Long-term partnership and sustainable growth in primary healthcare education

Challenge

The Goodfellow Symposium, hosted by the University of Auckland's Goodfellow Unit, faces the challenge of organising an annual multidisciplinary event catering to general practitioners, nurses, urgent care physicians, registrars, and other primary healthcare professionals. With the event's rapid year-on-year growth since its inception in 2006, the challenge is to manage this growth effectively, adapt to venue changes, and continually adjust the program design to accommodate increasing attendance and sponsorship participation.

Solution

As the long-term management services provider for the Goodfellow Symposium since 2016, The Conference Company partners closely with the Goodfellow Unit to deliver a comprehensive management service for each event. The ongoing relationship model allows for the retention of significant intellectual property and project knowledge within the team, fostering a strong foundation for growth and innovation. The Symposium transitioned from in-person events held annually in Auckland to virtual delivery in 2021 and 2022, leveraging The Conference Company's virtual platform. We were delighted to return to a full in-person meeting for 2023 and we are currently working on the 2024 meeting.

Results

The collaborative partnership between the Goodfellow Unit and The Conference Company has yielded impressive results:

Steady growth and increased attendance

The Goodfellow Symposium has experienced rapid growth in attendance, with recent years seeing an average of 700 delegates, 150 speakers, and 60 exhibitors and sponsors. The Symposium's reputation and the strong relationship with healthcare companies contributed to sustained growth and rising attendance figures.

Financial success and sponsorship participation

Tough revenue targets are consistently met or exceeded, generating profits to finance the Goodfellow Unit's other educational programs. The established credibility and reputation of The Conference Company facilitates successful partnerships with healthcare companies, leading to increased sponsorship and exhibition participation.

Expanded learning opportunities

The Symposium's success enabled the introduction of attractive commercial models with third-party education providers. This allowed the inclusion of specialist learning components such as dermatoscopy and advanced cardiac life support workshops, enriching the delegate experience and contributing to the financial success of the event.

Longitudinal tracking and continuous improvement

The long-term partnership with the Goodfellow Unit has facilitated detailed tracking of data and statistics, including the use of a meeting app to monitor demographics, sales, attendance, and engagement patterns. This data-driven approach empowered ongoing improvements in marketing strategies, meeting design, and the overall delegate experience.

Knowledge sharing and innovation

Every year we hold post-Symposium debrief meetings with senior management. As well as reviewing successes and learnings from the most recent event, these meetings are a chance for us to share the latest global trends and meeting engagement tools with the Committee. Ideas presented in these meetings can be picked up, trialed and measured in subsequent symposia.