THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL
TM
AUTISM AND THE MEETING INDUSTRY
■
GOOGLE GLASS
■
INCREASING ENGAGEMENT
NOVEMBER 2013
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Volume 1, Issue 3
EDITORIAL STAFF
EDITOR IN CHIEF
CREATIVE DIRECTOR
MANAGING EDITOR
EDITOR
DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
DESIGN AND PREPRESS
COVER DESIGN
COVER PHOTOGRAPHY
David Basler, dbasler@mpiweb.org
Jeff Daigle, jdaigle@mpiweb.org
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Jeff Loy, jloy@mpiweb.org
Holly Smith, hsmith@mpiweb.org
Sherry Gritch, SG2Designs, sherry@sgproductions.net
Jeff Daigle
Daniel Hedden
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ASIA PACIFIC
Su Cheng Harris-Simpson
suchenghs@mpiweb.org • (10) 5869-3771
EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST, AFRICA
Pierre Fernandez
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MPI EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT
PRESIDENT & CEO
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
s from
hoverboard
Thinks the Future Part II”
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e
“Back to th been rea lity by now
e
should hav
Paul Van Deventer, pvandeventer@mpiweb.org
Cindy D’Aoust, cdaoust@mpiweb.org
Daniel Gilmartin, dgilmartin@mpiweb.org
INTERNATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Chairman of the Board
Michael Dominguez, CHSE, MGM Resorts International
Chairman-elect
Kevin Kirby, Hard Rock International
Vice Chairwoman of Finance
Erin Tench, CMP, CMM, Penn State University
Vice Chairman
Roel Frissen, CMM, Parthen
Vice Chairwoman
Allison Kinsley, CMP, CMM , Kinsley Meetings
BOARD MEMBERS
Amanda Armstrong, CMP, Enterprise Holdings Inc.
Krzysztof Celuch, CMM, CITE, Vistula University
Jordan D. Clark, Caesars Entertainment
Angie Duncan, CMP, CMM, BCD M&I
Hattie Hill, CMM, Hattie Hill Enterprises Inc.
Cornelia Horner, CMP, American Land Title Association
Gerrit Jessen, CMP, CMM, MCI Deutschland GmbH
Audra Narikawa, CMP, Capital Group
eading
ently r het Motifs”
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“150 Kn rd Branson’s
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and Ric irgin.”
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“Like
Fiona Pelham, Sustainable Events Ltd.
Alisa Peters, CMP, CMM, Experient Inc.
Darren Temple, CTA, Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau
Marti Winer, Wyndham Hotel Group
BOARD REPRESENTATIVES
MPI Foundation Board Representative
David Johnson, Aimbridge Hospitality
LEGAL COUNSEL
Jonathan T. Howe, Esq., Howe & Hutton Ltd.
Has also worked as
a newspaper
delivery boy, in a ste
el fabric ation plant
and a cemetery. He’s
not sure which
job was worse.
POSTMASTER: The Meeting Professional (Print ISSN: #2329-8510 , Digital Edition ISSN: #2329-8529) is printed monthly, except the months of January and October, by
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2 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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CONTENTS
FEATURES
50
TEMPLE
OF
WISDOM
Temple Grandin believes it’s
too easy to let labels define
us. In a recent exclusive
interview with The Meeting
Professional, she said many
people with autism bring
an attention to detail to
their work that would be
greatly beneficial to event
logistics. Her eye-opening
observations could help
open doors and simultaneously create new employment options for the meeting and event industry.
54
58
Some early adopters of Glass have
paid for the privilege of explaining all
of the things it doesn’t do. But they
also see a bright future for the technology when it comes to conference
attendance.
In this hypothetical meeting scenario, a
geographically and culturally diverse group
of delegates aren’t engaging effectively.
Our experts offer solutions.
THE REALITY OF
GOOGLE GLASS
HOW WOULD YOU
HAVE PLANNED THIS
DIFFERENTLY?
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28
CONTENTS
VIEWPOINTS
THE LOBBY
32
18 KNOW IT. LIKE IT. LOVE IT.
Daniel Fortin discusses earning trust, an
inspiring mentor and how planning meetings
is like baking a cake.
32 IMPROVING HUMAN
PROCESSES
An over-reliance on new technologies at
the expense of existing methods won’t
help your events. Meeting design expert
Adrian Segar shares his insights on how
to approach your next event differently.
20 THINGS ABOUT WINE THAT EVERY
MEETING PRO SHOULD KNOW
The ability to speak knowledgeably about wine
with your clients will lead to well-structured
tastings with education and engagement.
34 THE VALUE OF FREE SPEAKERS
Your reputation is on the line when “free”
is a top consideration during speaker
selection.
22 FIGHTING FATIGUE AT EVENTS
Low-impact exercises can recharge attendees’
bodies and minds.
18
24 THE PERFECT JOB
A meeting and event industry collaboration is
paying dividends to those with autism wishing
to enter the workforce and the companies giving
them a chance.
40 KEEPING YOUR EVENT’S
CONTENT FRESH
Hosting an event in the same destination
every year doesn’t have to be boring. One
MPI member keeps it fresh by updating
content between (and even during) the
event based on the evolving needs of
the audience.
26 LEARNING FROM PEERS
Volunteer leaders leave the Chapter Business
Summit with ideas for partnership, recognition
and sponsor benefits.
44 PLANNING FAMILY-FRIENDLY,
HEALTHY EVENTS
28 BEFORE THE BOMB
Participants of the Potsdam Conference
discussed plans to create a more peaceful
world during the final days of World War II.
SHOWCASE
40
Organizers make an annual health fair for
adults even more engaging by broadening
the event’s focus to include vital health
education for children in attendance.
6 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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FROM THE EDITOR
HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED
WITH THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL
EVERY YEAR, MPI’S VOLUNTEER LEADERS
from our 71 chapters and clubs from
around the world come to Texas for
three days of networking, brainstorming and education at the Chapter Business Summit.
At this year’s event—held at the
Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort in
San Antonio (see a recap on Page
26)—I was thrilled to speak with so
many of our chapter leader volunteers about how they and their chapters can get more involved in determining the content of The Meeting
Professional. After all, this is your
member magazine, and the mix of
content each month is created for
you, about you and sometimes even
by you.
Interested in getting involved?
Here are some ideas.
“Who We Are” (Page 18)—In each
issue we feature an MPI member
with a great story to tell. In this
issue, the spotlight is on Daniel Fortin (MPI Montréal & Québec Chapter). You or someone from your
chapter could be next.
“Peer to Peer” (Page 22)—We get
questions from members all the
time, so we take those questions and
ind experts who can answer them.
In this issue, exercise expert Kim
Bercovitz (MPI Toronto and Potomac
chapters) answers, “How can I ight
attendee fatigue at my next event?”
If you have a question, or if you’re an
expert on a particular topic, I’d love
to hear from you.
“Viewpoints” (Page 31)—If
there’s a hot topic affecting the industry and you have an opinion (and
a solution) you’d like to share with
the MPI community, this is the place.
In this issue, National Speakers
Bureau President Brian Palmer (MPI
Chicago Area Chapter), discusses
speaker compensation (or lack
thereof).
“Showcase” (Page 39)—The case
studies this month feature events
held in Orlando and Minneapolis.
Don’t plan meetings in those cities?
It doesn’t matter. While the destina-
tions change every issue, our case
studies are different than any other
publication in the industry. We
“showcase” successful events and
best practices that you can use in
your next meeting regardless of
location. In this issue one of the
events we feature is based in Orlando and organized by Elliott Masie
(MPI Greater New York Chapter), in
which he shares ideas for keeping
your event content unique.
David Basler
Editor in Chief
dbasler@mpiweb.org
3 Things You Can Do Today to Get Involved:
1. CHECK OUT OUR EDITORIAL CALENDAR—This document features general topics to be
covered in future issues of The Meeting Professional. It will allow you to align with topics and submit
content previously published in your chapter publication, which is a great way to share knowledge.
You can find the editorial calendar at http://mpi.to/EdCal (Pages 10-11).
2. KEEP US INFORMED—Make sure your chapter’s VP of communications is sending us regular
updates. Press releases, photos and general updates can be sent to editor@mpiweb.org.
3. SUBMIT IDEAS—Is there a story you would like to share or a topic you would like to write
about? Send any ideas to editor@mpiweb.org, and maybe you’ll see your name in lights. Sommelier
Jörn “Joey” Kleinhans (MPI Orange County Chapter) was interested in sharing his wine expertise
with the MPI community, and the idea for “Things About Wine That Every Meeting Pro Should
Know” (Page 20) was born. It’s that easy!
8 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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FROM THE CEO
Special Thanks for
Our Chapter Leaders
GLOBAL EXPANSION
MEANS GROWTH FOR ALL
In our September 2013 issue, I
encouraged you to share your
thoughts on MPI’s transformation
and to provide feedback as to
what more you’d like to see in
your association as we evolve.
Since then, we have received an
outpouring of input and I would
like to thank those of you who
have reached out to me, the MPI
global team and our volunteer
leaders to provide your feedback.
Please continue to provide input,
as your insight is invaluable and
will help us to strengthen our
organization and increase our
value to the meeting and event
community.
