Discussing policy, presenting an annual report, dealing with motions or amending articles of association; general meetings are not necessarily known as the most inspiring gatherings. How can you turn the tide and ensure that people do want to attend? By turning it into a knowledge event and giving people the opportunity to network afterwards, for instance. Joëlle van Baren, traffic and project manager at VDH Bestuurszaken tells how she managed to inspire NGFG members to come to the ALV.
Van Baren works for VDH Bestuurszaken, an organisation that acts as 'the hands and head of boards of foundations, associations and equity funds'. VDH supports the directors with tasks such as finance, (board) meetings, secretariat, communication and event organisation. Likewise since May 2022 for the NGFG, the Dutch Association of Data Protection Officers. Among other things, Van Baren organises the general membership meetings for the NGFG. In the past, member attendance was relatively low and there had been complaints about the location, accessibility, service and internet connection at several other venues. This needed to change.
Discussing policy, presenting an annual report, dealing with motions or amending articles of association; general meetings are not necessarily known as the most inspiring gatherings. How can you turn the tide and ensure that people do want to attend? By turning it into a knowledge event and giving people the opportunity to network afterwards, for instance. Joëlle van Baren, traffic and project manager at VDH Bestuurszaken tells how she managed to inspire NGFG members to come to the ALV.
Van Baren therefore recommended organising the general membership meetings at Jaarbeurs Meetup. This was because, in her opinion, the package offered by Jaarbeurs was a good fit for the NGFG. According to her, the fair offers, the accessibility, the high level of service, the flexibility, the various options in terms of catering and the short lines of communication perfectly matched the NGFG's wishes. Van Baren: 'We also like the sustainability aspect of Jaarbeurs. After all, VDH also works for, among others, the Koning Willem I Foundation which, in addition to the Koning Willem I Award for courageous, resilient and sustainable entrepreneurship, also awards a plaque to companies that excel in sustainable entrepreneurship. And the latter is precisely something that is also high on the list of priorities at Jaarbeurs.'
Discussing policy, presenting an annual report, dealing with motions or amending articles of association; general meetings are not necessarily known as the most inspiring gatherings. How can you turn the tide and ensure that people do want to attend? By turning it into a knowledge event and giving people the opportunity to network afterwards, for instance. Joëlle van Baren, traffic and project manager at VDH Bestuurszaken tells how she managed to inspire NGFG members to come to the ALV.
'A general membership meeting at the NGFG takes about an hour and a half. That is not worth travelling a distance for many people. We therefore decided to make it complete afternoons' says Van Baren. 'Moreover, because previous meetings showed that people needed more substantive information from the industry, we now link a knowledge session to the AGMs. And to give the FGs the opportunity to spar with each other - as the Data Protection Officer position is often a rather solo function - we end the afternoons with a networking drink.'
Discussing policy, presenting an annual report, dealing with motions or amending articles of association; general meetings are not necessarily known as the most inspiring gatherings. How can you turn the tide and ensure that people do want to attend? By turning it into a knowledge event and giving people the opportunity to network afterwards, for instance. Joëlle van Baren, traffic and project manager at VDH Bestuurszaken tells how she managed to inspire NGFG members to come to the ALV.
You think beforehand: Jaarbeurs is such a big venue, it will be impersonal. But that's really not true, the short lines of communication, clear agreements and flexibility were really great. We are just super excited!'
Discussing policy, presenting an annual report, dealing with motions or amending articles of association; general meetings are not necessarily known as the most inspiring gatherings. How can you turn the tide and ensure that people do want to attend? By turning it into a knowledge event and giving people the opportunity to network afterwards, for instance. Joëlle van Baren, traffic and project manager at VDH Bestuurszaken tells how she managed to inspire NGFG members to come to the ALV.
The general member meetings at Jaarbeurs MeetUp are a success: a good turnout and enthusiastic members. Evaluation showed that people were also very pleased with the location: accessibility was scored at 8.1 and the location itself at 7.7. Good marks according to van Baren: 'We are happy with it. The ALVs go very smoothly. That is certainly also thanks to the involvement of Jaarbeurs. Jaarbeurs and its employees are very flexible and can act quickly in case of emergencies or changes in the programme, even during the day itself. The short lines between the employees internally is also a real plus. We also have a fine contact person, who really does it perfectly. And if she is not available, her colleagues can take care of it. You think in advance: Jaarbeurs is such a big venue, it will be impersonal. But that's really not true, the short lines of communication, clear agreements and flexibility were really great. We are just super excited!'
Discussing policy, presenting an annual report, dealing with motions or amending articles of association; general meetings are not necessarily known as the most inspiring gatherings. How can you turn the tide and ensure that people do want to attend? By turning it into a knowledge event and giving people the opportunity to network afterwards, for instance. Joëlle van Baren, traffic and project manager at VDH Bestuurszaken tells how she managed to inspire NGFG members to come to the ALV.
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Discussing policy, presenting an annual report, dealing with motions or amending articles of association; general meetings are not necessarily known as the most inspiring gatherings. How can you turn the tide and ensure that people do want to attend? By turning it into a knowledge event and giving people the opportunity to network afterwards, for instance. Joëlle van Baren, traffic and project manager at VDH Bestuurszaken tells how she managed to inspire NGFG members to come to the ALV.
