A workshop is a lengthier interactive meeting that combines a group of people with a common goal of solving a problem or working on a specific project. They are usually led by a trainer or facilitator who works with a planned series of activities, presentations, or facilitated hands-on interaction that will lead to the desired result.
Though led by a facilitator, workshops are designed for interaction between participants to yield the best results for the chosen problem or project. Longer than meetings, and more interactive than training sessions or seminars, workshops are designed to emphasize collaboration and active participation.
Definition and Purpose of Workshops
A workshop is a structured, interactive meeting that is focused on solving a problem, working on a project, or achieving a common goal through interaction, active participation, and collaboration. By building on the different strengths of workshop participants, workshops not only prompt creativity, they also foster connections between participants that, prior to the workshop, may not have existed.
Workshops not only promote participation, but they can also build a stronger, more creative team, by offering an effective way to collaborate. Workshop participants are encouraged to brainstorm, identify problems or solutions from their point of view, and collaborate on decision-making and solutions. This can be especially useful if the project is far-reaching or complex since several points of view can be offered. Encouraging participants to interact, allows them to see beyond their scope and solutions, learn from each other, and use that combined input to reach their goal.
Types of Workshops
Though all workshops consist of a facilitator, participants, and a goal, the type of workshop can have endless possibilities. A few ideas are:
Decision-Making Workshops. This type of workshop is designed to solve a problem by making a team decision. Since many participants may be specialists in one particular aspect, they may be immune to looking at the implications of their decision-making to others. A decision-making workshop allows participants to collaborate and find the optimal decision to reach their goals.
Ideation Workshops. This type of workshop allows a free-flowing exchange of ideas. Often, brainstorming allows participants to release their creativity and then guides them into selecting the best ideas to meet their collective goal. This type of workshop not only promotes participation but also fosters creativity and innovation.
Retrospective Workshops. These workshops are perhaps the icing on the workshop cake. Complex problems that require lengthy, intense workshop participation may culminate in a final workshop meeting that allows participants to look back on what has been accomplished and reflect on their growth and creativity.
Benefits of Participating in Workshops
Creating and implementing workshops benefits employers and participants. When executed properly, workshops can make problem-solving a positive experience, with benefits for all involved.
The benefits of participating in workshops are:
Participants may not only learn new skills, but they may also improve existing skills.
Workshops don’t just happen. They require preparation that includes a facilitator, planning, and a desired outcome. A facilitator can keep the group on topic while offering guidance toward the goal. Planning for the type of workshop you want to present is necessary in order for the participants to work together and feel included and respected. Knowing the desired outcome is necessary to keep the workshop moving in the right direction.
At Miller Tanner Associates, we know that workshops take work. We know that workshops are often built around complex problems or projects, and that can be overwhelming. We are experts in creating, designing, and facilitating workshops for small businesses as well as large, multi-location corporations. Contact us today so we can talk about how Miller Tanner Associates can help you.
A pharmaceutical company was seeking assistance planning a series of medical congress events.
The Challenge
What initially began as a straightforward proposal for congress event services quickly evolved into a transformative experience. After meeting with our customer, it became clear through discussions that their needs surpassed simple congress event management—they were seeking strategic guidance to elevate their events into a comprehensive Strategic Meetings Management Program (SMMP). Recognizing this need, MTA swiftly pivoted our approach.
Initially envisioned as a collection of resources including PowerPoint documents, forms, and flowcharts, the project took a transformative turn as it became evident that a centralized, dynamic platform was needed to streamline operations effectively.
Results
MTA began concepting a platform that would streamline the operations. This led to the development of a congress SMMP platform — a dedicated hub designed to revolutionize how we approach congress planning and execution.
To bring this vision to life, MTA’s Technology Team’s expertise defined technical requirements and visualization of operational processes, proving instrumental in shaping the platform’s functionalities.
Our Global Experiences Team skillfully orchestrated brainstorming sessions, aligning perspectives from MTA and our customer into a unified strategic vision for the SMMP to ensure that every aspect of the platform met the highest standards of excellence.
