INFORMS Open Forum

  • 1.  Why workshops and conferences are not virtual

    Posted 03-13-2023 09:40

    I have a naive question, why most conferences and workshops are not happening in hybrid mode?

    If anyone knows any specific reasons, feel free to reply.

    Thanking you



    ------------------------------
    Souradeep Koley
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: Why workshops and conferences are not virtual

    Posted 03-14-2023 07:01

    I can't possibly give specific reasons for a complete set of events, but here are some personal thoughts.

    The latest hybrid conference one of my students went had a 90% online attendance. The interaction with participants, speakers, and session chairs was almost zero. For my student, the usual excitement and opportunity to network was completely lacking, as even social breaks in the programme were suffering from a dearth of humans. I find that the biggest benefit of a conference is the interaction with like-minded researchers and I feel I didn't manage to have any meaningful interactions during the COVID-19 online events. Thus my guess is that one potential reason is that event organisers also value meaningful human interaction and after our recent experiences also feel that this is not achieved at all (so not even to a small degree) online with hybrid being oftentimes also simply "mostly online". 

    Having said that, the APS community of INFORMS has an online series of seminars that I value a lot, attend as much as my schedule allows, and appreciate for the interactions it provides me. However, this may be because the seminar participants are mostly a close-knit community already.



    ------------------------------
    Maria Vlasiou
    Professor in Stochastic Processing Interacting Networks
    Department of Mathematics
    University of Twente, The Netherlands
    vlasiou@gatech.edu
    https://www.win.tue.nl/~mvlasiou/
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Why workshops and conferences are not virtual

    Posted 03-24-2023 18:02

    Hi Souradeep,<u1:p></u1:p>

    Thank you for your insightful question! While digital and hybrid conferences served us well during 2020 and 2021, we couldn't ignore the noticeable gaps and challenges that came with them. Our members and event participants have consistently told us that our in-person conferences provide invaluable opportunities for networking, idea-sharing, and meaningful connections through a collective shared experience.<u1:p></u1:p>

    That's why, for 2022 and beyond, our goal was to return to fully in-person events for INFORMS-level conferences. We believe that it's difficult to replicate the engagement and energy for presenters, attendees, sponsors, and exhibitors in a digital environment. However, some INFORMS Communities continue to offer online options through webinars or by making some of their conference content available in digital or hybrid formats.<u1:p></u1:p>

    Rest assured, we're committed to exploring new options on how we deliver content to our members and the wider community.<u1:p></u1:p>



    ------------------------------
    Elizabeth Hood
    Meeting Planner
    INFORMS
    Catonsville MD
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


Related Content