On Tuesday, I ran the first offline meetup for Melcrum's Communicators Network. Over 30 people showed up to the National Audit Office for an interactive discussion with Tony Carey. He expertly facilitated a discussion about 'Return on Investment from Events.'
This is an ongoing monthly event which is aimed at combining a bit of learning with lots of informal chat. Judging by the first one, we'll certainly be running them in the future.
Special thanks to Cordovan for sponsoring the food / drink.
Sona Hathi, creator of the Melcrum Podcast, interviewed me quickly at the end. You can hear the results here.
A few images from the event feature below.
Nick Saalfeld in animated discussion with Jeff Banks.
Jenny Coombes and ?
Whilst we're still in negotiation for a venue next month, the subject area will be 'Cross Border / Cultural Communication'. Neil Urquhart will be hosting.
A short synopsis features below:
"YOU JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND"
The Challenge of Cross-Cultural Communication
Communication across borders and within organisational cultures inevitably gives rise to various difficulties linked to how people handle differences. Most approaches to this challenge compare cultures and give tips or construct models as to how individuals or organisations should interact with them. This is problematic for a number of reasons, not least of which is that communicative competency is sometimes imagined to be a simple matter of gaining access to the right data and applying it - a scenario ripe for disaster.
For this short session we will be using experiential exercises, breakout groups and brainstorming to explore the difficulties inherent in internal and external communication during business transitions (such as organisational restructuring, downsizing, mergers and acquisitions, high-level personnel change, offshoring) and to suggest a way forward for those who must communicate across organisations.
If you are reading this and would like to get involved, drop me a line or call 07815 876 904.
