Planning a Successful Technical Conference

Estimated reading time: 1 minute

Amanda Lange founded DINEvent and has evolved her company into an active events planner and management company with a global client base. In this interview, Nolan Johnson asks Amanda to share how a technology company should get started with a technical conference for customers.

Nolan Johnson: Can you tell me a little bit about who you are, what your company does, and why you’re at AltiumLive?

Amanda Lange: Sure. Thanks, Nolan. We have been working with Altium since 2012, but have been partnering with them on AltiumLive since 2017 for their first conference. I’m the founder and CEO of DINEvent based in Phoenix, Arizona. We work with companies from the banking, e-commerce, and technology industries, so we have a wide perspective of trends within the event space.

With Altium, in particular—and a lot of our more technical clients when they put on events like AltiumLive—one of our most critical missions is to ensure that the client is focusing on content. Attendees, especially in highly technical industries, are there primarily to gain knowledge and information. Of course, there’s the fun aspect of the conference too, like the robot challenges, something that the attendees look forward to year after year.

Johnson: DINEvent is the name of your company; it seems you might have started in a niche that’s a little bit different.

Lange: Yes, we did (laughs).

Johnson: Tell me about that.

Lange: I founded the company in 2010 in Minnesota. I basically started as a concierge. I was working for a local restaurant group, running their private dining program for approximately 10 restaurants, when a client said, “I need 50 people in St. Paul.” And I would say, “I don’t have private dining for 50 people, but this restaurant across the street can help you.” I found myself sending business down the street, and I realized this was ridiculous; I worked hard to cultivate those relationships, and then I sent them to my competitor.  

To read this entire interview, which appeared in the December 2019 issue of PCB007 Magazine, click here.