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Maximizing Your AACR Experience—A Product Manager's PerspectivePoured
How the notebook worksEvery page answers two questions: what kind of thinking it keeps, and how far along that thinking is.What it keepsNotesmy thoughts in fluxTopicA gathering point. It collects the notes underneath it, and sometimes nothing is written in the middle.Minethis oneMy ideas, at every stage of thought.InspiredNot fully, or mostly, original. It says whose idea it started as.StubNot enough to say in public yet. Here for the links in and out.How far alongSteepingThin and early. Written down so I can find out what I think of it.BrewingHas a shape, still moving. Most of the notebook lives here.PouredFinished, which is not the same as long. Five words can be poured.Mix kind and stage on the benchEdited

Maximizing Your AACR Experience—A Product Manager's Perspective

AACR is currently in full swing, and I find myself reminiscing about past conferences while navigating my current job search. The American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting represents one of the premier gatherings for oncology professionals, and for commercial product leaders, it’s a goldmine of insights, connections, and opportunities.

Having attended multiple times throughout my career in oncology diagnostics, I’ve developed a system to maximize the value of these intensive scientific conferences. So here is a bit of advice for those who might be feeling overwhelmed…

Create a Central “Hub” Note for Conference Management

The sheer volume of information at AACR can be overwhelming. I recommend creating a master note that serves as your home base throughout the conference. I use Obsidian to keep track of my notes as it utilizes Markdown (ease of entry and data portability) and has some powerful PKM capabilities like note linking. My Hub note has the following headings:

  • Registration Information: Keep confirmation numbers, session access codes, and exhibit hall hours readily available.
  • Hotel Accommodations: Save the address, phone number, and transportation details.

Pro tip

Scan your final bill as a PDF for expense reports and future reference when returning to the same city.

  • Dining Guide: Document restaurants worth visiting (or avoiding). Include those you’ve tried and those on your wish list. Your future self will thank you when returning for the next conference.
  • Company Attendee List: Track which colleagues are attending, their contact details, and any planned meetups. Teamwork makes the dreamwork, especially at sprawling conferences. This list is also helpful when you you can’t remember what happened at a session 6 months from now.
  • Overall Takeaways: Maintain a running list of insights throughout the conference. These bullet points become invaluable when crafting your post-conference report.
  • Visual Materials: Capture photos of your company’s booth for promotional use, competitor setups (where permitted), and posters of interest. Always ask permission before photographing and request PDF copies from presenters which you can add to this note later for easy recall.
  • Session Notes: Link individual session notes back to your main hub. Tools like Obsidian make this seamless with internal linking capabilities.
  • Vendor Catalog: Document each vendor interaction with company name, key contacts, products of interest, and follow-up actions.

There are many ways to utilize linked notes, but I have found so many useful connections between notes and used this to gain insights long after the conference has ended. Here is a partially redacted example of the connections that formed out of my 2022 AACR meeting notes.

Beyond Organization: Maximizing Conference Value

While structured note-taking enhances retention, here are some strategies to make the most of your time while you are in attendance.

1. Prioritize Human Connections

Conferences represent rare opportunities to connect face-to-face with industry colleagues. Schedule coffee with key contacts, but also try to have spontaneous moments.

2. Be Selective with Booth Visits

That free booth espressos might be tempting, but consider whether waiting in line aligns with your objectives. Focus on vendors directly relevant to your product strategy or potential partnerships. Quality interactions are way more important than the quantity of branded stress balls you bring home.

3. Embrace Competitor Conversations

Somewhat against your better judgement, that might make you hesitant, respectful conversations with competitors can yield valuable market insights. We’re all working toward advancing cancer research and treatment. Clear positioning benefits everyone, especially patients.

4. Understand what Exhibitors are Trying to Project

Not all exhibit hall real estate is created equal. Premium locations are hard earned, or require a large investment. Also, pay attention (and appreciate) extras like carpet padding, which cost exhibitors more. How have competitor’s booths changed year over year? Also, consider starting from the back of the hall where traffic is lighter, working your way forward.

5. Practice Sustainable Conference Attendance

Conference burnout is real. Resist the urge to attend every session from 7 AM to 9 PM. Also, try not have late nights out. Prioritize quality over quantity, allowing time for reflection and processing. Your insights will be sharper if you’re well-rested.

A Few Additional Notes

As product professionals, we attend conferences with different objectives than research scientists. While keeping abreast of scientific developments is important, it is vital to focus on:

  • Identifying emerging technologies that could complement your product portfolio
  • Build a more complete understanding of how research tools can make the transition to clinical workflows.
  • Collecting voice-of-customer insights directly from end users who ==AREN’T== already customers.
  • Spotting market trends that could influence your roadmap

While I’m currently between roles, I look forward to the next time I will walk the show floor and in the meantime, I hope this advice will help someone! For those attending this week, I wish you productive days, comfortable shoes, and insights that transform into impactful products.

4 min readCreated Edited

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