Growth, both in our traditional markets as well as in new and
developing markets, is important
for MPI’s sustainability. But that
growth needs to be thoughtful
and well-planned, and achieved
in a strategic manner to support
our current membership community and chapter structure. As we
expand into new markets, we will
continue to invest and focus on
our core membership base. Our
members and chapters are the
heart of the MPI brand, and we
will not lose sight of this as we
work to advance our global footprint.
During my recent travels, I
have seen that our brand has
relevance and strength around the
world. From industry meetings
including CIBTM in Beijing,
LAMEC in São Paulo and IMEX
America in Las Vegas to chapter
events such as the 2013 MPI
Southeast Educational Conference
in Florida to visits with members
in the U.K., Italy and Singapore, it
is wonderful to see how respected
MPI is for the professional development and educational opportunities that we deliver. I have also
observed there is a thirst for professional development and certi ication programs in emerging
markets within Asia and South
America, and MPI is very well-positioned and quali ied to address
that need.
So, as we focus our energy on
helping members be successful,
we understand it is also our obligation to expand into new markets. Global expansion means
growth for MPI as an association
as well as growth for our core
member base, as it will bring forth
more diverse education and learn-
With the Thanksgiving holiday
swiftly approaching here in the
U.S., I wanted to take a moment
to say thank you to our chapter
leadership for their hard work,
passion and ingenuity.
I was able to spend time with
many of our volunteer leaders
during the annual Chapter Business Summit (see Page 26) this
September, and was delighted by
the spirit of camaraderie and
enthusiasm among the group. It is
important to engage and develop
our exceptional chapter leaders
each year, as the growth of MPI
simply could not happen without
them.
So, thank you, chapter leaders—past and present! We appreciate all that you have done and
will do to deliver value to our
community.
ing opportunities and opens
doors to new business prospects
and relationships. In addition, it
will enrich our existing community and help strengthen the meeting and event industry. Our current membership will positively
bene it from the sharing of
knowledge, best practices, investments and resources that come
as a result of global growth.
Benjamin Franklin once said,
“Without continual growth and
progress, such words as improvement, achievement and success
have no meaning.” This sentiment
holds true today just as it did in
the 1700s. MPI must expand
globally in an effort to help our
current member community
achieve success.
Safe travels,
Paul Van Deventer
MPI President & CEO
pvandeventer@mpiweb.org
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CONTRIBUTORS
JÖRN “JOEY” KLEINHANS,
CFA, CSW (MPI Orange
County Chapter), is a Certified Sommelier with the
Court of Master Sommeliers and Certified Specialist
of Wine with the Society of
Wine Educators. He is the
owner and chief sommelier
of The Wine Elite, the leading provider of sommelier-guided wine tasting
experiences in Southern
California and nationwide.
Contact him at joey@
WineElite.org.
I first got interested in wine
when my parents started
serving red wine regularly at
lunches and dinners as I was
growing up in Germany.
After moving to the U.S., my
interest in wine was reborn
when I observed that the
U.S. food and wine culture
was not as well developed as
in Europe. I started leading
blind-tasting workshops in
Orange County—first with
friends, then in a wine club I
started—and during that
time I developed a systematic philosophy on effective
wine tasting methods. It was
natural to test our ideas with
larger groups, adapt it to a
business audience and make
it useful for the meeting
industry (“Things About
Wine That Every Meeting
Pro Should Know,” Page 20).
RYAN SINGEL is the
founder of Contextly, a
content recommendation
service for publishers.
Prior to that, he was an
editor and writer for
Wired, focusing on the
promises and perils of
technology.
My first essay on Google
Glass was a declaration of
my privacy policy for Glass
users. I found myself a bit
jealous of Glass at the
recent XOXO conference.
The speakers and audience
were all so great I couldn’t
decide when to look at my
phone during talks for the
backchannel conversations
or when to just focus on the
presentation. Glass could
be a fix for that (“The
Reality of Google Glass,”
Page 54). I’ll wait for the
model that ships with
self-control baked-in.
SHAWNA SUCKOW,
CMP (MPI Minnesota
Chapter), is a speaker,
author, zombie expert
and founder of SPIN:
Senior Planners Industry
Network.
You may think I’m complaining about the IKEA
ball pits (“Educating Your
Youngest Attendees,”
Page 44), but secretly, I’m
envious. My generation
had just a stitch pre-ball
pit and was even preMcDonald’s Playland-style
habitrails of connecting
tubes and levels. Yes, I’m a
little bitter as I get in touch
with my previously
well-buried feelings about
this. I’m envisioning an
after-hours party just for
adults at an IKEA, where
we can gorge on Swedish
meatballs and practice our
ninja jumps into that
alluring ball pit, with no
kids around to ruin the fun.
JASON HENSEL (MPI
Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter) is currently the
editor of Facility Manager magazine. Before that,
he was an editor at MPI
for 10 years.
My interview with Temple
Grandin (“Temple of
Wisdom,” Page 50) was
the first time I ever had the
experience of being interviewed by the subject.
Grandin is very curious
about everything—she
wanted to know more
about me, my impressions
of her book and why I
chose to be a writer and
editor in the meeting and
event industry. I learned a
lot from the questions she
asked me, because it gave
insight into how she thinks
and processes information
as a person with autism.
ROWLAND STITELER
(MPI Tampa Bay Area
Chapter) spent 25 years
in the newspaper and
magazine business across
the U.S. before hanging
out his shingle as an
independent writer in
Florida in 1994, specializing in meeting and
convention industry
coverage.
The most important element for a successful
education conference is to
conduct it in an invigorating, “fun” environment,
according to Elliott Masie
(“Keeping Your Event’s
Content Unique,” Page
40). “The best learning
environment is usually the
one that feels the least like
a classroom,” says Masie,
who has been known to
have floating presentations on lakes at Disney
World. And who can argue
with this success? Any
discretionary-attendance
conference that has the
budget for the speaker
lineup Masie will feature
this year—Hillary Clinton,
George Takei and Jane
Pauley—is clearly a
success.
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CONVERSATIONS
New ideas start with conversations.
This isn’t your typical letters page. We call it “Conversations” for a reason. We don’t just
want you to comment on our stories, we want to engage with you and share the resulting
ideas with everyone. This page will feature what you’re talking about and when the topic
warrants, we’ll let you know our thoughts as well.
EXPANDED ENGAGEMENT
[Re: September ‘13 issue]
With The Meeting Professional, MPI is creating new opportunities
that most people might not recognize at irst. With every article in
The Meeting Professional citing members and chapters, you’ve
given us a way to grow our careers and build our businesses on
completely new levels. For instance, when the next issue of The
Meeting Professional comes out I will be 1) reading it from cover
to cover (of course), 2) highlighting the articles and content that
really hit the mark for myself and my career and 3) reaching out
to the authors and/or the people mentioned in key articles.
Why?
The alternative is cold calling. Now we can all reach out and
start with, “Hello, I saw your name in this month’s issue of The
Meeting Professional and you talked about (insert subject here).
Based on that, I’d like to connect with you to discuss (networking
or business opportunity here).”
Thank you for creating not only a better magazine but potentially amazing networking
opportunities!
MARK J. CARTER MPI CHICAGO AREA CHAPTER
SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT
[Re: “From Your Hands to Their Ears,” September ‘13 issue]
In all cases, [a venue’s] blanket license covers only events or
other circumstances that are working directly for the venue.
Venue blanket licenses do not cover music used in meetings
and events including, but not limited to, walk-in music,
streamed music, music in presentations, DJs, concerts or
other entertainment. Private events—even in a ballroom or
facility on the property—are the responsibility of the meeting/event owner, regardless of whether or not the venue has a
license. Music licensing for private events can be a bit of a
hassle added to everything else we have to think about, but it
is not overly expensive. A proper license for the meeting or
event owner will cover music in presentations, walk-in music, live music and even concerts.
MICHAEL OWEN MPI TENNESSEE CHAPTER
EDITOR MICHAEL PINCHERA’S RESPONSE: Thank you for bringing attention to this important point.
Author Andy Sharpe and I have since discussed this matter and agree with you that ultimately it’s the
responsibility of the event owner to secure the legal rights to utilize copyrighted music, regardless of the
licenses the venue may possess.
THERE’S MEANING TO
YOUR WORK
[Re: “Does Your Job Make the World a
Better Place?” blog post]
Every event planner should read this
article. For those new to the industry
it gives them reason and purpose. For
those of us who have been doing this
for most of our adult careers it gives
us renewed passion that this is NOT
just another job. It helps your company succeed. You are important to your
company’s growth and bottom line.
We matter! Take some time to read
“Ten Meetings that Rocked the World.”
Very interesting.
MISSY FUSCO, CMM, CCTE, CTE
MPI ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHAPTER
So, how can you start
a conversation?
In today’s social world, conversations
happen in myriad ways besides face to
face. Whether you want to talk about a
story we’ve published in this magazine
or MPI’s e-newsletters or blogs, here’s
how you can reach us by phone, email,
and social media.
Start a conversation with
an editor:
David Basler, editor in chief
dbasler@mpiweb.org • (972) 702-3081
@TheMeetingPro • Skype: TheMeetingPro
COVERAGE BUILDING BUSINESS
[Re: “Tapping into a New Market,” August ‘13 issue]
I couldn’t be more pleased with the coverage of our
event in The Meeting Professional. We are already
receiving emails and interest in our concept from
other chapters and from associations outside of MPI.
