---
# System prepended metadata

title: AIUK 2024 ECR day - 18 March 2024

---

# AIUK 2024 | ECR day
###### tags: `meeting-notes` `planning` `aiuk` `events`


## Event outcomes and alignment with Turing strategy


| Event outcome | Activity to support | Activity format |
| -------- | -------- | -------- |
| Networking and cohort building opportunities for early career researchers across the UK national landscape.    | Intro & mingling / networking with prompts (1h)      | E.g. - World cafe 10 min thematic discussions in groups of 5 people     |
| Exposure to knowledge exchange opportunities & lateral career changes to enrich one's skillset and experience, and support career progression across sectors.     | Careers panel themed around knowledge-exchange opportunities (1.5h)    | 5-7 panelists, highly interactive discussion    |
| Research showcasing opportunities with an end goal of disseminating knowledge & gaining communication and presentation skills, as well as new exposure opportunities to potential collaborations.     | Posters & showcasing research (1.5h)    | Min no of posters: 50    |

**Audience**: This may already be clearly defined on your end but it’s good understand how you would access your audience, whether this could be collaborative with partners.


**Turing mission**: This event is closely aligned with the Turing SPO 5 (more below)
- *Objective 5*: Lead on enabling the transfer of skills and knowledge between industry, government and academia for individuals at all career levels by providing placement opportunities and immersive opportunities.
    - we achieve this two fold - first, the event in itself is an immersive opportunity and second, the panel discussion is aimed at knowledge transfer acorss sectors, inspiring attendees on career options to enrich their professiona ona ona. Finally, attendees have the opportunity to present a poster, honing their presentation and communication skills.

## Key info

:::info

[Link to EF page draft on SP](https://thealanturininstitute.sharepoint.com/:w:/s/SkillsTeam/EQd_5FEaTMRJpNaRDJWS7d0B6cR5507cSqfXyjtZhkxDyA?e=p01Nbg&ovuser=4395f4a7-e455-4f95-8a9f-1fbaef6384f9%2Cmnemes%40turing.ac.uk&clickparams=eyJBcHBOYW1lIjoiVGVhbXMtRGVza3RvcCIsIkFwcFZlcnNpb24iOiIyOC8yMzA5MjkxMTIwOCIsIkhhc0ZlZGVyYXRlZFVzZXIiOmZhbHNlfQ%3D%3D)

- **Title**: AIUK 2024 networking day for early career researchers
- **Target audience**: early career researchers UK wide
    -  doctoral students
    -  early post-docs / immediately post-doctorate
    -  transition to independent researcher (ie within 5 years from PhD)
- **How to access the audience**
    - Connections students engaged with CDT (big bulk)
    - Post-docs associated with the Turing eg TRFs, Turing employees, close collborators, interest group members
    - Any AIUK delegates falling under the ECR umbrella
- **Audience no**: 150 participants (175 - 250 max could be feasible). 100 min to make the event feasible
- **Venue**: Same as AIUK, venue costs covered by AIUK team. Westminster (175) & St James room (175 ppl)
- **Date & Time**: 18th March 2024 afternoon 12-6 pm (if including lunch) OR 1-6 pm (without lunch) 
- **Ticketing strategy**: current proposal
    - Existing AIUK delegates eligible for this event can register for free (using AIUK ticket code / proof of attending)
    - Those not attending AIUK can purchase and ECR day only ticket at a small price eg £20+VAT
- **Budget**: TBC including access fund
- **Registration**: option in EventsForce to add the above ticketing options
    - question on whether we need additional registration questions (if yes, add the ones from CDT conference)
- **Guiding principles**:
    - highly interactive
    - high profile speakers (borrow from AIUK?) to cover a range of job sectors,  seniority levels & EDI representation
    - skills & careers focused
    - dedicated safe space for the target communities
:::

## Ticketing and how to reach audiences
- accessible cost but high enough so people won't want to lose on it
- 
## Agenda

> `18 March 2024, 12-6 pm, high level`


| Timing | Agenda item | Format |
| -------- | -------- | -------- |
| 12:00-13:00     | *Registrations, welcome & lunch*     | Plenary space     |
| 13:00-14:00     | Intro & mingling / networking with prompts     | Match students & postdocs or other format to enable networking and finding opportunities for collaboration     |
| 14:15-15:45     | Careers panel themed around knowledge-exchange opportunities    | Bring together panelists working in gov, industry, academia, media, professional bodies etc     |
| 15:45-16:15     | _Coffee break_     | Plenary space     |
| 16:15-17:45     | Posters session & showcasing research     | Opportunity to find collaborators / Showcase research / Time slots for individual live presentations. Alignment with GC areas?  |

