Ad:Tech is coming back to New York next week and its gotten quite the facelift this year to help celebrate the 20th year of the event. First, there are a couple big changes at the top. Ad:Tech made a sharp strategic placement with industry living legend John Durham at the helm. Another smart leader in place is Daniel Elder as Global Chief Digital Officer.
Ad:Tech is maturing with our industry, and having spent well in excess of a decade as a member of its advisory board, spoken at events in the U.S., China, Japan, Australia, United Kingdom (and a few others I have forgotten) I have a special attachment to this living industry event. Also, I feel old as hell. This year, Ad:Tech has a completely new floor plan that will focus on immersive programming and take a much more focused approach to showcasing innovation.
The show has changed many times over the years and I’ve gotten to know some amazing people while working in and around it. From the early leadership of Susan Bratton who helped launch and make a name for the event to now, Ad:Tech really has evolved with the industry. It was Susan who put my 20 something know it all self on the board when I offered some unsolicited criticisms of the early events. Later on down the line came folks like Drew Ianni and Brad Berens, both of whom have gone on to great success elsewhere in the business and contributed greatly to the event’s tremendous reputation over the years. Indeed one of key reasons to attend Ad:Tech are the relationships you can forge just by attending and actively participating.
Of course, there have been many other folks who helped structure the event and make it what it is today. Many of the speakers and advisors are innovators that helped shape the industry as well. Keynotes are my personal favorite at the event and generally set the tone for the session content. I’ve personally shared the stage with folks like Satya Nadella, Marissa Mayer, Moon Frye, P. Diddy, Diddy, Puff Daddy, John Battelle, John Battelle’s persona, John Battelle’s book and many Battellisms. This year you’ll see Rishad Tobaccowala, Chief Strategist from Publicis Groupe, Guy Primus, Co-founder and CEO of The Virtual Reality Company, and Laura Henderson, head of Global Content & Media Monetization at Mondelez International. There are a lot of personalities and experts at the event but you’ll only get out what you put in — so make the most of your time.
It’d be impossible for me to highlight all the changes and updates to the show, suffice it to say, I’m expecting a great deal from the event and the people running it from top to bottom.
I’ll be in and around the Ad:Tech event Wednesday and Thursday next week, so drop me a line if a morning or afternoon beverage is something you might find interesting.
This post was originally published on LinkedIn.com