1. CORPORATE.CONNECTMEETINGS.COM 17
TalkingPoints
Sabba Nazhand, director of enterprise sales at Social Tables,
shares four new ways to get attendees networking.
1 SPIN THE WHEEL.
“Use a talking wheel to force
conversation at an event. There’s
an instructor who calls up attendees
to take turns spinning the wheel
and discussing the topic the arrow
lands on. Guests are forced out
of their comfort zone to discuss
industry issues.”
2 TALK TO—VIRTUALLY—
EVERYONE.
“Technology booths where you
create an avatar of yourself are a
hot new trend in conferences and
meetings. Guests go into a booth
and create an image that looks and
dresses like them. Then participants
are encouraged to get on an app and
talk to each other’s avatars
throughout the event.”
3 SNAKE YOUR SEATING.
“In our offices we have a serpentine
table, but we also have been
diagramming them a lot for events.
The way the long, continuous table is
set up, you’re sitting next to people,
as well as in front of them and behind
them. It creates communication with
those all around your seat instead of
from only one direction.”
4 CREATE COLLISION SPACE
IN UNEXPECTED PLACES.
“Have you noticed people always
talk in bathrooms at conferences?
One way to encourage interaction
is to have Post-it notes on the
bathroom mirror asking, ‘What is
one thing you took away from the
last session?’ Naturally, people will
begin discussing.”
What could be easier than inflatable seating for education sessions or a
lounge? How about inflatable seating that squeezes into a small drawstring
bag and doesn’t require an air pump. Meet Lamzac Hangout, a product of the
Netherlands that can be set up virtually anywhere. Simply hold it open and
walk a few steps to fill it with air, then roll up the end and tie it shut. —ND
INSTASEAT
SNAPSHOT
LaughingStockInjecting humor into a corporate event can be tricky. Executive humor
coach Marshall Chiles—author of “Your Presentation is a Joke,” owner of
several comedy clubs and founder of Humor Wins, a comedy group for
hire—may have found the winning formula. In May, he spoke at ScaleUp
Summit in collaboration with Fortune magazine on the importance of
laughter in the business world. Here, he shares a few ways Humor Wins
works for meetings. —SDS
Yourcompanyplanscorporatecomedyroasts
andcomedygroups.What’sthedifference?
A comedy group is like an improv troupe, while our
roasts are written in advance. We give the roastees a
questionnaire that helps us get to know that person
to write jokes about them. Half my writers write
for “Comedy Central Roast.” I have hosted some
corporate award-style shows, been brought in to
do 30 minutes of stand-up to start an event off on a
high note with lots of laughs. Other times, the roast
is the main event put on after drinks and dinner.
Whatkeepsitfrombeingawkward?
Our jokes are corporate clean and nonmalicious with
minimal to no cursing. Our clients approve the jokes
ahead of time so they know we are not crossing
the line. We have a 99.5 percent preapproval rating
because we know how to make it funny without
going too far. When we first engage with a client, we
get a sense of their culture so we know where to not
go with a joke.
Whatkindsofcorporategroupshaveyouworkedwith?
We have worked with those as free-spirited as a tech company and
as conservative as a Boston consulting company. It works for any size
audience, but the bigger the better. Most of our clients have been
companies with 100 to 500 employees. The last executive retreat I did only
had about 20 people and went over very well.
Whydoeshumor“win,”exactly?
The North American Journal of Psychology says when you make someone
smile or laugh, it raises your likability.
“WHEN WE
FIRST ENGAGE
WITH A CLIENT,
WE GET A
SENSE OF
THEIR CULTURE
SO WE KNOW
WHERE TO
NOT GO WITH
A JOKE.”