This congress SMMP platform was designed to serve as a centralized hub for innovation and collaboration across our customer’s congress projects. The hub was purpose-built for congress-related activities – going beyond collaborative workspaces, offering specialized tools, insights, and resources tailored specifically for congress projects. It served as the focal point for information, guidance, interconnection of resources, and a comprehensive approach to congress-specific events. The platform centralized resources, fostered seamless teamwork, and provided a comprehensive roadmap for success in global congress planning for our customer.
In summary, leveraging our expertise in technology, project management, strategic planning, and creative services, the Miller Tanner Associates Team designed an innovative platform to serve as a hub collaboration, providing specialized tools and resources tailored for congress projects. This platform development positions MTA Congress Services as a leader in innovative solutions for global congress planning.
Customer Feedback
“I want to extend a HUGE THANK YOU to this team for all your work over the past few months. This evolved into a larger beast than we initially anticipated, and you all pivoted and took it in stride. Really appreciate the partnership and support in building this site, it will be a huge value add to our company and I am excited to roll it out in the new year.” – Customer
“I wasn’t part of the day-to-day but heard all about the effort from [my colleague]. I want to thank you all and acknowledge the great partnership that has been developed this year with the team. The organization has really benefited from the elevation of this work.” – Customer
Virtual training is simply training that is offered over the internet. It allows universal training, regardless of your employees’ locations. That is one of the reasons that it has become so popular. The other reason, of course, is that it is easy on the budget. No travel expenses, logistical challenges, or conference room rentals and meal planning. Virtual training is effective, economical, and versatile.
So why isn’t everybody using it? The main reason that virtual training has been unsuccessful in the past is that it can easily become boring, allows for too many distractions, or inhibits engagement.
By providing your virtual training with engaging content, enhancing the learning environment, and facilitating effective communication, you can combine employees with training that offers consistent and effective training at a fraction of the cost of traditional training sessions.
Engaging Virtual Training Content
If you have tried virtual training in the past and felt it was not providing what you need in a training program, it may be because employees did not find it engaging. if the training is boring, it becomes less effective and employees will not willingly engage. As a virtual trainer, you can not engage with your audience with eye-to-eye contact, and participants may begin to feel that they are receiving a lecture rather than training. To avoid this, at appropriate, regular interviews, stop for questions. Without making participants feel like they are being tested, ask what they think about the topic just covered or if they have had experience with the situation before.
Though you are training through technology, humanize the experience by greeting each participant as they join the session, asking for feedback, and asking open-ended questions that require more than just yes or no answers. Use participants’ names to further personalize the experience.
Enhancing the Virtual Learning Environment
It can be easy to get distracted when participating in a virtual learning environment. Participants may be at their desks at work, at home, or in a hotel. With employees working remotely or with large companies with several locations, participants can face distractions such as work announcements and meetings, and interruptions from other technology such as their phone or other devices.
Though you may not have complete control over distractions, you can provide virtual learning that is engaging, educational, and, yes, even enjoyable. In addition to personalizing the training, keep the participants engaged by offering different modes of communication to enhance their learning experience. Try alternating between videos, slide presentations, and Q&A sessions. Offer information in a format that is conversational and easy to understand. Give examples. Tell a joke. Keep them listening.
Facilitating Effective Communication
Effective communication means that not only are your participants listening, they are also interacting, and you are listening. Depending on the size of your training session and the logistics, you may be able to promote discussions among groups within your larger training group. When respondents feel comfortable, they tend to ask questions and contribute opinions.
Often, by presenting scenarios, participants must use their training to find solutions to problems. Use examples to promote understanding. Ask questions to facilitate effective communication between yourself and the participants and among the participants.
Implementing Best Practices for Optimal Virtual Training Outcomes
Implementing best practices for optimal virtual training outcomes starts with the trainer. The facilitator or virtual training must work to engage the participants while keeping them focused and interested. They must be tech-savvy enough to work with different modes of media presentation and skilled in all phases of training and effective communication.
Miller Tanner Associates has created an innovative approach to virtual training that offers the optimal outcomes for your organization. With our years of experience, MTA knows the exact approach to finding what works and tailoring that program to fit your needs. Contact us today to find out how we can make your virtual training successful.