Many, many thanks!
RICHARD MISEYKO, CMP, CMM MPI TAMPA BAY
AREA CHAPTER
Blair Potter, managing editor
bpotter@mpiweb.org • (972) 702-3092
Michael Pinchera, editor (features)
mpinchera@mpiweb.org • (972) 702-3018
@mpinchera
Start a conversation with MPI:
Twitter: @MPI
Facebook: http://mpi.to/FansOfTMP
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WHO WE ARE 18 PEER TO PEER 22
YOUR COMMUNITY 26 HAVE A MOMENT 28
DAWGBYTE77
SECRETS OF THE
SOMMELIERS
We’re serving up essential wine education that every
meeting professional should know. PAGE 20
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WHO WE ARE
18 THE
THE MEETING
MEETING PROFESSIONAL
PROFESSIONAL AUGUST
NOVEMBER
2013
18
2013
Nov_Who We Are.indd 18
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DANIEL FORTIN
MPI MONTRÉAL & QUÉBEC CHAPTER
Since I was a teenager, I was planning events, such as school dances, graduation days and wedding anniversaries for family members. I just loved to see all the puzzle pieces come together and see
the inal results as one. Like baking a cake, get all the ingredients, cook them and you get to taste the
beautiful and delicious piece of food art.
In the late 1980s, I was a part-time dance teacher and the owner of the school asked me to plan
the inal party of the season with the comment, “Daniel, you are on your own.” I was so nervous looking at all the students that were expecting their “ inal night.” We produced ive shows for 100 students
graduating in front of their friends and family. We were expecting 150 people, and we ended up with
240. I still today thank the owner for trusting me with this experience.
I always say in anything that you do you must “Know it, Like it, Love it.” Knowing how things
are done, understanding all the efforts, creativity and inspiration behind a good meal/perfect pairing
of wine is the ultimate feeling of satisfaction.
We need to have our “industry” recognized as one by our governments. This would be a great
step. The CEIS 3.0 (Canadian Economic Impact Study from the MPI Foundation) will be a fantastic tool
to achieve our goal in this battle. We also need to be more involved with our institutions of knowledge,
tourism, hospitality, meeting and events schools. This is where it all starts.
Isabelle Hudon is an inspiration to me. She is the former CEO of Montreal Board of Trade, and
I have met this fantastic lady on numerous occasions. I decided once to talk to her about leaving a
secure position in a hotel to start my own business as a planner. I told her how scared I was inancially
and professionally. She then said one thing that I will remember for the rest of my life: “Stop dreaming
your life and live your dreams!” She gave me her cellular phone number and said, “Call me anytime
because it will not be easy, there will be some great moments but some dark ones too. That is when
you will need to talk.”
The feeling of achievement is fantastic in this industry. People are so dedicated and passionate. Starting my business in meeting planning gave me the satisfaction that I was looking for—doing
something for me and my peers, bringing an event to the next level and all the challenges that come
with it. But the thing that transformed me the most was when I was the president of the MPI Montréal and Québec Chapter for three-and-a-half years. I have
Daniel Fortin
met, and still meet, with extraordinary people, clients and the suppliers that also
is the owner of DNL Events &
became friends. This is more than a job, it is a way of living, an in inite pleasure to
Logistics and has been an MPI
wake up in the morning and think that you are going to do things that may change
member
for 10 years. He previously
somebody’s life by putting all the necessary efforts and love in planning the event
served
on
the Chapter Advisory
your client is expecting and creating the WOW.
Council and as president of the
Montréal & Québec Chapter for
three-and-a-half years.
Photo by Orange Photography
MPIWEB.ORG
MPIWEB.ORG 19
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F&B
By the
Numbers
It takes 75 - 100 grapes to
make a glass of wine.
THINGS
ABOUT
WINE
THAT
EVERY
MEETING
PRO
SHOULD
KNOW
BY J Ö R N “J O E Y ” K L E I N H A N S , C FA , C S W
(MPI OR ANG E CO U NT Y C HA PTE R)
M
any meeting professionals have
to work with wine regularly but
may lack important background
information on the subject. Indeed, well-structured tastings can fulfill several purposes, including education, entertainment and social engagement. The trick
is being able to speak knowledgeably about
wine with your client.
How to Evaluate a Wine
Although we have individual opinions and preferences for different wines, there are objective criteria that serve as a guideline for assessing a
wine’s quality. These are four criteria that
every meeting professional needs to understand and put to the test—complexity, intensity, integrity and typicity.
COMPLEXITY refers to the number of distinct lavor components that
you can detect in a wine. A wine with
high complexity is usually the easiest
to identify in a blind tasting, since it
provides a complete package of lavor
information that helps the taster recognize the wine.
THE LEVEL OF INTENSITY determines, as a relative measure, how
strongly you can pick up certain aroma
pro iles on the nose and on the palate.
Many wines remain very subtle, standing in the background as great wines to
serve with food, while those with greater intensity can stand out as the main
attraction.
INTEGRITY speaks to how well or
poorly different components of the
wine harmonize with one another. Does
the taste on the palate deliver on the
promise of the nose? Is the inal lavor
(the “ inish”) an extension of the palate
impression, or can new and unexpected
sensations be picked up? Ideally, a wine
evolves as you advance from nose to
palate and inish, but doesn’t create unexpected contradictions that undermine
the integrity of the wine.
TYPICITY requires more experience
than the other three criteria: A wine of
high typicity shows the typical attributes
for which that grape variety and growing
region are known. Tasting wines of high
typicity is the best approach for a steep
learning curve in evaluating wine and
wine appreciation.
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Wines to
Watch
Chile and South Africa
are offering exciting wines
at excellent value, and are
joining the world-class level
after decades as emerging
markets.
Understanding the Essentials
One of the key facts about wine is that there are only a few important
combinations of grape and growing regions that produce consistent
tasting experiences. Once these combinations are understood, you’ll be
well prepared to successfully handle most wine-related situations.
Accordingly, the best and quickest way to learn about the world’s key
wines is to source them from their original (and usually best) growing
regions in the Old World. Starting with the essentials this way, rather
than venturing into the more experimental New World interpretations
of the grape varieties, creates an authentic impression of each wine’s identity.
TOP 10
WINES
1. Shafer Relentless Napa Valley
2008 ($60)
2. Château de St.-Cosme Gigondas
2010 ($41)
3. Two Hands Shiraz Barossa Valley
Bella’s Garden 2010 ($69)
4. Clos des Papes Châteauneufdu-Pape 2010 ($128)
5. Château Guiraud Sauternes
2009 ($60)
6. Château Léoville Barton
St. Julien 2009 ($105)
7. Shea Pinot Noir Willamette Valley
Shea Vineyard Estate 2009 ($40)
8. Beringer Cabernet Sauvignon Knights
Vineyard Reserve 2009 ($45)
9. Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragona Brunello di
Montalcino 2007 ($60)
10. Achaval Ferrer Malbec Bella Vista 2010 ($120)
Source: Wine Spectator’s 2012 Top 100
THE
GREAT
GRAPE
Work with these wines
to create tasting events
that your clients will
remember and request
time and again.
White Grapes
Red Grapes
CHARDONNAY
• Chablis and Burgundy,
France
• Napa, California
CABERNET SAUVIGNON
• Old World: Margaux,
Bordeaux, France;
Tuscany, Italy
• New World: Napa,
California; Chile;
South Africa
RIESLING
• Mosel, Germany (sweet)
and Alsace, France (dry)—
other regions lack key
characteristics
SAUVIGNON BLANC
• Old World: Sancerre, Loire,
France
Marlborough,
• New World: Marlboroug
New Zealand
NEBBIOLO
• This grape only shows
well in Piemonte, Italy
(especially Barolo and
Barbaresco)
PINOT NOIR
• Old World: Burgundy,
France
• New World: Marlborough,
New Zealand; Oregon
SANGIOVESE
• Tuscany, Italy
(especially Chianti
Classico and Brunello di
Montalcino)
Don’t Smell
the Cork!
Smelling the cork will usually
send misleading or inconclusive signals. It’s best to
determine whether a wine
is spoiled—known as being
‘corked’—by tasting the small
pour the sommelier offers
after he opens the bottle for
the host. It’s the only way to
assess flaws in a wine.
SYRAH
• Old World: Northern
Rhone, France (especially
Cote Rotie and Cornas)
• New World: Australia
(where the grape is called
Shiraz)
TEMPRANILLO
• Rioja, Spain (look for the
nicely oak-aged “Gran
Reserva” level)
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PEER TO PEER
“How can I ϐight attendee
fatigue at my next event?”
Exercise expert Kim Bercovitz believes fitness breaks are the best solution.
experienced by attending multiple instructors for conferences that need simultaneous
ees who sit for a long time at meetings and conferences—muscles
breaks in multiple tracks—and with large audiences, it is sometimes
stiffen, posture becomes compromised and energy levels drop as the
dif icult to see the instructor.
day wears on. The more tightly scheduled the learning events, the
An alternative option is video-delivered itness breaks that offer
more tired attendees become, and these factors affect a person’s
more lexibility and visibility than a live person, and can be used as
ability to focus and stay alert. So, what you need at your next event
on-the-spot time illers to ill unplanned program gaps. Videos can
is an energy booster—something that re-charges the body and mind,
be played simultaneously in multiple rooms and translated into mulas well as enhances concentration.
tiple languages, and can provide tremendous educational
Traditionally, to most meeting professionals the term
bene it.
