Conference season is upon us, and, as I do annually, I am attending a slew of events, forums, panels, and think tanks. This conference season I am thrilled by the changes I am seeing across the events space that are inclusive and promote women (shout out to CommBank’s new initiative Women in Focus), but I am still troubled by the research that fills my news feed.
Did you know there are more men named Peter in top roles in Australia’s largest 200 companies than there are women? Did you know that the odds of a full panel of men speaking at a conference “randomly” are actually astronomically high? And yet we see it all the time.
These statistics about women in leadership and the opportunity we have to occupy visible spaces are also mirrored in our not-for-profit/association sector even though almost 73% of not-for-profit staff are female.
So, with all of this in mind, the Associations Forum National Conference (AFNC17) is just around the corner and Aptify is proud to be hosting the Learning Labs where 9 of our 15 speakers are women. And here are some of the other not-to-be-missed sessions presented by women at AFNC2017.
1. Engaging Members: The Life Blood of an Association
Monday, 17 July – 11 am
Dion Pretorius, Communications and Engagement Manager, Science & Technology Australia
Margot Smith, General Manager Engagement & Marketing, Australian Institute of Management
Sue-Ann Fresneda, Director Business Development and Membership, Master Builders Association Queensland
Panel Chair: Carol James, Member Services Manager, Associations Forum
Members are the driving factor behind every association, so you need to ask yourself if you are measuring the right KPIs to track retention and engagement.
This panel is also focusing on generational difference between members, so if you are looking to tap into your older members, or your graduates/students bring some questions with you for this esteemed panel.
Attend this session if: You’re looking to amp up your member based marketing and engagement tactics.
2. Keeping Women in the Resources Industry: A Case Study of AMMA’s Virtual Mentoring Program
Monday, 17 July – 1:45pm
Melissa Richardson, Managing Director, Art of Mentoring
Tara Diamond, Director Industry Services, Australian Mines and Metals Association
Melissa and Tara will be presenting the case study of AMMA’s successful mentoring program for women in the Mines and Metals industry.
Although AMMA advocate for a largely male membership, they have seen value in keeping women in the sector and have done so through virtual mentoring.
Attend this session if: you are interested in mentoring for your industry and how you can benefit all types of members through mentorship.
3. One Great Question at a Time: How to Inspire a Coaching Culture in Your Organisation
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Tuesday, 18 July – 1:15pm
Stacey Ashley, Managing Director, Executive Coach, Ashley Coaching & Consulting
Stacey is presenting a interactive session around creating a coaching culture your workplace. She will be presenting coaching techniques that can be used to get the most out of staff and create high performing team in your association.
Attend this session if: You are looking to create a feedback and coaching model for your staff.
Bonus Sessions
This year Aptify is proud to support Associations Forum in presenting The Learning Lab. In its fourth year, the Learning Lab will host 15 speakers over two days on the topics of Technology in Associations.
Speaker highlights include Sara Gonzalez from Redback Conferencing, Tara Diamond from the Australian Mines and Metals Association, and Aptify’s Marcus Duhon and Angie Karpouzis (yep, that’s me!).
I can’t wait for another great AFNC this year, I’ll see you all in Sydney at the Learning Lab held in the Exhibition Hall.
