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Briefi ngs On Talent & LeadershipBriefi ngs On Talent & Leadership

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71Issue No. 30

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EXPECTED ATTENDANCE

KNOWN FOR

GOOD TO KNOW

LOCATION

SXSWINTERACTIVEMarch

35,000

Frenetic atmosphere seemingly in lockstep with the pace of techno-logical change.

O� ers more than 1,000 sessions with 2,500 speakers, so don’t overschedule. The con-ference prides itself on unexpected discoveries for those who wander.

AFRICACEO FORUMMarch

1,000

Ever-optimistic dis-cussion around the unrealized and untapped potential of Africa.

With certain require-ments in place, tends to draw a high-caliber audience and is now in its fi fth year.

MILKEN INSTITUTE GLOBAL CONFERENCE April–May

3,500

Economic forecasting delivered by some of the world’s leading politicians and business leaders.

The quintessential professional conference that attentive attendees can use to open eyes to new business opportunities.

Just the idea in today’s technology-laden world seems a bit outdated. You fl yto one city just to gather at a hotel or conference stage to listen to speakers, take notes and then do that rarest of business activities these days—talk to people face to face.

But whether it’s to rub shoulders with the big names in tech at SXSW in Texas or learn the latest on Africa at the African CEO Forum, the $14 billion trade and conference industry is still thriving as an essential learning and networking tool. Where else is it possible to bump into Bill Gates in thehallway, as one executive told us? Or, as the same executive also remembers, the CEO of his future company? “There’s a tremendous amount of opportunity to learn at every one of them,” says Texas-based author and tech expert Christopher Meyers.

But which to pick? And how to tailor these events to your needs? Below, our own guide to some of the big ones left in 2017.

B Y L E X I E B A R K E R

ON MY CALENDAR

Conferring on Conferences1 = LEAST FOCUSED 8 = MOST FOCUSED

FORBESWOMEN’S SUMMITJune

Hundreds

An awe-inspiring line-up of top busi-ness leaders, think-ers and celebrities, like Sara Blakely and Jessica Alba.

Aimed at inspiring women to take leadership roles, with the mission of “translating the ideas into action.”

SINGAPORESUMMITTBA

350

One-day gathering on the impact of globaliza-tion on Asia.

By invitation only and for good reason—last year’s big names included JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon, Siemens CEO Joe Kaeser and Hitachi executive chairman Hiroaki Nakanishi.

WEB SUMMITNovember

50,000

Truly international audi-ence focused on being there rather than being seen there.

With a strong start-up vibe, Web Summit is also known to be a good place to get new businesses noticed, par-ticularly for fi ntech and artifi cial intelligence in recent years.

WORLD BUSINESS FORUMNovember

2,000

Seriously well-curated panel of speakers, topics and discussions.

An uncanny number of speakers are TED Talk all-stars, promising a dynamic environment. This year’s topic: “Humanifi cation.”

What are you looking for? We’ve assessed which conferences are best for a range of purposes, from networking to seeing the top leaders.

■ SXSW Interactive

■ Africa CEO Forum

■ Milken InstituteGlobal Conference

■ Forbes Women’s Summit

■ Singapore Summit

■ Web Summit

■ World Business Forum

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