So was it worth going to the AFP Conference then? Well! When you consider that the full four-day conference delegate fee and the airfare to Atlanta was less that the fee for the two-day Charity Summit (so called) then it probably was, if only because I came away with a couple of good insights and one good idea. Our American hosts were, of course, charming and hospitable, but the lack of a real evening 'centre' to the event, limits the opportunities for networking - except for the Brits!
I think Traci from Texas and Jodi from Michigan were vaguely amused in sharing their table in the Omni Hotel bar area with Sean Triner, Pareto - almost an Aussie, bonny Gordon Michie, FIL - Fife Scotland, Andrew PPS Watt - our man inside the AFP, the very important Tony Elischer, Think CS and your humble blogger. Most of our cutting edge debate needed translating and even then I'm not sure it made too much sense. But hey we put the sector to rights!
The serious side to all this is how do you decide which conferences to attend? It seems beyond the wit of organisers to put on a conference that really addresses the needs of senior or experienced fundraisers without reverting to the old standby of discussion panels. Is it a lack of research? Is there nothing senior fundraisers are really interested in? Or is it that people who have no real understanding of fundraising see conferences purely as a means of making money without addressing the need for outcomes.
So will I go back to the AFP next year? Maybe the year after (San Diego sounds good). Convention? Well, as a supplier you have to really. IFC Holland? Almost certainly. And the one I really don't want to miss? IoF Scotland.
