I have to admit that I am still recovering from last week's first Strategic Internal Communication Conference in Toronto. This is the first of a series of blogs that will share insights from the conference and feedback from attendees.

I first what to say thank you to all speakers, sponsors (Poppulo and Contact Monkey) and attendees for taking a chance on this first-time event. You are all true leaders. What was clear is that there is a need for this kind of focus and we're already starting to plan next year's event.

Here are my personal TOP TEN quotes from the conference:

Pinaki Kathieri ran an amazing workshop that focused on co-creation. There is a need for communication professionals to not only inform, but inspire to create connection.

I loved this quote by Steve Crescenzo. Both he and I are seeing the beginnings of renewed focus on Internal Communication in our consulting practices. The time is now for internal communication skills.

Kristin Hancock talked about bringing humanity into our workplaces by allowing people to bring their whole selves to work.

Maliha Aqeel shared her four skills required to be an internal consultant. Ultimately, we have to be ready to say no to make-work projects that don't matter.

A fabulous presentation by Russell Evans sharing case studies on engaging millennials that can help us communicate with our entire workforce. We need to be ready to answer why.

Dr. Leeno Karumanchery gave us a lot of think about regarding systemic bias. His focus was not on laying blame, but understanding perspectives to recognize how our own history and behaviour impacts others.

Rocky Walls shared lesson on creating video and finding stories in our workplaces. Sometimes the soft stuff matters more.

It was great hearing about this case study on change from Lindsay Turner. We often think that the project is finished when we've launched the tool, program or service. The truth is that our adoption and maintenance work has just begun.

Sometimes we're focused on the big announcements. Jan reminded us that sometimes it's the little things that really matter.

We ended the conference with an insightful presentation by Lisa Taylor on Future Trends. The war for talent will define the future providing incredible opportunities for those who communicate and contribute to organizational culture.

These are my favourite quotes. For those who attended, please share your favourite moments in the comments. In the meantime, if you are interested in sponsoring or speaking next year, let me know. If you want to know when future programs are available, sign up for our newsletter at www.innerstrengthcommunication.com or follow me on LinkedIn.

If you couldn't make this conference, and are interested in internal communication training for your in-house teams, please connect. We'd love to help you build inner strength.