500 Best Networking Conversation Starters for Professional Events

Skip 'So, what do you do?' Here are 500 conversation starters, 25 for each of 20 professional events.

Expecting 100 or more people who don't all know one another?

Handing out a list of conversation starters won't get them mixing. Most guests will still stick with who they came with.

Jam Bingo turns these conversation starters into an easy interactive networking game.

• It gives you a conversation starter.
• You find someone to ask.
• You connect with them.
• It gives you your next prompt.

Add any of the conversation starters below as your own prompts. Each guest gets a random mix. See how Jam Bingo works!

• What brought you out tonight?
• What's the most interesting project you're working on right now?
• How did you get started in your field?
• What's something you're looking forward to this year?
• Who's the most interesting person you've met here so far?
• What's a skill you're trying to learn right now?
• What do you love most about your work?
• What's a podcast or book that changed how you work?
• If you weren't in your current role, what would you be doing?
• Who's someone here I should meet?
• How do you usually hear about events like this?
• What's the best career advice you've ever received?
• What does a great week at work look like for you?
• What's something you've changed your mind about recently?
• What's a side project you're excited about?
• What's the most underrated part of your job?
• Where do you see your industry heading in five years?
• What's the best event you've been to this year?
• What's a goal you're chasing right now?
• What do you do to unwind after a long week?
• What's a question you love being asked?
• How has your role changed since you started?
• What's something you're proud of that isn't on your resume?
• What's a local spot you'd recommend to everyone here?
• How can I help you with what you're working on?

Help guests at your mixer meet new people fast. Jam Bingo for Young Professionals Networking Mixer

• What session has been your favorite so far?
• What made you decide to come to this conference?
• Have you been to this conference before?
• What's one idea you're taking home from today?
• Which speaker would you want to grab coffee with?
• What's the biggest challenge in your industry right now?
• Where did you travel in from?
• What's on your must-see list for tomorrow?
• What trend do you think everyone here is underestimating?
• What would make this conference a win for you?
• What's a session you skipped that you're curious about?
• Which booth or demo surprised you?
• What's one thing you'd change about how this conference runs?
• Who are you hoping to meet before the week ends?
• What's your conference survival tip?
• What's a quote from today that stuck with you?
• Are you speaking or presenting at all this week?
• What's the most useful tool you've heard about here?
• How will you share what you learned with your team?
• What topic should be on the agenda next year?
• What's your favorite city you've traveled to for a conference?
• What's one question you'd ask the keynote speaker?
• Are you here with your team or on your own?
• What's the best conversation you've had here so far?
• What are you doing after the reception tonight?

Get attendees mixing at your reception. Jam Bingo for Conference Reception

• How long has your business been in the area?
• What do you love about doing business in this city?
• Is this your first chamber event?
• What kind of clients are you hoping to meet?
• What's a local business you'd recommend to everyone?
• How did your business get started?
• What's the best advice you've gotten from another member?
• What's one thing that would help your business grow this year?
• Are you hiring right now?
• Who's your ideal referral?
• What's changed most about this community since you started?
• Which chamber event do you never miss?
• What local cause does your business support?
• What's the hardest part of running a local business?
• How do most of your customers find you?
• What's a partnership that helped your business?
• What's one thing the city could do to help small businesses?
• Which committee would you recommend for a new member?
• What's your busiest season?
• What's a business milestone you're working toward?
• Who in the chamber has helped you the most?
• What's a local event you're excited about this year?
• Do you work with any other businesses in this room?
• What made you decide to join the chamber?
• What would make this mixer worth it for you tonight?

Help new members meet long-time members. Jam Bingo for Chamber New Member Mixer

• What problem are you solving?
• What made you decide to start your company?
• What's the hardest lesson you've learned as a founder?
• What's your first customer story?
• What tool could you not run your business without?
• Are you raising, hiring or heads down building?
• What's a mistake you'd warn other founders about?
• Who's been your most helpful mentor?
• What does a win look like for you this quarter?
• What's something you wish investors understood?
• What's the best pitch you've seen today?
• How did you meet your co-founder?
• What's a feature you cut that you're glad you did?
• What's one metric you check every morning?
• What's the weirdest feedback a user has given you?
• What made you leave your last job to build this?
• How do you avoid burnout while building?
• What's a startup you admire right now?
• What would you do differently if you started over?
• What's the best book or podcast for founders?
• How do you find your early customers?
• What's a risky bet you're making this year?
• Who are you looking to meet tonight?
• What's one thing you'd outsource if you could?
• Where do you want your company to be in two years?

