The (ISC)² New Jersey Chapter held their first virtual international event, which hosted more than 20 thought leaders and 500 registered chapter member attendees. The International (ISC)² Chapter Conference, SECON International, took place virtually, on December 1, 2022, and delivered intriguing content on various cybersecurity topics.

The conference featured Ted-talk style presentations across three tracks during a three-hour event.

The New Jersey Chapter hopes that by sharing their successes, it can help other chapters to either replicate their event or encourage them to join this conference in the future. This event was a collaboration between several (ISC)² chapters on a global scale which produced tangible business value added benefits for attendees. The New Jersey Chapter’s leadership considered their event’s biggest success to be that they reached such a large global audience.

When asked to describe their biggest challenges, leaders explained that providing thought-provoking content and attracting high-caliber speakers for a global audience was an ambitious goal. Attracting a worldwide audience to be set apart from other events means the chapter needed to use top technology applications to reach attendees. The group utilized the Metaverse-level platform, Gather.Town to offer a unique conferencing experience for attendees and speakers.

Another challenge proved to be related to time zones of a global audience – speakers spanned 20 time zones and conference participants attended from 50 different countries and states globally.

The planning committee met together more than 20 times to execute the conference within a six-month time frame. The success of using a new platform was due to a group of volunteers who assisted with the attendees’ user experience.

Lessons learned includes planning for emergencies. This event had backup speakers on deck and presentations pre-recorded in case of technical difficulties or cancelations, and, in this case, the contingencies were necessary.

Finally, the group recommends promoting the event to a wide audience utilizing all social media channels, connecting with local chapter groups and working with the Chapter team at (ISC)² Headquarters to promote to all global chapter leaders. The team is already planning for next year’s conference.

To find an (ISC)² Chapter in your area, visit https://www.isc2.org/Chapters/Chapter-Directory