Get Ready for the ISMPP Annual Meeting—and Make It Count

MaryKate Lesnevich, Bristol Myers Squibb, USA; Kelly Soady, Oxford Pharmagenesis, UK; Eileen Burkart-Hartman, Takeda Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., USA; Doreen Valentine, International Society for Medical Publications Professionals, USA; Vidhi Vashisht, Krystelis Ltd., IN, Jacqui Oliver, Envision Pharma Group, USA

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The 2026 Annual Meeting of ISMPP takes place on April 20-22 in Washington, D.C.

The ISMPP Annual Meeting is a special opportunity to benchmark your scientific communications practice, gain insights from cross-industry peers, and build meaningful relationships across the publishing, agency, technology, and biopharma landscape. We should know, having collectively attended > 20 ISMPP conferences, as new professionals and as seasoned practitioners, spanning the Annual, European, and Academy meetings. We represent members from pharmaceutical companies, medical communication agencies, and ISMPP who have participated as attendees, poster presenters, faculty speakers, panelists, and conference planners. Why do we attend? We come to build a foundation in the profession, recertify for the ISMPP CMPP™ credential, share experiences and expertise, and network with colleagues and friends.

“The Annual Meeting [is] engaging, insightful, and filled with scholarly discussion around timely topics relevant to the evolving publications landscape and scientific communications field.”

Like any professional conference, the program agenda for an ISMPP meeting represents a rich selection of content spanning various themes and formats, with multiple sessions often happening in parallel. We can’t be in two places at once, but we can plan ahead to curate an experience at the Annual Meeting that aligns with our interests, knowledge gaps, and business priorities.

Now that the 2026 ISMPP Annual Meeting agenda is largely set, it offers a solid framework for planning ahead. The following guide highlights four areas to help you make the most of your attendance: pre‑meeting preparation, your onsite rhythm, session selection by career stage, and post‑meeting follow‑up.

Preparation Checklist: Know Before You Go

• First things first—register for the meeting and book your accommodation. Rooms are available at the conference hotel (The Grand Hyatt, Washington, D.C.) at a discounted rate; once the registration page is completed, you’ll be redirected automatically to the hotel reservation page. Get started by clicking here for more information
• Set 3 measurable objectives. Examples: refine your publication metrics framework or AI governance approach (sponsors); identify two emerging client needs or service gaps (agencies/consultants); gather feedback on author pain points or policy implementation (publishers); leave with one practice you can implement within 90 days (everyone)
• Scan the preliminary agenda and pre-register for workshops as they often fill quickly. (Note workshops are offered both pre- and post-conference, but the sessions available may differ)
• Download the meeting app (Whova) to help you build a provisional schedule with backup options for each time slot. Choose sessions for depth, not quantity. We recommend selecting one session each day purely for learning outside of your comfort zone or career level
• It is especially helpful to identify roundtables and parallel sessions of interest in advance. Proactively identify a thorny scenario to bring to a roundtable discussion to help spark exchange of ideas, solutions, and best practices
• Leverage the meeting app to plan meet-ups and stay up-to-date with pre-meeting information. The app includes a community message board and a searchable index of attendees with messaging capability. Via the meeting app and LinkedIn, engage in non-confidential knowledge exchange and best-practice sharing, tag and like speakers and sessions, and extend your network
• Book targeted meetings with stakeholders. For sponsors, these targeted meetings may be with exhibitors and attendees (publishers, technology partners [analytics, workflow, AI], and priority agencies); for agency professionals, planned meetings may be with your existing clients or prospects; for new professionals, consider reaching out to more seasoned leaders in the profession. For any targeted meetings, we recommend preparing notes with your questions and constraints, either formally or informally
• Refresh knowledge of core guidance. Revisit GPP, ICMJE, COPE, and your company SOPs so you can better translate sessions into compliant practice
• Bring two short case studies that could be your go-to professional stories. Be ready to trade lessons learned—one success, one “near miss”
• Consider colleagues attending from your same company—together, you can coordinate schedules and take a divide-and-conquer approach with session/roundtable coverage, note taking, targeted meetings, and posters
• Plan your poster walk, taking advantage of the fact that the posters are available online as soon as the meeting kicks off. Identify abstracts aligned to your areas of interest and plan to engage with poster presentations during the early-evening poster session. Your poster prep will also give you a leg up for the poster scavenger hunt during the meeting, with a prize awarded to the winner, providing a fun way to explore posters and discover member research
• Create a capture template. Standardize session notes (eg, insights, implications, actions, owner, timing) to accelerate post-meeting follow-up

When I arrive at the Meeting, my Whova app is ready to go with a customized agenda and a handful of messages sent to meet-up with colleagues new and old.

