Conference Blog

Most People Waste Their Time at Conferences. Including DPW.

Written by DPW | May 26, 2026 6:34:34 AM

Most people don’t waste time at conferences because the events are bad.

They waste time because they show up unprepared.

Too many demos.
Too many vendors.
Too many random conversations that go nowhere.

Then they fly home with more information — but no clearer decisions.

After watching thousands of procurement leaders attend DPW, one pattern is clear: the teams that get the most value rarely attend the most sessions.

They arrive with the clearest problems, the right meetings already booked, and a clear plan for what they need to eliminate, validate, and move forward.

If you’re attending DPW New York next week, read this first.

It might save your team months of internal debate and wasted evaluation cycles.

 

THE REAL OUTCOME

Clarity.
Alignment.
Next steps.

Not more options. Not more noise.
More options → more complexity
More conversations → more internal confusion
Clarity → faster execution
The goal is leaving with 1–2 serious vendors


Why most people get little value from events.

Most attendees leave events with more information — but no clearer decisions.
More vendors. More conversations. More tabs open on Monday morning.

❌

They come to discover.

So they talk to everyone, sit through every demo, and leave with 20 possibilities.

❌

They chase hype, not reality.

Demos impress. Implementation results matter.

❌

They don't come with a real problem.

Vague goals lead to vague conversations and weak decisions.

❌

They never follow up.

The energy is high at the event. Then everything goes quiet.


The smartest teams use DPW differently.

The best teams use events to narrow options, validate decisions faster, align stakeholders, and move projects forward. 

✅ 

They arrive with precision, not curiosity..

They define real operational bottlenecks before the event instead of browsing aimlessly.

 

✅ 

They eliminate fast instead of collecting options.

The goal is not to discover 20 vendors. The goal is to rule out weak-fit solutions quickly.

✅ 

They pressure-test their thinking with peers.

They use roundtables, meetups, and practitioner conversations to validate assumptions and reduce risk.

✅ 

They optimize for decisions, not just networking.

They leave with alignment, next steps, and a smaller shortlist — not just more business cards.

THE OPERATING SYSTEM

Before. During. After.

The best teams don’t optimize events for exposure. They optimize for decision velocity.

BEFORE

Define the problem.

Arrive with 2–3 clear operational challenges, not vague themes.
 

DURING

Eliminate fast.

Use Tech Safaris, roundtables, and meetings to rule out weak-fit options.
 

AFTER

Move immediately.

Shortlist vendors, assign owners, and schedule next steps within 48 hours.

 

Before the event

Arrive with precision, not curiosity.

“Exploring AI” is not a strategy. The best teams arrive with clear operational bottlenecks, measurable friction points, and defined transformation goals.

Too vague
“We’re looking into AI.”

Better
“30% of spend bypasses procurement because intake is too slow.”

Why it matters
Specific problems create sharper vendor conversations, better peer feedback, and faster elimination.

Action before you arrive
Write down 2–3 real operational bottlenecks before opening the agenda, app, or expo list.
During and after

The best networking happens before the event starts.

Most attendees use matchmaking once they arrive. The smartest teams use it 2–3 weeks before the event.

At DPW, the matchmaking platform is not about random networking. It’s about scheduling targeted conversations, connecting with practitioners solving similar problems, and entering the event with intentionality.

Intentional outreach beats mass networking every time.

Action before you arrive
Open the matchmaking app, identify 5–10 high-priority people, and schedule your most important conversations before calendars fill up.
During and after

Use every format for the decision problem it solves.

Roundtables pressure-test your thinking.
Interactive, debate-driven roundtables are where you bring real questions, challenge assumptions, and mitigate risks through peer discussion.

The stage helps you scan, not decide.
Scan the agenda for sessions tied to your real priorities. Use customer-led discovery sessions and startup spotlights to spot patterns, then validate in conversation.

Group meetups help you find people in similar realities.
Use them to connect with peers facing similar role-specific, category-specific, or transformation-specific challenges.

The real work starts after the conference.
Within 48 hours, shortlist vendors, align internally, assign owners, schedule follow-ups, and decide what you are not doing.

Action during the event
Come prepared with one challenge, one assumption you want tested, and one question you need answered.
Guided Expo Tours

Use guided Tech Safaris to eliminate faster.

Think of them as a pre-filtered shortlist with real-world customer validation built in.
Tech Safaris are curated small-group guided expo tours designed around one specific procurement challenge.

Instead of wandering through 80+ solutions randomly, you join a focused group of peers exploring one category together — comparing solutions side-by-side, hearing real implementation stories from corporate customers, and asking sharper questions.

In under an hour, you get what would normally take weeks of vendor discovery: a clearer view of what is relevant, what is credible, and what you can ignore.


Tech Safaris turn the expo floor into a guided evaluation format — small groups, real users, sharper questions, and faster elimination.

This year’s Tech Safari themes include:

Intake & Orchestration Sourcing & Supplier Selection Contract Management & Analytics Spend Analytics & BI P2P & AP Automation Supplier Risk & Compliance Negotiation & Pricing Intelligence

 

At every stop, the practitioner matters most.
You hear what changed, what took longer than expected, what got adopted, and what they would do differently.

Action before you arrive
Register for the Tech Safaris most relevant to your challenge. The best-fit tours fill up first.

Two days at DPW can save your team six months of guessing.

The smartest teams do not attend DPW to collect more information. They attend to accelerate alignment, eliminate faster, reduce decision friction, and move with clarity.

BEFORE YOU ARRIVE
Define 2–3 operational bottlenecks.
Open the matchmaking app and book priority conversations.
Register for the Tech Safaris most relevant to your challenge.
Choose roundtables where you have a real question to bring.
DURING DPW
Use the stage to scan patterns, not make decisions.
Use Tech Safaris to eliminate weak-fit options.
Ask practitioners what took longer, what failed, and what they would do differently.
Capture next steps while the conversation is still fresh.
WITHIN 48 HOURS AFTER
Shortlist 1–2 serious vendors.
Assign internal owners.
Schedule follow-up demos or peer reference conversations.
Decide what you are not pursuing.
Share a short internal summary with your team.

 

About DPW New York

DPW New York is where procurement leaders come to separate real transformation from industry noise.

Held at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, DPW brings together the world’s most innovative procurement and supply chain practitioners, startups, enterprise leaders, investors, and technology builders for two focused days of decision-making, collaboration, and real-world problem solving.

Unlike traditional conferences built around passive content consumption, DPW is designed to help teams accelerate vendor discovery, pressure-test ideas with peers, validate technologies faster, and leave with clearer next steps.

Learn more at nyc.dpw.ai
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