Rich Rowley: Are you using technology for technology’s sake?
Are you harnessing technology’s potential, or are you guilty of using technology for technology’s sake? Rich Rowley, director, XL Events, an Eventia member, explains
Conferences now seem to have more of a “discussion’” feel than a “lecture”. It’s all about trying to find a dynamic way to get the message across, challenging the delegate, making them feel part of the team and a real contributor to the immediate goal and future of the organisation. Not forgetting that these events are also an ideal opportunities for prime information and opinion gathering.
Technology is constantly helping us affirm these goals. Social media plays a major part, use of dynamic information gathering. The iPad revolution is here and is constantly evolving. Participation can now start including global offices and if needed the general public utilising social media – from simple SMS to Facebook/Twitter feeds. If the venues Internet bandwidth will allow!
As a purveyor of all things technical it appears we need to understand what we have and what we want to achieve before we try to adapt to the latest ‘what’s next’. New technology has its strengths but also has its weakness. Just think 80 per cent of the technology that is currently available today is only used to about 10 per cent of it’s potential.
Think about trying to achieve a Minority Report style presentation. Complexity doesn’t necessarily mean a complex solution. If scripted correctly pressure mats on the floor that you step on to trigger the content could be a more simple solution than getting the CEO of a blue chip company to wave his arms about trying to trigger an Air Scan system on half a day’s training. Sometimes theatrical ‘blocking’ and a show call operator running animation cues on a space bar can make life much easier and reduce the weakness so to speak. How do you think they do it in the movies?
There is technology coming at us from every direction these days. We are all obsessed, because it plays such a big part in our consumer life. Anybody have the new iPhone 5?
