Latest / PCMA Convene Podcast / Convene Talk: Networking, Rebuilt: What Attendees Want vs. What Organizers Deliver (Freeman’s XLNC Deep Dive)
Transcript
- Convene Talk, ep. 85/October 31, 2025 *Note: the transcript is AI generated, excuse typos and inaccuracies Magdalina Atanassova: This is the Convene Podcast. Welcome to another Convene Talk. Barbara, do you want to go ahead and share more about today's topic? Barbara Palmer: Sure. Thank you, Maggie. I thought we would talk about a deep dive into networking that Freeman has released. And this is part of a a series of surveys on trends in the industry that they've been doing for a couple of years now. And they decided to really just look closely at what attendees are saying at events and then comparing it to what event organizers have to say about events. And they've created a framework that they call the XLNC and that stands for Experience, Networking, Learning and Commerce. And they've really, this is the really the, like the second or third time they've really looked at networking very deeply. And the title of this report is, and I'm sure Maggie will put it in the show notes, is Unpacking X LNC how to Architect Serendipity and Connect People in Meaningful Ways. And one of the big headlines I think in this report is that there was a really very stark difference in what attendees had to say about what they look for in networking and what event organizers say are kind of the top areas where they consider it to be their responsibility. And the number one thing that attendees say about networking is that they want to have event organizers bring them subject matter experts in their industry and help them to connect. And they also want meeting planners to determine the topics that they can network around. And when meeting planners were asked what they considered to be the most important, that was kind of those kinds of things were at the bottom of their list. There were only there were 2, 10 or 14% that listed those as priorities. The number one thing were things that I think will be very familiar to everyone is it was like making sure there's time on the agenda, having activities where attendees and others and the exhibitors are likely to meet, and then also having gatherings in the evenings and parties. And kind of the gist of the report was that yes, those are important, they're very familiar. But that is just the groundwork that after that, that people really want to be directed. And one of the things that was interesting just in thinking about the report is one of the possibilities, I think, is that event organizers are just on, on autopilot, that they just get up, you know, they just have done it the same way. That's what people expect and they do it. And that people have always in the past found each other. But I did speak with Ken Hulsinger, who's the head of data strategy for Freeman and You know, he was just talking about the lost opportunity that event organizers have if they're only creating the space. And you know, we do talk a lot about serendipity, about like, oh, you go somewhere and you meet somebody and it's serendipitous. And he's saying you really can plan for serendipity if you know what people want. I guess the other big headline for me in this was was that really the change that people have been talking about between generations is really happening and it's accelerated by the pandemic and the way that people have kind of changed just being around people a lot, where they meet people. There's been a lot of change in technology. So I am going to leave it at that, that and I see that Michelle has something to say. Michelle Russell: Thanks, Barbara. I feel like this really is a shift. I think planners got the message years ago to put more white space in the programs and the 15 minute networking breaks weren't enough, so they did that. I think we've seen that change where there is more white space, but now it seems like attendees want them to do is a cross between a session and networking. So I think of it in my mind. It's what we do at convening leaders with session topics. Table topics where you see. Not session topics, table topics. And I'm not sure whether those are in like networking breaks or whether they're a kind of, whether they're part of the program. The kind of schedule where you get to pick what you want to talk about with a group of people standing at a table. There are different topics which I think is a good blend of the two. But I do think that requires more work to come up with that other than just like creating those spaces in the program. And I'm speaking as somebody who hates, hates, hates networking. For me, the last 20 plus years in this industry, I have imposter syndrome when I network at any industry events because I write for a living and edit for a living. And I am now networking with people who plan events or who run destination marketing at big cities or small cities, whatever. And that's a very. I recognize that's a very different day to day work than what I do. So for me it's about being curious. I love to ask a lot of questions so I can learn more. I don't really offer up a lot about myself because I don't think people would find that particularly interesting. But my other big pet peeve about networking is it tends to happen in very loud and crowded environments. And I really struggle with hearing people in those environments and also speaking loudly enough for people to hear me. So I think those kind of receptions, networking receptions, still always default to the loud music, you know, long lines at the, at the, at the bar to get drinks. And that to me just seems like. I don't think young people, I don't even think people like my age really relish those opportunities. Jen, what are you thinking? Jennifer N. Dienst: Lots of thoughts. I really, a lot in this article really resonated with me. And I think the clincher is the part where you said, Barbara, by stopping their event, organizers are missing the opportunity to provide what the report called the most powerful networking variable, which is gathering people together around a specific purpose. And I think that's what makes the difference when it comes to good and bad networking experience. Like you're describing. Because I'm a person who likes like, I don't hate networking. Like it's actually like really enjoy. It can be really enjoyable for me. However, I'm pretty extroverted. I feel like I've also been exposed to a lot of situations that have forced me to work through being uncomfortable and feeling awkward because I don't care who you are, networking can feel awkward and uncomfortable. Even if you're the most extroverted person in the world. You if the situation like it is what you're describing, which is it's loud, it's, you know, there's tons of people. But having that purpose, I think is something or some common denominator that people can kind of cling to a little bit and use that as a jumping off point to start figuring out where they, where they want to start. I think it makes you less uncomfortable at the beginning is what really makes it different. I want to share an example of, of how to do that that I think is a good balance from an article that I wrote last year, which was actually about how we need