Organizing an event like The Next Web Conference is a monumental task that it comes with its usual share of pressures, pay-offs and unexpected moments.
So how is Boris Veldhuijzen van Zanten, co-founder of The Next Web, able to keep tabs on everything that’s happening while also providing space for innovative ideas and spontaneous discussions?
By letting go.
“The good thing about the The Next Web Conference is that it’s just a big surprise,” he said. “We invite great speakers, and we have a little bit for everyone, and then we just see what happens. So for us, it’s as much of an adventure for us as it is for other people.”
Attend almost any other technology conference, and you’ll be bombarded with a number of themes or underlying messages, such as ‘Faster Than Real Time’ or ‘Redefining Mobile’.
It’s a useful way of creating a connective tissue for the various speakers, or giving potential delegates an idea of what to expect. The Next Web Conference is a little different.
“People always ask me, what’s the theme of the Conference? And I always say, I’ll tell you afterwards, because I won’t know until the end,” Boris explains.
“It’s very well-organized and all the details are taken care of, but then we let go. We trust these people that we invite to come up with great stories, and we really prep them that way.”
Boris took some time out from his busy schedule to talk with The Next Web about his approach to the increasingly influential conference in Amsterdam.
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Image Credit: Julia Deboer/Flickr
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