The Miller Tanner Associates’ (MTA) difference is our people. That’s why we want to introduce you to our team of superstars that brings our corporate meetings and events to life for our customers. Today we introduce you to Global Experience Designer – Events Natalie Frohlich. Natalie’s role serves as the project manager for events to guarantee the successful execution of each and every experience.
Meet Natalie Frohlich, Global Experience Designer – Events
Strengths (based on CliftonStrengths): Relator, Empathy, Discipline, Intellection, Learner
Languages spoken: Ispeak Spanish and German as my native language, as well as Catalan, English, and a little bit of French and Italian.
Tell us about your current role with MTA? What are your primary responsibilities?
I am a global experience designer for events. My main responsibilities are acting as the project manager and the main point of contact for our customers, coordinating between all stakeholders involved to ensure the successful execution of our events.
What did you do before joining MTA?
I have been working in the events sector for more than 8 years. I have worked for different agencies organizing all kinds of corporate events.
What’s the best part of your job?
What I enjoy most about my job is being on site, seeing an event take place successfully after all the effort and preparation always makes me very happy.
What’s been your favorite event destination as an event planning professional?
I was lucky that my first event was in San Diego. It was my first time visiting California and I consider it an ideal destination for events. Of course, the good weather always attracts participants.
What’s been your most memorable event to date and why?
I organized the launch of a new car model that lasted a whole month. It was a very intense event because of the duration and because literally everything happened, but to this day I remember it with a smile.
Do you have a few great travel tips that you could share?
Whenever I travel I always try to spend some time as a local. For example, sitting in a town square or a park, I try to strike up a conversation with a local to find out more about the destination. The air tag is a must-have gadget because lost luggage is very frustrating when you’re anxious to reach your destination.
What’s the one must-have for every event?
Always have a plan B and be proactive as you never know when something might change from one moment to the next. And of course, comfortable shoes – you are going to cover a lot of kilometers.
What makes Miller Tanner Associates stand out as a meeting planning company?
From the very first moment, I was very surprised by the friendliness of the team. I have felt welcomed and supported at all times and, of course, I think that the team is the most important thing in a company. Being able to work in a pleasant atmosphere is key.
Why do you think that the MTA Workshops are important? What do you get most from this time together?
I consider the workshops to be very important as not all teams have the possibility to see other colleagues throughout the year. I was very privileged and I was very grateful to be able to attend the Workshop in Dublin directly after joining MTA and I got to know everyone beforehand.
What do you do for fun?
I love reading – I devour every book I get my hands on. I have a reading room at my place and it is my favourite corner of the house.
Tell us a little about your background. What do you enjoy most about where you currently live? Any favorite spots that you would recommend to tourists?
I was born and raised in Barcelona, but my father is German and my mother is Colombian, a curious family mix. For me, Barcelona is the best city in the world and I have always lived there. I consider that it is a city that has everything – beach, mountains, architecture, and leisure. Whenever I can, I escape to the Costa Brava, specifically to the village Calella de Palafrugell; it’s beautiful!
The Miller Tanner Associates’ (MTA) difference is our people. That’s why we want to introduce you to our team of superstars that brings our corporate meetings and events to life for our customers. Today we introduce you to our associate based in Hong Kong, Global Experience Designer – Events Hanii Kwok. As a global experience designer, Hanii works closely with the Global Experiences Team to carefully plan and deliver exceptional APAC events from start to finish.
Meet Hanii Kwok, Global Experience Designer – Events
Strengths (based on CliftonStrengths): Individualization, Analytical, Learner, Arranger, Ideation
Languages spoken: English, Mandarin and Cantonese
Tell us about your current role with MTA? What are your primary responsibilities?
I’m a global experience designer focusing on the delivery of Asia-Pacific events.
What did you do before joining MTA?
I was a conference program producer for biopharma events and event logistics manager for a publishing company.
What’s the best part of your job?
I love seeing an event come together and getting a real buzz from working with everyone together as a team to make it happen.
What’s been your favorite event destination as an event planning professional?