“energy booster” has translated into coffee breaks. But
A lot of people I speak with are worried about their atwhile coffee and snacks may be energizing for a short
tendees sweating through their business clothes. Don’t
while, people end up feeling more fatigued once the cafworry. Remember, research tells us all that is needed to
feine and sugar wear off—and this type of induced fatigue
boost brain power is to get blood lowing to the muscles
is counterproductive to learning.
and oxygen lowing to the brain, so the exercises I am sugResearch shows that exercise increases blood low,
gesting are low-impact and sweat-free.
pumping oxygen to the brain and keeping attendees
I also hear “I am already planning a yoga class every
awake and alert for extended periods of time.
morning for my attendees.” That’s a great option for your
Kim Bercovitz, Ph.D.,
Regardless of the type or size of meeting or event, itattendees who are early risers, but early-morning itness
is a member of the MPI
ness breaks are a better alternative to coffee and sweets,
classes are typically not well attended, and the bene icial
Toronto and Potomac
and the instruction can be delivered in-person (by an inaffects have worn off by the day’s irst coffee break. By inchapters. She is president
and chief exercise officer
structor) or by video. The bene it of a live itness break,
corporating itness breaks throughout the day, you are
of Exercise Bytes Inc., a
obviously, is that the instructor can be more engaging,
helping to combat “sitting and learning fatigue” and you’re
fitness technology
particularly with small audiences. The instructor can cirincluding your entire audience.
company based in
culate in the room, motivating participants and exercising
We are in the business of creating memorable events,
Toronto, Ontario, and
along with them, giving the break a more personal touch.
so if you’re wanting to keep your attendees actively
Washington, D.C. She can
There are drawbacks to live instructors though. Inengaged throughout the conference, try getting them
be reached at kim@xstructors are not typically available on a “stand by” basis,
out of their seats periodically to recharge their bodies
bytes.com, (855) 8xbytes
and www.x-bytes.com.
and there are added hassles and expenses related to hirand minds.
“SITTING SYNDROME” IS A COMMON PROBLEM
22 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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COMMUNITY
THE PERFECT JOB
The meeting industry comes together
to embrace those with autism.
BY J A S O N H E N S E L
(MPI DALLAS/FORT WORTH CHAPTER)
CAROLE MCKELLAR, CMM (MPI U.K. &
Ireland Chapter), sat in a hotel in Berlin three years ago with two industry
colleagues, and they started talking
about their lives. Discovering they all
have children with special needs, they
made a connection: the meeting and
event industry would be perfect for
young adults with autism.
In 2013, this idea became a reality
with the trio of the MPI Foundation,
the organization Meeting Industry
Meeting Needs and HelmsBriscoe
(through their HB Cares activity) all
working together to create a program
to place people with autism in work
environments within the meeting
industry.
“I have a 21-year-old son with
high-functioning autism, and I saw
through his experience that children
up to the age of 18, or until they inish full-time education, can access a
lot of support,” says McKellar, chair of
the MPI Foundation’s EMEA Council.
“Once full-time education ends, that
support tends to fall off the cliff.”
In the U.S., 21 percent of people
with autism have full-time jobs. In the
U.K., that number is only 15 percent.
“That’s a really scary igure,” McKellar says. “When you look at that,
there are a couple of issues. One is
the individual with autism’s lack of
con idence—‘What does work mean?’
‘What will I be asked to do?’ ‘Whom
should I speak to?’ And on the employer’s side, there’s a little bit of
reluctance, because autism is a communication and social condition and
there is a wide spectrum with different levels of impairment, which leads
to uncertainty.”
Because of this, McKellar saw an
opportunity.
“The idea was to create a work
experience placement program
within the meeting and event
industry, and the plan was to
raise the funds needed to
support individuals and
employers to give the
program the best chance of
success. We recognized that
if you’re going to bring somebody with an impairment into a
work environment, they need some
support, as does the employer,” she
says. “We raised the funds and then
we found great suppliers within the
industry who were prepared to host
young adults with autism, just for a
few weeks, to give them that
work experience. Our goal
was to give the young person
some con idence and help
them to see that they could
be successful in the work
environment. And on the human resources side, within
hotels, they could start to see
that this is a pool of talent they could
be recruiting from in the future.”
Hiring a person with autism has
its rewards, especially for an industry that requires a lot of attention to
detail and has a high turnover.
“Every person with autism is different; however, there are some commonalities: very good with routine
and checklists, therefore very good
with quality control, and being focused,” McKellar says. “So if you look
at a lot of the back-of-house activity
within meetings, a lot requires attention to details that means young people with autism can excel at the job.”
The trial program was a success,
and McKellar looks to repeat it in
2014.
“We’ve had some great success
stories from the individuals who
Autism
Numbers
enjoyed the meeting industry and
would be interested in future job
opportunities,” she says. “We partnered with the National Autistic Society in London, and they provided
each individual and the employers
Up to 1.5 million
people in the U.S.
have an autism
spectrum disorder.
In 2011-2012, the
disorder affected
2% of those between the ages of 6
years and 17 years.
Source: U.S. Centers
for Disease Control
and Prevention
Hiring a person with autism
has its rewards, especially
for an industry that requires
attention to detail.
with training before they went into
the placements and support while
they were in placements, and now
they’re working on applying for
jobs. We have success stories from
the hotels saying this really opened
their eyes.” (See Page 53.)
At a January 27 fundraising event
in London, supported by the JW
Marriott Grosvenor House, attendees will participate in an interactive networking evening to include
painting, gift card making and other
creative activities. This year, six job
placements were funded. McKellar
hopes to raise enough money for
even more placements next year.
“These are people who can see
they have a future in the workplace,”
McKellar says. “What we’re doing is
really changing lives.”
Temple
of Wisdom
Read The Meeting
Professional’s profile
of Temple Grandin,
one of the world’s
most famous autistic
people, on Page 50.
The MPI Foundation
would like to thank
the Devonport House,
Grand Connaught
Rooms and Marriott
Regents Park for
their involvement
in the HelmsBriscoe
Cares program.
Follow @CaroleMcK
for updates on the
project.
24 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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YOUR COMMUNITY
UR
MARK YDOAR
CA’sLa loEoN
upcoming
k at your
Here
vents:
industry e
✓
JEFF LOY
EIBTM
LEARNING
FROM
PEERS
AT THE MPI CHAPTER
BUSINESS SUMMIT
MORE THAN 250 ATTENDEES convened in
San Antonio for MPI’s Chapter Business
Summit in September. The event brings
chapter leaders together to share best
practices and develop strategies.
This year’s gathering featured session
topics ranging from retreat planning
strategies to administrative/operations
tips and tricks to developing effective
membership business plans.
Judi Holler, VP of leadership development for the MPI Chicago Area Chapter,
attended this year’s event, but also participated in 2012, when she learned the
importance of chapter collaboration.
“There is so much knowledge out
there…and it’s at our ingertips!” she says.
“So through the connections I made at last
year’s summit I was able to reach out and
use the expertise in other chapters to help
solve problems in our chapter.”
At this year’s event, Holler gained
insights from facilitating a brainstorming
session at the Membership Boot Camp.
“There was so much knowledge in the
four breakouts—the discussion was pretty fascinating,” she says. “One of my big
takeaways is to bring back a chapter
leader recognition program where we
thank all of our committee chairs and
even call their bosses to tell them that we
appreciate them as leaders.”
David Anderson, CMP, president of the
MPI Southern California Chapter, also
attended the summit in both 2012 and
Barcelona, Spai
n
www.eibtm.com
NOVEMBER 1
9-21
ocacy at
2013. He says a session on advocacy
al in dethe 2012 event was instrumental
ategy that
signing and implementing a strategy
pter memenables and empowers his chapter
ut their role
bers to speak intelligently about
eater busiin the meeting industry and greater
al key takeness community. He had several
aways from the 2013 summit.
table session
“The Best Practices Roundtable
was an amazing opportunity to hear
uccessful
about successful
“There was programs
ms and initiaher chapters
tives other
so much
ng
are
using
and impleknowledge
mentingg that can be
in the four
d to the beneapplied
breakfasts
ur members,
it of our
—the discus- leadership
ship and sponsion was
sors,” he says. “The
ctive lunch
interactive
pretty
n that allowed
session
fascinating.”
er
chapter
leaders to
—Judi Holler
learn about MPI HQ
mplishment in
initiatives was a huge accomplishment
tion between
the opening of communication
ation staff.
chapter leaders and association
ial events
Each of the meals and social
nities to
allowed for great opportunities
have ad hoc conversationss with
nstrate the
fellow leaders who demonstrate
same passion for MPI.”