#### Careers panel
- focus on Turing *Objective 5*: Lead on enabling the transfer of skills and knowledge between industry, government and academia for individuals at all career levels by providing placement opportunities and immersive opportunities.
- bring people together who've done secondments, fellowships, placements between industry / government / academia 
- to bring costs down and have an easy buy in, consider inviting existing AIUK speakers / delegates
- focus on mid-career folks but ensure representation across sectors 
- consider folks who've worked cross-sector
- consult Simon
- Mishka could chair the panel


## Ideas

 - **Steering group**: recruit 2-3 enrichment students 
  - **Career panelists**: can we invite existing AIUK participants / speakers / TUN reps?
- **Ticketing strategy**
::: spoiler


:::


 - **Milestones**: AIUK contingent (below needs AIUK team approval)
    - October 2023: agree high level key info
    - November / December 2023: new SO comes in and owns the project moving forward; 
        - form a small steering group 
        - develop further the agenda
        - secure panelists
    - **23 Nov 2023**: Submit high-level info to enable event page creation
    - **11 Dec 2023**: Publish ECR day part of the wider AIUK programme
    - January & February 2024: monitor registration numbers)
    - March 2024: comms to participants, event logistics & event takes place



:mag: Actions & next steps
---

[Internal planning doc](https://thealanturininstitute.sharepoint.com/:w:/r/sites/ee/_layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc=%7B6F383B85-638E-478E-88F9-5837F3BC23D2%7D&file=ECR%20day%20planning.docx&nav=eyJjIjoxMzg1MjM1MzUwfQ&action=default&mobileredirect=true)
- [x] [name=Mishka]: draft proposal & agree high level key info with Doris and Vera (16 Nov)
- [x] [name=Vera]: discuss with Darren on how to allocate the new funding to offset core. A question from me is where the AIUK / ECR day money will sit and if Events or Skills are the budget owners.
- [x] Mishka & Azimah & Denise to work out approach, options & comms around ticketing (together with Alice) to ensure good uptake of people interested in the ECR day and good alignment with the wider AIUK
- [x] [name=Denise]: finalise details required to launch the event (event outcomes, agenda, panellist names etc)
- [x] [name=Azimah]: to split the allocated budget -> inform ticket numbers & delegate categories
- [x] [name=Azimah]:to create the Eventsforce page accordingly (and after we agreed our approach & strategy with Vera & Doris) & manage ticketing options 
- [x] [name=Alice] to adapt the comms / text and create the event banner
- [x] [name=Mishka]: submit info for AIUK programme publication (23 Nov)
- [ ] [name=Denise]: recruit TRFs & Enrichment (Connections?) students for a small steering group
- [ ] [name=Denise]: finalise agenda
- [ ] [name=Denise]: secure speakers


## RACI



| Item | Mishka | Denise | Azimah | Vera | Doris |
| -------- | -------- | -------- | -------- | -------- | -------- |
| Event planning & high level info    | R     | I     | C     | C     | I     |
| Ticketing strategy & budget     | R     | I     | I     | C     | C     |
| Agenda & Speakers     | A     | R     | I     | C     | -     |
| Manage event registrations    | I     | C     | R     | -     | C     |
| Event comms    | C     | C     | R     | -     | -     |
| Event delivery     | A     | R     | A     | ?     | -     |
| Event evaluation     | A     | R     | A     | -     | -     |
| TBC     | Text     | Text     | Text     | Text     | Text     |


**Misc notes**
:::spoiler
- TBC but one idea: expose participants to the research to entrepreneurship avenues and support them to identify personal and research strengths that would make their work feasible for a start-up idea *(immerse participants in an innovation workshop where they can work together through an ideation framework)*
- AIUK holds some budget to cover catering, speaker expenses etc but this should stay as low as possible
- Career booths from different partners eg HSBC? Won't know who the partners are until before AIUK. Set up day?
-  Access fund: check with wider AIUK team and seek alignment  - Skip lunch to save costs? Start at 1:30 pm