Get founders, investors and builders talking. Jam Bingo for Startup Demo Day

• What made you sign up for this session?
• How do you think you'll use what we learned today?
• What part of the talk surprised you most?
• What's a question you wish you'd asked the speaker?
• What's the best thing you've learned at work this year?
• How does your team handle this topic today?
• What's a resource you'd recommend on this subject?
• What's your go-to way to keep learning?
• What topic should the next session cover?
• Do you agree with the speaker's main point?
• What's one thing you'll try this week?
• How long have you been interested in this topic?
• What's the best workshop you've ever attended?
• Do you learn better from books, videos or people?
• What's a skill your team needs more of?
• What did you know about this topic before today?
• Who on your team would benefit most from this session?
• What's a common myth about this topic?
• What's one takeaway you'd put on a sticky note?
• What's a course or certification you're working on?
• How do you make time for learning during a busy week?
• What was the most practical tip from today?
• What's a topic you could teach a lunch and learn on?
• How did lunch rate today?
• What's one thing you'd add to the speaker's slides?

Turn your lunch and learn into a networking session. Jam Bingo for Lunch and Learn

• What team are you on, and what's your team excited about this year?
• What's one win from last year you're proud of?
• Who's someone at the company you've only met on video calls?
• What's a goal you're working toward this quarter?
• What's something about your role most people don't know?
• What's the best part of working here?
• What's a tool or habit that makes your workday easier?
• What did you do before joining the company?
• What's one thing you'd love to learn from another team?
• What are you most looking forward to at this kickoff?
• What's a company value you see in action every day?
• What's one thing you'd change about how we work?
• Who's a coworker who made your year easier?
• What's your favorite company tradition?
• How long have you been here?
• What's a customer story that stuck with you?
• What's a challenge your team is tackling this year?
• Which office or city are you based in?
• What's the best team offsite you've been on?
• What's your go-to lunch on a workday?
• What's a project you'd love to be part of this year?
• What's one word you'd use to describe last year?
• What's a skill you want to grow this year?
• What's the best Slack channel at the company?
• What would make this year a great one for you?

Get employees meeting across teams. Jam Bingo for Annual Company Kick-Off

• What does a typical day look like on your team?
• What's a project you'd love another team's help on?
• What's something your team does that the rest of us should know about?
• How long have you been with the company?
• Which team do you work with the most?
• What's a question you've always wanted to ask my department?
• What's your team's biggest win this year?
• What's a misconception people have about your team?
• How did you end up in your department?
• What's one thing that would make working together easier?
• What's your team's busiest time of year?
• What's a tool your team swears by?
• What's an acronym your team uses that nobody else gets?
• Who on your team should I know?
• What's a request your team gets that drives you a little crazy?
• What's one thing your team does really well?
• How does your work affect my team?
• What's a meeting you'd happily cancel?
• What's a recent change on your team?
• What would you want to shadow for a day?
• What's your team's favorite way to celebrate a win?
• What's a problem we could solve together?
• Who's the unofficial expert on your team?
• How does your team prefer to be contacted?
• What's one thing you learned about another team today?

Break down silos between teams. Jam Bingo for Cross-Department Mixer

• Who's a woman who shaped your career?
• What's a career risk you're glad you took?
• What's the best advice you've ever gotten at work?
• What are you building right now?
• What's a boundary that changed how you work?
• How do you recharge after a big week?
• What's something you wish you'd known early in your career?
• Who are you mentoring, or who's mentoring you?
• What's a win you haven't celebrated yet?
• How can someone in this room help you this month?
• What's a negotiation you're proud of?
• What's a women-led business you love?
• How do you handle imposter syndrome?
• What's one thing you'd tell your 22-year-old self?
• What does success look like to you right now?
• What's a community that's helped you grow?
• What's a book every woman in business should read?
• How do you balance ambition and rest?
• What's a door someone opened for you?
• What's a door you've opened for someone else?
• What's the bravest thing you've done in your career?
• What's a skill you taught yourself?
• What's one thing you're saying no to this year?
• Who's a woman in this room I should meet?
• What's a goal you're ready to say out loud?

