Monday, April 23, 2012

I Am a Hybrid Participant

When the airlines caused a two-day delay in my trip to Montreal for the GMIC Sustainable Meetings Conference, I had no choice but to watch the first day virtually. Unhappy as I am, I decided this was a rare opportunity to attend a conference both virtually and in person, a hybrid participant, if you will.

This morning I watched remotely as Paul Salinger inspired both the live and virtual audiences to "be the leaders who are going to transform the industry." His passion came through loud and clear. While I was watching, I was also tweeting, using the conference app, and generally conversing with those at the event. I felt connected.

Our MeetGreen team is also participating virtually and learning what things we can put in place to make our hybrid events a better experience for virtual participants. This morning we quickly realized there was a significant delay, the buffering was an issue, and when the keynote event event was over there was no transition or information on the screen about upcoming events. Not deal breakers, it was just less comfortable as a virtual participant.

Now I am off to the airport and 8+ hours of travel to the conference where I will attend face to face. How will my experience be different? Stay tuned!

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