How members shaped an event to meet your needs

No membership organisation can hope to stay relevant and engaged without bringing its members into the conversation. So AAT drafted members to shape an event that’s actually useful.

AAT has a number of ways of connecting with its members and getting their feedback. One of these is a Member Advisory Group. Tom Duncan, Product Support and Delivery Manager at AAT, took members of this advisory group to generate ideas for the next big event in the calendar: AAT Connect.

Putting heads together

Heather Palmer, who runs her own practice in Ascot, was part of the group that met to feed into the development of the event. “We had a Zoom call, and just discussed the event, the format and the content.

“And it was very important to me. I mean, there were all ages on the call, I would class myself as one of the older ones, so, it allowed me to give my input to the event, and basically say, ‘Remember, don’t target all the sessions and the talks to students and newly qualified people coming into accounting. Make sure you also target people that have been around for a while and have put in years of practice and maybe built up their own practice with decent turnover.”

Libby Walklett echoes Heather’s enthusiasm for the opportunity to have her voice heard in the event curation process. As a busy practice owner (trading as the Ethical Bookkeeper) she says she was happy to see her suggestion that the event focus on collaboration taken on board. “I’m in practice and I hang around with people in practice and a lot of the people I know are working on their own or in a very small team. So I think that they want to feel part of a community and they want more support.

“And quite often they want the instant moment when you’re in an office with other people and you say I’m stuck on something or can you just sense check that for me I don’t quite get it. Or they just want to have somebody to talk things over with. I think that’s missing when you work on your own.”

As a way of reflecting that growing desire to restore a sense of community and collaboration, AAT Connect has moved away from passive keynote sessions delivered in a hall. Instead, it will follow a flexible, festival style, letting delegates drop in and out of sessions, explore the venue, meet with peers and connect with AAT.

A practical event

Managing a growing accounting practice is often more than a full-time job. As a long-standing AAT member, Heather says she is encouraged by the growing focus on all aspects of accountancy as an entrepreneurial career.

”I like to see some inspirational, motivational talks on growing your business,” she says. “You know, you’re at a certain level and you want to get to the next level. I would like to hear from people who have been there, done that, or even people out with the industry that are motivational speakers. I always like to come away from these events feeling all fired up, ready to go. So I did put that forward.”

Libby agrees, and hopes the content of AAT Connect will reflect her key concerns, and offer practical ways of addressing them. “What I’d like to come out with is knowing the best ways of running my practice, the best ways to use my time, making sure that my company-wide risk assessment is as it should be, for instance.

“What I don’t want is to come out with a massive to-do list. But leaving feeling like I’ve achieved something would be fantastic really. Leaving knowing that if I’m looking for a new employee, this is the place I need to go and this is what I need to put into my job spec. That sort of stuff would be great.

“Our time is so limited, so when I give up more time to attend an event I want to feel like I’ve come out of it with something useful. So yes, the collaboration is the big thing for me.”

Looking to the future

As November approaches, Heather says she hopes AAT Connect will begin a shift towards professional events that reflect the reality of what she calls a really exciting industry.

“I think the whole industry needs to be looked at from a whole different perspective. It’s been grey men in grey suits for so many years. So I think they need to target forward-thinking people who are ambitious, who want to grow, but also nurture and encourage the young ones coming through, or older people that have just qualified.

“We need to give them the encouragement. And AAT is such a good organization, it’s a privilege actually to be a member. So, in order to grow and get more exposure, they just need to target everyone and give value to everyone, no matter what stage they’re at.”

Christian Doherty is a business journalist and freelance writer for AAT.