The IoD Annual Convention 2013: My review and thoughts for the future

30 September, 2013

With an impressive line-up of speakers that included Boris Johnson, Richard Branson and George Osbourne, the 2013 IoD Annual Convention promised great things.  Did it deliver? Read on for my review and highlights of the event, which took place on Wednesday 18 September at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

Firstly, the venue. The IoD Annual Convention has a 60-year historical legacy, and is described as “the UK’s premier business conference”. The Royal Albert Hall, opened in 1871 to fulfil Prince Albert’s vision for learning, and perhaps best known for hosting the annual proms – was a fitting choice.

Anyone who has been to the Royal Albert Hall will understand what an incredible space it is. It was the first time I’d been to the RAH so it was a real pleasure to visit. However, theatre seats are designed for shows with intervals, and after 3+ hours in the seat without a break, I was definitely ready to stretch my legs!

While the exclusive programme set expectations high, I thought the speakers were a real mixed bag. Even though he was over half an hour late, Boris Johnson was amazing, really inspiring. In contrast, although I was expecting the same from Richard Branson, many of my colleagues thought his talk fell a little flat in comparison.

Unsurprisingly for a digital technology guy like myself, the real highlights for me were Joanna Shields, the CEO of Tech City who has been “tasked with turning London into a digital supercity,” and Dan Cobley, MD at Google UK & Ireland, who demonstrated the Google ‘Project Glass’ augmented reality glasses I talked about last year.

Another conversation piece for the day was IoD goody bag, which contained probably the poshest lunch box I have ever seen!

Not only was Champagne for lunch a nice touch, when I stepped outside the hall at lunchtime, I was greeted by what I thought looked like an orchestra about to play (what do you think?).

Not so, it was the IoD crowd sitting eating their lunch!  Whether intentional or not, it was a spectacle to behold!

As a committee member in Yorkshire, I am really interested in how the organisation engages with its members. And as a digital and social media specialist, I am particularly interested in how it combines offline with online.

Credit to the IoD (@The_IoD) their Twitter feed was hot all day, and they took time to post regular updates throughout using the #iodac hashtag. And during the conference itself, top tweets were posted live via the onstage screen (see if you can spot one of mine below).

The IoD also hosted a live video feed so those who couldn’t travel could follow the event. However, it seems not many people knew about the feed, which is a shame.

In IoD Yorkshire, there is a huge following on LinkedIn. I think there is definite untapped potential on this platform for the IoD to engage with members further – not just for promoting and discussing the annual convention, but for year-round communications. A significant (and growing) percentage of my new business now comes through LinkedIn, so I’m going to talk about how to make the most of LinkedIn for new business in a future blog.

In summary then, did the event fulfil expectations? I say credit where it’s due, the IoD got some phenomenal speakers. My top two were Boris and Joanna. There are always going to be some that certain people are less interested in. And whilst the location is less convenient for northerners, it is certainly prestigious – how often do you get to go to the Royal Albert Hall!

Did I get any silver bullets? Yes I did. The event made me reflect on my own business and made me think outside the box, which is always good.

I hope to see IoD build on the success of its Twitter feed and continue to engage more with members thorough platforms such as LinkedIn. For events, this could also include direct questions with the speakers or a more facilitated way to network.

And finally…  So, you might be wondering how I managed to get a picture with Boris? Well, the answer is simple. Being a Northerner down in London, I thought I’d make the most of the trip to our nation’s capital and make a weekend of it. I caught up with Boris during my visit to Madame Tussauds!

I am really interested to hear more people’s views of the IoD 2013 Annual convention, and my comments – good or bad. Did you achieve anything by going? Did you learn anything? How was your lunch?

Keep talking! Please use the comments box below.

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