THANK YOU CHAPTER
BUSINESS SUMMIT SPONSORS:
AIBTM (Reed Travel Exhibitions)
Capers Transportation
Dallas CVB
Delta Air Lines
Goen South
ING
PCMA CONVEN
LEADERS
Boston
cma.org
conveningleaders.p
JANUARY 12-15
GLOBAL
PHARMACEUTICAL
AND MEDICAL
MEETINGS SUMMIT
✓
Philadelphia
www.globalmedicalmeetings.com
FEBRUARY 3-5
✓
MPI EU
OPEAN
MEETINR
G
CONFERES & EVENTS
NCE (EM
Istanbul
EC)
w
ww.mpiw
eb.org/e
vents/em
ec2014
FEBRU
ARY 23
-25
✓MPI providing ed
ucation
Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort & Spa
MCI Group
Meeting Tomorrow
Mexico Tourism Board
MPI Foundation
PCNametag
PSAV
Rio Cibolo Ranch
San Antonio CVB
26 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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10 PREDICTIONS ON THE
FUTURE OF MEETINGS
MPI’S FINAL REPORT on the Future of Meetings (The Bottom Line: Delegate Insights,
Future Scenarios and Practical Tips) brings
together insights from delegates around
the world on the future of meetings using
emerging political, economic, environmen-
tal, social and technological trends identiied in literature and
in-depth interviews
with informants from
outside and inside the
meeting industry.
The results identify
the key themes that
connect delegate responses to expert
insights and inform
practical takeaways.
The report provides
guidance on the impact of 10 predictions:
political instability, privacy control, bipolar and multipolar economies, threat to
travel, workforce mobility, multi-generations, social connections, technology and
simpli ication.
The report concludes with strategic
STRATEGIC
MEETINGS
MANAGEMENT:
actions emerging out of the indings on
eight future scenarios that show delegates forecast a rise in virtual meetings, a
desire for simplicity, increasing political
instability and insecurity, scarce resources, more specialized social networks,
workforce mobility, limitations on online
sharing and more economic centers all
over the world—a complex vision that
impacts on meeting businesses, design,
content, place and space. Visit www.
mpiweb.org/portal/research to access
a myriad of Future of Meetings research.
Future of Meetings will also be a hot
topic at EIBTM in Barcelona. If you’re
attending, be sure to check out the session “Talking Generations: The Demands
of Future Attendees and Different Generations” on Nov. 21, which is in luenced by
MPI research and will be facilitated by
Jackie Mulligan of Leeds Metropolitan
University UK.
RECOGNIZING
EXCELLENCE
THROUGH THE
RISE AWARDS
TAXONOMY, GROWTH
AND THE FUTURE
A NEW REPORT on Strategic Meetings
Management debuted at IMEX America
last month. The report marks the completion of the irst stage of a project
commissioned by the MPI Foundation to
establish a deeper understanding of
SMM, in particular to identify a taxonomy for meeting professionals and inform
the development of educational materials for the industry.
The report aggregates indings from
an extensive collection and review of
SMM and SMM-related literature, as well
as in-depth interviews and focus groups
with leaders and practitioners. Among
the key indings: Although cost reduction was initially a major driver for
SMM, the focus is now on the long-term
Thought Leadership Initiatives research is
brought to you by the MPI Foundation.
bene its of risk management and increasing business value.
Visit www.mpiweb.org/SMM for a
wide range of materials, case studies
and white papers that will continue to
grow over the next 12 months.
MPI IS ACCEPTING peer nominations for
the RISE Awards program. Nominees
are individuals, MPI chapters and communities and organizations that are
making significant contributions to the
meeting and event industry through
influence, innovation and global reach.
The most recent RISE Award recipients were featured on the cover of the
September issue, and you can also read
about their passion and inspiration for
the industry at http://mpi.to/SeptRise.
You know who’s moving the industry forward. Now tell the world. The
deadline to submit a nomination is
December 13. Detailed descriptions,
criteria and nomination application
requirements for all seven awards can
be found at www.mpiweb.org/rise.
MPIWEB.ORG 27
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HAVE A MOMENT
28 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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HISTORIC
ROUNDTABLE
EVENT:
Potsdam
Conference
WHERE:
Potsdam, Germany
WHEN:
Tuesday, July 17 Thursday, Aug. 2, 1945
WHY:
Germany had surrendered
eight days earlier, and
discussions between
the leaders of the United
Kingdom, the United
States and the Union of
Soviet Socialist Republics
that took place at this
table focused on the
rebuilding of Europe, the
punishment of Germany
and plans to bring about
a more peaceful world.
Yet, the war wasn’t over in
the Pacific, and less peaceful action items also arose.
The Potsdam Declaration
was issued from this meeting demanding the Empire
of Japan’s immediate
surrender under threat of
“prompt and utter destruction.” Japan ignored the
declaration and within two
weeks Hiroshima and
Nagasaki were decimated
by the atomic bomb.
MPIWEB.ORG 29
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VIEWPOINTS
Improving the Human Process of Your Event 32 | A Noteworthy Lesson: The Value of Free Speakers 34
An
increasing
number of
meeting
professionals
and clients are
rediscovering
and implementing
human process
technologies that
fundamentally
improve their
events in ways
that a new device
or app cannot.
EVENT TECHNOLOGY: DON’T
RE-INVENT THE WHEEL
PAGE 32
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MEETING DESIGN
BY ADRIAN SEGAR
Adrian is a meeting designer specializing in participant-driven and participation-rich
events, an industry blogger and author of Conferences That Work: Creating
Events That People Love. Learn more at www.conferencesthatwork.com
and follow Adrian on Twitter @asegar.
EVENT TECHNOLOGY:
DON’T RE-INVENT THE WHEEL
Meeting professionals are focusing too much on new
event technologies, and ignoring existing methods
that will improve events—at a fraction of the cost.
REMEMBER THE 1970S TELEVISION SERIES
The Six Million Dollar Man? It featured a
former astronaut whose limbs and eye
were replaced with bionic implants,
allowing him to perform super-human
feats. The show’s opening catch phrase
“We can rebuild him…we have the technology” highlights our fascination with
improving our lives via better gadgets
and software.
Today’s event professionals aren’t
immune from the allure of new technology. Industry conferences incorporate
the latest and greatest mobile and
gamification apps, video-streaming
platforms, attendee tracking systems,
audience response systems, mobile
networking and registrant analytics.
Suppliers are happy to sponsor these
events, using them to showcase their
wares and, hopefully, convince participants that their new technology is
worth buying.
Few of us regret the passing of Rolodexes, paper-based registration systems, slide carousels, event professional
binders and other relics of the past.
Unfortunately, these days, too much of
event professionals’ limited continuing-education time is spent investigating shiny new toys and apps while overlooking free or inexpensive, proven
methods of providing effective learning,
connection, engagement and community
building at their events.
It’s understandable why this happens. As computer scientist Alan Kay
once quipped: “Technology is anything
that was invented after you were
born.” Given that technology in the
form of human tools has existed for
more than three million years, this
mindset relegates what we view as
technology to a tiny sliver of what
actually exists. Today we are surrounded by so much rapidly changing technology that we fixate on what is new,
and what was new quickly becomes
taken for granted and largely invisible.
“Technology sinks below our consciousness like the eye blinks our
brain filters out,” says technologist
David Weinberger.
Finally, and perhaps most important, our widely held view of what is
and isn’t “technology” is far too narrow. We tend to think of technology
in terms of products and embedded
implementations (e.g. software). But
this is an incredibly restrictive viewpoint. Kevin Kelly, in his thought-provoking book What Technology Wants,
redefines technology broadly as can
be seen in the following description
of three of the most important human
technologies.
• Language: A technology that “shifted the burden of evolution in humans away from genetic inheritance…[allowing] our language and
culture to carry our species’ aggregate learning as well.”
• Writing: A technology that “changed
the speed of learning in humans by
An increasing number of meeting professionals
and clients are rediscovering and implementing
human process technologies, both at the meeting
and session format level, that fundamentally
improve their events in ways that a new
device or app cannot.
32 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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Here are some examples:
• Why do we open conferences with
a keynote?
• Why do so few people speak during
most conference sessions?
• Are presentations the best way for
people to learn?
• How do we know if the sessions we’re
providing are what participants actually want?
• Why do so many participants report
that the best learning occurs in the
hallways?
• Is it a good idea to provide entertainment during socials?
• Are socials the best way to meet interesting participants?
• Why do we close conferences with a
keynote or meal?
easing the transmission of ideas
across territories and across time.”
• Science: “The invention that enables
greater invention.”
Once we start thinking about technology with a wider lens like this, all
kinds of possibilities arise.
Language, writing and science are
outside our conventional, narrowscope definition of technology. The
specific technology implementations
needed to express the sounds and
symbols that they use—audiovisual
systems, pen and paper, Google Drive,
etc.—are secondary. Language, writing
and science are primarily about human
process.
Social media theorist Clay Shirky
says, “Revolution doesn’t happen when
society adopts new technologies—it
happens when society adopts new
behaviors.” When we expand our perspective on event technology to include behavioral process, many unexamined aspects of our events come
into view.
We must seriously investigate critical
issues like these, instead of simply repeating meetings the same “safe” way
they’ve always been done. An increasing
number of meeting professionals and
clients are rediscovering and implementing human process technologies,
both at the meeting and session format
level, that fundamentally improve their
events in ways that a new device or app
cannot. As the popularity of these approaches and techniques grows, those
who ignore them are jeopardizing the
future relevance and ultimate survival
of their events.
Every event professional should reframe event technology to include the
process used during events. We need to
concentrate less on improving logistical
elements: registration, decor, audiovisual, food and beverage and so on. These
are secondary processes, and though
they’re important, we know how to do
them well. Instead, focus on improving
the human process you use throughout
the event venue: how you structure and
script its flow, how you maximize useful
connection between attendees, how the
content and form of sessions are determined so as to best achieve desired
outcomes. This is the event technology
that counts.