- **Ticketing strategy notes**: to be discussed with AIUK team and make sure we have alignment 
    - Q over give priority to those who have or don't have AIUK tickets 
    - They need to pay to ensure attendance 
    - Application questions to be included 
    - Allocations: PhD students can get 50% discounted tickets (up to 80 tix). Other reaseachers are just general tickets
    - Waiting for final approval from DB
    - Question over whether general AIUK ticket incl ECR day ticket or is it separate
- **Budget**: £20k
    - Catering
    - Speaker expenses 
    - Who owns it? Skills budget
    - Need to find out what the general AIUK budget looks like
    - Access grants 
    - Banners & consumables for the demo spaces 
- **Schedule** to include 
    - DSG type event: provide challenges and explain to the ECRs how they could get involved
    - Pitch fest inspired 
    - Industry, gov etc panel discussion
    - Fireside chat
- **Meeting dates:** 
    - Intro: 11 July 2023
    - Meeting 1: 31st July 2023
    - Meeting 2: 28th Sept 2023
    - Meeting 3: 21st Nov 2023 
- **Stakeholders / Designers:**
    - Mishka (MN)
    - Azimah (AS)
    - Vera Matser (VM)
- **Dependables**: EPSRC funding pending approval, recruitment of a Skills Officer with a big focus one events
- **Event objectives**
    1. Offer immersive opportunities and a safe space for **research showcasing, networking & cohort building** for ECRs
    2. Expose attendees to ideas and people to support **career progression & knowledge exchange options across sectors** (including PhD lifecyle matters)

### ~~Option A~~ - unfeasible as it's not interactive enough / replicates AIUK agenda
| Timing | Agenda item | Format |
| -------- | -------- | -------- |
| 12:00-13:30     | Lunch, networking & poster presentations     | Open space with posters around the lunch space     |
| 13:30-14:15     | Intro / Keynote lecture     | Lecture - aims to be inspirational & relevant to the audience     |
| 14:15-15:15     | Careers panel     | Bring together mid-career panelists working in gov, industry, academia, media, professional bodies etc     |
| 15:15-15:30     | _Coffee break_     | Plenary space     |
| 15:30-17:00     | Main event (TBC)     | Aims to bring participants together to network and build connections - could replicate a workshop from AIUK eg Innovation Labs? MiniDSG? Roundtable discussions around key topics of interest gathered in the registration form?  |


- participants buy tickets for the plenary AIUK and have the option to attend the ECR day at an additional price ~~of 1/4 _example: AIUK ticket price is £100, AIUK + ECR half-day is £100 + £25 = £125_~~
    - *Confirmed by Events 10th Oct 2023*
    - **PhD Students**: discounted tickets at 50% already approved + discounted tickets at 50% + VAT (no extra cost for the ECR half day) (total cost £120). Can choose to attend ECR day or not, at no extra cost to their AIUK ticket (nb max cap altogether is 50)
    - **ECRs**: discounted tickets at 50% + VAT (no extra cost for the ECR half day) (total cost £120). Can choose to attend ECR day or not, at no extra cost to their AIUK ticket (nb max number of tickets altogether is 80)
    - Max no of attendees for ECR day is 130 if all signing up to AIUK attend the ECR day (TBC)
    - Can we offer them the AIUK ticket at the ECR day?
:::


**Speakers idea**
* [John Mildenhall](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/john-mildenhall/), Head of Data Science, Marks & Spencer
* [Adriano Koshiyama](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/adriano-koshiyama/), Co-CEO, Holistic AI
* [Cathie Sudlow](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/cathie-sudlow/), Chief Scientist and Deputy Director, Health Data Research UK - might be harder to get her
* [Panagiotis Papadopoulos](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/panagiotis-papadopoulos/), Reader, University of Strathclyde 
* [Drew Hemment](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/drew-hemment/), Theme Lead for Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences in Data-Centric Engineering, The Alan Turing Institute
* [Simon Reeve](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/simon-reeve/), Director of Innovation, The Alan Turing Institute
* [Bill Thompson](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/bill-thompson/),Head of Future Value Research, BBC Research & Development 
* [Steven Vosloo](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/steven-vosloo/), Digital Foresight and Policy Specialist, UNICEF
* [Beata Karolina Lisowska](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/beata-karolina-lisowska/), Chief Data Officer, Camden Council
* [Beatriz Costa Gomes](https://ai-uk.turing.ac.uk/speakers/beatriz-costa-gomes/), Post Doctoral Research Associate, The Alan Turing Institute