Ask the Expert

Cambridge Conference Ambassadors can help City’s recovery

The official conference and events bureau for the city of Cambridge and the surrounding area is offering free support to encourage business professionals to champion the city as a destination for their association conferences and business events. Meet Cambridge, with a venue portfolio of Cambridge Colleges as founder members, as well as hotels and other meeting spaces, operates a Conference Ambassador Programme which offers individuals a host of services including bid assistance - practical help and resources to create compelling bid proposals which highlight the benefits that Cambridge can offer to associations and professional bodies for their conferences and events.

PLUS POINTS

With many national and international conferences and meetings rotating regularly between locations nationally and internationally there is significant competition between destinations. The Meet Cambridge team, with their extensive experience of conference bidding lend their expertise to bring focus on the considerable plus points of the city – both for the formal elements as well as the social programme. Judith Sloane, Head of Meet Cambridge, says: “Since we launched our Conference Ambassador Programme, we have had the pleasure of working with Cambridge-based business people and academics to create successful bids often against stiff competition from other cities across the world. Business events and conferences that take place in Cambridge not only to boost the local economy but they also facilitate the exchange of new ideas, offer potential opportunities for collaborations and of course they raise the profile of the local host. “Right now we are also hoping that potential event organisers based in Cambridge will step forward to play a part in the city’s post-pandemic recovery and promote Cambridge and its considerable advantages when planning future conferences and meetings. “Our free service can encompass a range of elements depending on the brief – some are listed below.”

WAYS TO HELP

• Practical help and resources to demonstrate the advantages of Cambridge • Assistance with submitting a formal bid, including obtaining letters of support from Government and national agencies • Fully escorted site visits and hospitality for key decisionmakers • Help with sourcing a professional conference organiser (PCO) or digital conference organiser (DCO).

COLLABORATIONS

Here are what a couple of organisations have said about Meet Cambridge’s Ambassador Programme: Julian M Allwood FREng, Professor of Engineering and the Environment at the University of Cambridge and organiser of the 12th International Conference on Technology of Plasticity: “Our short, informal meeting with Meet Cambridge led to a wonderful event where we celebrated research, inspired future generations and lifted a veil into a rich world of imagination, discovery and extraordinary large forces.” Margaret Jones, Music Collections Supervisor, Music Department, Cambridge University Library, local host for The International Association of Music Libraries, Congress, 2023: “The Meet Cambridge team really listened to our needs, made many helpful suggestions, and were incredibly helpful with site visits and at the bidding stage they were particularly vital in presenting Cambridge as a conference destination in the most polished and professional manner. It was a delight when we won the bid!” To find out more, email or call Meet Cambridge: 01223 768740, enquiries@meet-cambridge.com www.meet-cambridge.com

Virtual and Hybrid-working in our post-pandemic world

How do we use technology to drive business value?

Keep calm – get smart... and follow these three simple rules:

1. MAKE YOUR IT INFRASTRUCTURE

RELIABLE, FLEXIBLE, FAST AND

FUTURE READY!

Transform your digital workplace… The cultural shift which started through necessity in March 2020, has lasted as businesses have had to adapt how they work, and some of these changes are here to stay. Employer’s views of working from home before and after COVID have shifted dramatically and changing working patterns has meant a radical digital transformation in businesses. So, what is ‘the office’ going to look like as we go forward? As we emerge from the strange COVID world and return to normal, 76 per cent of businesses expect hybrid working to become more common amongst their workforces. So, You will also need to decide if the IT technologies and infrastructure you already have in place to deliver this new way of working during the pandemic is capable, adaptable and makes sense for the future? During the pandemic, it was all about simply enabling remote work and staying in business. Now you need to focus on a long-term solution as hybrid-working is the future, whether you like it or not. And a critical part of this will be how the communications platforms you choose to do this will support your business and its growth. Do this first and you won’t regret it!

2. ENSURE YOUR SECURITY HAS A

POWERFUL DEFENCE THAT GIVES

YOU PEACE OF MIND!

Stop threats earlier... In today’s cloud connected world the way we work has changed, but security has not. With over half of the PC’s in most organisations being mobile, you need to protect your workforce against threats wherever they access the internet not just when they are in the office. A rise in remote employees and an increased reliance on “software as a service” (SaaS) applications create new, wider gaps in security. To put it simply, it is more challenging to protect users at the edge - ensuring seamless connections that optimise productivity without creating performance issues that drag down user satisfaction. Consider that over 70 per cent of the malware seen this year are unique to each organisation, you can’t just detect malicious payloads, you need to identify attacks as they are staged on the internet, so you can block them before they launch and stop phishing, malware and ransomware earlier. ENTER… the secure “access service edge” (SASE), an architectural approach that offers an alternative to traditional data center-oriented security. SASE converges networking capabilities with cloud-native security functions to simplify deployment and streamline management in the cloud. In short, implementing a security platform that provides simplicity, visibility and efficiency across your IT infrastructure is critical to keeping your customer data protected and your business up and running 24/7. Don’t skimp on this!

3. CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT

THAT’S QUICK TO SET-UP AND

EASY TO MANAGE, MONITOR

AND MANOEUVRE, SO YOU CAN

FOCUS ON THE WORK THAT REALLY

MATTERS… BUSINESS GROWTH!

Whether you choose to implement an inhouse or cloud-based IT infrastructure, it is vital for your own sanity and well-being, that it gives you peace of mind in the knowledge that it will always be there no matter what! Before you choose any solution, MAKE SURE it gives you real-time visibility. You need this to be able to continually monitor and report on how effective and efficient your IT infrastructure is in meeting your current and ever-changing business needs. Digital transformation is a process, and every step is important. So it is vital that you get the fundamentals right before jumping into expensive technology that you can’t support. Choosing the technology platforms that are most appropriate for your organisation needs to be a priority. The right choices will allow you to create an IT platform that delivers a consistent, connected experience for employees anywhere they work. Many business processes are moving to cloud platforms, so maybe this is a good to explore this as a viable option? This critical step will ensure you create the right foundation for a great hybrid working environment that enables a workplace and workforce of the future. Remember to look into the future too, that’s where we’re all heading! If you’re considering an IT change small or big, FLUID can help. fluid-em.com

If you would like to feature on our Ask the Expert pages, please email the editor at s.parr@cambscci.co.uk to reserve your space.