In my previous blog post I discussed the format of GSX (Cisco’s annual global sales meeting) and tactics deployed to listen to, engage with, and motivate the audience. In this blog post I am going to dive into new approaches we took to enable peer networking and team appreciation.

Enabling meaningful networking and recognition for attendees at any event is challenging, but in the hybrid format of GSX, this task is exponentially harder. This year, a number of new tactics were deployed to address these challenges.

Peer Networking
A new networking tool called ‘Make Connections’ was created exclusively for use at GSX. This tool was available on desktops and mobile devices. Using a variety of criteria such as market segment expertise, technology interests, job roles, and sales recognition status, attendees were able to control how they were found, as well as what they were looking for in a network connection. Once a match was made, attendees could add individuals to their personal network, chat with connections one-to-one, and make notes about the connection. After the event, attendees could download their network for reference and/or import it into a contact management tool such as Outlook. The response was very positive with a 6% increase in year over year “ease of networking” satisfaction score, and utilized by 57% of registered attendees during the event.

Team Recognition
Although we have a robust sales recognition program, every year we hear from the winners and the audience at large that they would like to find a way to recognize the contributions their teams made to their success. So this year we decided to tackle the request head on and deployed a digital engagement called ‘Team Appreciation’. Read More »

Tags: cisco global sales experience, gsx, hybrid event, virtual event

One of the challenges of a globally distributed event such as GSX is tapping into audience emotion and engaging attendees regardless of how they are experiencing the event.

To level set, the GSX format is a unique hybrid experience.  Some of the key format challenges of the event are:

• Distributed over four days with three waves (one wave per region)
• In 88 locations and 400+ Cisco conference rooms
• 75% of the audience attending via remote viewing locations (i.e. watching a projection of the live broadcast)
• 20% of the audience attending virtually (i.e. via their desktop)
• 5% of the audience in main broadcast locations (i.e. watching live speakers on stages in one of the four broadcast hubs)

As mentioned, every year we just scratch the surface on the possibilities of the GSX format, and each year we work to fine tune the experience. This year, a variety of tactics were deployed to tackle the opportunities our audience was looking for. They wanted peer networking, the ability to recognize team contributions, inspirational content, and insight into the larger, global audience conversation and activities.

In this post I will talk about the specific tactics deployed during GSX FY13 (calendar 2012) to listen to the audience and leverage the vast amounts of data coming in from the event to showcase real time what the audience was talking about and doing. Let’s dive into the examples… Read More »

Tags: cisco global sales experience, digital engagement, gamification, gsx, hybrid event, virtual event