By Sharon Barclay, Chief Innovation Officer
Silicon Valley doesn’t stay Silicon Valley by accident. The Bay Area’s reputation as the world’s technology capital isn’t something we can take for granted. Like a houseplant or a relationship, it needs to be fed, nurtured and reinforced by the companies and people who call it home. It’s one of the reasons we took SF Tech Week seriously – and so should you.
We’re more digitally connected than ever, but some of the most valuable business relationships, ideas and opportunities still happen when people get together in person. And SF TechWeek reminded us that meaningful connections and conversations don’t necessarily happen in formal presentations or structured networking events. Often, they happen over a drink, during a spirited disagreement or while watching a founder attempt to explain their life’s work in a minute. It’s why we hosted our two events – Make Me Care: A 60 Second Story Slam and Marketers’ Hot Take Happy Hour.
During the week, there were loads of conversations about AI, semiconductors, software, data centers and biotech. All important topics but we’ve found the most interesting conversations often come back to fundamentally human questions: How do you get people to care? How do you communicate something complex? How do you challenge conventional thinking?
Let me share a couple of lessons from the week:
- You don’t need a massive budget or celebrity speakers to make an impact. But you do need a good idea, a clear understanding of your audience, and the willingness to participate.
- Too many corporate events are designed around what the host wants to say, rather than what the audience wants to experience. So here’s a radical idea for your next marketing event: stop talking about yourself.
Technology changes rapidly, but the fundamentals of communication, connection and storytelling remain as important as ever. So build on that, and let’s see you next year at SF Tech Week.
