What are the most effective ways to help your team learn from conference speakers?

1 Set clear goals

Before you register your team for a conference, you should have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and learn from the speakers. Do you want to gain new insights, skills, or perspectives on a specific topic or challenge? Do you want to find out about the latest innovations, tools, or solutions in your field? Do you want to get inspired, motivated, or challenged by the speakers? Setting clear goals will help you choose the right speakers to attend and prepare your team for the conference.

2 Plan ahead

Once you have selected the speakers that match your goals, you should plan ahead and do some research on them. You can check their websites, social media, blogs, podcasts, books, or previous presentations to get a sense of their style, expertise, and main messages. You can also prepare some questions that you or your team members can ask them during or after their sessions. Planning ahead will help you and your team get more familiar with the speakers and their topics, and make the most of the conference time.

3 Engage actively

During the conference, you should encourage your team to engage actively with the speakers. This means listening attentively, taking notes, asking questions, sharing feedback, and participating in discussions or activities. You should also remind your team to exchange contact information with the speakers they find interesting or helpful, and follow up with them after the conference. Engaging actively will help your team deepen their learning, build relationships, and apply the knowledge they gain from the speakers.

4 Reflect and share

After the conference, you should facilitate a reflection and sharing session with your team. You can ask your team members to share their key takeaways, insights, or learnings from the speakers they attended. You can also ask them to reflect on how they can use or implement what they learned in their work or personal development. You can also create a summary or a report of the main points and action steps from the speakers, and share it with your team and other stakeholders. Reflecting and sharing will help your team consolidate their learning, reinforce their motivation, and measure their progress.

5 Keep learning

Finally, you should help your team keep learning from the conference speakers after the event. You can do this by providing them with access to the speaker's materials, such as slides, videos, podcasts, or articles. You can also encourage them to follow the speaker's updates, join their communities, or sign up for their newsletters or courses. You can also organize regular follow-up sessions with your team to review, discuss, or practice what they learned from the speakers. Keeping learning will help your team sustain their interest, update their skills, and achieve their goals.