Help women entrepreneurs connect and support each other. Jam Bingo for Women Entrepreneurs

• How long have you been a member?
• What got you involved with the association?
• What's changed most in our profession since you started?
• What's a certification or course you'd recommend?
• Which committee or chapter are you part of?
• What's the best event this association has hosted?
• What's a skill every new member should learn?
• Who's someone in the association everyone should meet?
• What's a challenge our profession should talk about more?
• What would you tell someone thinking about joining?
• What's the most valuable member benefit for you?
• Who's being honored tonight that you know?
• What's a regulation or change that's affecting your work?
• What's a conference in our field you'd recommend?
• How did you first hear about the association?
• What's one thing the association should start doing?
• What's the best mentor you've found through membership?
• What's a tradition at this dinner you look forward to?
• What's your area of specialty?
• What's a project you're proud of this year?
• How do you stay current in our field?
• What's one thing you'd want new professionals to know?
• Have you ever volunteered with the association?
• What's the funniest story from a past dinner?
• What are you hoping to get out of membership next year?

Get members mixing beyond their usual table. Jam Bingo for Association Annual Dinner

• What was your biggest win this year?
• What's one thing you learned the hard way this year?
• What are you most excited about for next year?
• What's a goal you're setting for the new year?
• What's the best event you went to this year?
• Who's someone who helped you this year?
• What's a habit you picked up that stuck?
• What's one thing you'd do differently if you could redo this year?
• How are you spending the holidays?
• What's one thing you want to make time for next year?
• What's the best book you read this year?
• What's a trip you took this year?
• What's one word to describe your year?
• What's a work moment that made you laugh this year?
• What's something you're letting go of before the new year?
• What's the best purchase you made this year?
• What's a new connection you made this year?
• What's a skill you got better at this year?
• What surprised you most this year?
• What's your favorite year-end tradition?
• What's one thing you're grateful for at work?
• Do you set resolutions or skip them?
• What's a project you finally finished?
• Who do you want to catch up with in the new year?
• What's your plan for the first week of January?

Close out the year with real conversations. Jam Bingo for Year-End Networking Happy Hour

• What does your business do, in one sentence?
• How many people are on your team?
• What was your first sale?
• What's the hardest hat you wear as a business owner?
• What's a marketing channel that actually works for you?
• How do you find good help?
• What's a business expense you'll never cut?
• What's the best thing a customer has said about you?
• What's one task you'd love to automate?
• How did you come up with your business name?
• What's a slow season trick you swear by?
• Do you work from home, a shop or an office?
• What's a local supplier you love?
• What's the best free resource for small businesses?
• What's a mistake that cost you money early on?
• How do you price your work?
• What's one thing you'd tell someone starting a business today?
• What's a social media platform that works for your business?
• What's a small win you had this month?
• How do you handle a tough customer?
• What's one goal for your business this year?
• Who's your accountant, and would you recommend them?
• What's the best part of being your own boss?
• What's a business you could partner with in this room?
• What kind of referral would help you most right now?

Help small business owners swap ideas and referrals. Jam Bingo for Small Business Month Mixer

• What's your current tech stack?
• What's a tool you started using this year and love?
• How is AI changing your day-to-day work?
• What's the worst bug you've ever chased down?
• What got you into tech?
• Are you more front end, back end, ops or something else?
• What's a side project you're hacking on?
• What's a technology you think is overhyped?
• What's one you think is underrated?
• How does your team handle on-call?
• What's the best talk you've seen at a meetup?
• What's a newsletter or blog you read every week?
• What's a security issue keeping you up at night?
• What's your favorite keyboard shortcut?
• What's a language you want to learn next?
• Remote, hybrid or in office?
• What's the biggest migration you've ever worked on?
• What's a lesson you learned from an outage?
• How do you keep up with how fast tech changes?
• What's an open-source project you'd recommend?
• What's a tech job you didn't know existed until recently?
• What's the best part of your current role?
• What's a tool you'd never go back to?
• Who's someone in tech you look up to?
• What would you build if you had a free month?

