Nearly a year ago, I attended my first HETMA Roadshow at Northwestern University. I knew the concept was interesting, but I left thinking about something else entirely: could I host one at Creighton University?
Northwestern’s event wasn’t memorable because everything went smoothly. In fact, quite the opposite happened. The plan centered around a large tent overlooking Lake Michigan, complete with an overnight whole hog roast, plenty of seating, and what should have been an incredible outdoor experience.
Then a storm rolled through the night before the event, bringing heavy winds and sideways rain that flooded the tent. What should have been an incredible outdoor experience suddenly became a race to save equipment, furniture, and months of planning.
The tent leaked. Furniture got stuck in mud. Vendors had equipment soaked by the rain. What should have been a disaster became one of the best examples I’ve seen of what makes HETMA special. Before sunrise, volunteers and organizers rallied together and moved nearly the entire event into a nearby building. By the end of the day, the Roadshow felt like a success despite everything that had gone wrong.
Watching that recovery convinced me that I wanted to host a Roadshow on my own campus. I just decided I would avoid the outdoor tent.
What Makes a Roadshow Work
Since that Northwestern event, I’ve had the opportunity to attend every U.S.-based HETMA Roadshow. I emphasize U.S.-based because earlier this year HETMA crossed the Atlantic for its first European Roadshow in Mechelen, Belgium, proving that the Roadshow model can be just as successful outside North America.
One thing I’ve learned is that no two Roadshows are exactly alike. Some are planned many months in advance, while others come together in just a few months. The common thread is that they rely on a group of experienced volunteers who understand what it takes to make the day successful.
People often assume hosting means doing everything yourself. Fortunately, that’s not the case.
The first step is reaching out to your HETMA Regional Chair. They can help guide the process, connect you with experienced organizers, and provide a framework for sponsorships, logistics, and event planning. While I started planning nearly a year ahead of time, that’s far from the norm. Many successful Roadshows have been organized on much shorter timelines.
Finding the Right Space
One of the most important decisions is selecting a venue. For the Creighton Roadshow, I reserved our largest event space as early as possible. Even then, I was limited by what was available and ended up with a Thursday date. Campus scheduling can become one of the biggest challenges, especially when you’re trying to accommodate dozens of vendors and attendees.
A successful Roadshow can easily feature more than 30 sponsors. That means planning for tables, power, Wi-Fi access, registration areas, HETMA materials, HEAV media space, food service, and attendee traffic flow. It also means being thoughtful about sponsor placement. Nobody wants direct competitors sharing the same corner of the room all day.
Space fills up faster than many people expect, which makes venue selection one of the earliest and most important tasks.
Timing Matters
Another important consideration is timing. Finding an available space is one thing, but finding the right date is often even harder.
You have to think about the realities of both your campus and your potential attendees. For example, most people probably are not eager to visit Omaha in the middle of winter. Likewise, the first few weeks of a semester tend to be difficult because campuses are focused on getting students settled and addressing the inevitable start-of-term issues. Commencement season can also be challenging, as many colleges and universities are consumed by end-of-year activities.
Beyond the host institution’s calendar, HETMA also tries to be thoughtful about the overall Roadshow schedule. We want to avoid situations where similar regions are hosting back-to-back events or where schools are forced to choose between nearby Roadshows. Spacing events geographically helps maximize attendance and gives each host campus an opportunity to shine.
This is where close coordination between the host school and the HETMA Regional Chair becomes critical. Finding the right balance between venue availability, campus schedules, regional considerations, and attendee travel can be one of the most important decisions made during the planning process.
Showing Off Your Campus
Campus tours are one of the defining features of a Roadshow. The goal isn’t to show only the newest or most impressive rooms on campus. In my opinion, that misses the point. The best tours showcase a variety of spaces that reflect the real challenges and successes institutions experience every day.
For the Creighton Roadshow, I intentionally selected rooms with different technology approaches and even a few spaces that presented challenges. Those rooms often create the most valuable conversations because attendees recognize similar issues on their own campuses.
Because our tour locations were spread across campus, I arranged a shuttle to help move attendees efficiently between buildings. Transportation, timing, and group size are all factors worth considering early in the planning process.
The tour should tell the story of your institution, not just provide a highlight reel.
Sponsors Make It Possible
A Roadshow simply doesn’t happen without sponsors. One of the more challenging aspects of planning is reaching out to potential sponsors and asking for support. Nobody particularly enjoys asking for money, but HETMA has built strong relationships with organizations that understand the value these events provide.
Sponsors gain the opportunity to have meaningful conversations with higher education technology professionals in a setting that is much more personal than a large trade show. In return, attendees receive access to experts, products, and resources that may not otherwise be easily available in their region.
The sponsors make the event possible, but the relationships created during the day are what make it worthwhile.
Bringing People to Campus
Attendees are just as important as sponsors. Many successful Roadshows have taken place in large metropolitan areas such as Chicago, Phoenix, Nashville, and Toronto. Omaha is a little different. While our metro area recently surpassed one million residents, we’re still significantly more isolated than many previous host locations.
That meant taking a more direct approach to outreach.
I spent considerable time identifying colleges and universities within driving distance and trying to find the right contacts. Some emails received responses and many did not, but the goal was simple: make sure people knew there was a higher education AV event happening in the region.
One of the strengths of the Roadshow model is its ability to bring people together who might not otherwise have opportunities to connect. In regions where major conferences aren’t common, that becomes even more valuable.
The Details Matter
Once the venue, sponsors, and attendees are addressed, countless smaller decisions remain. Food and beverage planning is more important than many people realize. Attendees are often traveling, and nobody wants to spend part of the day searching for lunch in an unfamiliar city. At Creighton, that meant working with our campus catering provider and planning for a variety of dietary preferences while accommodating an uncertain attendance count.
The after-hours event also deserves consideration. These gatherings frequently become some of the most valuable networking opportunities of the entire Roadshow.
For Omaha, we wanted something that reflected the city itself. We chose a venue across the street from Charles Schwab Field, home of the College World Series, and selected a hotel within walking distance. Convenient lodging, parking, transportation, and social opportunities all contribute to the overall attendee experience.
Roadshows may be one-day events, but thoughtful planning helps ensure people remember them long after they end.
Why You Should Consider Hosting
Many institutions assume hosting a Roadshow will be expensive. Fortunately, that’s one of the easiest concerns to address.
The event is free for the host institution. HETMA works with sponsors to ensure costs are covered, allowing schools to focus on creating a meaningful experience rather than worrying about budget implications.
The larger investment is time and effort. The more energy you put into the planning process, the better the experience becomes for attendees, sponsors, and your institution.
Hosting a Roadshow gives your campus the opportunity to become a gathering place for higher education technology professionals in your region. It creates connections, encourages conversations, and opens doors that might not otherwise exist.
That’s what convinced me to host one after Northwestern, and it’s why I’d encourage others to consider doing the same.
If you’re interested in learning more about hosting a Roadshow, reach out to regionalgroups@hetma.org.
Interested in attending the Roadshow at Creighton? There is still time! Sign up here.
