Highlights of 2022 and What Community Means in 2023

As for many of you, this is a busy time of year at Evanta. We just took a collective breath (and break!) after a fantastic Executive Summit and Inner Circle Dinner season in November and December, and we are already kicking off programs around the world in 2023. 

I always like to take a moment to reflect on the past year as a new one begins. Across our communities, we hosted 450+ in-person and virtual gatherings last year, connecting more than 20,000 executive community members with each other. In a few communities, last year was the first time they had gathered in person since the pandemic began.

For our community members in Australia, for instance, they were able to get together for the first since 2019! (You can check out highlights from their in-person CIO and CISO gatherings here.) In addition, CIOs and CISOs in our Global communities, who are enterprise-level heads of IT and Security, were also able to connect in person for the first time in ages. I personally got to see our Global Executive Summits in action this year and was reminded of the unique place for these conversations to take place on global topics among global peers.

Another highlight of last year was the growth of our Peer-to-Peer Meetings. This offering, which is now available at all Executive Summits worldwide, enables C-level executives to meet one-on-one with a peer for a private discussion, and they have the option to be matched based on their shared interests and priorities. These meetings consistently receive some of our highest reviews, demonstrating the value that our community members place on peer interaction. We hear there is a fair amount of commiserating that goes on, too!

As we launch our 2023 community gatherings, it’s great not to be questioning in-person programs after managing through the uncertainty of the past three years. We received wonderful feedback on the excitement and value of “getting back to getting together” throughout 2022. 

One CISO shared, “The value of Evanta events lies in the time to network with peers, share ideas, and build the community.” Another CIO said, "Being a part of this community, sharing the pain and gain with fellow tech and business leaders, is very critical and always gives a different perspective and helps promote continuous learning and growth."

In addition, we learned this year from our survey of Governing Body members that they still see a place for virtual gatherings. The survey results suggest that because of their extremely busy schedules, sometimes it’s easier for C-level leaders to hop on an hour-long call than to travel to an in-person meeting. They also recognize that a hybrid world is the norm now. Keeping virtual options as a part of the mix of opportunities in each community gives everyone a chance to stay in touch more frequently and keep current on hot topics. 

And speaking of hot topics, we can’t wait to hear input from C-level executives on what they are focused on and prioritizing this year. Stay tuned for results of our annual, proprietary Leadership Perspective Survey. This feedback from community members drives the topics and agendas for all upcoming programs, which you can find on our calendar. 

It’s also really gratifying to hear our members talk about “building community” and “being part of a community” as it speaks to our purpose. We aim to bring leaders together in a community – and facilitate connections, learning and collaboration among them. Our teams excel at getting to know their communities, growing the relationships and helping to make connections among community members with shared interests. As another IT leader shared with us, the value of community is "the ability to level set across a peer group you may not otherwise have access to." If you haven’t already, consider joining an Evanta community in 2023.