Rather than believe the (rather biased) opinions of long-time Connect attendees, we thought it would be best to check in with some first timers to see what they wanted to get out of the annual employee communications conference and whether or not it met their professional development goals.
Jeffery Norton, Liberty Mutual Investments
With limited funds for professional development, what made you pick the Connect conference?
I recently joined the internal communications world and a team of experienced communication professionals. When I mentioned I want to learn more and attend a conference they said “PRSA Connect” is the one to attend as it gives a great overview and variety of different topics
What were you hoping to learn at Connect?
As a new communications professional, I’m hoping to learn best practices to bring back to share with the rest of the team. Also networking from both a personal and professional career standpoint.
Did Connect meet your expectations? Come up short? Exceed them?
Connect exceeded my expectations. I met so many smart and friendly folks and for once almost everything (if not everything) was relevant to my day-to-day job. (unlike some of the financial conferences we discussed!)
Can you share one key learning from your favorite session? How will you use this in your work?
Tough to pick a favorite session but if forced I’d say the “Commsplaining” session. The way the two presenters played it out (and off each other) was fantastic. I also think the content was extremely relevant to all of us. I plan on sharing my notes with the other IC leaders at Liberty.
Would you recommend Connect to other communicators? If so, what one thing would you say to convince them to attend?
Definitely! In fact, one of my colleagues already put a place holder on her calendar for next year. I would highlight the great content, wonderful networking opportunities, and a lot of new material/best practices to learn as a way to convince others to attend.