22
Learning at Exhibitions
Insight
It all starts before
the event....
1. Get together with your team,
manager, and colleagues and set
some objectives. Then go through
The World of Learning Conference & Exhibition 2008
the conference agenda and decide
which of the sessions meet your make sure you ask that question.
proverb goes and so this process will
requirements. I often criticise Believe me, as a speaker, there is
help you, as well as generating some
performance appraisal meetings nothing worse than asking for the
new thinking in your organisation.
where the development part of the first question and seeing everyone

discussion comes down to pushing find their knees very interesting for
Being the kind of learner I am, with a
a menu of courses across a desk fear of catching the presenter’s eye.
preference for reflection, I find conferences
and asking the appraisee what they You’d help the whole session go well
and exhibitions incredibly stimulating
want to do. Isn’t going through the if you’re first in with a question.
places to get the creative juices flowing. I
conference agenda without some
rarely find complete solutions there – nor
clarity of what you want to achieve 6. Ask questions about what didn’t go so
do I expect to. Every organisation has
pretty much the same thing? well. There’s a lot of learning in other
unique people, cultures and situations
people’s mistakes and often event
to deal with so a straight transfer of an
2. Agree a cascade process and sharing speakers present only the positive
initiative rarely works. But what I do often
of what you have learned and heard. sides of their projects. Root around in
get is the glittering basket of shiny new
You are a delegate – ie, delegated the “what would you do differently”
ideas that can be combined in different
by your organisation to attend on bucket and you will unearth a few
ways to achieve different outcomes. It may
their behalf. Have a plan for how you learning gems.
be the way a speaker explained something
will tell people back at base about
that resonates with me, it may be a way
what you did before you go. It will 7. Talk to other delegates. Make a point
of gaining organisational support for an
sharpen your listening, ensure you ask of speaking to others who are at
initiative, it may be a problem addressed
clarification questions and ensure that the events who are from different
from a completely different perspective
you get – and use – the handouts, businesses, industries or sectors.
to my own. From the small to the life
presentations and supporting Everyone wears a badge to help out so
changing, conferences and the people who
information after the event. don’t waste the opportunity of being
attend them are full of new ideas.
with so many others from your field by
3. Split up! If you are coming with only talking to the people you shared
One other tip. If a colleague from your
colleagues, don’t all go to the same a car with.
organisation regularly approaches new
sessions but fan out and increase the
ideas or suggestions with a frown and
coverage of whats on offer. 8. Give feedback. If you’ve enjoyed
a “we tried that in 1984 and it didn’t
a session, let people know. If you
work...” or a “yes, but that’s OK for them
4. Don’t go to sessions you could be thought a speaker started advertising
they don’t have our rubbish budgets/
running yourself. There’s a great their services, or was dull, or not
horrible customers/staff with three
tendency to go to sessions that are speaking to the published agenda,
heads”, then do us all a favour and send
about our own areas of expertise or any other problem, let the
them somewhere else: I understand
simply to see what other people are organisers know. In fact make
Birmingham has many fabulous shopping
doing and to feel good about the contact with the organisers and give
opportunities in the run up to Christmas.
fact that we are more advanced than them feedback direct – it helps build
See you at the NEC.
others in the field. You may have a better conference next time. Having
issues about your own activities and an audience of critical friends is
want to benchmark your approach really useful to organisers and
or seek new inspiration. These are speakers alike.
Robin Hoyle is a writer and senior partner
acceptable reasons to stay in your in independent consultancy Learnworks.
comfort zone, but unless that’s why 9. Finally, follow through on your
He has worked in training for over
you’ve chosen a session about your cascade plan and share what you
20 years – specialising in materials
development for large scale development
own area of specialism, go to new have learned. Tell people back at
programmes. Robin will be judging in
things that provide fresh challenges. base what you did, new ideas you
this year’s World of Learning Awards and
heard and exciting examples and speaking on ‘Innovative approaches to
5. Plan the questions you want to case studies you learned about from
L&D’ at the World of Learning Conference
ask in advance. If you have come other industries and organisations. ‘To
on 19 November at 11:15 – 12:15. Email
robin@learnworks.net
to a session with a clear objective teach is to learn twice’ as the Russian
learningmagazine.co.uk
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