Looking Back: 3rd Global Filipino Networking Convention
by Lorna Lardizabal Dietz
There were a lot of best practices that we learned before, during, and after the Third Global Filipino Networking Convention. For instance, we employed grassroots marketing and public relations throughout the preparations of this special gathering, sending e-mails to all the prospects and participants on a regular basis. Everyone who was in the e-mail list felt that they were a part of the convention’s preparations.
:-DWe did make room for surprises.:-D For example, the overseas delegates didn’t know that they would be treated to an energetic Sinulog dance presentation during the Opening Plenary Session and that Tommy Osmena, the mayor of Cebu City, would enter the Cebu Waterfront Hotel’s Grand Ballroom riding a customized vehicle. Or that there would be a spectacular fireworks display at the Ayala Center’s Lagoon just for us!
As Executive Coordinator of the 3rd Global, I realized how important it was to have someone like me (a Cebuana and a NaFFAA member) who could harmonize with both convenors, NaFFAA and the Cebu Visitors and Convention Bureau (CVCB), communicating to them in a timely fashion and making executive decisions with the big picture in mind. I highly recommend having this coordinating position as a “must” for future Global Filipino Networking Conventions.
:-)My Philippine cellphone was a lifesaver many times over.:-) I used it to text over 400 people in my Philippine phone book so that they would register for the convention on time. Or that I would text every forum or workshop’s manager or moderator with instructions on where to board the buses bound for the Ayala Lagoon.
Some of my memorable moments include being supported by a dedicated group of volunteers who pampered and took care of all our plenary speakers. We also had official greeters at the airport and the Cebu Waterfront Hotel. I made sure that a communications person (equipped with a VHF radio) was assigned to each member of the Organizing Committee so we could trouble-shoot efficiently. While Jenny Franco, the convention’s project director, took care of the financial and operational details, I focused on making sure that everyone in the committees knew what was going on. There were five of us who worked in the US committee. A month before the convention, I joined seven other members of the working group from CVCB in Cebu. The best compliment that Patrick Gregorio, the convention’s Secretary General and CVCB’s founder, gave our group was that he believed each one of the eight members did the work equivalent to 10 people.
There are more stories. For now, let me share some of these memories with you.
We had a PowerPoint presentation available at our website, ThirdGlobalCebu.com (which has since been changed to a simplified format at ThirdGlobalCebu.net). It contained a lot of information that truly helped many overseas attendees as well as media practitioners who were covering the convention. Click here to review this presentation at SlideShare.net.
Rodel Rodis is the founding father of the Global Filipino Networking Convention concept. He worked closely with Viki Bamba, a.k.a. the founding mother, in mobilizing more than 4,000 Filipinos to congregate at the Moscone Center, San Francisco, California on August 31, 2002 for the 1st Global Filipino Networking Convention. Rodel summarizes the 3rd Global quite nicely in his syndicated column.
From: Rodel50@aol.com
Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2005 20:36:36 -0500
Subject: [Fil-AmNetwork] Telltale Signs/ 1000 PROUD FILIPINOS AT CEBU GLOBAL CONVENTION
To: filglobalnet@yahoogroups.com
Telltale Signs/ 1000 PROUD FILIPINOS AT GLOBAL CONVENTION
The 3rd Global Filipino Networking Convention held at the Waterfront Hotel in Cebu City, January 20 -22, 2005, was the biggest event in Cebu since the Sinulog festival. The Cebu Daily News, for example, devoted the entire front page of its Saturday edition to coverage of the opening of the convention.
“I’m a Filipino and I’m proud!” ran its banner headlines as Cebu’s largest daily reported that the words reverberated in the Grand Ballroom of the Waterfront Hotel recited with great passion by more than 1,000 delegates, accomplished professionals, and entrepreneurs from all over the world who had come to Cebu City for the “Gathering of Heroes”.
Convention keynote speaker Loida Nicolas Lewis, chair of the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA), exhorted the delegates to scream out their pride in being Filipinos by working to improve the conditions of their Motherland.
Continue reading at ThirdGlobalCebu.net. You will need to scroll down to the bottom of the page.
You can also click here for some of the 3rd Global’s FAQ’s and basic information.