MPIWEB.ORG 33
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SPEAKERS
BY BRIAN PALMER, CMM
Brian (MPI Chicago Area Chapter) is president of National Speakers Bureau,
a 33-year MPI member and the current president of the International
Association of Speakers Bureaus. In 2003, MPI named
him International Supplier of the Year.
THERE’S NO SUCH THING
AS A FREE SPEAKER
The reputations of everyone involved are at
risk when speaker management is absent.
“THE MOST EXPENSIVE SPEAKER I EVER
HAD WAS FREE.”
One of my customers recently conirmed a belief about the value of free
speakers—a noteworthy lesson.
This customer’s organization wanted to
secure an industry celebrity to present in
front of their most highly regarded customers. A speaker referred to as “Big
Wheel” was the clear choice.
During the planning process, my customer learned that someone within his
organization, a person with solid emeritus
status, had a connection to the Wheel. I
suppose there are bene its to being “connected” to a speaker; some speakers may
offer a deep discount, while others may
gift best-selling books to each attendee. In
this scenario, the organization hoped for a
pro bono type of discount. The organization endured two months of “maybes”
before their persistence resulted in a solid
commitment. The news of the Wheel’s
meeting participation created quite a stir
among likely attendees.
As my customer began to make event
preparations, which included brie ing the
Wheel, it became apparent that Mr. Emeritus preferred to handle this duty. My customer pressed this issue but decided to
back off when he was told to…back off.
On the day of the presentation, the
Wheel turned. He wanted a summary of
the meeting attendees, asked what he was
to talk about and requested (for the third
time) veri ication that his afternoon golf
reservations were for the “championship”
course.
Months of anticipation were lattened
as soon as the Wheel began serving up
worn-out
jokes about
There are a
past introducvariety of
tions and
referencing
possible
the organizacurrencies to
tion by its
compensate
previous
name. Attend- someone speakee feedback
ing at an event.
described the
There is no
presentation
as insightful,
compensation
yet disparagfor a client’s
ing.
Mr. Emeri- event gone
tus conveamiss.
niently left
the room
before the Wheel’s session ended. The
meeting owner nodded toward his colleague’s empty seat, acknowledged the
calamity and stated, “We can never let this
happen again.”
The “cost” of the session was signi icant. The reputations of the company, the
meeting owner and Mr. Emeritus were
tarnished. Clients felt cheated on time—
casting a pall over the remaining agenda.
There are a variety of possible currencies to compensate someone speaking at
an event. There is no compensation for a
client’s event gone amiss. To the highest
degree possible, prepare thoroughly,
consistently and precisely—assuring the
right returns on the resources and time
expended.
Simply put: There’s no such thing as a
free speaker.
34 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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10/23/13 10:03 AM
SPECIAL ADVERTISEMENT
Malaysia Convention
& Exhibition Bureau
WWW.MYCEB.COM.MY
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n its efforts to continuously drive and
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10/22/13 10:47 AM
In its efforts to continuously drive and strengthen the Malaysian
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500 participants and above.
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10/22/13 10:48 AM
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SHOWCASE
Keeping Your Attendees Engaged 40 | Planning a Family-Friendly, Healthy Event 44
Great ideas that
made civilization
what it is today
could each be
explained in
99 seconds by
a good speaker.
KEEPING YOUR EVENT’S
CONTENT UNIQUE
PAGE 40
MPIWEB.ORG 39
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10/24/13 5:32 PM
LEARNING 2013
Keeping Your Event’s
Content Unique
Elliott Masie’s Learning conference has been in the same
location for 20 years. The trick to keeping attendees
engaged, he says, is keeping the content fresh.
BY ROWLAND STITELER
YOU CAN TELL BY GLANCING AT THE SPEAKER’S
LINEUP for Elliott Masie’s Learning 2013, an
annual conference at Walt Disney World for
more than 20 years now, that the event is
clearly not under-funded. There is former
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton; Star Trek star, activist and media guru
George Takei; and former Today Show host
and longtime TV veteran Jane Pauley—just
to name a few.
The conference typically attracts 1,500
to 2,000 attendees, books every square
foot of meeting and exhibit space and every
available guest room at Disney’s lagship
convention hotel (the Coronado Springs
Resort) and over lows into other Disney
World hotels.
And Masie—CEO of the MASIE Center,
a corporate learning campus in Saratoga
Springs, N.Y., and a longtime member of the
MPI Greater New York Chapter—attributes
no small amount of his event’s success to
the “location, location, location” theory of
meeting planning.
“We learned a long time ago that Orlando/Disney has a multiplier effect for our
conference,” Masie says. “I did a lot of research on top-tier destinations, and I found
Orlando to be No. 1 in a very important
category. Corporate decision-makers don’t
turn an Orlando conference down based
on its location alone. There are other cities,
Las Vegas and New York among them, that
for one reason or another are on various
corporations’ ‘no’ lists. But Orlando seems
universally acceptable to corporate America. That’s huge.”
The corporate approval rate of Orlando
as a meeting destination is key for this conference, he says, because the target audience is composed of corporate directors of
training and directors of education—people involved in the ongoing efforts by corporations to upgrade the skillsets of their
workforces.
40 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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10/21/13 10:38 AM
One of the key things I have
learned from my experience is that
addressing the curiosity and
appealing to the imagination
of the attendee is the very core
of what a learning conference
should be all about.
99
And the lip side of Orlando’s high acceptance level with corporate America is
the decades-long love affair that leisure
travelers have with what has reigned
for years as the world’s No. 1 tourism
destination.
“It certainly does not hurt your bookings at a discretionary-attendance meeting when the potential attendees’ families
are dying to go to your conference destination,” Masie says.
Add in the fact that the world’s No. 1
tourism destination also has one of the
most robust airlift grids in the U.S., and
you’ve got what is one of the best overall
destinations for conferences anywhere.
But Masie says the destination piece
in his formula for success with the annual learning conference goes to more than
just infrastructure and the visitor appeal
of Orlando and Disney World—it’s the nature of the place.
“I learned long ago that the best learning environment is not some place that
feels like a classroom,” he says. “The environment needs to be stimulating; it has to
be a safe and comfortable and shareable
environment. And when the learning
environment is stimulating, it does not
As part of an ongoing quest to diversify meeting formats, participants of Learning
2013 (including attendees) have been asked to present talks that last 99 seconds—a format Masie
has seen at various other conferences recently.
“I borrow shamelessly from other people’s ideas and others borrow from mine,”
he says. “This is completely an experiment for our conference this year, and I think 99-second
presentations will make great transitions between longer pieces of the daily programs.”
If you look at television advertising as an example, there are very few concepts that can’t
be explained in a succinct form—if the ideas are focused enough, people will remember them, Masie says.
“Great ideas that made civilization what it is today could each be explained in 99 seconds by a good speaker.”
Seconds
MPIWEB.ORG 41
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10/21/13 10:38 AM
ELLIOTT
MASIE
MPI Greater New York Chapter
compete with the learning content. It enhances it and helps it to come alive for the
learning audience.”
Masie’s mantras are “context is more
important than content” and “presentation
of information should be good storytelling,
not PowerPoint.”
“WHAT I
LEARNED”
The best learning environment is not some place that feels
like a classroom. The environment needs to be stimulating; it
has to be a safe and comfortable and shareable environment. And when the learning environment is stimulating, it
does not compete with the learning content. It enhances it
and helps it to come alive for the learning audience.
There will also be elements of learning
through pure fun—a NASCAR pit crew will
be demonstrating how to service a racecar
in seconds and then mentoring teams of
attendees who will compete with each other in a display of their newly learned skills.
The basic structure of the conference
Context is more important than content
and presentation of information should be
good storytelling, not PowerPoint.
New Conference Formats
Learning 2013 avoids becoming stale by
updating the format from year to year to
coincide with the needs and desires of the
audience, something all meeting professionals can take to heart.
The planning team likes to use a lot of
different physical locations to impart its
content. One year, a group of small rafts was
used for lots of loating mini-seminars on
the lake that adjoins the Coronado Springs
Resort. This year, there will be a group of
“walking seminars” in which a big general
session will conclude with the attendees
leaving the main ballroom in groups of two
and three and walking around the entire
Coronado Springs property, stopping at
stations in which a speaker with a lip chart
will spend no more than two or three minutes focusing on a speci ic learning technique or strategy.
Still another concise teaching format
to be used at Learning 2013 is the new
99-Second Talks (see sidebar on Page 41).
format involves six general sessions and a
big evening entertainment event—those involve high-pro ile speakers and entertainers ranging from former U.S. President Bill
Clinton to actor John Lithgow to numerous
nationally known singers and Broadway
actors.
In addition to the general sessions and
evening gala, the three-and-a-half-day conference typically has about 120 breakout
sessions. The breakout sessions are a really important part of the formula for the
conference because they are smaller and
therefore more intimate and can be totally
focused to the speci ic information needs
and learning curiosity of individual attendees on any given topic.
