Summary
Bria Alexander opened day two of Advancing Research 2023, introducing the theme of researchers as organizational change makers. She recapped day one’s focus on research as a transformational force and previewed the final day’s theme on transforming the research craft. Bria outlined the conference logistics, including the official time zone (PDT), plentiful breaks, and the availability of recorded sessions. She encouraged attendees to engage in sponsor sessions, which are free, high-quality, and non-sales-oriented Zoom events occurring during breaks. Bria stressed the importance of Slack for community interaction, questions, and cohort engagement, noting over 400 participants active in channels like ar-23-general and sponsor-specific channels. She acknowledged David Nicholson, the in-house scribe and senior UX designer at PwC, for providing sketch notes to relieve attendees from note-taking. Finally, Bria reminded everyone to uphold the conference’s code of conduct to ensure a respectful, kind, and safe environment for all, with multiple avenues for support including Slack and email.
Key Insights
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Researchers are recognized as key organizational change makers in the field today.
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Conference sessions are designed with ample breaks to avoid attendee scheduling conflicts.
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Sponsor sessions run during breaks and are free, non-sales Zoom events for both registered attendees and their networks.
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Slack is the primary platform for speaker Q&A, community discussion, and sponsor engagement with over 400 active participants.
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All conference content including recordings, slide decks, and sketch notes are promptly made available post-session.
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David Nicholson, a senior UX designer and former business analyst, provides visual sketch notes to enhance attendee experience.
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The conference enforces a strong code of conduct to maintain a welcoming and respectful virtual community environment.
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Sponsors contribute significantly beyond sessions by offering digital swag and interactive engagements like games and giveaways.
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Private Slack cohort channels enhance networking and peer support within smaller attendee groups.
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The conference encourages attendees to relax and avoid note-taking stress, trusting that all materials will be accessible later.
Notable Quotes
"We are organizational change makers today."
"Sponsor sessions are really, really good and incredibly high quality — definitely not sales pitches."
"Slack is the party of the conference — you don't want to miss it."
"There are breaks before every session so you don't have to choose between talks or feel rushed."
"You can attend sponsor sessions even if you are not registered, and friends and family can join for free."
"David Nicholson’s sketch notes help make sure our hands aren't cramping trying to get all this awesome information down."
"Please read our code of conduct — bullying is absolutely not tolerated, we want good vibes here."
"All content including slide decks and sketches will be available shortly after presentations, so sit back and relax."
"If you have questions for speakers, funnel them through Slack threads so they don’t get lost in the chat."
"Sponsors spend a lot of effort creating sessions and thinking about how to enrich our programming."
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