UNDERSTANDING CANADA: MEET AIDAN BRAIN, THE CONFERENCE PRODUCER BEHIND SBC’S CANADIAN GAMING SUMMIT

INTRODUCING AIDAN BRAIN, the VP of Conference

Production for the Americas who joined the SBC team in late October. With Canadian Gaming Summit on the horizon, Aidan shares his insights into the unique challenges of creating an exceptional agenda for SBC’s newest event

BY MARIA TSNOMPILANTZE

SBC’s conference content has been praised as "topnotch," "thought-provoking," "innovative," and "authoritative."

As we grow, so does the number of attendees who eagerly flock to our events. But despite the rapid expansion, we remain firmly committed to providing high-quality educational content to our audiences.

We often ask ourselves, what's the secret sauce behind our outstanding conferences? And to our surprise, the entire team echoes the same sentiment over and over: the real stars behind the show are our very own conference producers.

These masterminds work behind the scenes, pouring their hearts and souls into curating informative and engaging content. Their tireless efforts ensure that attendees walk away feeling inspired, enlightened, and equipped with the tools to succeed.

That's why we sat down with Aidan Brain, the VP of Conference Production for SBC's Americas events — SBC Summit North America, Canadian Gaming Summit and SBC Summit Latinoamérica — to get a deeper insight into his work and find out more about one of the agendas he's currently working on.

We're excited to spotlight the Canadian Gaming Summit in this feature. This year's summit is the 26th edition of the conference and exhibition, set to take place on June 13-15 at the Metro Toronto Convention Center. After acquiring the summit last year, SBC is thrilled to produce it for the first time ever.

SBC: Let's begin on a light note - can you tell us a little about yourself and your interests outside of work?

AB: I grew up in West Yorkshire in England, went to university in London, and lived in Spain for a little while before moving to New York City where I’ve been for a few years now.

Outside of work, I have pretty varied interests - the basics like travelling (I’ve visited all populated continents except one) watching films, exploring different cuisines, appreciating art and architecture, and learning languages. I love living in New York as it has all those things to offer in abundance.

SBC: Crafting a comprehensive agenda for an entire event can be an intimidating endeavour, especially given SBC’s acquisition of the CGS, which means you had to do it from scratch. How did you tackle the agenda production phase, and what were the most significant hurdles you had to overcome?

AB: I’m very new to the gaming industry, but I have been producing conference agendas for over a decade now. I have put together programs for various industry conferences on pharmaceuticals, aviation, accounting, supply chain and more.

After you have worked on a few different verticals, you pick up a few tricks. It’s all about understanding what’s keeping people up at night and what makes them tick at work — once you figure out how to get that information out of the people you’re speaking to, you can figure out what’s deemed important in any industry.

Canada presented a challenge because there’s a patchwork of different rules at the provincial level. However, after a few calls with the relevant players, I started to get a good grasp of it. Obviously, I still have a way to go, but putting together a conference agenda delivered by the industry’s brightest minds is an excellent way for me to expand my knowledge and fill in any gaps.

SBC: You mentioned it yourself — you have access to some of the best industry minds. What are some of the most important insights you've gained about the Canadian gaming industry, and how have you incorporated them into the agenda?

AB: The gaming industry in Canada is a complex landscape. While there is currently a lot of discussion around Ontario's recent regulation of sports betting and iGaming, it is important to engage with experts from across the country. Different provinces, such as British Columbia and Quebec, have developed successful models for gaming, each with their own unique strengths.

I’ve done my best to incorporate these diverse perspectives into the conference program.

The CGS agenda comprises several panels that aim to explore the lessons that can be learned from Ontario

AIDAN (OVER)SHARES

What’s your pet peeve at work?

I’ll work any hours throughout the week, but there’s a special place in hell for anyone who schedules a meeting on Friday after 5pm.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?

When I was a kid in the UK, there was a show called Bernard’s Watch where the title character could stop time whenever he felt like it. I still think about it to this day.

What’s the funniest joke or pun you know? Did you hear about the two TV aerials that got married? They had a great connection and applied to other provinces and territories. The discussions will also delve into the challenges and intricacies of each province, providing a comprehensive understanding of the gaming industry across Canada. This includes examining topics such as advertising and marketing standards that may differ from one province to another, to ensure that the industry operates in a consistent and equitable manner. Additionally, province-specific roundtable discussions will offer operators and suppliers the opportunity to discuss the regulatory and market developments unique to each province.

If you could switch lives with anyone for a day, who would it be and why?

My dog. She sleeps 21 hours out of 24, gets endless treats and pays no bills, yet she still has the cheek to sigh loudly once an hour at least.

Do you have any hidden talents or skills that not many people know about?

In high school, I actually moonlighted as a fishmonger in a supermarket, so if I got marooned on a desert island, I could prepare all of the fish for dinner, so long as I was marooned with someone who could catch them.

SBC: What do you see as being the biggest challenges facing the Canadian gaming market in the next 12 months?

AB: Again, Canada’s gaming market differs from province to province. In some jurisdictions it’s a question of whether or not to open up to operators from outside of the crown corporations; in others, it's all about responsible gaming.

The regulators in Canada seem to be very cognizant of the dangers of irresponsible gambling, so installing safeguards is important and I think we’ll see a lot more back-and-forth between now and next year about

AIDAN’S TOP 5 CGS PANELS

1 Canada as an international innovation hub for gaming

2 Engaging 15m new players: creating user experience to boost retention and brand loyalty

3 Omnichannel experiences - the convergence of land-based, lottery and igaming

4 Partner and play - collaboration between Canadian teams, leagues and sportsbooks

5 Talent on the ground: sourcing diverse talent in Canada as companies grow their operations exactly how strong these safeguards now need to be.

SBC: Balancing the needs and desires of attendees can be challenging. How do you manage this, especially when you have to appeal to different audiences and ensure that the agenda is relevant for every single person attending the Canadian Gaming Summit?

AB: It’s about figuring out what is crucial for the day-to-day and longterm business goals of our attendees and the companies they represent or, what’s going to be useful for their career advancement.

SBC’s events are attracting a diverse pool of attendees, including senior decision-makers, marketing specialists, product-focused professionals, casino managers, sportsbook directors, and SEO wizards — you cannot cater your content to everyone and make it relevant and applicable to each and every person (which is why we have breakout rooms).

But here's the thing — we want to make sure our attendees get the most out of our events. So, we always keep in mind who our audience is and what they might be interested in. By evaluating common aspects, trends, and challenges, we try our best to provide relevant and applicable content to the majority of our attendees.

SBC: With SBC now managing the Canadian Gaming Summit, what do you see as the future of the event? How do you plan to keep it relevant and valuable in the coming years, and what changes can the attendees expect from a conference perspective?

AB: For us, it’s really important that this Summit is a platform for everyone in Canadian gaming. Some events focus very much on Ontario as the most populous province and the one that has opened up the most to operators from outside the nation; but we see all the other provinces, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec and the Atlantic provinces as well as the territories as being equally important, so we’re giving them a seat on stage too.

We also want to involve the First Nations, who are so paramount to the gaming industry in Canada; outside of sportsbooks and igaming operators, the land-based element is also extremely important.

There are also fun elements in Canada like charitable gaming that we want to see in the program. All in all, we see the event as growing year by year, bringing in more of the industry at large.

I should also mention that SBC is known for its all-inclusive networking. Nobody knows how to throw a party in this industry like SBC and I can’t wait to see what our events team puts together in Toronto!

In future years, I’d also like to see the show move around - Vancouver, Montreal, etc - not least because I haven’t had the chance to visit those cities yet! •