Abi Courage

This paper explores the creative spontaneity that liminal spaces and unstructured social interactions create at conferences, leading the paper to suggest that conferences need to remain a live event. My recommendations and findings focussed on making the in-person conference into an experience and networking opportunity that people won’t replicate from their laptops, and instead emphasise the concept of ‘softer productivity’. It was recommended to ensure people’s mental health and wellbeing isn’t interrupted by 3 days of content heavy lecture style learning, and a wine and pastry filled conference leaving delegates feeling unhealthy and mentally exhausted. While we mustn’t discount the upcoming trend of hybrid and online events, we must aim to create the in-person experience like we’ve never done before and remember that as event managers, we are the architects of experience and that in the MICE industry, experience and social interaction is what drives creativity and business success