Your BIO Convention 2016 Planning Guide
By Rob Wright, Chief Editor, Life Science Leader
Follow Me On Twitter @RfwrightLSL
Having begun my preparations for the upcoming BIO 2016 International Convention, June 6 – 9 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, I thought I would share some insights to help with your planning. First, in case you weren’t aware, the Moscone Center consists of three separate buildings: Moscone Center West, North, and South (see map here). While this might not seem like a big deal, if you plan on attending some of the educational sessions, a little preplanning could prevent you from missing something important (e.g., the Monday June 6, Welcome Reception at the Exploratorium at Pier 15).
Know Your BIO Logistics
Suppose you plan to attend the Super Session I will be moderating (session 13321, Beyond the Cutting Edge: How to Enable Life Science Organizations Today for the Societal Changes of Tomorrow, taking place on Tuesday, June 7 11:15 AM – 12:30 PM PT), be sure to note the room number. For example, this session is listed as taking place in room South 104, and as such, will occur in the Moscone South building. On a quick side note, if you set up and log into your myBIO personal event planner, you can go to the sessions tab and search for BIO educational topics of interest. Here you can also express your intention of the sessions you plan to attend, as well as see who else might be in the audience, and perhaps line up some pre- or post-networking opportunities.
Now let’s say you want to attend session 9200 (Opportunities in Drug Development and Registration in China Under Current CFDA Regulatory Reform) on Tuesday June 7, from 1 – 2 PM PT. As it is located in room North 123, this means you will need to exit the South building and cross over Howard Street and enter the Moscone North building (or use the concourse). If following this session, you decide you want to attend session 9721 (Genetic Medicines Come of Age: The Challenges and Opportunities). As it takes place in West 3007 beginning at 2:15 PM PT, you have 15 minutes to exit the north building, cross over 4th St., and enter Moscone West. As conventions always involve a lot of walking, it is probably a good idea to wear comfortable shoes. However, as this convention also involves going outside and between buildings, you may want to pack a small umbrella and to dress in layers. After all, you don’t want to remember BIO 2016 as being analogous to the saying, “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.”
A Trip To BIO Should Include A Trip To The Exhibit Floor
If you are like me, the bulk of your time will be spent in educational sessions. And while these are important, the beauty of BIO is the large number of companies that exhibit all in one place. Thus, it would be a shame for you to travel all the way to BIO and not block out some time to walk the exhibit floor. First-time BIO attendees have been known to find the BIO exhibition to be somewhat overwhelming. And though you may be a BIO veteran, considering the sheer size and number of exhibitors, a little pre-show planning will prevent you from wandering the exhibit floor aimlessly.
In the West building, you will find the Innovation and Digital Health zones, Start Up Stadium, and booth numbers in the 7000s. In the South Hall (located at the top of this map) you will find the Business Forum A, BIO Buzz Center, BIO Member Services and Public Advocacy Pavilions, the Discovery Zone, and booth numbers ranging from 400 to 2500s. The North Hall (located at the bottom of this map), is home to BioProcess, Business Services, and Contract Services Zones, the Imagine Theater, and booths 5100 – 6700. You can use the map links provided above to search for exhibitors by name, booth number, or booth size. Thus, you will find Patheon’s booth (#5444) located in the Contract Services Zone in the North Hall. GE Healthcare’s booth (#5885) is also in the North Hall, but in the BioProcess Zone. Biopharmaceutical companies like Boehringer Ingelheim (booth #629), Merck (booth #1923) and Takeda (booth #1121) can be found in the South Hall, along with most country pavilions. In the West building you will find most of the state pavilions, J&J (booth #7609) and Pfizer (booth #7509). Here is an example of why a little pre-BIO planning can prevent some unnecessary aggravation. Ash Stevens would most likely be defined as a contract services organization. However, you won’t find their booth (#7727) in the Contract Services Zone, but in the West building across from the Department of Defense booth (#7719). Now, should your plans include working your company’s exhibit booth, here are some tips to put your best foot forward for both you and your employer.
Don’t Lament Missed Opportunities At BIO 2016
After BIO 2015, I wrote the blog “Did You Miss Some Opportunities At BIO This Year?” While I am not yet aware of all of the off-site events/receptions that will be taking place during BIO this year, here are a few things you can do to avoid having to lament over missing an opportunity this year. Try setting up a folder in your email inbox labelled “BIO 2016.” Within this you can then create subfolders to store emails specific to sessions, receptions, networking, and so on. In this way, you can store and sort emails by categories you find intuitive, making it much easier for scheduling and post-show follow up. Another thing to think about is looking through your LinkedIn network for folks you may know living in the greater San Francisco Bay area. Starting on the LinkedIn home page, click on the “Advanced” button to the right of the “people” search box. Here you can add San Francisco as a location area, and limit your search to 1st Connections only. By doing this I was able to narrow my network down to 41 people residing in the greater Bay area. Though many may have plans to attend BIO, I am fairly certain that many others may not. A quick note via LinkedIn about grabbing a cup of coffee while in town lets them know you are thinking of them, and just maybe they have an opportunity they would like to discuss with you. Finally, while attending BIO, consider trying to find an educational session to attend that isn’t necessarily in your specific area of expertise. For example, maybe your work isn’t focused on rare diseases. That being said, there is still a lot of wisdom to be gained from attending a session featuring three seasoned CEOs who are. After all, moving beyond the safe and familiar is essential for personal growth and just might serve as the inspiration for tackling current challenges you face with a new and enlightened perspective.