Virtual Convention Plans Come Into Sharper Focus

With just about three weeks until the first day of the 2020 Virtual ICAS Convention, the details of this year’s annual business meeting are becoming clearer.

“To be honest, the change from live to virtual has required us to make a lot of changes to the program and schedule,” says Adam Glowaski, ICAS Director of Marketing and Communications. “All those changes are now in place and we’re looking forward to executing the plan that we’ve been reworking over the last six weeks.”

The 2020 ICAS Convention will feature three keynote presentations (see related story below), 4 dedicated virtual exhibit sessions, 27 break-out education sessions, nine “hot seat” roundtable discussions, and five long-format workshops. The schedule includes nine education sessions on COVID-related issues, seven sessions directed specifically at air show performers, and eight presentations from military representatives to discuss how to request, prepare for and host military teams and single-ship demos.

“Literally, thousands of conventions have transitioned from live to virtual during the last eight months,” says ICAS President John Cudahy. “So, even though these are uncharted waters for all of us, best practices have been developing and improving since the beginning of the year and we’re incorporating all of them into the program we have planned for our members on December 8, 9 and 10.”

Cudahy emphasized that user-friendliness and accessibility have been key considerations at every step of the planning. “We spent almost a full month looking for just the right software platform to host our virtual convention. We knew that members might be hesitant to engage with something that was difficult to use or complicated to understand,” he said. “So, we focused on finding a program that would eliminate all of that angst and confusion.”

To that end, the first-ever virtual convention will include multiple tutorials and information resources to help explain how to participate in and interact with the program (see related story above). Because the virtual format will be unfamiliar and perhaps even a little intimidating to some, ICAS has focused on making the virtual convention platform user-friendly, and the content and substance of the convention as accessible as possible. And because every session will be videotaped, all of the content will be available for delegates to watch or re-watch hours, days or even weeks after the session is held.

To learn more about the 2020 Virtual ICAS Convention, click here.

To review a detailed summary of the convention schedule, click here.

To register for the 2020 Virtual ICAS Convention, click here.

To reserve your booth at the 2020 Virtual ICAS Convention, contact ICAS Exhibits Manager Karen Connors at connors@airshows.aero.  

For information on how you might become a sponsor of the 2020 ICAS Virtual ICAS Convention, contact Sponsorship Coordinator Mary Quigg at mary.quigg@conferencedirect.com.