How to judge

and justify conferences

At a time of savage budget cuts, all spending needs to be justified and conference attendance
costs are no exception. So weve come up with some simple tips to help you judge and justify
which project management conferences you should attend.
Why go?
Sounds an obvious point to consider but its amazing how often people dont think this through. You should initiate a
process which helps answer the question: how will the conference help me, the team and the organisation achieve
objectives?
Whats the scope?
Pin down conference organisers. Find out about the theme and the objectives; if they arent clear about what the
conference will accomplish, how can you determine what you will achieve from it? Check out the topics, the speakers and
the general and special interest group workshops.
What are the exact benefits?
A good way to determine this is to ask specific questions. Here are a few to start you off. Will the conference develop
your understanding of best practices? Will it equip you with an understand ing of the latest project management tools?
Will it illustrate lessons learned from ground-breaking projects? Is it a talking shop or are there seminars and workshops
where you can see demonstrations of products and services? Can you get up close and personal with experts?
Who benefits and who loses out?
Will it be you alone, will it be the team or the whole organisation that reaps the benefits of attendance? Consider any
costs to other departments and the organisation as a whole. For instance, you should anticipate and manage colleagues
concerns about dis-benefits such as production lost owing to staff attending a conference.
What are the monetary costs?
What with travel, hotel rooms, registration and the usual extras, conference costs can soon mount up. Estimate costs
beforehand to assess them against likely benefits in order to find out whether its worth the investment. Doing so will
allow you to argue your case more effectively.
Are there alternative ways of achieving the same ends?
Deliberate on the best ways of getting information or building relationships with professionals. On the one hand, links
with lead thinkers may be best built through on-going conversations via LinkedIn, Google+, Facebook, Twitter, project
management websites and blogs. On the other, rapport may be more easily created through personal meetings in neutral
territory.
Present a report
The best way to arrive at an answer and to sell it to the boss is to think through the whole process in a forensic way on a
case-by-case basis and to prepare cost reports for conferences that you think are worth attending.

London, UK
Australia
Dubai
New Zealand

ILX Group Plc - 4th Floor, 15 Fetter Lane, London, EC4A 1BW, United Kingdom T: +44 (0) 207 371 4444 E: sales@ilxgroup.com www.ilxgroup.com
ILX Group Pty Ltd - Level 1, Building 1, The Binary Centre, 3 Richardson Place, North Ryde, NSW 2113, Australia T: +61 (0)2 8035 4350 E: australia@ilxgroup.com www.ilxgroup.com/au
ILX Consulting JLT - 901A 1 Lake Plaza, Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai, PO Box 643829, United Arab Emirates T: +971 (0) 561 496 498 E: uae@ilxgroup.com www.ilxgroup.com/ae
ILX Group Ltd - PO Box 796, Shortland St. Mail Centre, Auckland 1140, New Zealand E: newzealand@ilxgroup.com www.ilxgroup.com/nz

www.ilxgroup.com ILX Group 2014. PRINCE2 is a registered trade mark of AXELOS Limited. MSP is a registered trade mark of AXELOS Limited. ITIL is a registered trade mark of AXELOS Limited

How to judge
and justify conferences
Useful Project Management Links
ILX Group deliver PRINCE2 Foundation and Practitioner digital, classroom and blended learning to suit
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The PRINCE2 e-learning experience may be the perfect option for those with an eye for cost-effective, rich and
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If your company wants to implement PRINCE2 training ILX Connect would be a great option as it will help them
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ILX Consulting takes the concept of support to the next level. From maturity assessments and organisational healthchecks, through ITIL , MSP and PRINCE2 implementation, to programme and project performance management, it
has a proven record of delivering tangible improvements in capability, productivity and customer satisfaction to a
wide range of businesses and organisations.

London, UK
Australia
Dubai
New Zealand

ILX Group Plc - 4th Floor, 15 Fetter Lane, London, EC4A 1BW, United Kingdom T: +44 (0) 207 371 4444 E: sales@ilxgroup.com www.ilxgroup.com
ILX Group Pty Ltd - Level 1, Building 1, The Binary Centre, 3 Richardson Place, North Ryde, NSW 2113, Australia T: +61 (0)2 8035 4350 E: australia@ilxgroup.com www.ilxgroup.com/au
ILX Consulting JLT - 901A 1 Lake Plaza, Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai, PO Box 643829, United Arab Emirates T: +971 (0) 561 496 498 E: uae@ilxgroup.com www.ilxgroup.com/ae
ILX Group Ltd - PO Box 796, Shortland St. Mail Centre, Auckland 1140, New Zealand E: newzealand@ilxgroup.com www.ilxgroup.com/nz

www.ilxgroup.com ILX Group 2014. PRINCE2 is a registered trade mark of AXELOS Limited. MSP is a registered trade mark of AXELOS Limited. ITIL is a registered trade mark of AXELOS Limited