Wowza! It has been a real whirlwind of events and activity over the last 5 or 6 days. Based on my schedule last week and the scramble to set up interviews and close deals, I think everyone tries to jam every bit of business into the few short days leading up to Thanksgiving. Not a bad approach, but I can definitely admit I spent most of the weekend sleeping and trying to recover. Before I fly off to Oklahoma on Wednesday (I know..please don't judge me), I wanted to spend some time highlighting and reflecting on a few of the really cool events I went to and the awesome people I got to meet. So, here goes:
Monday: industry event sponsored by Monster at the Westin on the waterfront. This was a great event but different than most I go to. Everyone in attendance included fellow recruiters and staffing execs AKA all of Monster's clients. I met industry folks from Texas to California as well as pretty much the entire Monster staff in Maynard. Not only did I get to meet Hollister's personal Monster rep, who was really awesome by the way, but I also participated in a lot of interesting dialogue with my competition. Who knew?! The opportunity to put 60 recruiters in a room all from different organizations is rare, but is truly a great chance to talk about the market and discuss staffing "best practices" with people from very different backgrounds representing very different parts of the country. It also didn't hurt that they had an open bar, amazing food, and really good cupcakes..
Tuesday: breakfast sponsored by Middlesex Bank at the Newton Marriott. Topic: "The Innovation Economy: What Makes Massachusetts Different." I love this topic. You know why? Because, bottom line, we are awesome. Ok, maybe I'm biased, but I think our economy stacks up quite well in areas such as R&D, innovation, technology, and healthcare compared to some of the strongest economies in the world. For example: Massachusetts ranks as the most R&D intensive economy in the world. Ranked at number 2: Israel. Our little state beats an entire country. That's pretty awesome. Even though we are so great, we also have some drawbacks. One of our state's major drawbacks: our slow population growth. Not only do we have slow population growth (most likely attributed to our population also being highly educated- 45% of our working age population has a Bachelors degree or higher) but we also have an aging population. That's right- we are getting older and older by the minute. Luckily we have a strong venture capital force coming on strong (California is ranked #1 in this category, no surprise) to create new companies, attract young talent, and hopefully, fingers crossed, keep these college students here in Mass.
Wednesday: BBJ Innovation All Stars event at the House of Blues. Let me say this was such a great venue to host an event like this. The vibe was celebratory as well as professional and included a room full of interesting, charismatic, and intelligent people all of which make up very different sectors of the Boston community. I had the opportunity to meet the CEO from Organogenesis, Geoff MacKay, featured as a "Tech Luminary", who is pioneering the science behind regenerative medicine. I also had the chance to meet a few of the folks from InkHouse Public Relations (featured as a "Rising Star"), Bobbi Carlton from Carlton PR and Mass Innovation Nights (also featured as a "Tech Luminary"), as well as several other people from the BBJ, Winter Wyman, Travel Leaders, etc... I felt very honored to be in the same room with so many of these bright and innovative leaders who are incredibly inspiring in their own right.
Events like these are so exciting and a thrill to be a part of. I'm looking forward to squeezing in a few more before the end of the year. I encourage everyone to get out there, meet as many people like this as you can, and embrace all that Boston has to offer. Trust me, you will get inspired. Until then, I'm officially in Thanksgiving mode and will officially snap out of it next Monday. Everyone have a wonderful holiday and enjoy all of your yummy food and all that we have to be thankful for!
-M
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