Reflecting on CEPIC Congress 2024: Feedback and Future Improvements

It has been a month since the close of the CEPIC Congress 2024 in the picturesque town of Juan-les-Pins. We are grateful for the enthusiastic participation and invaluable feedback from all attendees, sponsors, and speakers. Based on the responses received, we are pleased to share some key highlights and areas for improvement as we prepare for an even better event in 2025.

Online Booking System Feedback

We received mixed feedback on our online booking system, with responses ranging from 1 to 5 on a scale where 1 is the lowest score. Here’s how the responses broke down:

• 1: 12
• 2: 4
• 3: 32
• 4: 8
• 5: 8

This feedback highlights the need for significant improvements, and we are fully committed to enhancing the system for CEPIC Congress 2025. We want our delegates to know that we are listening and actively working on making the booking process easier and more user-friendly. Your feedback is invaluable in helping us create a better experience for everyone next year. 

Travel Convenience to Nice Airport

We asked our delegates about their experience travelling to Nice Airport, as we will be hosting CEPIC Congress 2025 in the same location. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with attendees appreciating the direct flights and easy accessibility:

• "Easy - direct flights available"
• "Very easy! Direct flight from our hometown to Nice!"
• "I took the train from Paris, very easy!"

However, some attendees from the USA found the journey long and challenging but felt it was worth it. Overall, the convenience of travel to Nice was well-received, which supports our decision to return next year.

Attendees 

In our recent survey, 9 attendees indicated that this was their first CEPIC Congress, while 55 attendees reported they had participated in previous years. This is fantastic news, as it not only highlights our success in attracting new participants but also demonstrates our ability to create a valuable and engaging environment that brings people back year after year. This underscores the importance of our congress as a key event for networking and staying informed about the latest industry developments.

Feedback on the Branded Lounges 

The new branded lounges were a popular addition, though there were suggestions for improvement:

• "Very cool. Nice that everybody could use them."
• "Good idea. Consider moving upstairs near the conference room to make it easier for the flow over from roundtable/talks to the branded lounges"
• "It was difficult to determine if the lounges were free to use for meetings"
• "Very nice! Gave an idea of new brands that had participated"
• "They were okay, but not really a quiet place to meet"

Catering Feedback

Catering received mixed reviews, with comments pointing out repetitive food options and a lack of variety for dietary restrictions:

• "The food was repetitive and lacked options for vegetarians."
• "The food looked good, but I have many allergies (nuts, eggs and others). It would be helpful to have descriptions of the food as well as ingredients if possible."
• "Yes, maybe more cooked, warm meals would be even better"
• "Please make tea and coffee available much earlier and easier to access in all areas"

Additional Feedback and Suggestions

We also received valuable suggestions on other aspects of the event:

• "There should be a way to try and limit meetings during the talks, so we could all attend the talks as well."
• "Audio for speeches and round tables - Suggest lapel microphones rather than microphones that get passed around."

Many attendees appreciated the efforts put into the congress but suggested improvements in areas such as seating arrangements, consistent coffee availability, and better signage for food and table markers. 

Programme of Conferences and Talks

Attendees found the conference talks valuable but faced challenges balancing them with meetings:

• "If we have meetings, we cannot attend the seminars. Maybe they could take place at a different time frame."
• "Recording them. It is difficult to have meetings and go to the Seminars also. I tried to block the times but it was difficult."

Highlights of the Congress

When asked what they liked most about this year's congress, the responses highlighted the successful integration of social and professional aspects:

• "I liked the new lounges. They were very useful and gave a new space for meetings."
• "Location was good, easy to find people, very good industry party, and great keynotes"
• "Meeting people from other agencies that I had only spoken to via email"
• "Have been coming to CEPIC for more than a decade and find it very informative and useful. This time was very useful to understand about AI. The debates were interesting and also the meetings that followed were very useful."
  
• "Better energy than 2023 and real good that "the big ones" were all there."
• "The ease of the journey. The convenience of getting to and from the Congress Centre. The pleasant surroundings. The chance to meet many industry colleagues. The talks."

The social events, particularly the annual industry party, were highly praised. The beautiful setting in Juan-les-Pins and the positive atmosphere also received numerous compliments.

Would you consider returning? 

41 attendees responded with a resounding 'Yes' when asked if they would consider returning to CEPIC Congress, while everyone else had 'No Opinion'. This is fantastic news, indicating that our attendees are open to returning to Juan-les-Pins for CEPIC Congress 2025. We are committed to making next year's event even bigger and better than 2024. By incorporating the valuable feedback we received, we already have a list of improvements to ensure a more comfortable, convenient, and valuable experience for all. 

Conclusion and Looking Forward

We extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who made CEPIC Congress 2024 a success. Your feedback is crucial in helping us improve and deliver an even better experience next year. We are committed to addressing the concerns raised, particularly in enhancing catering options, improving audio-visual arrangements, and possibly recording talks for later viewing. Your suggestions on new locations and more structured networking opportunities are also being considered.

If you didn't have the opportunity to provide your feedback and would like to send us more details of your experience and where you think we could make improvements, please feel free to send us a message at: cepic2024@cepic.org 

Thank you once again for your participation and contributions. We look forward to welcoming you back in 2025 with an even more enriching and enjoyable CEPIC Congress.