After the Bell: The business of meetings — why we gather to network

There are many things I enjoy, but a large group of people talking (and pretending to listen) to each other must be among the top five.

And it can be a gathering or a Gathering, I’m not that fussy.

One of the wonderful things about getting a little older (because, obviously, there are so many) is that you know more people. And as you know more people, it becomes more interesting to go to a place where thousands of them gather.

Sitting in the seats at Daily Maverick’s event today I was thinking a little about why it has become such a big business – why do people pay money to come and be a part of something?

And look, conferencing, meetings, events – it’s a massive business. For some journalists, including myself, it can become an important side-hustle. Some people make careers out of hosting events, or managing the technical side.

And, if you have ever been lucky enough to be backstage at a place like the Cape Town International Convention Centre, you probably remember two things. The first is how tense everything can be. The second is that Rebecca Davis is actually funnier off-stage than she is on it.

About a year ago I was lucky enough to be having a conversation with someone who had had a long and successful career in investing for one of our big institutions. He was about to go and sit in the audience at one of those big halls in Sandton. Roughly 10m below where Xi Jinping and Narendra Modi had sat the year before.

I asked him if he really found value in these things. He considered the point for a while, and answered, gently, that he paid attention for about 40% of the time. And he said he usually found that if it was a good list of speakers, he probably went away with one deep insight that was genuinely new and interesting. 

That’s why he keeps going to them, and paying good money to go to them. It’s that he does come away with something of value.

I must say that paying attention for 40% of the time is not bad. If you consider how many things come through to your phone during working hours, how much has to be done immediately, it’s quite a high number.

It also shows how these gatherings have changed. In the old days, about 15 years ago, it would have been considered incredibly rude to read a book or a magazine while someone was speaking from a podium. Today, if you speak from a podium about half the people in front of you will be looking at their phones. 

But despite our boringly virtual lives, there is still hope for the physical era. We still quite like going to events like this, partly because of the absolutely massive and wonderful flood of people you get to meet.

There is also huge financial value. It’s how you get more business. You bump into someone, strike up a conversation, shake hands and, if you’re still stuck in the industrial era, swap business cards. Because these events are often industry-specific, it’s the best possible marketing. 

For South Africa, hosting these events has become quite important. It might just be me, but I find that Cape Town seems to have found a way to really rule the roost when it comes to hosting these things.

Obviously there are some advantages that Sandton can’t compete with. Even AI can’t move the sea to Joburg (although after the first rains in September we’ll probably find the blocked stormwater drains have helped to create a large and dangerous pond).

But I think the real difference is that Cape Town is run better. The area around the convention centre is safe, even after dark. It’s also interesting to stick around in it – there are all sorts of things to do. The only drawback is that parking in the CBD for the day will cost more than a National Dialogue.

In Sandton I don’t think you get the same vibe. Despite the best efforts of businesses and groups in that area, you just can’t make foreigners as comfortable as you can in Cape Town. Any plan to try to increase the money Joburg makes through this kind of eventing would surely have to start there. 

That doesn’t mean there is no money to be made. Joburg still has large industries and companies and businesses. Anyone who has spent any time watching a school rugby match will know how many decision-makers are still based there, looking for ways to drum up more business.

There are some risks to going to a big event. Someone could put a cappuccino in your hand, or invite the liar Malusi Gigaba to speak.

But normally I think most of us leave gatherings and Gatherings with a sense of affirmation. That’s probably because we have been reminded, just by being there, how many people there are in the world who are like us.

And that’s a good feeling. DM