Over the past two years, the events sector has been hit hard by the consequences of the health crisis. According to the 2020 event barometer, 42% of events were canceled and 33% postponed between September and December 2020. In question, repeated confinements and social distancing measures.
In order to preserve group dynamics and a corporate culture, companies have been forced to rethink the organization of meetings, team buildings and seminars. In times of emerging from the health crisis, corporate event practices have now evolved.
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Corporate events organized face-to-face, but with caution
Telecommuting, physical and social distancing, isolation… Not being able to meet or collaborate as easily as before quickly becomes an obstacle to achieving the objectives set. The priority is therefore to revitalize the teams at all costs, in particular through face-to-face events. These are gradually reappearing on our radars. Seminars, fairs and exhibitions are once again integrated into company calendars. Team buildings are once again part of the daily routine of employees.
However, companies remain very cautious in the face of the situation, which still remains uncertain. They prefer French rather than international destinations to organize their events. Some then plan to carry out their seminar in AngersMarseille or even Strasbourg rather than in Greece or Spain.
In order to organize these events while respecting the health rules that have become part of our daily lives, some companies opt for “small events”. These are team buildings, fairs or seminars that take place in small groups. For companies, it is an opportunity to rebuild events that are more human-oriented, where each employee invited can express their opinion on a situation or the annual results. This responds to a change of prism concerning the success of a company’s projects: no longer just seeing it through figures, but integrating everyone’s feelings. However, this raises the question of whether the “small event” will become the new norm for finding your teams.
Hybrid mode is here to stay
At the same time, certain additional solutions are becoming permanent, such as hybrid events. Concretely, it’s about taking advantage of both worlds by offering an event that is both physical and digital.
There are different formats, starting with broadcast. It consists of organizing a physical event with some of the participants on site and some remotely. Thanks to collaborative communication applications, the organizers can easily integrate them into the conference which takes place live.
Some companies decide instead to turn to live streaming solutions. They offer them the possibility of producing an event in the place of their choice, such as a technical studio or simply their office. Guests can then view the video live or in replay from home, in the same way as a television broadcast. For organizers, it’s a way to easily maintain a relationship with their audience.
Configurations such as the “hub and spoke” are also popular. This consists of setting up a central event at a specific location (the hub), around which several small connected events take place simultaneously (the spokes) in different places. Hub conferences can be made available live in those of the spokes. The creation of a digital version of these events in small groups aims to promote remote interactions.
It should therefore be said that the health crisis has considerably upset the world of events. It has been enriched with numerous tools and solutions facilitating access to meetings, seminars and conferences. For companies, this offers new opportunities to get closer to their audience and strengthen the bond between their teams.