Singapore – the hotel banqueting staff are always super helpful and efficient.
I love how all the processes have been designed to focus on enhancing customer experience, making it super easy to say to the customer, “Sure, can do!”
What’s been your most memorable event to date and why?
My most memorable event to date was in Hamburg, Germany. I visited the local Christmas market after the event; not many tourists visit that part of the city. It was truly a magical and fairytale experience!
Do you have a few great travel tips that you could share?
I never go abroad without my own peppermint teabags, melatonin, Epsom salt, and hydration face masque.
What’s the one must-have for every event?
I always try my best to add something fun and memorable for the attendees at every event, wherever possible. Simple things like playing upbeat music during welcome dinner, taking a big group photo, or going somewhere fun for the off-site dinner.
I love how all the processes have been designed to focus on enhancing customer experience, making it super easy to say to the customer, “Sure, can do!”
Why do you think that the MTA Workshops are important? What do you get most from this time together?
I think it’s super important to spend some time getting to know the people I work with every day, especially colleagues who do not usually travel to events. It’s a lot easier to ask for favours when you know them personally.
What do you do for fun?
I love going to watch stand-up comedy – just never ever sit in the front row!!!
Tell us a little about your background.
I am Chinese with Taiwanese and Hong Kong heritage, grew up in Marylebone, London (before it was hip), and moved to Hong Kong after I got married.
Any favorite spots that you would recommend to tourists?
Definitely go visit Marylebone High Street in London; then go feed the ducks in The Regent’s Park and take a selfie outside 221B Bakers Street.
At Miller Tanner Associates’ (MTA) 2024 Annual Global Workshop we recognize the distinguished associates who have gone above and beyond for our customers and each other during 2023. We celebrate the team with these five awards that are presented at our Global Workshop awards event:
MTA Gift of Service Award
MTA Saver Award
MTA Theme of the Year Award
MTA Story of the Year Award
MTA Marnie Award
MTA MARNIE AWARD: Julian Yew
Director of Engineering, Technology Services, Julian Yew pictured with CEO Marnie Miller Battistini
MTA’s Marnie Award is given by MTA’s CEO Marnie Miller Battistini to the person that she believes has impacted MTA the most during the year. The Marnie Award recipient/s embody the best of what MTA values and exemplifies. It’s a personal award seen from the CEO’s vantage point each year.
We are pleased to announce Director of Engineering, Technology Services, Julian Yew as the recipient of the 2023 Marnie Award! Julian has made remarkable progress over the past year as the leader within our Technology Services Team. He spearheaded several crucial projects, such as the registration rebuild, Attend native app development, data warehouse implementation, finance grid optimization, and many others. Julian’s dedication and expertise have played a pivotal role in achieving success for our entire team.
“Julian has impacted all of us and helped us with our work. His work has propelled us and I am so incredibly grateful,” shared CEO Marnie Battistini. “Julian has led MTA’s Software Development Team with an agile approach to software development that has proven not only successful but the direction the team has embraced. Because of Julian’s leadership, MTA has improved our customers’ and attendees’ event journeys while improving the MTA Team’s work. It’s amazing what Julian has been able to impact at MTA!”
MTA STORY OF THE YEAR AWARDS: Sarae Gdovin, Martin Woodard, Huajia Yu, Peace Obisesan, Carrie Hui, Jenny Decker and Conor Barry
Pictured left to right: Global Experience Designer Sarae Gdovin; Technology Operations Manager Martin Woodard; Global Experience Success Manager Huajia Yu; Global Experience Designer Peace Obisesan; CEO Marnie Miller Battistini; Global Experience Manager Carrie Hui; Global Experience Manager Jenny Decker; and Senior Director, Customer Experiences Conor Barry.
We, at Miller Tanner Associates, are storytellers. We tell stories through our events, through our products, and through the various acts of kindness the MTA global team performs each day. Every year we ask the MTA team to share with the Strategic Leadership Team (SLT) the stories we may not have heard that happened at MTA throughout the year. We ask them to brag about themselves, another associate or something that happened that needs to be shared. Then we share the stories at our annual Workshop.