“One of the key things I have learned
from my experience is that addressing the
curiosity and appealing to the imagination
of the attendee is the very core of what a
learning conference should be all about,
and delivering that to one’s audience is
certainly something I would recommend as
a fundamental principle to anyone conducting his or her own learning events,” Masie
says. “Appeal to the curiosity of your audience, and they want to listen and learn.”
Changing content on short notice when
necessary is another key to the success of a
good learning conference, Masie says.
“What a planner needs to embrace is
that in today’s world of fast-moving events
and fast-moving information, it’s almost a
certainty that the optimum content for your
conference is going to change between the
time you book the space and announce the
conference date and the time you conduct
the conference,” he says. “If you’re going to
be on top of your game, you have to keep
your conference content current and relevant to the time it is conducted.”
And this need to change content quickly, and to communicate with speakers and
attendees from all over the world, lends
itself to the third key suggestion Masie has
for educational conference success: Never
forget the value of quality broadband service and plenty of it.
“At our conference when we have 2,000
attendees, we probably have 4,000 communication devices working at any given
time,” he says. “It’s very important to have
the ability to accommodate a speaker who
may need to appear from the other side of
the globe via broadband, instead of live on
stage, so having plenty of bandwidth has
become just as important as having enough
electric or water capacity to run the hotel properly and make it comfortable for
guests—you just have to have it. And if your
event is in a new venue, the planner needs
to pay close attention to that upfront.”
THE NEED FOR A FLEXIBLE APPROACH
Elliott Masie likes breakout sessions that are highly flexible and easy to change quickly, and he takes
his cues from his attendees during the conference.
“One year, we had Sully Sullenberger [the famous US Airways pilot who landed an airliner in the
Hudson River in 2009] speaking at one of our general sessions and he made a couple of points that
I noticed the audience snapped to—you could literally see their heads turning,” Masie says.
So Masie asked Sullenberger if he could speak at a breakout session or two to elaborate on those
points, and during the course of the conference, two breakouts were conducted for attendees who
wanted to hear more elaboration and ask questions about the points that had piqued their curiosity.
42 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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LABORCARE 2013
Educating Your
Youngest Attendees
Planners of a health fair decided to grow their event
by teaching children critical wellness skills.
BY SHAWNA SUCKOW, CMP
A MEETING WITHOUT ENGAGING CONTENT is
just like babysitting adults. But what if your
attendees are actually children? How does
that impact your job? Does engagement
matter any more or less?
Equinox Creative, a Minnesota-based
planning company, didn’t think so. They
were charged with planning and executing
an annual private event called LaborCare:
Health + Bene its Fair 2013 at Target Field
in Minneapolis this past spring. The fair is
geared toward union workers (cement masons, pipe itters, etc.) throughout the states
of Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin.
It draws approximately 6,000 attendees,
many of whom bring the entire family.
The purpose of the event is to increase
health awareness and provide preventive
care for the members of nine different
healthcare funds. Because the unions own
their own healthcare funds, better health
among members reduces insurance costs
for the members themselves. Through education and onsite screenings, the fair has
been enormously successful with its adult
participants—even saving lives. In the
past, screenings at the fair have uncovered
life-threatening health matters that otherwise might have gone undetected. One man
went straight from the fair to the hospital
after an aortic abnormality was detected.
The participating healthcare funds have
been pleased with the results of the show
in previous years, so there could easily have
been some attempt to maintain the status
quo and just keep them happy.
But what about the kids? Did the health
of the fair’s youngest participants not
rate high enough to merit attention? In
prior years, the fair’s success was measured
strictly by the number of adults served—
the kids were not ignored, but they weren’t
exactly served by the event either. There
was a Kidz Zone as an afterthought, with activities such as face painting and balloons—
nothing to do with health, and everything
44 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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10/24/13 12:38 PM
HEALTHY TRAINING
IN THE KIDZ ZONE
to do with distracting them while mom
and dad strolled
the show loor. This
strategy was not
unlike the giant
ball pit at any IKEA
store where you
can toss your kids
in, and ish them
out after you’ve
had Swedish meatballs and bought
assembly-required
furniture.
Certainly, thought
Equinox Creative,
health
education
and prevention isn’t
just for the adults
who attend. The children could actually bene it directly from the health fair if they were
offered kid-friendly, age-appropriate, handson learning opportunities. They envisioned a
vibrant learning zone that extended the fair’s
impact and aligned with its overarching goals
and objectives.
“As a result, we totally reinvented the children’s area,” says Mike Vennerstrom, CMP,
president of Equinox Creative. “We decided to
take the content from the health fair and apply it to the Kidz Zone as well. Leaving them
out wasn’t achieving the fair’s overall mission,
and we knew we could raise the bar.”
They brainstormed and came up with a
number of engaging activities and exhibits
for the fair’s youngest participants. The result
was a mini version of the adult fair, but geared
just for kids (see sidebar).
“It was a huge success,” Vennerstrom says.
“We went from babysitters to educators, and
the kids really enjoyed it. We were really
proud of the changes.”
Had Equinox only focused on the logistics of the event, a babysitting zone would
have been suficient. But having achieved the
basic
requirement—to allow
the adults to be
screened
and
educated—Equinox stepped back
and focused on
the fair’s strategy: What did
the clients want
to achieve? Ultimately, the nine
healthcare funds
aimed to lower
the cost of delivering care to
their members.
Prevention and education save lives,
minimize doctor visits and reduce overall expenses for the funds. By ignoring
its youngest members, the fair was not
achieving the highest possible ROI.
Do you have an overlooked group at
your meetings? It may be irst-time attendees, spouses, foreign participants or
people of different cultures/religions/
generations/eating habits. Sometimes we
can overlook subgroups because we’re so
busy focusing on the big picture, and serving the masses. We get lost barreling forward on the logistics, rather than taking
a breather and revisiting the meeting’s
overarching goals and objectives.
By taking the stance that every person walking through the doors mattered,
Equinox exceeded the clients’ goals, and
the kids still had a great time. The LaborCare: Health + Bene its Fair is expected
to expand next year, and Vennerstrom’s
team is already focusing on new ways to
engage the entire audience—not just the
adults.
Health education and
prevention isn’t just for the
adults who attend. The
children could actually
benefit directly from
the health fair if they
were offered kid-friendly,
age-appropriate,
hands-on learning
opportunities.
SHAWNA
SUCKOW, CMP
MPI Minnesota Chapter
The following are some of the additions
Equinox Creative made to ensure the
youngest attendees of LaborCare:
Health + Benefits Fair 2013 were
engaged and educated.
FIRST-AID TRAINING
First-aid training for kids, in case an adult isn’t
around when they, or a friend, get injured.
Most health fairs would only think to feature
something like this for adults, but Equinox
thought kids would benefit, too, as long as
the instruction was age-appropriate.
BIKE SAFETY
Local bike retailer Penn Cycle provided
instruction on bike safety and the proper way
to fit a bike helmet—an afterthought for most
kids anxious to hop on and just ride.
DENTAL HYGIENE
National insurer Delta Dental handed out
tooth brushes and spoke to kids about the
importance of regular brushing and proper
techniques.
CAR SAFETY
A specialist in booster seats measured kids’
height and showed them how tall they must
be to graduate to regular seat belts.
“WHAT I
LEARNED”
I realized writing this article that every meeting has subgroups that are at risk of being underserved or unengaged.
It’s easy to fall into the comfort zone of focusing only on
logistics. As planners, we really have to strategize on how
we’re going to engage everybody.
MPIWEB.ORG 45
Nov_Showcase-Minnesota.indd 45
10/24/13 12:31 PM
SPECIAL ADVERTISEMENT
Hawai‘i Visitors and
Convention Bureau
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T
here are a host of ways to inspire people and, not surprisingly, you can ind
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These and other natural resources help create
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Needless to say, Hawai‘i has everything
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10/22/13 10:43 AM
1113_047.indd 47
10/18/13 11:06 AM
1113_048.indd 48
10/23/13 10:04 AM
FEATURES
If Glass becomes
affordable and
ubiquitous, there
might be a lot
more people at
conferences looking up and at one
another, instead
of down at the
devices in
their hands.
THE REALITY OF
GOOGLE GLASS
PAGE 54
MPIWEB.ORG 49
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10/23/13 11:07 AM
LEADERSHIP
Temple
of
Wisdom
As more individuals are
identified as having
autism spectrum traits,
bestselling author and
speaker Temple Grandin
says the meeting and event
industry has roles perfect
for them.
BY JASON HENSEL
PHOTO BY JEFF LOY
50 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
Nov_Temple Grandin Profile.indd 50
10/23/13 10:36 AM
“A place like this would
be really horrible if you
had to show PowerPoint.”
T
emple Grandin is pointing out the glass ceiling. She lounges on a lavish sofa in the Adolphus Hotel’s tea room,
a favorite spot for the well-to-do women of Dallas who
regularly meet to gossip among the tropical plants and
under the bright skylight.
“One time I spoke at a church that had a lot of glass.
I walk in there and think, ‘There aren’t going to be any slides.’”
That attention to detail is what Grandin is known for.
Born in Boston in 1947, she didn’t begin speaking until age 4. A doctor diagnosed her with brain damage because there wasn’t a clear de inition of autism at that time. Her mother worked hard at providing proper
therapy and job experiences throughout her younger years.
“When I was 13, my mother set me up working for a local seamstress,” she says. “When I was 15, I was cleaning horse stalls. Even in
the best job there is going to be some drudgery that’s not very fun.
