't so much that could we deliver the content,” Spinelli stated, “But could we create the same kind of experience, energy, and environment that you would get?”
The flexibility associated with virtual and hybrid events is also a critical matter for future planning. Boyd considered individuals like herself who find it difficult to engage in public settings.
“It gives you an opportunity to meet people, to network and to build your network–that’s a key component of leadership,” Boyd furthered.
Mandurano agreed with Boyd, noting SEA’s audience survey to gauge future interest in flexible events.
“What can we do in the moment to continue to be agile to our members, to the community, to the environment, to maybe bring some people together and some smaller networking opportunities that may not necessarily be attached to the event? So, time will tell,” Mandurano concluded.
You can stream the show online anytime via the Federal News Network app and listen to the FEDtalk on all major podcasting platforms. FEDtalk is a live talk show produced by Shaw Bransford & Roth P.C., a federal employment law firm. Bringing you the insider’s perspective from leaders in the federal community since 1993.