We are pleased to present the 2023 Story of the Year Award to the following: Global Experience Designer Sarae Gdovin; Technology Operations Manager Martin Woodard; Global Experience Success Manager Huajia Yu; Global Experience Designer Peace Obisesan; Global Experience Manager Carrie Hui; Global Experience Manager Jenny Decker; and Senior Director, Customer Experiences Conor Barry.
MTA embarked on a remarkable journey to launch an electronic check-in system and digital signature solution for our customers. This workstream transformed our guest experience by leveraging cutting-edge technology resulting in a technology-centric event experience that benefited guests, customers, and the onsite event team, reinforcing the MTA commitment to connection and collaboration.
“I am immensely proud of what this team has achieved together. This success story is a testament to our collective hard work, dedication, and innovative spirit,” shared Director, Global Experiences Kristin Puryear who nominated the team for the award.
“This group proved MTA’s long-held belief that event technology should be used in the event space to not only improve the attendee event journey but also for the collection of accurate event data. Accurately capturing who attended our customers’ events with the ability to then accurately report on this information is the foundation to basic reporting which MTA builds upon in telling our customers’ event behavioral stories,” shared CEO Marnie Miller Battistini.
“PARTNERSHIP” MTA THEME OF THE YEAR AWARDS: Lauren Stagner and Johnny Leake
Pictured left to right: Global Experience Designer – Events Lauren Stagner; CEO Marnie Miller Battistini; and Global Experience Manager – Production Johnny Leake. Each winner receives a select Waterford Crystal piece, a personal token of appreciation from Marnie Battistini.
Each year MTA creates a theme for the year. We believe that a theme sets the tone, provides the direction, and allows the team to focus on a central theme for one calendar year.
Congratulations to Global Experience Designer Lauren Stagner and Global Experience Manager – Production Johnny Leake winners of MTA’s 2023 theme of the year – “Partnership”.
Lauren was recognized for her pivotal role in providing continuity between planning and on-site experience for a complex global event. Johnny was recognized for his flawless production delivery for this large-scale event and expert management of the breakout setups and speakers’ requests.
“This story is one of overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds all while exemplifying every single MTA core value and showing more of the world just how powerful the MTA magic can be,” shared Director, Global Experiences Christina Serra who nominated Lauren and Johnny for this award.
“By partnering together, Lauren and Johnny combined their skills to create an exceptional event that was lauded by MTA’s customers and co-workers alike,” praised MTA CEO Marnie Miller Battistini.
MTA SAVER AWARDS: Melanie Riddick and Jon Shipman
Pictured left to right: Director of Accounting Operations Melanie Riddick, CEO Marnie Miller Battistini, and Senior Software Engineer Jon Shipman
The MTA 2023 Saver Award recognizes the MTA team members for their exceptional ability to save time, effort, and resources for our customers and the MTA team.
Congratulations to Director of Accounting Operations Melanie Riddick and Senior Software Engineer Jon Shipman!
Jon and Melanie were recognized for their work in improving efficiency and productivity. Melanie outlined an expense reimbursement challenge and Jon led the MTA Software Development Team in designing and implementing the technology solution.
At the awards show, MTA’s CEO Marnie Miller Battistini shared the story that resulted in improving the finance dashboard within MTA’s proprietary system, Event Planner in Control (EPIC).
Melanie’s team had outlined the expense reimbursement challenge and they were patiently waiting for the solution that Jon and his team resolved. “I was very impressed with how they worked together to create a solution that will save reimbursement processing time,” shared CEO Marnie Miller Battistini. “They worked to improve the communication flow, to better visualize the expenses, and developed automation making their jobs much easier. Bravo!”
MTA GIFT OF SERVICE AWARD: Logan White, Diana Reed, Kristin Puryear, and Heather Cheng
Pictured left to right: Manager, Customer Success Logan White; Director, Key Accounts and Customer Success Diana Reed; CEO Marnie Miller Battistini; Director, Global Experiences Kristin Puryear; and Senior Director, Business Experiences Heather Cheng
The Gift of Service Award recognizes associates who exemplify MTA’s core values by providing exceptional service to both customers and their fellow team members. We are pleased to announce the 2023 award recipients are:
Manager, Customer Success Logan White; Director, Key Accounts and Customer Success Diana Reed; Director, Global Experiences Kristin Puryear; and Senior Director, Business Experiences Heather Cheng.