On-Site Rhythms: Day-by-Day at ISMPP Annual

Sunday: Consider arriving a day early to connect with both new members and familiar faces at an early-evening reception, designed as a relaxed opportunity for first‑time attendees to get oriented and for returning participants to reconnect and expand their networks.

Monday: If you’ve pre-registered, attend a morning workshop delivered by one of the expert ISMPP faculty—topics range from deep dives into foundational areas to trending and timely themes. Enjoy lunch provided with other workshop attendees before heading into the general session (workshop attendees only).

In the early afternoon, listen to the keynote address and ISMPP’s Presidential remarks. Later in the afternoon, participate in roundtables and parallel sessions. Throughout the day, and especially during agenda breaks, visit with exhibitors in the Exhibit Hall or swing by the information tables for the CMPP™ credential and Artificial Intelligence in MedComms. The poster reception takes place in the early evening: grab a beverage and make your way over to those posters you flagged for follow-up with the presenting author. The poster reception is great for networking in general. It is also the only time during the Meeting that presenting authors are guaranteed to be next to their poster. Don’t miss that opportunity to dive deeper into member research. Consider asking presenters about the key learnings and insights, broader applicability of the findings, and methodological details to build upon the research. Do save lower-priority posters for self-study at the meeting, or afterwards, via the Meeting Archives.

Monday’s general session kicks off with a keynote from Kirk Shepard, co‑founder of MAPS, on the evolving role of integration in scientific communication. Breaking Silos Without Breaking Trust examines how coordinated, purpose‑driven collaboration across stakeholders supports clarity, credibility, and meaningful patient impact.

Tuesday: In full swing, Tuesday is a packed day with content in a variety of program formats—general sessions, parallel sessions, roundtables, product theaters, and sponsored sessions. The late morning parallel sessions and the afternoon roundtables repeat, affording attendees two options to participate in their sessions of choice. After the networking luncheon (available to all attendees) and early-afternoon sessions, reconvene in the general session ballroom to applaud members receiving ISMPP Professional Excellence Awards. In the early evening, connect at the networking reception before heading out to dinner in Washington, D.C.

The Tuesday Keynote Address this year, delivered by James Phimister from OpenEvidence, will explore how generative AI is reshaping evidence discovery and interpretation—and what it may mean for the future of medical publications and scientific communication. A must-see session!

Wednesday: Drop back into the Exhibit Hall before the booths close in late morning; attend parallel sessions, which repeat to enable you to catch two of the three taking place. Connect back in the general session ballroom for the annual ISMPP business meeting with the ISMPP Board of Trustees and hear closing remarks. Stick around Wednesday afternoon to participate in one of the expert, focused workshops (pre-registration required).

Each day of the Annual Meeting offers diverse opportunities and formats for engagement, but there is also a daily rhythm to the meeting. Table 1 is a snapshot of the AM and PM routine that can be a handy way to think about your content sessions, your meet-ups and networking, and your breaks and meals. Given the Annual Meeting’s core agenda runs from Monday afternoon to Wednesday late morning, think of the opening and closing sessions on Monday and Wednesday, respectively, as “mornings” from an agenda-flow perspective. Another tip is to consider your daily goal(s), in addition to those set for the meeting as a whole. Whether your day includes attending at least two parallel sessions, meeting 3 new people, or trading insights in a roundtable session, have a plan that enables you to make the most of each and every day without  feeling overwhelmed along the way.

