Designing a meaningful hybrid event experience

CPHR Conference Speaker with a screen behind them saying work meaningfully

Ballroom at the Vancouver Convention Centre during Conference 2023

Date 2023

ClientCPHR BC & Yukon

Work TypeBranding Communications Events Social media

Team

Tanvi Prannoy Chawla, client-commissioned artist; Lisa Hemingway, creative director; Keiko Lee-Hem, graphic designer; Madelen Ortega, project manager, writer & editor

For CPHR BC & Yukon’s 60th annual conference, iilo designed branding that inspired in-person and online attendees to explore the theme, Work Meaningfully.

HR Conference & Expo 2030 May2-3, Vancouver, BC May 11-12, Online. Work Meaningfully Celebrating 60 conferences. Register Today! — The “Work Meaningfully” theme was particularly aligned for our team at iilo and included some modular elements that we designed to move around depending on their design application.

One image of Lisa, Madelen and Keiko standing by an informational billboard about the conference's theme and concept. The image beside this one is an introduction to Tanvi Prannoy Chawla, whose art was used in the CPHR conference branding this year. — iilo’s team attended Conference 2023: Lisa, Madelen and Keiko in front of the tradeshow booth highlighting the artist, Tanvi Prannoy Chawla’s work.

Communication design challenge

CPHR BC & Yukon’s annual conference was hosted in a hybrid format in 2023. In-person sessions hosted in Vancouver on May 2 and 3 were recorded and redistributed through PheedLoop, a virtual event platform, on May 11 and 12. The event brought together both CPHR BC & Yukon members and non-members to explore the role of HR professionals in helping teams navigate change, find deeper meaning in their work, and create excellence together. We developed branding and communication assets that connected attendees with the 2023 event theme, Work Meaningfully.

Drawing on the previous year’s success of developing core event branding in collaboration with a local artist, this year, CPHR BC & Yukon commissioned artwork from Tanvi Prannoy Chawla, a CPHR member and artist originally from India. Our team worked closely with Tanvi to digitize and infuse her artwork into all digital marketing and social media graphics, virtual event platform assets, digital and print advertising, on-site signage, and the event’s resource guide.

Speaker presenting at conference with the screen behind her says work meaningfully in front of seated crowd — We loved seeing our work up on the big screens at the conference venue.

A banner, and digital screen displaying the details and imagery of the Work Meaningfully conference. A display board reading session full. — Our design for the “Work Meaningfully” theme really brought colour and demanded attention within the Vancouver Convention Centre, on the screens, posters, and banners on-site.

A speaker at the conference speaking with the screen behind him with a picture of Malala Yousafzai. — Shaun Boothe’s Unauthorized Biography Series was so inspiring it brought us to tears! Through his original rap songs, he celebrates the lives and achievements of many well-known people such as Bob Marley, Malala Yousefsai, Terry Fox, and Serena Williams.

Outcomes

We successfully translated an artistic interpretation of the conference theme into functional corporate assets that attracted and engaged a diverse audience. In the process, CPHR BC & Yukon elevated its reputation as an organization that truly values its members as individuals with diverse interests and skills. This inclusive and uplifting tone drove positive interactions with both current and prospective CPHR BC & Yukon members.

The title page and inside page of the CPHR's conference resource guide. Title page reads work meaningfully. The inside page has descriptions of CPHR's CEO, Board of Directors and Conference Advisory Committee — A resource guide was designed for a program takeaway and highlighted all the tradeshow attendees and sponsors. It used to be a much larger print program and now our client relies more on an app and this small 5.5″ x 8″ booklet to share important information with attendees.

A speaker presenting at the conference with the screen behind her reading True Reconciliation — Jody Wilson-Raybould was a highlight of the speaker line-up in 2023 speaking about “True Reconciliation.”

We loved attending the conference, and as always, we learned a lot and had the chance to connect with great people (who truly care about people). Read more on our blog post: Our Shared Learning from CPHR’s Conference: Work Meaningfully.