For several years running now, we've been growing and adapting a way to formally recognize those presenters at Exchange whose work most benefits other users. It's a way to not only show those presenters how much we appreciate their work but also a way for attendees to find and attend a "best of the best" presentation by following nominated sessions.
Over the course of abstract submittal through to presentation review certain presentations that rise to the top of their category will garner a nomination for "best in track". You can even search for nominated presentations by applying that filter in your myExchange personal scheduler. During Exchange those nominated presentations will be evaluated against each other and a "best in track" selection will be made for each track. Awards will be presented to the winners during lunch on Thursday of Exchange. Please make sure you join us Thursday to help recognize the nominees and of course the winners.
It's really important to note that the evaluation criteria used to decide the winners is aimed at finding the presentations that provide the most value to those attending. This means clearly communicated challenges and solutions with quantified results and clear learnings that any attendee could benefit from. It also means that this is not a beauty contest or a sales competition. The prettiest set of PowerPoint slides will not guarantee a high score. Nor will the "slickest" presenter. It's even worth noting that the best or biggest quantified results will not necessarily win. Some of the best information people can get from an Exchange presentation might involve a solid lesson on what not to do. It's really all about explaining why your story is worth telling and how much other people can get out of listening to it.
No matter how unique our business challenges seem to be at times, there is a pretty good chance you're going to run into someone at Exchange who's facing the same problems as you. When you get to benefit from their experience and perhaps have them benefit from yours then we all win. That's what Exchange is all about and this is our way of recognizing those who help the most.
Looking forward to seeing you all at Exchange this year.
Best Regards,
Dewey Kuchle
Member - Board of Directors
Emerson Exchange