The event has certainly outgrown the Mandarin Oriental and this is evident as you are almost forced to sit on top of one another which I find rather unpleasant….hardly elegant. The Mandarin as a hotel is not a conversation piece, and there are better choices in London to be had for a venue.

As I sat in the pre-forum, I was amazed that the Governor of all people would be sitting on the panel rather than the Premier & Minister of Finance, The Hon. Paula Cox, who sat in the front row like a spectator. By all means Madam Premier is quite able to speak on behalf of her county to the international arena and would surely know the current relationship between the UK government and Bermuda Government.

Now lastly, this point is something that needs to be addressed……last year I watched as the CEO of Business Bermuda put a lot of ahhh’s and ummm’s in her speech…..I thought this was a one off habit of a professional speaking tone.

Behold, this year the ahhh’s and ummm’s were back again on top of her very pooly executed speeches. If I had not known better I would have thought that she had not prepared herself and was a last minute stand in for someone else. Clearly she recognises that she represents the ‘Bermuda’ brand and most importantly she is speaking on an International platform. If she is unable to engage the audience or provide a coherent tone of speech, then I would suggest that Business Bermuda keep her in the sidelines and let someone else front the event for sake of professionalism at its best.

I have to disagree, as this was not the best conference in 41 years of existence…..maybe attendance figures but definitely not in quality!