This post is part of the HopSkip Planner Spotlight Series where HopSkip spotlight's planners across the industry to bring awareness of how they adapted to COVID-19, communicating and lessons learned and sharing how they are viewing the meetings and events industry in a post-pandemic world.
Name: Dana Drury
Company Name: Genentech
Job Title: Meeting Manager
Years of Experience: 23
How do you think you are positioned, after months of persevering with the pandemic, to take advantage of our new and disrupted meetings/events landscape?
I think that the planners in my department are well positioned to be able to pivot between virtual and hybrid meetings.
As our community moves forward with planning in person meetings, what new technologies or processes are you implementing that you may have not looked at before?
IHP Daily Health Screening, Print on demand badge registration (with hand sanitizer and wipes to wipe down stations), CDCCOVID Data Tracker https://covid.cdc.gov/.
As we see virtual meetings transition back to face to face, hybrid meetings are beginning to be the vehicle to return to normalcy. What are your thoughts on hybrid meetings versus traditional fully in person meetings?
I think that hybrid meetings are the perfect way to ensure that all attendees are able to participate in the meeting regardless of their travel preference. The trick is finding ways to keep the virtual attendees engaged. Maximize time for in-person attendees while being mindful of screen fatigue for virtual attendees
In your opinion, what do you think the biggest value for your attendees is in regards to returning to live events?
I think the biggest value is the connections made by being in the same room as your colleagues.
As the pandemic fades away and we return to face-to-face events what do you hope changes, either for planners or hoteliers, in the traditional RFP and proposal process as a result of all of the learnings from the last 20+ months?
I would hope with hotels, there is a focus on sustainability and more flexibility with holding and/or changing dates.
This post is part of the HopSkip Planner Spotlight Series where HopSkip spotlight's planners across the industry to bring awareness of how they adapted to COVID-19, communicating and lessons learned and sharing how they are viewing the meetings and events industry in a post-pandemic world.