Get developers, IT pros and tech leaders talking. Jam Bingo for IT Fall Conference

• What area of healthcare are you in?
• What made you choose healthcare as a career?
• What's a patient story that stuck with you?
• How has technology changed your work recently?
• What's the biggest challenge facing your team right now?
• How do you recharge after a tough shift?
• What's one change that would make healthcare better?
• What's a mentor who shaped how you care for patients?
• Are you clinical, administrative or both?
• What's a specialty you considered but didn't choose?
• What's the best part of your work day?
• How do you stay current with new research?
• What's a conference or journal you'd recommend?
• What's one thing patients misunderstand about your job?
• What's a team win you're proud of this year?
• How has telehealth affected your work?
• What's a wellness habit that keeps you going?
• What's the most rewarding part of your role?
• What would you tell someone starting out in healthcare?
• What's a skill outside of medicine that helps you at work?
• What's a process at work you'd love to fix?
• Who's someone in this room you've worked with before?
• What's a healthcare innovation you're excited about?
• How do you build trust with new patients?
• What brought you to this mixer tonight?

Help clinicians and healthcare leaders connect. Jam Bingo for Healthcare Association Mixer

• Are you in public accounting, industry or something else?
• How did you survive your last busy season?
• What got you into finance or accounting?
• What's a software tool that saves you hours?
• How is AI changing accounting for you?
• What's a niche or specialty you focus on?
• What's the most interesting client industry you've worked with?
• What certification are you working toward?
• What's the best advice you got as a new accountant?
• How do you explain your job at a family dinner?
• What's a regulation change you're watching?
• What's your favorite part of the job that surprises people?
• How do you avoid burnout during deadlines?
• What's a soft skill every accountant should have?
• What's the biggest change in the profession since you started?
• How does your firm attract new talent?
• What's a spreadsheet trick everyone should know?
• What's a client question you get all the time?
• Do you work with small businesses or larger companies?
• What's a finance book or podcast you'd recommend?
• What's the best part of your firm's culture?
• What do you do the day after busy season ends?
• What's one thing you'd change about the profession?
• Who's a mentor who helped you pass your exams?
• What's a goal you have outside of work this year?

Help CPAs and finance pros connect beyond tax season. Jam Bingo for CPA Chapter Mixer

• What's the best campaign you've worked on?
• What's a brand you think nails its marketing?
• What channel is working best for you right now?
• What's a marketing trend you're tired of?
• How is AI changing your content process?
• What's a metric your boss cares about most?
• What's a campaign that flopped and what did you learn?
• Are you more creative, data or strategy focused?
• What's a tool in your marketing stack you love?
• What's the best ad you've seen this year?
• How do you come up with fresh ideas?
• What's a newsletter every marketer should read?
• How do you balance brand and performance marketing?
• What's a social platform you're betting on?
• What's the most creative low-budget idea you've seen?
• How did you get into marketing?
• What's a customer insight that changed your strategy?
• What's one thing you'd test if budget didn't matter?
• What's your go-to way to beat writer's block?
• What's a brand voice you'd love to write for?
• How does your team measure success?
• What's a marketing myth you'd love to bust?
• What session are you most excited about at this summit?
• What's a skill marketers will need in five years?
• What's a campaign idea you've been sitting on?

Get marketers swapping ideas, not just business cards. Jam Bingo for Company Marketing Summit

• What's the biggest event you've ever planned?
• What's an event disaster you saved at the last minute?
• Are you a planner, a supplier or a venue?
• What's a venue you'd book again in a heartbeat?
• What's a trend in events you're loving right now?
• What's one you'd happily retire?
• What's the best networking format you've seen at an event?
• How do you get attendees to actually mingle?
• What's an event tech tool you rely on?
• What's your go-to snack on a long event day?
• What's a destination you'd love to plan an event in?
• How do you handle a last-minute speaker cancellation?
• What's the most creative event theme you've seen?
• What's a small detail guests always notice?
• How do you measure if an event was a success?
• What's a supplier who always comes through for you?
• How did you get into the events industry?
• What's your busiest month of the year?
• What's an icebreaker that actually worked at one of your events?
• How are attendee expectations changing?
• What's a sustainability practice you've added to your events?
• What's the best piece of swag you've ever seen?
• What's one thing you wish clients understood about planning?
• How do you recharge after a big event?
• What event are you working on next?

