In-person, hybrid, or digital? State of Pharma meetings and events in 2024
March 18, 2024 |
We’re diving into the state of pharmaceutical meetings and events in 2024 and–once and for all–put the idea of in-person meetings being superior to rest.
Whether we’re talking offices, medical congresses, or advisory board meetings, the term “hybrid” is often used to signal the ideal state. The place where everyone’s needs are being met. The best of both worlds. In the era of digital transformation, it is predicted that 2024 will be the year that finally cements hybrid meetings as the norm (1), with all-virtual meetings continuing to be a popular option. Yet, some people are holding onto the idea of in-person meetings being superior. In this article, we’re diving into the state of pharmaceutical meetings and events in 2024 and–once and for all–put this idea to rest.
Why in-person-only should be a thing of the past
I’ve written and talked about the blindspots of in-person meetings for over 16 years now, but it’s only been in the past few years that the benefits of virtual engagements have gained mainstream acceptance. There are multiple reasons why in-person-only meetings should be laid to rest, including, but not limited to, the facts that they are:
- Expensive
- Associated with a large environmental footprint
- Inflexible and not accommodating to everyone’s schedules, work or personal commitments, and preferences
- Susceptible to last-minute no-shows due to flight delays or poor driving conditions
Specifically for advisory boards and other insight-gathering initiatives, the in-person-only approach comes with additional pain points such as:
- Valuable time wasted on didactic data presentations
- Very limited “air time” per participant
- Uneven share of voice, with more extroverted or senior advisors tending to take up more speaking time
- A tendency for answers to be “knee-jerk reactions” rather than thought-through responses and for people to simply ‘agree’ with others
- Limited ability to dive deeper into interesting or controversial ideas
- Suboptimal diversity of advisors due to potential geographic or language barriers
Most important, though, is the fact that participants don’t want only in-person meetings. Based on our survey of hundreds of healthcare provider advisors in 2022–2023, over three-quarters stated that they prefer virtual/hybrid meetings, with the convenience and flexibility of digital meetings rated as the top benefits…
This content was provided by Impetus Digital
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