The Joys of Networking – When Sugar Connects People

Hello everyone.

This was by far my favourite week as an intern. I attended my very first international conference and it was great. I must admit that I did have apprehensions at first. I knew very well that I’d be the youngest person there and it tends to be a little (or VERY) awkward. Moreover, as mentioned in my previous blog post, the International AVH Symposium gathered businessmen and researchers who work in the sugar industry and who met in order to contribute to the advancement of the knowledge on sugar. I clearly felt out of place, especially when the researchers started to give lectures about the performance of sugar factories and refineries, with all the technical terms and mathematical formulae.

Mr John Field, Senior Technical Director at Carbo UA International, making a speech on "Energy Management in Cane Sugar Factories".

However, I had a rich learning experience by observing how the setup of the event was done and what needed to be done throughout the conference. It made me realise to what extent Public Relations involved doing a bit of everything; taking photographs, acting as Master of Ceremony, and so on. For my part, I assisted with the registration before the conference took place and it was actually a great way to make first contact and a good first impression. 

The registration point in front of the conference room at Holiday Inn Hotel.

Even if the conference was for people who had interests that were different from mine, I nevertheless took this opportunity for networking at the dining buffets and during the visit to the Omnicane Refinery, called La Baraque. It turns out that the people coming from different parts of the world were actually keen to know more about me and what I was doing at Omnicane. It was also an occasion to share our mutual experience and to discover more about the lifestyle in our respective countries. Many of them also had a good sense of humour and these people actually contributed to the fact that my experience at the conference was much more interesting than what I had initially thought. 

Omnicane's sugar mill at La Baraque.

One of Omnicane's employees showing samples of molasses, vinasse, and neutral alcohol at La Baraque.  

Dear PR students, please click here for a few networking tips.

One of the men whom I talked to worked in the Public Relations sector and he told me that his organisation was currently facing a crisis. He asked for advice and I was thus able to show my knowledge by telling him the Dos and Don’ts which were so often repeated by our lecturer. For example, “Do not downplay the issues”, “Never say ‘no comment’” and “Organise a media conference”. (Click here for a few other Dont's in a crisis situation). We exchanged a lot and I realised, more than ever, that the different PR units will greatly help us in real life; for instance, the crisis simulation that we had to deal with in Media Relations 250. The PR Professional told me that he had a similar training at work and that it was indeed very challenging.

One of the exhibition stand at Holiday Inn, on the occasion of the 22nd International AVH Symposium.

As my internship is coming to an end, I must say that I have gained confidence in my abilities and that my experience comforted me in my choice to pursue my career within the PR field. I hope that you are all enjoying your adventure as interns. Mine was sweet as sugar.

All the best,

Haddiyyah