from strategy to user experience: meeting design is everything

From Strategy to User Experience

Design is Everything

Dan Berger | CEO | Social Tables

Let’s agree to the following...

● Questions are welcome any time.

● Engage on social: @danberger #TSE2016

● Take as many photos and share as you please.

● You’re free to leave any time.

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I am a participant.

I am a planner.

I am a believer.

I am a supplier.

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@danberger | #TSE2016

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4,000 customers; 100,000 users

100 countries

3 languages: English, Spanish, French

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1 billion sq ft of function space

500,000 events created

63 million attendees impacted

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Here is what we will cover.

● Define meeting design and explain why it’s important to our profession.

● Learn frameworks to evaluate your current programs.

● Apply new design concepts to transform your experiences.

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Stage Setting

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Design tellsa story.

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Design sends a message.

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Design changes behavior.

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“If you don’t think about design,someone will think about design for you.”

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● The meaning of “meeting design” is not agreed upon.

● The term “meeting design” is not widely used.

● There is a lack of popularly accepted frameworks and tools.

The Problem with Meeting Design

MPI report on Meeting Design, 2013

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Experience Design is Everything and Everywhere

● The design of the organization’s overall event strategy.

● The design of your meeting’s theme.

● The design of the attendee journey.

● The design of the program.

● The design of each breakout room.

● The design of each tabletop.

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How do you define meeting design?

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“The purposeful shaping of both the form and the content of a meeting to deliver on crucial business objectives.”MPI report on Meeting Design, 2013

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Manage

Comm.

Plan

Source

Strategize

Data

Mission

TechnologyTech

nolog

yProject

Management

SchedulingTransportation Housing

Surveys

Badges, Check-in, etc

Marketing

Design

Reg Social

Reports

Measure

Logistics

The Meeting Planning Process Pyramid

(c) Social Tables, 2014-2016

Site Selection

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The Opportunity of Meeting Design

“[Meeting design presents] one of the

few opportunities to enable meeting

professionals to do more with less...

to reduce costs and increase value.”

MPI report on Meeting Design, 2013

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The Urgency for Meeting Design

Automation Outsourcing Expectations Competition

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“The meetings manager is now far more than an event planner. She now plays a strategic role in the livelihood of the organization, bolstering its current conferences and other events while finding ways to innovate future ones.

Say hello to the new strategic meetings manager.”

2014

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The Framework

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The Process of Meeting Design

1. Select a stakeholder (e.g. client).2. Translate stakeholder’s needs into objectives (e.g. connection =>

networking)3. Select a phase (e.g. before, during, or after)4. Select a classification and element...

a. Programmatic - Destination, agenda, time...b. Conceptual - Format, room layout...c. Human - Facilitators, entertainers, emcees, speakers...d. Artistic - Color, decor...e. Technical - A/V, staging, furniture...

5. Develop design interventions.

MPI report on Meeting Design, 2013; The Meeting Architect’s Manifesto; Social Tables

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● Need: Reconnect with old friends.

● Objective: Network

● Phase: During

● Classification: Programmatic

● Element: Initial introductions

● Intervention: Place old yearbooks at each table

Example: Attending a wedding as a childhood friend

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simulation

Let’s try it as a group

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Refresh Your Org’s Annual Executive Off-site

1. Select a stakeholder (e.g. client).2. Translate stakeholder’s needs into objectives (e.g. connection =>

networking)3. Select a phase (e.g. before, during, or after)4. Select a classification and element...

a. Programmatic - Destination, agenda, time...b. Conceptual - Format, room layout...c. Human - Facilitators, entertainers, emcees, speakers...d. Artistic - Color, decor...e. Technical - A/V, staging, furniture...

5. Develop design interventions.

MPI report on Meeting Design, 2013; The Meeting Architect’s Manifesto; Social Tables

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The Tools

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1. Identify your stakeholders.

2. Map out their influence and interest.

Sta

keho

lder

Ana

lysi

s

Source: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/participation/encouraging-involvement/identify-stakeholders/main

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1. Identify stakeholder

2. Determine a question you have for that stakeholder. (e.g. why should I sponsor the annual sales conference?)

3. What are they thinking, feeling, saying, doing, hearing? The point is to truly understand and empathize with their situation so you can design.

4. Solicit feedback from others.Empa

thy

Map

ping

Source: Gamestorming

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Pur

pose

Iden

tific

atio

n

Source: Marriott’s Meeting Imagined

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1. Identify attendee persona.

2. Simulate their experience from cradle to grave or survey them.

Extending

Exiting

Engaging

Experiencing

Entering

Arriving

Anticipating

Attracting

AnnouncingJo

urne

y M

appi

ng

Source: The 8 Phases of a Successful Event, Maritz

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Alternatives and Innovation in Room Layouts

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“Room set is extremely important to the success of a meeting, and a serious responsibility for the meeting professional to manage.

- Convention Industry Council Manual

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The Form:The General Session

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The Ideal General Session

Flar

ed A

isle

s

Access Lanes

Long Side Setup

Angled Seats

Curved Rows

45° Aisl

e

Source: Radde, Paul. Seating Matters.

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TED Canada (Vancouver Convention Center)

Vancouver Convention Centre, TED

Custom Stadiums

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The Form:Open Spaces

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The Key Elements of Successful Communication

1. Exploration - Interacting with people in many other social groups.

2. Engagement - Interacting with people within your social group.

3. Energy - Interacting with more people overall.

Source: Workspaces That Move People, Harvard Business Review

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PCMA Convening Leaders 2014 (Navy Pier, Chicago)

Functional Art Installations

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“Spaces designed to promote

communication increase the likelihood of

collisions... more collisions create

positive outcomes.”

C2 Montreal (Arsenal)

Source: Workspaces That Move People, Harvard Business Review

@danberger | #TSE2016Sapphire Now (Orange County Convention Center, Orlando)

The Downtown

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The Form:Trade Shows

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Innovation Zones

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The Campus

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Booths as Art Installations

Freeman booth at IAEE Expo! Expo! 2014

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Booths as Museum Exhibits

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The Form:The Breakout

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The Old Way:Banquet

The New Way:Family Style

Out-of-the-Box:Extended Banquet Table / Serpentine Banquet

Small Dinners

Summit Outside

Social Tables Company Dinner, Newseum

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School for American Ballet, Winter Ball 2014

The Old Way:Staggered Ballroom

The New Way:Mixed Seating

Large Dinners

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The Old Way:Conference

The Old Way:U-Shape

The New Way:Hollow Rectangle

Board Meetings

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LearningZone

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The Old Way:High Boys

The New Way:Parisian Cafe Style

Cocktail Receptions

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Networking Reception Session

PTTOW Summit -- Plan To Take On The World (Classified)

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Icebreakers

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Workshops

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Breakouts

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Pre-Cons

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3D walkthroughs of innovative designs

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What does the future of meeting design look like?

Aligned incentives for event success between buyers and suppliers

On-site logistics will be handled by machines and robots.

Content will be crowdsourced or auto-generated.

There will be “smart” furniture in meetings and events

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Wrapping up...

Dan Bergerdan@socialtables.com

@danberger

“If you don’t think about design,someone will think about design for you.”