The GovComms Festival is the world’s first virtual government communications conference that brings together 160 speakers from 15 countries to examine how governments around the world can improve their communication with citizens and stakeholders.
The 24-hour long Festival – organised and hosted by contentgroup, and is part of the OECD’s Government After Shock global dialogue – will be kicking off in Canberra, Australia at 10am AEDT next Tuesday (17 Nov).
It provides an opportunity for the global government communications community to come together and share their experiences – including how they are dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic while charting a path for government communication beyond 2020.
The GovComms Festival will take place on the HopIn platform, which allows for five virtual venues to host keynote addresses, panel discussions, and presentations at the same time.
Among the featured speakers are Brian Solis, futurist and Global Chief Evangelist of Salesforce; Stanford University Professor of Psychology Barbara Tversky; Kerri Hartland, one of Australia’s most experienced public servants and now a principal adviser at leading professional services company Proximity; and “R U OK? DAY” Campaign Director Gennie Sheer.
The GovComms Festival will also feature a series from the world of sport on how to build and sustain a high-performing team.
It features English rugby coach Eddie Jones, General Manager of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks Donnie Nelson and former head of the Great Britain women’s rowing team, Paul Thompson.
“The response from the global government communications community has been remarkable. We asked the government communications community for their ideas and contributions, and now we have 160 speakers from 15 countries delivering over 80 hours of experience and education,” said David Pembroke, Founder and CEO of contentgroup.
He continued, “We have attracted the best and brightest and will feature them first in Australia before moving to Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, the USA, Canada, the Pacific Islands and New Zealand before returning to home to Canberra to wrap it all up. It’s ambitious but it’s the diversity that is appealing.
“Digital transformation is the opportunity for government communications to escape from the basement. Research from WPP and now the OECD shows that government communication is under-appreciated and under resourced. While we still have to get our day jobs done in dealing with the media and creating content, digital transformation is the opportunity for us to lead.
“Government communicators can be the ones who draw together the various aspects of digital transformation (technology, data, behavioural science, systems thinking, stakeholder engagement) and draw it together in a single transformative capability. We can become the ‘people, people’ who build and sustain high-performing cross-functional teams.”
Alongside the GovComms Festival main stage will be a live session stage, two on-demand stages, and
a second 24-hour stage supported by Queensland’s Griffith University.
According to Mr Pembroke, there has been an “influx of sign-ups” to tune in to the Festival.
“For anyone with an interest in strengthening communities and improving the well-being of citizens through effective communication, there will be a lot to learn and a lot to share. The GovComms Festival is the beginning of a global community that will be sustained and nurtured over time. We hope you will join us,” he added.
Registration for the GovComms Festival is FREE! Click here for more info.
