16.9.13

How to Schmooze (when you are a Raging Introverted CIO)

It’s conference season again.

As an IT leader you know that you need to get out of the office and get some professional development.  Regardless of the industry you are in, there are no shortage of great events that combine great speakers, relevant workshops, a chance to meet vendors, and hundreds if not thousands of delegates seeking to solve the same problems and who are faced with similar issues.
Image: MS Office Imagebank

For many IT leaders, therein lies the problem.

Not the workshops or the show… but the number of people they don’t know.  In a highly unscientific study mainly based on personal observation I would suggest that the majority of folks attending IT conferences as delegates are highly uncomfortable meeting new people and engaging in small talk, particularly if they have come on their own.