In response to challenges faced in managing timelines effectively, these team members worked to develop an innovative new tool to bridge the gap for crucial milestones, providing clarity, efficiency, and improved decision-making in the event planning process. This gift of service to our customers made a significant impact over the past year.
“With the implementation of this tool, MTA is poised to overcome longstanding challenges, streamline workflows, and achieve greater success in managing events effectively. This innovative solution exemplifies the power of collaboration and innovation in solving complex business challenges,” shared Senior Director, Customer Experiences Conor Barry, who nominated this team for this award.
“Logan, Diana, Kristin, and Heather looked at a challenge and using their collective strengths collaborated on developing a new MTA tool that made a substantial difference in managing event timelines,” shared MTA CEO Marnie Miller Battistini. “Their work not only positively impacted our customers’ event timelines but also impacted our internal team’s success. Inspirational!”
The Miller Tanner Associates’ (MTA) difference is our people. That’s why we want to introduce you to our team of superstars that brings our corporate meetings and events to life for our customers. Today we introduce you to Accounting Associate Anne Weiland. Anne’s strengths and skill set are ideally suited as a valued member of the Finance Team.
Meet Anne Weiland, Accounting Associate
Strengths (based on CliftonStrengths): Relator, Harmony, Deliberative, Responsibility, Consistency
Tell us about your current role with MTA. What are your primary responsibilities?
My current part-time role with the Finance Team as an accounting associate keeps me busy entering new events into our system and reconciling/billing for virtual events.
How long have you been with MTA? I have been with MTA since mid-October, 2023.
What did you do before joining MTA?
My last job before MTA was medical staff for the Wild Animal Sanctuary. I was semi-retired for a couple of years before joining MTA.
What do you feel are the most fulfilling aspects of your job?
Working with other team members in the Finance Department is a very fulfilling part of my job. It is a very cohesive and helpful team and it really feels like we have each other’s back.
In the time I have been with MTA, I have seen how much everyone truly enjoys working with each other. I think the reason MTA stands out is the employees and their true commitment to the end result of a successful event, whether it be customer-facing or behind the scenes!
Why do you think that the MTA Workshops are important?
I think the workshops are important to bring everyone together especially since MTA team members live all over the world!
Where do you live and what do you love most about your state/city?
I live in Denver, Colorado and the over 300 days of sunshine a year is what I love the most coming from Wisconsin many years ago! The Wild Animal Sanctuary is a must-see as well as pretty much anything in the mountains!
We’d like to spotlight a Miller Tanner Associates team member for her extraordinary act of kindness – one that qualifies as a special badge of honor. This week, Anne Weiland, an accounting associate at MTA, will become a kidney donor to someone she’s never met. This generous decision stems from a compassionate desire to transform someone’s life. As Anne embarks on this journey, her story is an inspiring reminder of the power of human generosity.
Last Thanksgiving, Anne took a serendipitous journey through the woods with fellow hikers, two of whom shared their personal stories as kidney donors. This left a meaningful impression which ultimately led Anne on another journey – down the path of donorship. She began researching more about kidney donation; and after talking to other donors and exploring the option further, she determined that she wanted to pursue the opportunity to donate to a non-designated recipient.
While most organ donations come from friends or family members, Anne felt moved to make a difference in the life of a non-designated recipient, highlighting the profound impact one individual can have on another’s survival and well-being. Another source of motivation for Anne was the chance to assist when she had previously been unable to do so in a different situation. “I had a brother and a sister who both passed away and [given their respective health circumstances] I wasn’t able to help. This was an opportunity where I could do something to help someone through organ donation.”
Although Anne’s surgery and her donor recipient’s transplant will take place on the same day, in the same hospital, on different floors, she isn’t sure if she’ll have the opportunity to meet the recipient in person. While a decision like this can have many emotions, Anne feels happy for her female recipient. “Imagine how her life will change,” she shared. On average, a kidney from a live donor can last 10 years longer than a kidney from a deceased donor, resulting in more promising outcomes for the donor recipient.
