Oliver Austermann’s Post

Back home following a fantastic couple of days at the simplycommunicate #SimplyEXP conference 🔥 Bundles of notes, stacks of insights and I genuinely believe you never ever regret taking a step back to share your thoughts, meet like-minded individuals and top up your creative battery 🔋 💡 ⚡ Over the two days, there was a lot of commentary on AI, digital channels and hybrid working (you cannot ignore it and there is so much value in all of these areas). But what resonated most with me and can be seen across everyone's posts on the event was how much we all respond to human interactions. That's what I'll be taking away above all else. Remembering that as communicators our people and audiences are our most important stakeholders and assets within our organisation. Amidst all the noise, how can we support our people, communicate in a human way and make things easy. We heard how important it is to listen; really listen. Understand what it is that motivates our people and what it is they need to thrive in their role. If we can understand this and find ways to enable it, this is how we drive most value for our organisations. Huge shout out as well to the fabulous hosts Sonya Poonian and Joanna Parsons FIIC 🎙 👏 #internalcommunications #employeecommunications #employeeexperience #peopleandculture

Having trouble getting useful feedback from surveys? Leverage people's authentic perspectives by getting their actual experiences about their work and life. Accelerate your organization's successes with Active Sensemaking by gaining strategic insights from your people. Every voice matters in your organization because every day every person influences what happens. The problem with standard research is people don’t get to say what they need to say the way they need to say it. Hidden information - like things that are dangerous or seem unimportant to tell - can have profound effects on how your organization functions. The reality is that people use what they understand to do their work – and that always drives how your organization performs. Authentic stories point to barriers, conflicts, opportunities, and innovations. Knowing these things can help solve intractable problems and unlock performance enhancements. Learn about using our Active Sensemaking tools with Spryng.io. Attend a hands-on, interactive exploration of Active Sensemaking with Spryng.io. We offer two event options available below. Act quickly because only a few seats remain! This free event has ONE seat available tomorrow, Monday, November 8, 2023, from 10 AM to 12 Noon EST https://lnkd.in/gUEWTKZs or two seats are available on Thursday, November 13, 2023, from 6 PM to 8 PM EST https://lnkd.in/gQ2XagM3 Active Sensemaking is a powerful method that makes it possible to capture the unique individual voices within an organization. And at the same time uncover the larger patterns experienced by and influenced by people to gain wisdom to advance your organization. https://www.spryng.io/ Tags: #OrganizationalDevelopment #Complexity #Ethnography #Innovation #Facilitation #SystemsThinking #DesignThinking #Agile #QualitativeResearch #Facilitation #ChangeManagement

Are you a Certified Meeting Disruptor? Gatherings are my passion... but not conventional gatherings. I am a disruptor. An experimenter. An innovator. As you can tell from this photo... My articles always critique the norm, because the norm is dangerous. It feels comfortable and safe. But in the long-run, it sabotages your progress. As an ode to changing 'gathering norms' I have launched a new project. CERTIFIED MEETING DISRUPTOR is the most radical newsletter for meeting pros on the internet. I'll dive in to my favorite tools and questions revolving gathering design. How we can break the norm and create higher standards. I am excited for you to join me, suggest topics, and disagree with me. Comment below and I'll make sure you're subscribed!

This is what Applied Predictive Intelligence can bring to the table when it comes to any kind of future oriented predictive works. We are grateful to be able to demonstrate our unique added-value through so valuable cooperations with some of the globally leading faculties and scientists such as Uwe Seebacher. Find in his recent post an outlook for 2024 on what event management and organization need to focus on for staying on top and ahead of the market in this so important but complex business.

These are our 2024 Ins + Outs in the Creative and Corporate Events Industry: In - Intentional, personalized attendee + client experience - Using a creative process to drive your best thinking, consistency and results - AI - Including suppliers in key conversations - Applying a strategic mindset (everyone, at every turn) - Creative team development. Pro tip: invest in tech or conferences for your team Out - Leaving experts, like creative teams, out of client conversations - Reactive approach to sustainability and DEI - Rinse and repeat approach to planning - Chasing trends - Rushed, last minute mentality (one can hope, right?) Drop your Ins + Outs for this year in the comments below! #DesignThinkingProcess #ClientExperience #2024InsandOuts #EventProfs #CorporateEvents #MeetingsAndEvents #2024Trends #EventTrends #IndustryTrends

The Art of Co-Facilitation: Crafting Impactful Workshops Together 🤝 In just 2 weeks, I'm thrilled to be heading back to an innovation lab near Berlin to co-facilitate a workshop with my brilliant colleague, Maria Wichmann. We had a blast last year with this group and I’m buzzing with excitement to see them again. But what really goes into being great co-facilitators? Key elements of our co-facilitation approach include: 👉🏻 deciding who is the leading facilitator, 👉🏻 having a clear view of who is doing what, 👉🏻 defining a timeline: what needs to be done when, 👉🏻 finding the right way to communicate together live and asynchronously. Here’s what we did so far: Our first step was aligning on the workshop’s purpose. Maria gathered the initial details - the what, when, and who. From there, we backtracked our planning to the present, ensuring every base is covered. We're big on understanding the needs of the group. That’s why we decided to interview a third of the participants. Maria set up a Miro board with interview questions, and I chimed in with my thoughts. Then, we split the interviews between us, documenting everything on the same board for consistency. Just yesterday, we reconvened to sift through our findings. Next up? Maria's sending out a survey to the entire group. This step is crucial – it gives us a clear picture of the topics and issues that need our focus. Soon, we’ll start crafting the session itself. I'll keep you posted on our journey as we shape this workshop. 🌟 Why I Love Co-Facilitation Working with Maria is a reminder of how complementing each other's strengths can lead to something truly special. It's a partnership where 1+1 equals way more than 2!   I’d love to hear from you! Share your experiences on co-facilitating a workshop #facilitatorsconnect #WorkshopDesign #Teamwork #InnovationLab #Facilitation

