Eurojuris Vienna Congress took place from October 31st to November 3rd. We’re taking this occasion to focus on the people who make it possible, managing an intricate knot of priorities between hotels and speakers and guests...
As the last preparations for the Vienna Congress are under way, Michael Proksch (EJ Austria) tells us about how he managed its organisation: 'The most important thing,' he says, 'Is to be on time, always on time! Remember to send things before deadlines, and respect your own time limits.'
It seems that timing was the key factor behind the success of the Congress. 'To manage it,' he explains, 'I started working on it just after the last meeting we had in London. I asked all the people involved to get back to me before summer or as soon as they could. It was important to receive everyone's input in advance so I could process it all. I also kept track, because some people answer immediately but others need a few reminders.'
The right place at the right time.
Putting such a big event on track is a task that should not be underestimated. More than a hundred lawyers can converge on the venue each year, making it particularly tricky to organise. Diane Tries has worked on several of these events over the course of the last few years. For her, the most difficult thing is to find the right venue. 'You need a place that everyone can reach,' she says, 'And you need quite a special hotel to host the event: most hotels offer a handful of conference rooms, but because we plan many workshops, we need many meeting rooms instead. It is important to find a hotel that is adapted to our needs.'
Finding an appropriate venue has proven to be the real difficulty behind the architecture of a Congress. 'When you book so many meeting rooms,' Diane explains, 'The hotel wants to be sure you will actually fill them, so they need a lot of bedrooms booked in advance, and that's tricky to negotiate with them. But we have gotten used to it after all these years.’
An opinion seconded by Hans Jonkhout (EJ Netherlands), who, as President of the network, has had to keep an eye on many such events. 'Diane manages the logistics of the event,' Hans explains, 'And we at the board define the content of the Congress. But last year, for the Congress in The Hague, it carried a nostalgic feeling, as we were celebrating our 20th birthday.'
Hans reminisces with us about the last Congress, knowing all too well how tricky it can be to find the right city to host it. 'You must find a city where everyone can be together at the same time! And you know, there is always a country in which there is a holiday at a different date, so our members from there can't come because their kids are not at school, or perhaps in another country there will be a sporting event and no one wants to go abroad... Finding the right date to satisfy everyone is also a difficult thing!'
Even volcanoes enter the game.
As complicated as it can be, working on such an event is a good memory for all those involved. 'I would gladly do it again, but perhaps in a few years’ time,' says Michael with a laugh. 'The weather can also be unpredictable so it's sort of a bargain, but we always have a good time', adds Hans. 'Afterwards we always laugh about all this hard work,' says Diane, who reminds us of the dreaded Icelandic volcano. 'I can't remember its name anymore, like most people I guess!' she says with a laugh. 'But it grounded all the planes on the continent for days, and it happened just before our Congress! We really thought everything would be cancelled because of a volcano, but in the end it calmed down just in time.'
But Michael has the greatest story to tell about working on the organisation of a Congress: 'This year we wanted something very local, very Viennese, very Austrian. This helped us to choose the venue and the food. But the best thing was working with external people. This year, professionals from other fields were invited to a series of events, and it was really great to meet them to plan all this. They are wonderful people – some of them I even befriended. It was really an awesome experience.' So even before the Congress started, for Michael at least, it was already a good occasion for quality networking...
