Nothing beats meeting face to face as a powerful networking opportunity. Meetings and conferences are a great way to do this efficiently, but having good returns on your investment of time and money requires planning and forethought. I’m going to share some general advice from my conference experiences, geared particularly for job seekers, and give examples from the BIO international convention, a fantastic opportunity for those in or seeking to enter the pharmaceutical/biotech industry. The convention in Chicago this year drew 15,000+ industry leaders from 49 states and 65 countries.

Conference tip #1. Creative conference access.

1)    Volunteer. If you’re un/underemployed or on a stipend, the idea of spending your scarce financial reserves on conference admission may not be appealing, especially if you are not going to present. Depending on the size and scope of the conference, however, there may be ways to find discounts or even free admission. Conferences often need volunteers to staff information booths, care for speakers or VIPs, work registration, etc. Working registration gives you a chance to put names to faces, learn who is at the conference, and, especially for the extroverts, a way to initiate conversations that can lead to longer chats later. Even large, professionally-run conferences like BIO have a volunteer force that receives conference access in return for their services.

2)    Media. Conference planners rely on a number of marketing tools to build awareness and solicit registrations. A key one is inviting media, often for free, to attend and cover the conference. This applies not just to professional, full-time media, but freelancers (with an assignment letter from your publication) and even bloggers, if you can show a track record of publications and or blog entries. Consider approaching local organizations (e.g., a state biotech organization or university group) about writing for their newsletter, or blogging for sites like BioCareers (You can contact Marina@biocareers.com if interested. You need three to seven years experience beyond a postdoc.). This takes some advance planning and portfolio development, but also serves as a useful demonstration to potential employers that you have “excellent written and oral communication skills,” a standard component of almost every job description you’ll ever come across. I did this for the BIO convention this year in exchange for articles, and had full convention access (normally >$1000 for registration alone) as well as access to some media-only events, including a photo op with Al Gore!

3)    Barter. You can offer to cover the conference for an organization in exchange for registration or some other component of the trip costs. This exchange could involve reporting back on presentations for competitive intelligence companies (basically, companies that keep up with the competitive landscape for other companies) that don’t have staff to cover them. You can also offer to find contacts in exchange for other parts of your trip—this year I traded 5 ‘warm’ contacts (meaning I had vetted their interest in discussing a screening technology) for reimbursement of my flight ticket to BIO. Maintaining a network of friends and colleagues can help with housing, or at least local expertise on where to stay in a city. For BIO, I stayed with one of my grad school colleagues (he was ideally located on a free BIO shuttle route) and treated him to dinner one evening in exchange. Finally, you can find other ways to participate—for example, the BIO convention provides day passes to the exhibit hall if you register for the free career fair (a potentially useful experience itself with more than 50 exhibitors, although it has been quite crowded the past 2 years). Even networking in absentia is possible--you can upload your resume to the career fair for free, even if you can’t attend in person.

Convention tip #2. Prepare to network.

1)    Elevator Pitch. This phrase comes from the hypothetical situation that you find yourself riding in an elevator with the person who can get you your next position, invest in your company, make you a deal, etc., but you only have about 30 seconds (the elevator ride) to explain it to them. There are conflicting opinions of what should go into one, but the bottom line is to know what you want, explain it concisely, and try to balance multiple agendas (in my case, I’d be open to contract work as an inroad into a company, but would prefer a full-time position).

Practice it with colleagues to get feedback on whether your message is clear. I spent a lot of my time at the BIO conference in the exhibit hall, and had a number of pitches that I tailored to specific exhibitors: from medical writing and editing services for communications companies to a business development pitch for a Big Pharma company. I found that most people are interested in helping others, at least at some level, but you need to be clear on exactly how they can help. Although I don’t have space to go into it here, networking should be a two-way street and not just about “what’s in it for me.” Think about what you have to offer people (access to your network, expertise in a topic/area, etc.) and include that in your after-pitch discussion and follow-up.

2)    Groups where you belong. Conferences often have undergrad or grad groups that host receptions. The advantage here is that you already have something in common with other attendees, and they’re probably more likely to help someone with a connection (e.g., their fellow alumni). Exhibitor parties are also a good way to meet people, especially if you use their equipment or reagents. Although the traditional scientist response when they see sales reps is to duck into the cold room, these folks are generally well-connected and can give great insight into potential career moves (e.g., which PIs are winning grants), including within their own companies.
Check with your PI or other faculty about how they get invited and find out how to get on the invitation list. States and regions often sponsor exhibitor booths at BIO, which can also be a great networking platform.

3)    Conference programming. Check the conference program well in advance for sessions to help with your career development. For example, at BIO there were sessions for resume reviews, speed networking for job seekers, career management, and the use of LinkedIn. These sessions can be incredibly helpful in energizing your job search or long-term career planning.

Hopefully these strategies will make your next conference the best one yet. The next BIO convention is June 27-30, 2011, at the Washington, DC convention center—I’d be happy to be your first networking appointment!