The Conference - Why do You Attend?

The Welcome at theDrury Lane for the Illinois 2010 SHRM Conference

The Conference – most of us like attending them, whether they are directly related to what we are doing, indirectly related or not at all related to our daily job. Sometimes you will attend a conference for something that is not your job, whether for a volunteer activity, or some pursuit other than your job. Nonetheless, most people that I talk with seem to enjoy attending. In attempting to create a better conference experience for the attendee, I am curious as to what it is that people enjoy the most about “the conference”.

• Is it simply getting out of the office or traveling to some exotic location?
• Is it the learning that is supposed to take place at the event?
• Is it the social aspects i.e. networking?
• Is it presenting and having an audience?

I know that there are more reasons than this to attend a conference and I know that we don’t always attend each conference for the same reason, but I think there is an underlying reason for each of us as to why we like attending.

I ask the question because I want to learn this so that we may incorporate that into our Illinois SHRM State Conference strategy for next year. We will be making some announcements about the 2011 IL SHRM Conference in November.

So if you dare--- leave a comment and tell me what trips your trigger about attending conferences?