Can’t Make it to Austin? Check Out the Annual Meeting’s Virtual Experience

Anna Solowiej, PhD, JD
Chair, AUTM Annual Meeting Program Committee

While I will be thrilled to reconnect with many friends and colleagues in person at our Annual Meeting in Austin, I understand that with our extraordinarily busy schedules, not everyone can take time to travel to the conference.  Please note that there is a convenient and fun virtual option for those who need to stay home that week.
 
We all discovered during the pandemic how effectively video conferencing and teleworking can be used during stressful and busy times (to the joy of introverts and discomfort of extroverts), and I am happy to see that AUTM also has incorporated this new trend into its usual programming in creating its first hybrid Annual Meeting.

The Annual Meeting Virtual Experience this year includes networking opportunities, live-streamed educational sessions, and the chance to show your solidarity with Team AUTM’s runners as a virtual participant in RUN AUSTIN.

Networking will be possible via access to AUTM Connect, the powerful partnering platform, where you can schedule virtual meetings with all attendees – and we expect a high number of participants!  You can create a detailed personal profile, search for other attendees, send and receive messages, and schedule online meetings.  At our last Annual Meeting in Austin, almost 9,000 meeting requests were made on AUTM Connect.

As you can see on the AUTM website, the Annual Meeting Planning Committee chose a diverse set of nine educational sessions that will be streamed live at various times Monday-Wednesday.  We hope  the topics include something for everyone, from Top 10 Court Decisions to Startup Financing to the annual crowd-pleaser of Business Side of License. And if you’re super busy that week with work or family obligations, you can also view recordings of those streamed session later. In fact, your virtual registration entitles you to view all recorded sessions from the 2023 Annual Meeting—not just the live-streamed sessions—after the conference is over.

And finally, you can join Team AUTM virtually for a fun run at home! As a virtual RUN AUSTIN participant, you will have three weeks to complete the challenge of your choice—5K, half marathon, or full marathon—on any course you choose or even on a treadmill at the gym. You’ll receive an official event shirt, a finisher medal and a race bib.

So, while I look forward to seeing many of you in Texas, I hope that those who cannot make it will take advantage of and enjoy this cool virtual experience. And I will definitely see all of you on AUTM Connect.  Did I mention the networking opportunities?