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Payal Budhraja

February 28th, 2018

How I shaped 2018’s RCC Conference – and how it shaped me

2 comments

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

Payal Budhraja

February 28th, 2018

How I shaped 2018’s RCC Conference – and how it shaped me

2 comments

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

Payal Budhraja talks about how being on the organising committee of this year’s RCC Conference gave her an insider’s understanding of how an important event featuring world-class managers and top academics is built through teamwork.


There’s a big difference between attending an event and actually organising it.

This year, I participated in the RCC Conference. In line with LSE’s motto ‘Rerum Cognoscere Causas”, the conference brought together influential people from LVMH, Zeb, Ideas in Motion and Gartner to discuss the theme “Turbulence in global politics: Businesses as adapters and influencers”.

Whereas last year, I volunteered for the CEMS Alliance RCC Conference, this year my role was more demanding. As the Logistics Head, I was directly involved in the nitty-gritty of organising an event at this scale. Communication with corporate partners, addressing delegate concerns and ensuring the smooth functioning of logistics the weeks leading to the conference challenging.

Analysing the turbulent political climate and the role of business in shaping it, this year’s RCC was more relevant than ever. The aim was to address the changing winds of the global political landscape and how businesses are adapting to or influencing this. And our delegates were expecting a high-calibre event in line with our theme’s urgency and importance.

Organising such an event requires time commitment and the ability to deal with unexpected issues. Most importantly, I learnt how to work together in a large team. The organising committee worked hard to put the conference together. However, the positive feedback made the long hours worth it. This is reflected in  the comments of my peers on the organising committee:

Being on the committee was an opportunity to have a real impact on the conference. It’s also a fantastic moment to build both your skills and your network with peers and corporate partners. Being part of the RCC committee is a valuable experience.”
– Cyril Leport, Corporate Relations

I thought overall it was just such a gratifying experience. I learnt so much from working in a committee with corporate partners and delegates, the department of management and volunteers… it was very full-on but extremely satisfying to deliver something of this scale with success!”
– Zoé Destang, Vice President

“It was really amazing seeing months of hard work coming to fruition. Whichever delegate I talked to, they were happy wi th the workshops, speakers and arrangements. Among the events, I particularly enjoyed the Ideas in Motion workshop that presented a socially innovative project that I hope to be a part of someday.” – Vineet Mittal, IT Head & RCC attendee

“I got to support a great team and organise a party for the delegates. Nothing felt more rewarding than ensuring students and partners had all they needed to learn.”
– Sabina Sadigova, Social Head & RCC attendee

 

Even though I opted to go on MBA Exchange, working on the RCC Conference committee gave me the opportunity to contribute to one of GMiM’s main events as part of the CEMS programme. With the last few months of my Master’s, it has been an amazing personal experience to help deliver a successful conference and pass on the legacy to the next cohort.

So if you want to challenge yourself, build your network and understand how a large-scale event is brought to life, consider joining the RCC Committee for next year’s conference. You won’t regret it.


Learn more about our Global Master’s in Management programme

About the author

Payal Budhraja

Global Master's in Management student 2016-18

Posted In: Choosing LSE | The Student Lens

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