On February 22, 2024, the Acton Institute hosted its 6th annual Business Matters Conference with well over 1,000+ online registrants and watch party participants. These participants were joined by top business leaders and entrepreneurs who provided them with practical advice and moral principles to help them navigate an ever-changing business world.
One of the major successes of the conference this year was the scaling of Acton’s unique signature: watch parties. From 8 in 2023 to 21 this year, these watch parties took place in four different continents, including such countries as Brazil, Canada, Hungary, and South Africa.
Participants at these watch parties include business students and business professionals, many of whom are interacting with Acton for the first time.
During the event, participants gather to watch the conference, have group discussions and network. This allows for important personal interaction and deepens the educational content.
Among the attendees, 59 countries were represented, and 35% of the online audience reported having never attended an Acton Institute event before.
The participant records show that the Acton Institute successfully engaged its first-time, leader audience for this conference, and here is what one of the participants had to say about their experience:
“Business Matters 2024 was an incredible event. The innovative ideas exchanged at the panels were mind-blowing, and the workshops were hands-on, pushing the boundaries of what I thought possible in our industry. I left feeling not only inspired but also equipped with practical tools and strategies to drive my business forward.” – 2024, attendee from Italy
Among the subjects of discussion were the challenges of AI, virtuous business, and work and the meaning of life.
The expert panelists and speakers explored how business can help local communities thrive and undertake new challenges by providing the audience with personal experiences, and case studies that they could refer to in their own lived experience.
As Acton’s premier virtual conference on business and faith, Business Matters distinguishes itself from other conferences by weaving together four themes: economics, ethics, faith and work, and free enterprise.
And each year, this conference brings together leading practitioners and experts from within these spheres to discuss the most pressing topics within both business worlds.
The Acton Institute was founded to promote two large goals: to educate religious leaders on economics and to help business leaders apply religious principles to their work. And over the years, these goals were met with opposition from those opposed to individual and market freedom or to religious principles—or both.
Through Acton’s programming, such as Business Matters, the organization has gladly embraced those challenges, and never once shied away from them.
That approach to challenges has helped the Acton Institute reach out to more people and instill in their minds and hearts the key values and principles that lead to human flourishing through our renowned conferences and programs.
From their first Business Matters conference in 2018 to their most recent one, in 2024, the Acton Institute continues to leverage its largest conference on faith and economics to focus on helping business leaders apply religious principles to their work.
From the very beginning of this journey, the Business Matters conference was created in response to erroneous ideas that many hold about entrepreneurship and business leaders—often labeled as immoral or at least tainted. The Acton Institute will continue to address the notion that business is purely a way to earn a living, devoid of any additional meaning.
The date for the next conference has yet to be determined. In the meantime, the Acton Institute continues to offer free access to this year’s conference recording through Acton On-Demand, which you can have access to by going to this link: https://ondemand.acton.org/category/business-matters-2024/
