THE PANEL
Jill Fleming director, Absolute Corporate Events
Rachel Hargrave director, The Phoenix Partners
Haralambos Stavrou director, Beyond Certainty
David Waldman managing director, Five Hats
What are the main objectives of a seminar?
Rachel Hargrave Its purpose is usually about exchanging information in a way that stays with participants and influences their behaviour.
David Waldman To educate and facilitate a discussion between smaller and more intimate groups of people.
Haralambos Stavrou The main objectives are to deliver the appropriate information to the relevant delegates and ensure that the information conveyed during that meeting is clearly retained long after the event.
Jill Fleming It should be considered as a forum for discussion rather than simply a meeting for a company to deliver a series of messages. Increasingly, you also have to think about other elements such as team-building or an incentive.
How do you measure the effectiveness of a seminar?
RH We measure return on investment. This is done by comparing the original objectives of the seminar to what the delegates have learned.
DW Measurements can span anything from the levels of staff retention or a noticeable improvement in customer service to a more highly motivated and better trained workforce.
JF Measuring seminar effectiveness is mainly done by feedback. Through a careful line of questioning, you're essentially looking to find out from delegates if they are clear on what just happened and ensure they are taking certain messages back to the workplace.
How have seminars changed in the past decade?
DW The focus on measurability is greater than ever before, particularly in this climate of economic uncertainty. Now you are crucial to ensuring that business objectives are clearly delivered and absorbed by those in attendance.
HS Seminars have almost certainly become a lot shorter. Many meetings that once used to be two days long can now be compressed into half a day. This is partially because people have learned to be more specific and disciplined in their content, rather than trying to cover off everything. But its also driven by the fact that time has become a more precious commodity.
JF Everyone's a bit more cost-conscious, and therefore needs to see the whole return on investment for the budget they are handling. Consequently you can't just decide to send 50 people off to Gleneagles without being prepared to justify every part of that decision to a board.
RH They've become a lot more interactive and receptive to the way different people absorb information. You're continually looking at ways of stimulating people's attention, and sessions tend to be contributory rather than didactic.
What does the future hold for seminars?
DW Industries such as pharmaceutical, medical, technical or engineering require a stream of seminars to educate their users, and that is unlikely to change dramatically, even in the toughest economic conditions.
RH Overall, you're likely to see more standard seminars being run in-house. Event agencies will only be deployed for content purposes, particularly if there are more strategic objectives to deliver. Seminars generally could see a decline.
HS Seminars will continue as a critical component of corporate business, but are likely to be more infrequent. Technology is also improving rapidly, so expect video-conferencing to pose a more serious challenge than it has.
JF Multinational companies will embrace video conferencing faster, particularly now that technology has improved and costs have fallen. But if it's genuine interaction you're looking for, there's nothing that can beat bringing people together face-to-face.
How will the credit crunch change or affect seminars?
DW The event management industry can only keep its fingers crossed. In difficult trading conditions it is more important than ever that organisations continue to communicate with staff, stakeholders and customers.
JF Some clients are already tightening their belts. When companies fall on hard times, events are often the first thing to go, primarily because companies can't be seen taking their remaining staff to Alton Towers for the weekend after shedding a load of jobs. We need to ensure that agencies, along with hotels and suppliers, are giving clients the best service and rates as possible to make the task of justifying their decisions as easy as possible.
RH Again, straightforward training seminars are more likely to be held in-house. External support will be deployed when there's a bigger subject or more complicated message than the typical in-house team can deliver.
What are the biggest challenges in creating seminars?
DW Ensuring that you've agreed all the key objectives and success indicators from clients as early on as possible. Otherwise you find yourself constantly having to second guess whether your event is meeting the criteria of your audience.
RH Ensuring the correct content and delivery so that delegates are engaged from start to finish. This is still a particular problem with old-fashioned seminars that push information at delegates without considering whether it's interesting or directly relevant to its audience or if it can be delivered in a way that is likely to have a larger and more long-lasting impact.
HS Achieving attendance and the so-called bums on seats syndrome. Seminars tend to be more exclusive than other conferences and congresses, so in some cases the cost per head can be a lot higher.
JF Making sure that there is enough unique content in a seminar to warrant taking people out of the office for one or two days. There's no point going through all the logistics if you're just set to deliver a 40-minute speech from the chairman of the company.
If you had an unlimited budget what would you include in your dream seminar?
HS I'd have a spontaneous global seminar taking place across several territories at once. I would invite some of the world's most thought-provoking speakers such as Apple's Steve Jobs or US President Elect Barack Obama.
JF It's important to make people feel valued, as well as have their undivided attention, during a seminar. You also don't want them popping off for sightseeing during the breakouts, so it's important to choose a fairly remote location.
RH It depends on the company involved and the type of message that you're aiming to communicate. An important factor of holding a seminar is not just about getting people in a room to engage with a message, but actually creating a community as well. For that reason, I would probably incorporate a motivational or team-building element into the itinerary either before or after the meeting.
EXPERTS' CHOICE
Our seminars club reveal their favourite venues and suppliers for producing the perfect event.
VENUES
Jill Fleming
The Dorchester
East Midlands Conference Centre;
Concorde, Berlin;
Don Carlos, Marbella;
Swissotel, Istanbul
Rachel Hargrave
Hotel du Vin;
Malmaison Hotel
Mercedez-Benz World;
The Ritz
Wyboston Lakes
Haralambos Stavrou
The Dorchester
Music Room;
Floridita;
The Roof Gardens
The Landmark Hotel
Marriott County Hall
David Waldman
The Caesar Park Hotel, Buenos Aires;
The Grove
Hotel Crowne Plaza Geneva;
Intercontinental Hotel Athens;
Pullman Berlin Schweizerhof
SUPPLIERS
Jill Fleming
Crystal Interactive
Rachel Hargrave
ATC Productions;
Hawthorn
KB Events;
Mac & White;
Pro Stage