As of March 2024, there are over 89,000 patients on the kidney transplant waiting list. Each year, only around 400 individuals donate to non-designated recipients. If a person chooses to be one of these non-direct donors, the donor has the potential to initiate a chain. “Even if you aren’t a match for someone you know, donating to a non-designated recipient allows you to create a longer chain, possibly impacting more than just a single life,” shared Anne.
“If anyone is interested, I’d be happy to share and answer questions about how to become a donor. So many people are on dialysis or have kidney issues, and many people will never receive a kidney donation. If I can raise awareness through my experience, I’m happy to do it.”
Digital signature at a recent MTA Workshop makes for a more efficient sign-in process.
In today’s rapidly evolving event landscape, the buzzword on every organizer’s lips is attendee engagement. But what exactly does “attendee engagement” mean, and why has it become the cornerstone of successful event planning?
Understanding the essence of attendee engagement and its significance can transform how we approach event planning. It shifts the focus from merely gathering an audience to actively involving them, turning each event into a dynamic, interactive experience that delivers real value to everyone involved.
Q: Events (both live and virtual) are on the rise and the key focus, regardless of market, has been the significance of attendee engagement. Let’s set the stage a bit and give a foundation for the importance of the overall attendee experience. To start, planning events, whether for small or large groups, comes with a variety of needs and challenges. What would you say is the most common challenge sponsors face when planning for a life sciences event?
Conor: By far the most common challenge sponsors face is not only measuring but demonstrating ROI. Often some of this ROI is not quantifiable (such as the networks/relationships being formed during life science events) but is of huge value to future studies and research cycles.
Sponsors often only focus on the quantitative metrics (attributed revenue, lead count, etc.) and need to also take into account qualitative metrics such as lead generation, brand visibility, and attendee sentiment and engagement to justify their investment.
We’ve found that it’s equally important to assess the long-term impact of sponsorship activities, including brand loyalty and ongoing relationships formed during the event.
Q: On the topic of additional event aspects to consider, what would you say are some event management best practices to which MTA closely aligns?
Conor: As an overarching point, I’d have to say making sure that you’re being strategic from day one of the event planning process is important. Establish what success looks like for all stakeholders – guests, sponsors, speakers, and the planning team. Aside from that point, I’d summarize additional best practices under four main points:
Planning Timeline Development: MTA is committed to building comprehensive timelines that are adaptable to change, but ensure all parties are clear on what is a priority at any stage of the planning process.
Risk Management: Our team is dedicated to identifying potential risks and developing contingency plans to address them far in advance of moving on-site.
Attention to Detail: We’re hyper-focused on attention to every detail, no matter how small, to ensure a seamless event experience for our sponsors, customers, and guests.
Audience-Centric Approach: To know your audience, we take extra time to clearly understand your needs, preferences, and expectations of the event.
Q: Tell us what technology or innovative practices MTA uses to maximize not only attendee engagement but the general attendee experience.
Conor: There are several key technologies that we leverage but the most exciting are the inclusion of digital signature (eSign) and the Attend app. The addition of these products to our events’ “toolkit” ensures technology is at the core of elevating the attendee experience and drives engagement throughout the event.
The usage of digital signature (eSign) allows us to reduce paper/wet ink use on site and the user experience is seamless as our attendees sign in for sessions using iPads. Digital signature allows customers to access real-time information on attendee check-in status, review attendee signature count, and enhance the check-in experience for attendees significantly. Most importantly, it offers consolidated reporting post-event that is fully digital and secure via its data authentication features that ensure data integrity.
We brought on board the Attend app as we were looking for a way to enhance the guest experience in a fully digitized and mobile-friendly method while also offering more seamless, interactive, and inclusive opportunities for the attendees.
Q: We understand that a main factor that indicates the success of an event is attendance. With that key focus in mind, how does MTA ensure that life science sponsors are sure to achieve their goals?
