On the road at Summer Camp

People, we need to save one of our own. I’m not even sure of his name, but he fell asleep next to me at a restaurant conference on human resources a few years back. While a speaker droned on about empowerment or the importance of training, my neighbor’s head slowly tipped back, and you could almost see the Z’s flying cartoon-style out of his mouth.

We have to find that poor nodding soul and send him to People Report’s aptly named Summer Camp. It’s the only conference I know that opens the evening’s activities with a song from Foo Fighters—sung by the CFO of the host organization.

Actually, he was part of the Summer Camp Band, which also included representatives of Yum Brands, if I heard correctly. It was hard to make out the IDs because so many people were hooting and cheering as the four-piece ensemble wailed.

They’re the house band for what is undoubtedly, beyond a shadow of a doubt, by the acclamation of anyone who even walked past the hotel ballroom tonight, the most let-your-hair-down conference in the industry. When was the last time you went to a meeting that opened with a “Glee”-like talent contest? (If the Batrus Hollweg Dancers post a video, DO NOT miss it.)

It’s surely not (just) a party. Tomorrow and Friday are packed with sessions on HR and its interrelation with social media, as you’ll see from my tweets (#PRSCAMP) and subsequent blog entries.

But there’s no doubt that it’s the ideal cure for PowerPoint-induced narcolepsy, the unspoken scourge of our business.

So, please, help me in locating that individual and making sure he signs up for next year’s conference. A chance at fun learning is too important to waste.