Do you know the feeling of being pumped up and exhausted at the same time? That is how I feel right now.
The conference I organised with 11 other women was energising and exhausting. 140 women attending and celebrating. And yet a year of preparation is over.
Let me share my experience.
Do you have similar experiences? Reply and share them!
Have a great week and all the best,
Ines
Founder of passion4projects
Doing projects as a volunteer: What's different?
Photo Credit: Olga Vallejo
Organising a conference on site remotely
Situation:
EWMD (European Women's Management & Development Network) celebrated its 40th anniversary. Every year there is an international conference. Usually organised by a local chapter. This time it was in Madrid. But there was no local chapter yet.
The Title: "From Social Circles to Global Systems: Navigating the Connected World"
Task:
To organise a physical event for 150 participants: Get Together on Friday evening; Conference, Gala Dinner and Awards Ceremony on Saturday; Optional Discovery Tours on Sunday.
The aim: to learn, network and celebrate
Activities:
Event organisation activities with a strong focus on finding donors, sponsors and high profile speakers. All of these activities would take place in a professional business environment.
Result:
A very smooth delivery thanks to
An exceptional professional facilitator: Robert Baker
So what was the difference with the volunteer set-up?
The intrinsic motivation of the organising team - and the speakers: no one is forced to participate.
No one meets their annual targets or gets a bonus.
The effort is purposeful. This is a powerful force.
The activities are "on top" of normal business/private and family life. Sometimes "life is too much" and people have to stop or reduce their efforts.
And there is always someone to step in - because of the purpose of EWMD.
It is not a business organisation. Some processes, structures, templates or handovers do not exist. Creativity, agility and the courage to leave a gap are required from the organisational team. Generosity and encouragement are required from the conference participants, as the organising team are not professional, full-time event organisers.
My personal learnings
Being an international association with almost 900 members means
- Cultural differences,
- Diversity of thought and
- Diversity of personalities.
This is the source of innovation, problem solving and personal development.
I have made friends, increased my visibility and improved my intercultural skills.
Now, let me introduce you to the organising team (picture from left to right):
Reader, if you are searching for an international business and professional network: try EWMD (European Women's Management & Development Network) - www.ewmd.org
Try it out. You can participate in multiple online and offline events before joining. If you join any network, I recommend to participate actively.
Why? Because this is the best way to establish trustful networking relationships that last and support you.
Establishing your own network is one of the most important longterm career investment you can do.
It takes times, hence start before you need it!
What's next with passion4projects?
The pre-sales offering is valid until 31st of October. (Monthly Subscription 270.- Euros plus VAT + 1hr of 1:1 coaching. Reply, if you are interested)
From 1st of November, I will start a series of LinkedIn Lives to win new individual clients. The doors close on 11.11.2024
An email campagne will start to win corporate clients with a customised corporate offering.
Project LEADERSHIP Accelerator
Hi, I am Ines Kaps. My clients call me "Queen of Projects". I host regular Crisis Management Bootcamps. Interested?