The idea is to get in a room with a number of people in a given industry and outline the current state of technology innovation in the vendor’s marketplace as it relates to their business. Correctly framed, these sessions put the customer, rather than the vendor or the vendor’s product, at the center of things. They align themselves with the customer’s needs and the alternatives available to meet those needs. Thus, although they are at one level clearly self-serving to the vendor, they do not feel self-serving, positioning the vendor more as a consultant than as a salesperson.
