FICP’s Annual Conference Wraps in Boston

November 16, 2022

FICP Annual Conference — Keynote Jon Petz

We all attend industry events for many reasons, but a big one is to gather fresh ideas for our own events. FICP’s Annual Conference this week at the Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport did not disappoint.

In fact, the special events at FICP’s Annual Conference included some of the most creative touches I’ve seen in quite a while. The opening night at the Omni wowed attendees with, among other highlights: an Elton John lookalike playing piano on a platform that traveled around the room, a giant Lite Brite whose lights were actually shots (including a mean chocolate espresso martini), and a conveyor belt serving up New England clam chowder and lobster rolls. Quintessential Boston.

The following evenings at the Westin Copley Place Hotel and Guy Fieri’s Boston Kitchen were just as inspiring. As a local, a personal highlight was to see the famous Boston Dynamics Robot Dog (his name is actually Spot), who I’ve followed for years, walking around the party serving up sweets to the attendees—and to learn that he and his friends can be rented for meetings.

As always, FICP’s educational sessions were enriching, with topics ranging from contracting to ground transportation challenges, and a good number this year focused on wellness, including an excellent session by Jeska Brodbeck that taught attendees how to get into a “flow state.” In fact, both mental and physical health were at the forefront of this meeting, with much-needed spare time intentionally built into the agenda—something attendees at all meetings are asking for. Keynote speaker Jon Petz, who also coaches C-Level executives, spoke of the disconnect between how well employees say they are holding up since the pandemic and how well their management thinks they are doing, and the chasm between employees’ experience working from home and their employers’ perceptions of remote work.