Get planners and suppliers connecting. Jam Bingo for Meeting Professionals Mixer

• What's the best leadership lesson you've learned?
• Who's the best boss you've ever had, and why?
• What's a decision you're wrestling with right now?
• How do you make time to think strategically?
• What's a leadership book that actually changed how you lead?
• How do you build trust with a new team?
• What's a mistake that made you a better leader?
• How do you handle feedback from your team?
• What's one meeting you'd cut tomorrow if you could?
• How do you keep your team motivated during tough times?
• What's a habit that keeps you focused?
• What does a great first 90 days look like to you?
• How do you spot future leaders on your team?
• What's a hard conversation you're glad you had?
• What's the best question you ask in interviews?
• How do you avoid burnout at the top?
• What's a company culture you admire?
• How do you celebrate wins with your team?
• What's one thing you'd tell a first-time manager?
• How has your leadership style changed over the years?
• What's a trend leaders aren't paying enough attention to?
• Who do you go to for advice?
• What's a goal you're setting for your team this year?
• What's something your team would be surprised to learn about you?
• What's the best part of your role right now?

Help leaders connect as people, not titles. Jam Bingo for Leadership Team Welcome Mixer

• What year did you graduate?
• What did you study, and do you use it now?
• What's your favorite memory from school?
• Which professor had the biggest impact on you?
• Where did your career take you after graduation?
• What's one thing that's changed on campus since you left?
• Who are you still in touch with from your class?
• What club or team were you part of?
• What's a class you'd take again today?
• Where was your go-to study spot?
• What's one piece of advice for current students?
• What's the most surprising career path from your class?
• Did you end up where you thought you would?
• What's a school tradition you miss?
• How did your time here shape your career?
• What's the best local food spot from your student days?
• Are you open to mentoring a student or new grad?
• Where do you live now?
• What's a skill you learned outside of class?
• What's the first job you got after graduating?
• Would you still pick the same major?
• What's one thing you'd tell your first-year self?
• What's an alumni event you've loved?
• Who here have you not seen since graduation?
• How can our alumni network help you right now?

Reconnect alumni across graduating years. Jam Bingo for Alumni Reunion Mixer

• What are you studying, and what drew you to it?
• What kind of role are you hoping to land after school?
• What's the best internship or job you've had so far?
• What's a class that changed what you want to do?
• What's a skill you want to build before you graduate?
• What would you want to know about my job?
• What's a company you'd love to work for?
• How did you prepare for tonight?
• What's a project you're proud of?
• What's one thing you're unsure about in your career path?
• Have you found a mentor yet?
• What's the best career advice a professor has given you?
• What's a club or organization you're involved in?
• What's your dream job title?
• Would you rather work at a startup or a big company?
• What city do you want to work in?
• What's a question you've always wanted to ask a professional?
• What's a side project or hobby that taught you something?
• How do you usually look for jobs or internships?
• What's a soft skill you're working on?
• What's one thing you'd love feedback on?
• What's the most interesting conversation you've had tonight?
• What industry do you want to learn more about?
• What's a goal you have for this semester?
• Can I connect you with someone here who works in your field?

Help students meet professionals with confidence. Jam Bingo for Student Networking Mixer

• What's your favorite holiday tradition?
• Are you traveling anywhere for the holidays?
• What's the best gift you've ever given?
• What's the best gift you've ever received?
• What's a holiday food you look forward to all year?
• What's your favorite holiday movie?
• Are you team early decorator or last-minute decorator?
• What's a work highlight from this year?
• What's a holiday memory from when you were a kid?
• Do you have a go-to holiday song?
• How does your team celebrate the holidays?
• What's a cause you support this time of year?
• What's the most memorable office party you've been to?
• Do you prefer a cozy night in or a big party?
• What's a recipe you're known for?
• What's one thing you're grateful for this year?
• How do you unwind during the holiday break?
• What's a new tradition you'd like to start?
• What's the weirdest gift you've ever gotten?
• Are you doing a gift exchange this year?
• What's a holiday destination on your bucket list?
• What are you looking forward to in the new year?
• What's your favorite winter activity?
• Who's someone you want to thank before the year ends?
• What's the best part of this time of year for you?

Make your holiday party about more than the snacks. Jam Bingo for Holiday Networking Mixer

• Pick 2 or 3 that fit your event and keep them in your back pocket.
• Ask follow-up questions. The second question is where the real conversation starts.
• Share your own answer too, so it feels like a chat, not an interview.
• Hosting? Add 20 to 30 of them as prompts to your networking game.

Want more? See the best professional networking conversation starters, or browse all conversation starters.

Introverted? Conversation starters help, but they're only half of it. See 7 networking mistakes introverts make (plus, how to fix them), by pc/nametag.

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