Deciding to Cancel Part 5: Looking Forward

We have documented how three association executives navigated the difficult decision to cancel their in-person annual conference this spring. In a series of posts, we have shared a number of lessons learned. This final installment offers key recommendations for the future and overarching words of guidance.

Thinking About the Future

• There is consensus that in-person meetings will be different going forward.

• Next year’s meetings will likely be smaller, so consider renegotiating hotel contracts.

• What we are learning about virtual meetings now will help future meetings be more accessible.

• A virtual option should always be part of future contingency plans.

Key Words of Wisdom

• Be open, transparent, and stay connected.

• Be a partner and give people a reason to trust you.

• This is not new. Add lessons learned from this experience to those we learned after 9-11 and the 2009 recession.

• Survey regularly so you have relevant data available in the moment.

• Stretch yourself in designing the new program, but don’t over complicate it.

• Do what is right for your organization. Don’t blindly mimic other groups.

• And most importantly, things change whether you want them to or not.

Many thanks to the following individuals for sharing their experiences.

• Shawn Boynes, FASAE, CAE, executive director, American Association for Anatomy

• Tom Menighan, BPharm, MBA, ScD(hon), executive vice president and CEO, American Pharmacists Association

• Chris Urena, MBA, CAE, chief learning officer, Endocrine Society

For additional insights, see the full article.