to design networking a little bit differently for women. But I honestly think this could apply to really any situation, but especially for Gen Z. And this comes from an example from a. And we'll share this in the show notes. This comes from an example of a study that was done at an IT conference where women had experienced significantly less success in networking in men. So they hypothesized that two barriers were to blame. Locating and meeting new people. Okay. And social barriers that make interactions difficult. Well, you could apply that to any group of people, right? I mean, those people exist everywhere, whether you're a man, woman, young, whatever. So the research is designed and tested a solution where attendees received a non reciprocal list of potential contacts and introductions were made over email. Okay, interesting. We could equate that in a way to like dating with like Hinge and other apps. The result was a huge success. The number of new contacts women met increased by 57%. The time spent talking to those contacts jumped by 90 and the number of LinkedIn connections they added went up by 29% to boot. Their odds of scoring a new job increased by a factor of 1.6%. Interestingly though, those same interventions did not improve men's outcomes in the study. But we could say that due to this being an IT conference, there being more men, you know, they had an advantage. However, I, I really do think that's a great example of, of how having those introductions made ahead of time over email and giving people a place to start, AKA providing purpose, providing, doing something with intention kind of change this networking experience. And I do feel like that could be applied to any networking situation regardless of man, woman. And I really think that could work well with a Gen Z audience because they are more used to doing things online and being online like that would be an excellent place to start. And I feel like I've seen more events that have, that they have those apps built in. They're, they're already trying to get the ball rolling with the networking by encouraging people connecting on the app and then meeting in person. So I don't think it's too far off from what's already starting to happen and progress. But I don't know who wants to chat next. But have at it. I've talked long enough. Barbara Palmer: I want to jump in real fast on that point, Jen, because this was a huge report and I, I mean it was like 80 pages, I think 80 slides. And I just, oh, I so encourage anyone interested in this to, to download it because it's just replete with great stuff. But they addressed that, they addressed that sharing information in the beginning like or before events and so that people could be matched. And I think a lot of, a lot of those matching program programs seem very to me like they might match you by your job title, but they don't match you by what you're wanting to learn and that or you know, like what your problems are. It's like what you might look like in the outside to people. And I feel like I am the biggest fan of Brain Date. I encountered them when they were just starting out. And for those who aren't familiar, it's, it's really where they have sessions that are organized around problems like, if you say, I'm interested in how to, you know, how to get more in our industry, how to, how to match speakers to my audience better, or I'm interested in just anything, then, then they match you up with other people with those problems. Jennifer N. Dienst: I think that's such a good example. Barbara. I think brain data is genius. And like, again, it's such a great example of how connecting people via purpose and intention, I mean, that's, I mean, what better way to do that? And I, I've experienced Brain Date. I did a little like, test run with it at sorry, not CEMA, but yeah, edUcon. Barbara Palmer: And yes. And they, and they, they experiment with all different ways, like small groups, big groups. And it's like, I think they're at Dreamforce this year. I mean, it's been writing in this industry long enough to remember when those matching programs were like huge deals, proprietary, and now these technology tools make it so easy. Michelle Russell: I think some of this information is really helpful in terms of how you prepare your exhibitors if you have a trade show for success, because that's one of the takeaways is so we have Gen Z feeling like networking is too salesy. And we also have the need for subject matter experts. So one way to put that in practice on the trade show floor is to make sure that exhibitors have subject matter experts talking about their product or service to people, rather than a salesperson trying to sell it to them because they want to be able to have a conversation about, well, what does this mean? How would you use it? Where would you suggest that you use it for a specific application, whatever, they want to have those conversations. So I think some of this intel is really good, not just in terms of networking, but also in terms of how you design your larger experience. But I do think there's an opportunity to give people options about networking. Say, would you like to just, you know, have it be serendipitous and you meet who you meet, or would you like, would you opt in for a program that's a little more scheduled, intentional, and you have more say in who you meet with? Barbara? Barbara Palmer: There was this wonderful little nugget that I thought was just the heart of the report, and I'll just read it. It says, here's the thing, everyone networks for different reasons. For some it's about inspiration. For others, it's opportunity, learning, or a sense of belong, belonging, purpose is personal. That means organizers need to understand who's in the room and what they're hoping to get out of it. And, you know, they talk about research, about, like, doing research. And I remember this wonderful case study of a meeting where the event organizer thought that her attendees were extroverts and they needed a big party and that, you know, they'd get more out of the meeting with a big party. So they had a big party and there was. There was no bump in their satisfaction. And she just decided to ask them, are you introvert? Are you introverts or extroverts? And they were like half and half. Like, some were like, I'm ambiverts. And so what they did the next time is they had a party and they also had more of these, like, one on one, carefully curated ways where people could, like, you know, kind of ease into it. So I think that to me, like, really was kind of the bottom line. And as Michelle said earlier, it is a lot of work, a lot of money expense looking, you know, a lot of investment in research and design to get to where you understand what people are there for and are able to give it to them. Jennifer N. Dienst: Yep. Barbara Palmer: Okay. Magdalina Atanassova: Well, with that, thank you for the conversation. Jennifer N. Dienst: Thanks, Maggie. Magdalina Atanassova: Remember to subscribe to the Convene Podcast on your favorite listening platform to stay updated with our latest episodes. For further industry insights from the Convene team, head over to PCMA.org/convene. My name is Maggie. Stay inspired. Keep inspiring. And until next time.