Conor: That is the question of the year, now isn’t it?! MTA supports our sponsors in a number of ways to reach their goals regardless of the type of event they’re hosting, but if I had to consolidate it, I’d capture it in three main methods:
MTA is committed to educating our customers using a data-first approach.
Utilizing invite data analytics allows our team to build a deep understanding of the persona we are targeting for each event.
Building highly targeted marketing campaigns and invite strategies that are customized to align with the target audience’s preferences and drive engagement.
MTA leverages seamless registration process technologies.
MTA invests in building cutting-edge technologies that support a smooth guest registration process. This enhances the conversion rates with the target audience and ensures that the first touchpoint our audience has with our customers’ events is a good user experience.
MTA is continuing to invest in technologies that innovate the on-site guest experience and positively enhance guest sentiment towards each event.
Integrating live polling and real-time Q&A sessions during presentations fosters interaction and keeps attendees involved.
Paperless check-in experience for guests using the latest industry technologies to digitally sign in for on-site event sessions.
These technologies also bridge the gap between speaker and audience when the event is a hybrid experience.
As we look to the future, the possibilities for enhancing attendee engagement are constantly evolving. By staying open to new ideas, technologies, and strategies, we support event organizers to reach their event goals by innovating and elevating the event experience along with ensuring that every event is an opportunity for growth, connection, and engagement.
A life sciences company with complex training needs contacted Miller Tanner Associates for planning guidance.
The Challenge
Our customer, a life sciences company, needed to deliver training on 5 different protocols to 600 HCP attendees from numerous European sites, many of whom required multiple trainings on different combinations of these protocols. To add to the complexity, this was a rolling site list with attendees being added, some with tight turnaround times on Visas.
The Solution
MTA partnered with our customer to provide comprehensive Strategic Meetings Management that would reduce costs and maximize time.
Rather than attendees needing to attend three separate investigator meetings at various locations, MTA proposed a solution to consolidate by training all sites simultaneously over 8 days in London, with staggered trainings and tailored agendas for each attendee. This approach aimed to minimize travel for the corporate team and site participants; offer efficient training for all attendees; and reduce costs and time for all participants involved.
MTA began by dividing the 600 attendees by countries to meet compliance standards. With time efficiency as a priority, MTA then strategically crafted an extensive agenda to accommodate 60 various protocol training combinations, tailoring a personalized agenda for each participant (in total 60 agenda versions). MTA orchestrated a comprehensive agenda for the entire event, incorporating general sessions, break-out sessions, parallel protocol training sessions (each included 3 days of content), and welcome dinners.
To optimize attendees’ time when not attending their respective trainings, MTA included a “connection lounge” for attendees. Here, sponsor representatives were available for one-on-one time with attendees for discussion and to answer questions, further building relationships with sites and site participants.
During the 8-day event, daily arrival and departure schedules were organized to accommodate each individual’s training requirements. MTA developed a communication strategy with our travel partners that included a keen understanding of the attendees’ roles and personalized agendas, to secure a smooth arrival and departure process for all participants.
Additionally, MTA utilized advanced technologies to enhance the attendee experience, to increase efficiency, accuracy, and overall attendee satisfaction.
To streamline operations, MTA implemented digital sign-ins across 11 daily opportunities, eliminating the need for a cumbersome sign-in process. In turn, this also allowed for easy post-event data reporting.
By leveraging MTA’s proprietary app, Attend, attendees could conveniently access personalized digital agendas and scheduling details from their mobile devices. Using Attend, our on-site team was able to quickly assist attendees when needed.
Through Strategic Meetings Management (SMM) and early planning, MTA leveraged our extensive logistics planning expertise, vendor partnerships, and advanced event technology, to produce a streamlined, 3-in-1 investigator training that prioritized time efficiency resulting in a significant cost savings of 25 percent – over 1 million dollars – for our customer.
Great to work with your team yet again! A huge shout out to Jenny, Conor, Christina, Miranda, Tricia, and the entire team! And I don’t know how but despite the jetlag Jenny has all the permutations/combinations in her head. Kudos! Looking forward to our continued collaboration through APAC and LATAM Meetings. – Customer, Program Operations Leader
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