Do Your Homework: Making the Most of a Conference App

GUEST BLOGGER

Megan Fuller
ACFE Events Manager

With more than 3,000 attendees, the 26th Annual ACFE Global Fraud Conference offers an unmatched opportunity to connect with anti-fraud professionals from around the world. However, the opportunity can also feel a bit overwhelming. Dedicated networking events like the ACFE Foundation Networking Reception and the ACFE Night at Camden Yards are great for face-to-face conversations, but how do you maximize your time?

One of the keys to effective networking is identifying the right contacts before you arrive at the conference. This year’s official conference mobile app offers several features to help you do just that. Here’s how:

Find Like Minded Attendees
Answer the short Like Minded survey that appears on your first log in. (Skipped over it? That’s OK - just tap the Surveys icon on the last screen to access the survey again). Then tap the Like Minded icon to see a list of attendees with the same answers. Attendees are displayed by scores - a score of three means they matched on all 3 answers. This feature is most helpful if you’re looking for attendees that share a similar job function or areas of focus.

Search for Attendees
If you’re looking for a specific attendee, the Attendee icon allows you to search by name. If you’re trying to connect with attendees from a particular organization, you can search that way as well.

Message Board
Introduce yourself to your fellow conference attendees. The app also allows you to post public messages on the app’s Message Board. This is a great way to suggest an open meet-up, post a job opening or ask for advice.

Once you’ve identified an attendee you want to connect with, you can tap on his or her profile to send a private in-app message. Attendee contact information is set to private by default, but you can choose to make your email address and/or phone number public by accessing the My Profile icon. You can also upload a headshot to your profile — great for making yourself easy to recognize.

Download the ACFE 2015 app today to get started. 

New Year's Resolution #3: Continue to Go Mobile

#3:  PROVIDE MORE MOBILE OPTIONS FOR ACFE MEMBERS

There are a handful of things I rarely leave home without: my wallet, my keys, my cell phone and my daughter. And, yes, those are listed in ascending order of importance. There are even days when making it out of the house with all four seems impossible, but thank goodness it is usually the first three that I end up searching for the most before heading out the door. Who knows? Maybe in a few decades my cell phone will be all I need to access my credit cards, keys, contacts and…baby. Maybe not.

We know your lists are pretty short when it comes to the vital things you need to start and finish your day. That is why in 2012, we created a few mobile resources for you to access while bustling from meeting to boardroom to home and back again. In July, we offered members a new Fraud Magazine mobile application (app) to make reading the bimonthly publication as easy as possible. The free app, available for the iPad, iPhone and Android smartphones, gives you complete access to the current issue as well as multiple back issues of the magazine directly on your favorite mobile device.

In September, we launched a new monthly podcast, Fraud Talk, to give you case studies and news you could hear and download from anywhere you have Internet access. We wanted to offer a free tool for you to use when commuting, traveling or driving. We also wanted to give you archives that you could access when most convenient for you and your schedule.

And, we are now excited to announce that in the next few months we will unveil a new ACFE app to make maintaining and accessing your ACFE membership even easier. The app will give you access to your ACFE account information, anti-fraud resources currently only available on ACFE.com and the ability to purchase training materials and register for events.

With ACFE membership mobile options you don’t have to remember another thing to add to your short list every morning. Stay tuned tomorrow for our #2 New Year’s Resolution for 2013!