OMRS20 Planning Updates

Hi everyone!

As OMRS20 planning kicks into high gear in the coming weeks, we can use this thread to share general updates and links to weekly OMRS20 Planning meeting notes. There is also a #omrsconference Slack channel for quick questions and synchronous brainstorming. Anyone and everyone is welcome to join us!

Helpful Virtual Conference References and Resources

  • Planning virtual conferences. More and more groups are turning to virtual conferences and looking for lessons learned. @christine and I came across this set of best practices that tackle everything from online platforms to dealing with timezones to finances - pretty much everything you can imagine! I’m also paying attention to any and all conference announcements and listserv discussions that can give us insight into what other groups are doing and learning.

  • OMRS20 Ops Plan. This lays out all of the tasks that we’ll need to complete in order to pull off OMRS20.

  • OMRS20 Virtual Budget. How much does it cost to organize and hold a virtual conference? Sure, there aren’t any venue, banqueting, or travel costs - and what about swag, conference planning services, online platforms, etc? Based on feedback and using our expense calculator, @christine has come up with a budget for OMRS20. This will help us make decisions about registration fees and sponsorships

Where are we now?

During Tuesday’s OMRS20 Planning meeting, we checked in on:

  • Themes/objectives. Add your ideas to the Talk thread or #omrsconference Slack channel!
  • Wiki/Website. Our OMRS20 Wiki page is up! We agreed to add an announcement to the website slider, possibly a page.
  • Banner. We need to put a call out for a banner design.
  • Registration Forms. We agreed to use our usual Google Form for general registration. The question is: does EventBrite give us anything that BPT doesn’t? How do we communicate log-in information to those who register?
  • Registration Fees. @christine has created a tab in our OMRS20 Budget with information on what other conferences are doing with registration fees. Most conferences are charging registration fees - some at their usual rates, some drastically reduced. We have committed to making our conference cost-neutral and we are able to adjust our registration fees so that we cover virtual conference costs.
  • Sponsorships. Sponsorships usually go to scholarships and cover airfare, accommodation, visa fees, and registration fees. Do we need to seek sponsorships this year? What would be covered? This conversation is to be continued…

For more details, check out the notes.

@christine @sanjayap @dkayiwa @wanyee @burke @akanter

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