The program or learning committee for a conference is growing in importance as a result of the increased focus on generating greater ROI from meetings. In order to achieve innovative learning and engagement strategies for conferences, it is crucial to get the right people involved.The learning committee requires people who question, challenge, and explore what worked, what didn't, and what's possible.
Your first step to engage your learning committee is to make a clear distinction between two important team concepts:
1. The goal is to create a learning strategy.
2. The process is how the group intends to work together effectively to achieve this goal.
The goal is clear: produce a learning strategy for the meeting. Discussing the process helps people contribute effectively. Here are some perspectives to discuss in the first meeting. The aim is to create a climate that is welcoming and inviting for all participants.
Have a conversation as a group about each member's meeting, training, and educational experiences that may be useful. What unique perspective does each person bring to the table?
Have each person talk about one's experiences working on highly effective teams. Ask, "What did these teams have in common?" Notice the words people use. Often they use expressions like:
• People respected each other's ideas.
• People were open and honest.
• People were allowed to bring up different ideas without being criticized.
Pick the most insightful expressions and use them as guidelines for working together. Some groups create a poster of these words as a reminder.
Recognize that people have different styles of problem-solving. Some people are analytical and structured. They prefer to start with what happened last year. Others prefer original ideas. One style is no better than the other. How you manage these differences is what counts.
Create a place on the team for the devil's advocate. While this makes group consensus harder, turn it into an opportunity to improve your ideas and plans.