Table 1. All in a day—the daily rhythm of the ISMPP Annual Meeting

“In the face of real-world challenges, the sense of community was palpable and incredibly support[ive]—making a meaningful difference for all who attended”

Customizing Your Experience: The Best Sessions by Career Level

The Meeting agenda categorizes sessions as foundational, core, and strategic. Filtering the agenda by these categories can help create your customized career-level itinerary.

Early-career professionals (e.g., medical writers, account managers, HEOR specialists, and anyone new to medical communications)

Whether you are newly transitioned from academia or embarking on a new chapter in your career, the Annual Meeting includes content designed to optimize the experience and learnings for the new professional (Table 2). On the agenda, look for sessions tagged as Foundational—these are the sessions designed to provide a foundational framework and basic-practice know-how. Sessions labeled as Core will also be fundamental as you build your competencies and experiences. Figure 1 shows how you might divide your time among foundational sessions, trending innovations, and networking.

Table 2. What to target if you are an early-career professional

Figure 1. How to spend your time if you are an early-career professional

Mid-career professionals (e.g, MedComms managers, associate directors, therapeutic-area leads)

You’ve been working in the profession for several years, and perhaps, have recently become credentialed as a CMPP™ professional. You’re now thinking about more complex scenarios that require integrative, holistic thinking, risk assessment and mitigation strategies, metrics of reach and impact, and efficiency and quality practices and frameworks (Table 3). And you’re keen to earn CMPP credits along the way. Sessions labeled Strategic may take up more real estate in your customized meeting agenda. How your time might be divided among strategy-focused sessions, operational know-how content, and stakeholders is shown in Figure 2.

Table 3. What to target if you are a mid-career professional

Figure 2. How to spend your time if you are a mid-career professional

Senior leaders (e.g., directors, heads-of-function, VPs, compliance & governance leads, strategists)

You are responsible not only for execution, but for setting direction, shaping culture, and ensuring sustainable, compliant publication practices across teams and partners. Your focus has shifted to enterprise-level strategy, governance, risk tolerance, and long-term value creation—often across multiple therapeutic areas, regions, and external partners (Table 4). At the Annual Meeting, sessions labeled Strategic and Senior or Advanced will be most relevant, particularly those addressing policy evolution, AI and data governance, operating models, and future-state scientific communications. You might also prioritize forums that enable peer exchange, benchmarking, and thought leadership. How you might spend your time is shown in Figure 3.

Table 4. What to target if you are a senior leader

Figure 3. How to spend your time if you are a senior leader

After the Meeting: Post-Meeting Action Window

• Lead a lunch-and-learn with your internal colleagues or debrief with your client or agency
• Convert notes into actions, if relevant. Set timelines and schedule circle-back meetings with key stakeholders whom you met at the meeting
• Update your scientific communications plan, SOPs, training materials, or idea board, where appropriate
• Think forward: consider submitting a session proposal to one of ISMPP’s meetings taking place next year based on a capability you’ve advanced (e.g., metrics, AI governance, operationalizing a PLS)

“The Annual Meeting was engaging, insightful, and filled with scholarly discussion around timely topics relevant to the evolving publications landscape and scientific communications field.”

Takeaway—and enjoy the Meeting

In summary, make the most of the ISMPP Annual Meeting by planning ahead, staying fully present, and investing time after the meeting to synthesize and act on all that you’ve learned. Be intentional with your agenda—prioritize sessions that align with your objectives and position you to drive meaningful, real‑world impact. Expand your network through a thoughtful mix of planned connections and spontaneous conversations and translate insights from the meeting into concrete next steps that support your broader career goals and long‑term professional growth. And finally, take time to enjoy the experience—the exchange of ideas, the sense of community, and the shared commitment to advancing excellence in medical publications and communications are what make the Annual Meeting truly distinctive.

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Acknowledgments

This article was developed by members of ISMPP The MAP Newsletter Committee, with support from members of the ISMPP Staff. We acknowledge the use of ChatGPT 5.0 (OpenAI) in the development of the first draft of this article and the use of MS Copilot in subsequent editing. The generous use of em dashes is deliberate, considered, and unmistakenly human.

Disclaimer

Opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their employers.

Declaration of funding

There is no funding to declare for this article.

Declaration of financial/other relationships

Author affiliations are given above.

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