Twenty-seven events. One consistent, consolidated approach. IBM Watson Summit is the flagship Europe-wide event series for IBM. The 2017 events attracted 18,660 registrations. Attendees were drivers of digital transformation across the C-Suite level (CMO/CDO, COO/VP Bus Ops, CIO’s [Innovation], CIO & CTO’s), Marketers, Innovation Managers, Start-ups, Developers and Data Scientists. The primary purpose was to reinforce IBM as the leader in cognitive business and cloud platforms.
GPJ recommended Watson Summits be brave & bold in their design to differentiate from competition and attract new audiences. We identified festival-style event trends in the entertainment industry & recommended IBM brought this immersive festival approach to senior IT executives:
-Agenda designed with freedom of movement & different passions in mind. Not just one traditional keynote theatre, but multiple activities occurring concurrently
-Multiple engaging event formats devised to inspire info exchange – stage in the round, fishbowl sessions, silent theatres, rotating seating
-IBM Watson technology woven into the event DNA – choir singing a song composed by Watson, cognitive refreshments served based on a participant’s mood, stage lighting adjusted according to Watson’s analysis of the event social sentiment
-IBM branding displayed in new & playful ways
-Impressive range of speakers designed to surprise. Chris Hadfield (astronaut) played guitar & sang David Bowie’s Space Oddity