Is Your Event Team Suffering from the 'Frankenstein Syndrome'? Let me unpack this. Recently, I had a revealing chat with a program director overseeing 70+ events annually. Her struggle? Despite leveraging cutting-edge technology, her team was drowning in a sea of multiple platforms, tangled in data silos, and constantly adapting to ever-changing event-specific tech systems. In her words, "It's like we've created Frankenstein and now we're exhausting ourselves trying to maintain it." This conversation was a wake-up call. It's a story resonating across the industry. The efforts to innovate are ironically undermining efficiency and team morale. The fear of Reimagining As we focused into reprioritizing and momentarily escaping this nightmare she's living, a vision for a calmer and empowering future started to emerge (with its own set of fears and uncertainties). The thought of change is paralizing, but what would be possible with a system that supports and promotes efficiency, requires less energy and can actually empower the team? If that were posible, would the painful and scary transition be worth it? The alternative was the same gloomy scenario that she knew now dreads. Key Lessons for Event Teams and Leaders: 1. Purpose Over Passion: Our enthusiasm for the latest tech must be balanced with its long-term impact on workflow and user experience. 2. Ongoing Maintenance Insight: Understanding the maintenance demands of a platform is crucial. Is the initial effort worth the long-term benefit? 3. Strength in Simplicity: A unified platform might lack frills but can significantly enhance user experience and outcomes. Looking Ahead to 2024 With event activity expected to surge in 2024, the question stands: How are you preparing your teams and tech to deliver consistent results without becoming daily caretakers of a complex, demanding system? Drop me a DM to explore how you can transform your event management experience. Change doesn't have to be painful, it can also be an energizing adventure! #EventManagement #TechIntegration #SimplifyYourTech #FutureOfEvents #InnovationWithoutComplication

🌟 2024 Agenda Setting Topics for Event Managers 🌟 In the context of many meetings and talks with executives and managers on what will be essential in 2024, where I bring in my expertise from the specialized field of methods and structural sciences and predictive intelligence (thanks to the great PREDICTORES.AI team for their support and unique multi-level AI), I realize the enormous need for methodical and structural science based input. Thus, I am more than happy to assist with this competence and I'm excited to share key topics that will shape our operational agenda in the upcoming year. 👉 Today I am excited to share the 4 core areas for event managers and organizers that they should have stringently on their agenda. The attached document provides all information. 💡 And due to the many feedbacks and questions from my community on what to specially focus on in 2024, we decided to invite you to write me for your own very special free-of-cost 2024 agenda. Find all infos in the PDF at the end of this post. Stay tuned for comprehensive insights and practical strategies on each of these crucial topics. We are embarking on a journey towards an innovative and resilient future in structural science, and I look forward to leading and collaborating on these pioneering initiatives. 🚀 #2024planning #2024trends #2024predictions #2024events #2024strategy #2024outlook #2024success #eventmanagement #eventorganizer #eventorganizers #methods #methodsciences #structuralsciences #uweseebacher

Oufff... I can't believe I'm answering those questions...!!! How many times should I repeat the same answers to different people??!!!! These tasks seem to be eating up so much of our time, and there's a simple solution: AUTOMATION!! We're well aware of the overwhelming stress that event teams often experience, and one way to assist them is by automating those repetitive duties, like answering common questions. I can recall a particular event where an attendee arrived with a baby, which, of course, wasn't in accordance with the policies. She had to wait for her husband to arrive and take the baby so she could gain access. We've encountered queries such as "Can I bring my dog to the event?" or "Can I attend without prior registration?" – the list seems endless. Thanks to the wonders of AI, we can now automate the process of responding to such inquiries, ensuring that information is readily accessible. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on the very last page of your website may hold some answers, but let's be honest, once the list goes past ten questions, it becomes quite exasperating. We can't expect individuals to sift through a list of fifty questions, hoping to find a solution to their specific query. It's high time we shake up the event industry by simplifying and ensuring attendees have the information they need right at their fingertips. No more repetitive questions and no more overburdened event teams. The essence of event planning is about crafting unforgettable experiences. Automation is the answer, and collectively, we can render events more seamless, enjoyable, and free from stress. #EventAutomation #SimplifiedEvents #AIinEventManagement #EventTech #FAQSolutions #StressFreeEventPlanning #eventprofs #eventorganisers

📢 Join us for Thursday Office Talks! 🚀 Where creativity ignites action, and ideas carve the path for improvement. Let's brainstorm, innovate, and make progress together! 💡 #ThursdayOfficeTalks #CreativityInAction #IdeasIntoAction #InnovationHub #TeamCollaboration #ContinuousImprovement"