Katie O'Reilly featured in Ignites Conference Season Article

Katie O'Reilly featured in Ignites Conference Season Article

See and Be Seen: The Ultimate Goal of Conference Season

Ignites
By Alyson Velati

In a time of budget-tightening, conference attendance can be a matter of determining the end goal.

The asset management conference season is in full swing, but industry professionals are more selective about the events they attend due to tighter budgets at their companies and the need to ensure it's a good use of their time.

Many asset management companies need to determine that there's a purposeful end goal for their employees' attendance at conferences, whether it be for networking or promoting the company's brand.

"As budgets become tighter and tighter, firms are being much more selective about where they send people, and we really look a lot more at content," said Mary Mock, head of distribution at Touchstone Investments. "I really do think back in the day that was the mindset: More is better."

An Ignites poll of 245 respondents revealed that 49% of respondents attend conferences for networking and another 29% attend for a compelling conference agenda and education.

Fuse Research Network holds an annual event, called Fuse Forum, in Boston, which brings clients together to give them the latest updates on the company's research and views on the market from people in the asset management industry, said Mario Favetta, a relationship manager at Fuse.

At this year's 11th annual event, which took place on Oct.1, he moderated a panel discussion with chief marketing officers at asset management companies.

While panels are a big focus for the event, there's a "hefty component of networking," he said.

"This is a relationship business, so every opportunity to cultivate those relationships, even among people at competing firms, is very valuable," Favetta said.

This year, 210 people from more than 100 firms attended the conference.

Over the last few years, conference organizers and sponsors have added a "speed dating" element to events, where attendees can schedule meetings with other conferencegoers, Favetta said.

Brand representation is also important for firms like Touchstone. Mock has sat on multiple conference panels over the years, the most recent being a panel about dual-share classes at the Financial Times' Future of Asset Management in North America conference, which was co-sponsored by Ignites, on Oct. 19.

Exposure is important for the firm since it is in "growth mode," she noted.

"I also think about where we spend our distribution dollars, [like] sending wholesalers and other folks to conferences that are formed by our distribution partners," Mock said. "The No. 1 goal is always to have a speaking role, so it makes sense for us to have that broad exposure."

Some asset management companies hire external consulting services to help them assess and strategize the conference circuit. Katie O'Reilly, a partner at Prosek and the head of the firm's network development and conference concierge practice, joined the firm five years ago to do just that.

There are four main pillars O'Reilly and her team look at when helping firms evaluate conferences like brand and thought leadership.

"So to what extent is this conference going to lift your brand, and that can be from speaking or just being seen in the right venues," she said. "The second is access to clients and prospects. So, am I going to be able to see X number of clients and prospects at this one event?"

The third involves getting access to valuable information that people might not otherwise get if they didn't attend the conference. The fourth is access to media and journalists.

Conferences are important for AllianceBernstein's employees to "strengthen relationships with current and prospective clients while also building our brand across the industry," Noel Archard, global head of portfolio solutions and marketing at AllianceBernstein, wrote in an email.

The firm evaluates its conference strategy annually, determining where to attend and whether to "invest in a larger presence or shift our approach," he noted.

"A good example of the importance of attending a conference was when we launched our ETF platform in 2022," he wrote. "Our ETF team utilized and also leveraged industry conferences throughout the year, where we prioritized high-profile events to establish brand visibility, engage directly with clients, and build in-person relationships across the broader ETF ecosystem."

Read the article at Ignites.