Months of anticipation finally came to a head in April 2024 as we gathered in San Diego for #SHMConverge24. The Journal of Hospital Medicine’s Digital Media Team finally all met in person for the first time and we debuted our newest creative output with Live Visual Abstracts! Riding that euphoria as we returned to our respective institutions, we chose the Leadership & Professional Development article “So you’ve been charged to lead a conference—now what?” by Drs. Christina Brown and Shikha Jain (the latter of whom is CEO of the Women in Medicine Summit) for the April #JHMChat. We also invited Dr. Gopi Astik, #SHMConverge25 course director, as our other guest expert as she looks to next year’s conference and her upcoming year of planning.
Like any group project, creating your team is key. We asked participants how a leader brings out the best of them. In today’s fast-paced, low-attention-span world, our experts prioritize periodic reminders, clear deadlines, and action items to achieve a clear vision. One of the most ubiquitous answers was a leader’s ability to highlight one’s strengths while supporting the effort as they “break down barriers,” as Dr. Christopher Jackson mentioned. Dr. Matt Sakumoto summed it up well as “Direction with Autonomy.”
Snacks are also important!
Dr. Astik reflected it back to the group members—what does the group want? What does the audience want?
Dr. Jain brought her conference leadership experience to bear, highlighting these points, as well as listening to those who know more than you (and remembering that sometimes those people may be junior to you). She also emphasized sponsorship followed by mentorship, and allowing them to take ownership.
We then moved beyond ourselves into how we build community around a project or event. Of course, we at the JHM Digital Media team are fond of using social media to create inclusion and innovation! Dr. Alex Chinn discussed how helpful a personal invitation can be, while Dr. Sakumoto emphasized the importance of showing people why they should care.
Dr. Brown emphasized how important a shared goal and vision is to bring people on board, and Dr. Vignesh Doraiswamy highlighted that there is often a built-in community to conferences and medicine, and tapping into that and forging connections between people within that community. Then Dr. Jain looked beyond that and pointed out the importance of looking both within your circle and outside it, to gain “diversity of thought and expertise and background.” As Dr. Kimberly Manning has said, “You can’t build a baseball team with all pitchers.”
Dr. Maha Suleiman recalled another Leadership & Professional Development article in which we use not just our strong connections but our “weak ties” as well!
Dr. Manpreet Malik pointed out the importance of one of the things he does best—bringing good vibes! Be sure to plan bonding time for the group or event, whether that is fun events or dinners (Jain) or even just free time (Doraiswamy). Dr. TaRessa Wills also pointed out the importance of moving in kindness as you lead or work.
Next, we discussed how to invite stakeholders. This is often different for every event, so we like the HMX Dashboard for bouncing ideas off peers.
Dr. Astik noted that big names can be important and exciting, but if the event or project is not in their wheelhouse or part of their goals, they may not have a reason to attend. Dr. Jain dropped a few pearls including leveraging your network and your friends’ networks, and the importance of marketing. Several others also highlighted the personal touch and how helpful it can be to get others involved. Dr. Jen Readlynn, JHM Digital Media Editor, looked at the operational aspect and reminded us to look at how your intended stakeholders communicate and come to them on those fronts.
Finally, with attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion highlighted in the news, we discuss fostering those values in our events. Dr. Brown, proving her own leadership quality, noted that great ideas may come from people who are less vocal in personality. It is important to request their input! To go a step further, Dr. Jackson suggested a mentored didactic or other talk for early-career members.
Dr. Malik and others emphasized frequent check-ins about what (or who) is missing, and the importance of these conversations both in planning and execution. Dr. Jain mentioned outside input on speaker lists, while Dr. Astik discussed limits on individual speakers’ accepted talks at any given event in order to ensure a wider variety of speakers.
Planning a conference can be a daunting challenge, but this discussion featured so many great perspectives on meeting that challenge and creating the best experience for yourself and the audience. Be sure to check out the HMX Dashboard for more peer feedback, too!
Please search #JHMChat on X to read these and more insightful posts (there were multiple book recommendations in the course of the chat, which you won’t want to miss!), and we will see you at an upcoming #JHMChat and #SHMConverge25! You will also see Dr. Shikha Jain again as we join forces with her and the Women in Medicine Summit in our annual joint chat later this year). You can also read the full article in the Journal of Hospital Medicine.
Dr. Thomas is a hospitalist with Buffalo Medical Group and clinical instructor with the community-based Catholic Health Internal Medicine Residency in Buffalo, N.Y. He is also a deputy editor, digital media for the Journal of Hospital Medicine.