What to know before you go to ServiceNow’s event of the year. 

By now, virtual events are old hat. Good thing, because THE ServiceNow event of the year is upon us. And just like last year, it’s 100% virtual.  

Knowledge ’21 is packed with, well, Knowledge. You don’t want to miss a thing. So, to help you get the most out of this year’s conference, we drew on our experiences from the last year to shortlist some tips and tricks. Read on and learn how to maximize your time, focus on the sessions and come away feeling the event was worthwhile. 

Own your Virtual Conference Experience 

Today, companies hosting in-person events go out of their way to make the experience as immersive as possible. COVID-19 forced companies to step up their creativity to deliver a virtual experience that’s nearly as fun and engaging as the in-person experience would be.  

While virtual conferences are becoming can’t-miss events, hosts can’t replicate everything online. They can’t deliver yummy breakfasts, early morning walks with colleagues or happy hours through a computer screen – no matter how hard they try.  This is where you take ownership of your experience. Create something special for yourself. Go on a walk and listen to a podcast before a session. Take yourself out to breakfast at a restaurant you’ve always wanted to try. Or keep your afternoon free for some local sightseeing. If you can, check out someplace new that you’ve always wanted to visit but never had time for. 

And although you can’t physically be together, you can share your experience with colleagues. Plan to attend a few sessions together. Schedule an end of the day session where you can compare notes. Create a Slack or Microsoft Teams channel for side conversations during presentations – just like you would in person – without distracting the whole audience. 

Ditch the distractions. 

Destination conferences became a thing because they allow folks to focus on the experience. Attendees get away to focus on learning something new – without worrying about day-to-day job responsibilities. It also gives the host a chance to show clients and partners a good time. They roll out the red carpet, invite you into their space and pull out all the stops so you’ll want to come back to their next conference. 

Now, they’re pulling out all the virtual stops. Like their in-person relatives, virtual conferences don’t spare any details. So…how do you take advantage of this? Consider attending conference sessions in a room other than your home office – perhaps your couch or kitchen table. Find a spot that allows you to leave your work responsibilities behind and stay focused on the conference content. Shut off notifications on your phone and put an out of office message on your email. Pretend you’re attending an in-person conference and give the virtual experience your full attention. 

Get the lay of the land. 

ServiceNow’s Knowledge ’21 has an event page you can start exploring right now. Spend some time there. Learn about the keynote speakers, event sessions and sponsors. Block your calendar with the sessions you want to attend now so you don’t miss them. Find out what ServiceNow’s partners and sponsors have in store for you – Crossfuze will be hosting Agile management vs. strategic planning – the great balancing act and Cyber security, meet cyber resilience.  

You don’t want to log in on the day of a live event only to have your experience and focus completely derailed by technology. Set time aside to practice the technology you’ll use to access the conference. Have a back-up plan in place in case, for whatever reason, plan “A” doesn’t work. And plan to arrive at your session a little early. 

Find out what your colleagues are doing. 

One of the best parts about attending a conference is that you get to know your colleagues better – and see them in a different light. For many companies, an in-person conference means that you can meet colleagues who work in different offices throughout the world face to face at least once a year. 

While a virtual conference doesn’t have the opportunity for in-person teambuilding, you can easily find out which of your colleagues is going and plan to attend events as a group. And schedule recap meetings or virtual happy hours at the end of the day.  

Network. Network. Network. 

Everyone attending Knowledge ’21 wants to know more about ServiceNow and the Now Platform. It’s the perfect time to network with all sorts of folks within the ServiceNow community. Visit sponsor pages to see what they have planned.  

It’s called Knowledge for a reason. We’re sharing knowledge. ServiceNow shares knowledge of their product. Partners share what they’ve learned through years of experience implementing and servicing the platform. And end-users share their knowledge and experience also. 

Get ready to connect with as many people as you can in a virtual environment. Ask questions during the live sessions. Attend virtual meet ups hosted by the sponsors and rehash the experience with colleagues. 

At the end of the day, if you think BIG and take the time to create a virtual experience that is ALMOST as immersive as the live experience, you’ll come away with as much Knowledge as you can handle. And have a LOT of fun too. 

If you’d like to learn what Crossfuze has in store for you at Knowledge ’21, or want to know what sessions we’re attending, reach out at Letstalk@crossfuze.com. And don’t forget to register for the main event! We can’t wait to see how much Knowledge you come away with.