That Time I Organised an Internal Tech Conference (and Had No Idea What I Was Doing)

I love organising things. I genuinely get agitated when there’s no plan. My worst nightmare would be going on holiday with no idea what we’re doing or where we’re going. I can’t just style it out — unless styling it out was the plan.

I also love meeting people, organised fun, and learning new things. Conferences are a perfect place to do all three.

But we don’t get to attend many. They’re expensive, and — truthfully — I’m not the best at selling the value of the experience.

I recently pitched to attend London’s South by Southwest. I built a strong slide deck, delivered a strong pitch… and it crashed and burned. “No budget” was the response.

But dreams live on, and one day I’ll get there!

If You Can’t Go to a Conference, Bring the Conference to You

Conferences can be pricey, but they’re essential for personal growth.

You might discover a new technology that’s a bona fide gamechanger — but more importantly, you open yourself to new people, fresh perspectives, and new ways of thinking and being.

I believed in this so strongly that I thought:

“If I can’t go to a conference, why not bring the conference to us?”

That’s when the idea struck — organise our own internal tech conference.

Simple, right?

Well… not quite.

Turning a Dream Into a Business Case

Wanting a conference badly wasn’t enough to convince leadership.

To get buy-in from our Chief Technology Officer, Jason MacLellan, I needed to pitch it as a serious, valuable proposition, not just a “fun idea.”

And I knew I couldn’t deliver this alone.

Luckily, I had history.

I’d worked with Anthony and Liam on our department-wide Future Awards ceremony, and we’d had a blast.

We pulled off an event with ten categories (from Best Team to Best Peer Review), complete with prizes and celebrations.

If we could organise that, surely we could scale up to an afternoon of learning, featuring three parallel tracks and numerous speakers, both internal and external.

• We had the idea
• We had the people
• Now we just needed the green light

Pitching to Leadership: How We Won Them Over

Have you ever pitched a brand-new idea to the CTO?

Until last year, me neither. It’s scary, nerve-racking and exhilarating all at the same time.

To get it right, we did three things:

• Clear message: What’s the value? Why now?

• Tangible benefits: Skills growth, community building, innovation.

• Strong visuals: A crisp, compelling deck to tell the story.

We also practised our pitch and gathered feedback, encouraging brutal honesty — the constructive, helpful kind.
(If you're pitching something big, trust me: this step is gold.)

The result?

We nailed it. Secured the budget and some real momentum.

£10,000 and a Big Dream

We successfully secured £10,000 for the event.

How did we get leadership to agree? Quick maths:

• 300 people in Tech and Engineering

• Sending each person to an external conference = ~£1,000

• Total cost = £300,000

Asking for £10,000 to run a department-wide online event?
Absolute bargain.

From Idea to Reality: The Work Behind the Scenes

Once we had the budget, the real work began:

• Building the conference timetable

• Finding, negotiating and booking speakers

• Creating mitigation plans in case of speaker cancellations, technology failures and attendance apathy

• Designing an internal website so people could view sessions and sign up

• Spreading the word across the company

It was intense — but a lot of fun!
And somehow, through endless collaboration, tight deadlines, and creative chaos, we got it done.

What I Learned

• How to pitch an idea

• How to negotiate speaker fees

• How to project manage an event at scale

• How to present confidently to hundreds of people

Here are my takeaways

• Don’t hold too tightly to your own ideas — collaboration creates better ones.

• Don’t take silence personally when people don’t reply — people are busy.

• And above all, great people create fantastic outcomes.

I’m incredibly proud of what we produced.

The team was outstanding, and I’m grateful to every single person who helped turn this dream into reality.

(I've just about recovered to start thinking about Future Tech Day 2025, so if you believe in learning, connecting and building something special, get in touch to get involved!!)

What Work Dream Are You Making a Reality Next?