Home to some of Sweden's world-class med-tech and life-science companies, Micaela Jungmalm has enjoyed a career that began in the heart of this innovative region on the Swedish west coast. As Wellspect's Congress and Events manager, she surveys the new digital landscape that swiftly established itself during the year of the Pandemic 2020.
Hosting delegations from tech-savvy industry, Micaela Jungmalm's career has ascended and expanded from a center of globally renowned life science and med-tech innovation. And like all advancements, it has required passion, talent and dedication. Since joining Dentsply Sirona* in 2007, Micaela charts the experience that sees her occupy her current role as Wellspect's Congress and Events manager
I love working with people – it's been the thread that runs right through my career, I've always pursued it as a feature in the roles I've had and grown into.
Another thread in my career is that I've always asked for new challenges and new opportunities. But you also have to create those opportunities, push for it, demonstrate that you can do it, and thankfully, this organization has individuals and initiatives who can assist your journey – they could be your mentor, or they simply see what you're capable of. Each step in my career has been an expansion of my existing skills, and then some new ones on top!
Scaling up to a global kick off
I was managing the conference and meeting arrangements for Dentsply Sirona's HQ, and was asked to handle the practical arrangements for our European Sales Meeting including a new branding kick off. It was the first time we gathered all salespeople from all over Europe, which was exciting in itself. I personally hadn't done something on this scale before, but our Sales Management Team asked me kindly, and said: Can you do it? I said yes.
Can you do it? I said yes.
Social events, dinners, break out conferences and a huge stage – and all happening at Wellspect’s headquarters as well as a well-known conference center in Gothenburg. What a learning curve, but so thrilling to deliver when it all comes together.
Overnight, event hosting was turned on its head.
Pre-pandemic, Wellspect was not unprepared for the transition. We had hosted digital presentations for our regional teams and speakers across the globe, but the pandemic came as a shock, as it did to everyone. The hospitality industry took a big hit when lock down started, but we were determined to deliver our events.
The pandemic came as a shock.
Wellspect’s global forum for Advancing Continence Care Together, ACCT, had only been a physical event before the virus spread. Our experience from gathering of subscriptions and data from our events over the years, as well as performing digital surveys, helped us to align with GDPR, but we had to learn all about the new techniques available for digital events on this scale.
We ended up broadcasting these events live from a studio, with invited speakers both physical and invited by link, camera crews, sound producers and live Q&A discussions. We also live tweeted from the event in our own channels. It was a learning curve, but the team, headed by a professional meeting producer, always pulls it together, every time.
After several virtual events, we’ve established a good routine
Good partners and a small team are the way to go. It took a while getting there – and I can depend on our providers/partners.
Since that first digital meeting, which was a LoFric Elle webinar in September 2020, we have
established a new process for running a digital meeting, including roles and responsibilities. Each event starts with establishing a small project team, where we outline goals and agree on how to progress the project. As a project manager, I don’t have all the answers, but together, we do within the team, Micaela tells us.
Everyone is a specialist in their role – we schedule feedback, we invite it after each event as part of our review, and each specialist is trusted to advise and deliver. It's a great collaboration – it has to be!
As Wellspect look to the new opportunities to meet in 2022-2023, we can rest assured that Micaela and her project teams will continue to exceed expectations — because they're planning for it.
With experience, we now have the feeling "OK, we know what we're doing". From being constantly anxious about the realization of the event, I now feel more at ease, and don't need to check my email all the time. At the end of the working day, I may even turn off my laptop and put away my mobile work phone – and relax.
#WeAreWellspect
* Astra Tech had a dental business and a healthcare business. When Astra Tech was acquired by DENTSPLY International (today Dentsply Sirona) both the dental and the healthcare businesses were kept within the group, and the healthcare business became Wellspect. https://www.wellspect.com/about-us/who-we-are
