Thanks again to all of you who were able to join us for our very first Virtual Annual Meeting a few weeks ago.
Given the current situation with COVID-19 and all the social distancing restrictions, this was one of the very few opportunities for us all to get together in 2020, and we’re really pleased to have seen hundreds of familiar faces on our screens over those three days in November.
Feedback following the event has been fantastic and it’s great that so many of you enjoyed our selection of speakers and presentations – and found our new meeting platform intuitive and easy to use.
The analysis from Fox News’ political pundit Chris Stirewalt on the outcome of the election proved particularly popular, with his take on what to expect in the months ahead encouraging some great debate and discussion.
We were also lucky enough to welcome back ITR Economics’ Brian Beaulieu and, as ever, he received glowing reviews. Despite all the doom and gloom we’re seeing at the moment, he was able to provide a pretty upbeat and encouraging assessment that suggested we’re already on the road to recovery.
Another highlight was Jeanne Meister’s session on the impact of coronavirus on the workplace, which highlighted just how much change we’ve had to endure this year.
We thought it important to include a session that was particularly pertinent to what we're all dealing with right now, and she offered some useful insight on new approaches to learning, managing teams, and how best to operate effectively during these tough times.
We also recognized how much everyone was missing the in-person networking opportunities this year, so we were pleased that we were able to capture some of that experience through our live Zoom chats after each session.
Throughout the event, attendees were able to visit our online Business Marketplace and browse vendors’ virtual tables to discover their latest products and services, and download brochures and assets. It was great to see some booths attracting 20-30 people at any given time, and we hope to build on this innovative feature in the future.
Next year, we’re hoping to return to an in-person event in Florida from November 8-11, 2021 – and we’ve already secured our first keynote speaker. We’ll update you with more details over the coming months
Here’s to a successful and happy year ahead. We look forward to hopefully seeing you all again soon.
Take a look at our latest e-newsletter to read about some of the highlights from this year’s meeting: https://bit.ly/NACDNov20
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