11:00–11:15 AM

Attendee Login Window

Please login and start to explore the online conference site and resources. Attendees will receive login directions via email, and a moderator and technical support team will be available to help troubleshoot if needed.

11:15–11:45

Welcome and Introductions

Join conference leadership to meet the faculty, review conference highlights and learn how to make the most out of our time together.

11:45 AM–12:45 PM

Faculty Panel and Facilitated Conversation: Leadership in Times of Crisis

With everything going on, creative and innovative leaders – at all levels – are integral to moving our institutions forward. Hear from our faculty leadership team how their shops are adapting, and how you can best positively impact and support your team, no matter your role, during times of crisis and beyond.

12:45–1:15

Resources Break

Use this time to move around a bit, catch up on work, or continue learning by watching a quick lighting talk, checking out resources in the library or connecting with attendees and speakers in the live chat.

1:15–2:15

Elective Sessions  

Attendees can choose to attend one of two available elective sessions to engage with in a live format. All sessions will be recorded and can be viewed later.  

• Establishing New Events in a Year of Budget Cuts
  
  Before there was a pandemic and the need to increase virtual engagement and opportunities, there were budget cuts. With the challenges of today, programming budget cuts are likely to continue happening as we all rush to maintain alumni communities and relevance. Alumni associations and programs across the country will continue to be charged with increasing participation among a more diverse group of alumni (region, age, background, etc.) despite budgetary limitations. Join us as we walk through specific examples of low-cost, high impact events, share strategies for enhancing your budgeting skills, and provide a platform for our participants to share and discuss their experiences among one another. 
• Reframe: Event Strategy for a New Reality
  
  The past few months provided unprecedented disruption for the event industry and the landscape in the coming year is filled with uncertainty. More than ever, our teams need a solid strategy to guide next steps for engaging with alumni and donors. Do we create a virtual experience, replace it with a communication piece or retire the event altogether? In this session, we’ll provide a road map for re-centering on your event’s purpose and leveraging performance metrics to determine if, when and how the execution of that purpose can be re-imagined.

2:15–2:30 

Stretch Break

2:30–3:30

Open Forum Conversations 

Join your peers from other institutions for a faculty facilitated small group conversation based on event type (i.e. alumni events, development/campaign, university-wide). Learn how other institutions have pivoted in response to this crisis, and what they are planning for the future.  

3:30–4:15 

Optional Networking Happy Hour

Pour yourself a cocktail (or mocktail) and meet virtually with conference attendees and faculty members. 

 

11:00–11:45 AM

Breakout Conversations and Day 2 Welcome  

Bring your breakfast or lunch and connect with attendees in small groups based on your professional experience level. Each group will receive discussion prompts and will be encouraged to participate in the conversation on timely topics impacting our industry. This is a great time to connect with peers to share best practices, ideas and support.

11:45–12:45 

Elective Sessions

Attendees can choose to attend one of two available elective sessions to engage with in a live format. All sessions will be recorded and can be viewed later. 

• There’s No “I” in Team: Building Strategic Partnerships in Advancement
  
  Events bring new meaning to the word collaboration. Whether virtual, in-person, large or small, these complex operations require the support of all areas in an advancement team. Current remote work can further perpetuate existing organizational silos at an institution and create barriers for more meaningful, effective, and efficient events. Join us for an active dialogue about why there is no “I” in team. You’ll leave with techniques for building strategic relationships with colleagues across advancement and your institution that can foster ingenuity in your current environment and beyond, enhance efficiency of operations, and provide tools to position yourself as a leader in your organization.
• Taking your Seat at the Table: From Cost Center to Center of Influence 

  The past few months have taught us just how resilient, flexible and vital we event planners are in making and maintaining connections with our most important audiences. Let’s explore together how you can redefine your relevance during this time including 1) What it means to pivot; 2) How becoming a subject matter expert makes you a better team player; 3) When physical distance helps break through boundaries; 4) Why it’s no longer scary to try something new; 5) Who is at the expanded events table now.

12:45–1:15

Resources Break

Use this time to move around a bit, catch up on work, or continue learning by watching a quick lighting talk, checking out resources in the library or connecting with attendees and speakers in the live chat.

1:15–2:15

Elective Sessions

Attendees can choose to attend one of two available elective sessions to engage with in a live format. All sessions will be recorded and can be viewed later. 

• Capturing Center Stage (or Screen): Speaker management and scripting in a new era
  
  Speakers: Mark Kelly and Kate Potterfield
  
  
  
  In this session, participants will learn the importance of disciplined scripting and speaker management as critical tools for enhancing special events--particularly as more events move online in the wake of COVID-19.
  
  
  
  The spoken word--whether from the stage or through a digital screen--can be an essential strategy for building your institution’s brand, establishing your speakers as thought leaders, and providing your audience with a meaningful, memorable experience. Recognizing the rapidly changing nature of special events today, this will be a highly interactive session where presenters and participants alike can share best practices and experiences. You will leave with actionable steps to strengthen the engagement of your audience and effective tools for working with speakers and speechwriters before, during, and after your event, with a special focus on virtual events. 
• Why It’s Time to Embrace Storytelling as the New Event Medium
  
  Stories have the power to captivate us, to transport us to far off places, and to inspire us to become more of who we are meant to be. They also help us craft a human experience to make meaning and find shared purpose. With the prevalence of social media and ubiquity of technology, every institution has the capability to create and share compelling stories. While some have embraced this popular event format, very few understand how to properly execute it in a way that elevates the event experience and allows for deeper engagement. Attendees will learn how to incorporate storytelling into their virtual engagement plans, programmatic portfolios and event efforts, ranging from effective promotion campaigns to simply creating more engaging events and webinars.

2:15–2:30    

Stretch Break

2:30–3:45

Faculty Panel and Facilitated Conversation: The Future of Connection in Uncertain Times

Events are all about bringing people together and fostering a sense of connection, but what does that look like in a world where face-to-face interactions are not a safe option? This future-focused conversation between faculty and attendees will bring together many of the content threads from the program to help set you up for success for what comes next.