When I was in college, I worked in some internships. I’m seeing these
awkward, geeky kids graduate from college and they never learn how
to work. When you’re 12 or 13, how about walk a couple of dogs for the
neighbors? Do it every day, rain or shine. How about work at the farmers’ market every weekend? Mow lawns or clean swimming pools or ix
computers. We need to get started on this before age 16.”
Grandin received a Ph.D. in Animal Science from the University of Illinois in 1989 and currently teaches courses at Colorado State University
on livestock behavior and facility design. She’s also a livestock industry
consultant, a tireless speaker and the world’s most famous autistic person. That became evident in 2010 when HBO produced a biographic ilm
about her. Named Temple Grandin, it stars Claire Danes, Julia Ormond
and David Strathairn, and its many awards include seven Emmys, a Golden Globe, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Peabody.
In its dramatization of her life, the movie shows how Grandin experiences the world, something she wrote about in her book, Thinking in
Pictures.
“I translate both spoken and written words into full-color movies,
complete with sound, which run like a VCR tape in my head,” she wrote.
“When somebody speaks to me, his words are instantly translated into
pictures. Language-based thinkers often ind this phenomenon dif icult
to understand, but in my job as an equipment designer for the livestock
industry, visual thinking is a tremendous advantage.”
The biggest advantage of thinking this way has to do with details.
“The one common denominator of all autistic and Asperger thinking
MPIWEB.ORG 51
Nov_Temple Grandin Profile.indd 51
10/23/13 10:36 AM
is that details are associated into categories to form a concept,” she wrote. “Details are assembled into concepts like
putting a jigsaw puzzle together. The picture on the puzzle
can be seen when only 20 percent of the puzzle is put together, forming a big picture.”
Attention to detail and seeing the big picture is what
makes an event a good event and this, she says, is where
those with autism could ind a place in the meeting and event
industry (see Page 24). Too often, though, they are saddled
with a label that scares employers. Grandin’s goal nowadays
is to educate employers and get autistic people hired.
“I see too many kids that would be great working in the
meeting industry who aren’t getting jobs. You need people to
set up those complicated screens, all those lights and scaffolding and stuff, and the best people who do this are playing
video games and on Social Security,” she says, slapping at the
sofa with her right hand. “They get the label and they become
the label. The problem is the label is so broad. People think
the kid is not capable. When the diagnostic labels change,
they’re going to call mild autism, which was Asperger’s [syndrome], a social communication disorder. It’s still the same
thing—shy and introvert. It’s not a precise diagnostic.”
The current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders (DSM-5), published by the American Psychological
Association, de ines people with autism spectrum disorders
(ASD) as having “communication de icits, such as responding inappropriately in conversations, misreading nonverbal
interactions or having dif iculty building friendships appropriate to their age. In addition, people with ASD may be overly dependent on routines, highly sensitive to changes in their
environment or intensely focused on inappropriate items.”
Editor’s Pick
★★★★ 1/2
The Autistic Brain:
Thinking Across the
Spectrum by Temple
Grandin and Richard
Panek
Grandin and Panek
inform readers about
the latest science
of autism and new
ways to understand
causes, diagnoses
and treatments of the
syndrome. Grandin’s
personal story is a
thread throughout
the book, which helps
answer the question:
How do we encourage
more positive ways to
think about autism?
ASD symptoms fall on a continuum from mild to severe,
and people with ASD “must show symptoms from early
childhood, even if those symptoms are not recognized until
later.”
In her latest book, The Autistic Brain, Grandin writes
that the DSM-5 is “diagnosis by committee.”
“It’s a bunch of doctors sitting around a conference table arguing about insurance codes,” she writes, along with
co-writer Richard Panek. “Thanks to label-locking thinking,
we now have a cornucopia of diagnoses—and there simply
aren’t enough brain systems for all these names.”
Grandin believes this kind of thinking is dangerous.
“For some people, a label can become the thing that deines them,” she writes. “It can easily lead to what I call a
handicapped mentality. When a person gets a diagnosis of
Asperger’s, for instance, he might start to think, ‘What’s the
point?’ or ‘I’ll never hold down a job.’ His whole life starts to
revolve around what he can’t do instead of what he can do,
or at least what he can try to improve.”
And in Grandin’s opinion, what people with autism
can do is details, and once social skills are learned through
working, they become prime job candidates, especially in
the meeting and event industry.
“They’re very, very good on detail,” she says. “For example, you’re shipping a lot of equipment for a convention.
Different conventions have different needs. A person with
autism has good attention to detail; they’re good at making
sure stuff gets sent to the right place.”
And there are different kinds of minds on the autism
spectrum that can work speci ic jobs.
“You have some that can program computers and
52 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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10/23/13 10:36 AM
others who are more
visual thinkers, like me,
who would be good at
setting a lot of stuff up,” she
says. “And then you have the word
minds and they’d be good at record keeping, to make sure all the
equipment and stuff arrives at the
convention.”
Grandin says if an employee with
autism does commit a social faux pas or
makes a mistake at work, which is bound to happen, don’t ire the person. Instead, give them directions on how to do something correctly.
“You have to be direct, and don’t do it in front
of other people. You can’t hint,” she says. “You just
have to tell them what’s expected. If they make
mistakes, you just explain what they did wrong.
With autism, you can’t be subtle.”
It can start with pulling an employee back into
the of ice and making it very clear what was unacceptable.
“For example, if they’re standing too close to
someone, you need to demonstrate the correct
way,” she says. “If a guy is a slob, just pull him aside
and say, ‘You can’t be a slob.’”
Grandin’s honesty and insight have helped raise
awareness all over the world of what life is like for
people with autism. Consider hiring someone on the
spectrum for a job in our industry. Sure, there will be
challenges, but the rewards are much greater.
Planning Considerations
for Autistic Attendees
Volume—avoid sudden noises or loud speakers.
Light—if you can control illumination, avoid fluorescents.
Interiors—high-contrasts, like stripes, bother some
people with autism.
Premier Placement
A collaborative industry effort placed people with autism spectrum disorders in roles
throughout the meeting and event industry
(see story on Page 24), to high praise based
on the following testimonials.
“Overall a great experience. Gillian Stone has a
fantastic personality, a great attitude to work and
wants to do things well the first time. The experience reminded me of how important are those
often forgotten one on ones with your junior team
members.”
— Teresa Chacon, HR manager, Grand
Connaught Rooms
“Some of the stereotypes of someone with autism,
such as the inability to articulate or reticence to
change, have definitely been disproven in Laurence Burton’s case as he has proven himself to be
very adaptable and willing to try new things over
the last few weeks. We have really enjoyed having
him here.”
— Kate Fletcher, general manager,
Devonport House
MPIWEB.ORG 53
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TECHNOLOGY
Google’s
interactive
eyewear
won’t replace
smartphones
and tablets
in the event
space yet,
but it might
make things
easier.
BY RYAN SINGEL
GOOGLE
GLASS
DANIEL HEDDEN PHOTOGRAPHY
THE REALITY OF
54 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
Nov_Google Glass FEATURE.indd 54
10/23/13 10:18 AM
T
here aren’t many people outside
of Mountain View, Calif., who
own Google Glass, the Android
eyewear—only about 10,000
non-Googlers have the irst version (including Jessica Levin of
the MPI New Jersey Chapter).
So wearing Google Glass to a
conference is very exciting—for
other conference goers.
Jake Spurlock, a web developer for publisher and event company MAKE, goes to
a lot of conferences both as an attendee and speaker—
largely to network.
“I like to be social and want to meet people when
I’m at an event,” Spurlock says. “When you have something bright orange bolted on your face, it’s an easy
icebreaker.”
But then, early Glass adopters (Google calls them
“Explorers”) ind they have paid $1,500 for the privilege
of explaining all of the things Glass doesn’t do. It’s not
constantly recording video (it has a 10-second limit on
videos). It’s not always on. It doesn’t do facial recognition (of icially, at least). There’s no virtual reality overlay on the world.
It is, as wearable-tech guru Amber Case calls it, “calm
technology.” The experience is very different for wearers
versus non-wearers. The tech is highly visible in any interaction, and wearers uniformly talk about how Glass keeps
them more in the moment at events.
Antonio Zugaldia, whose company Silica Labs makes
apps for Glass, says one of the biggest bene its is that he
spends much less time at events checking his phone for
messages.
“Instead of looking at
a phone, I could be sitting
in session and see a notiication that the person
I wanted to meet wrote
asking to meet at a cafe
in 10 minutes,” Zugaldia
says.
Zugaldia can also
quickly send out short
messages using his voice
as he walks down the
hallway.
Spurlock says it’s
also useful for moments
in sessions when you
want to take a picture
of a slide or record the
answer to an interesting question. Of course
you can do that with a
phone, but it’s just much simpler to reach up and turn
on the camera.
Zugaldia says he makes a short video or takes a
Google
Glass isn’t
constantly
recording,
it’s not
always on
and there
isn’t yet a
virtual
reality
overlay.
picture of people he meets at conferences as a way to remember them.
As for conference-enhancing apps, Glass remains fairly barebones currently, in part because Google just opened
up the ability for app makers to add speci ic voice-activated
commands. Glass users can activate commands by saying
“OK Glass, take a picture.”
But the apps are coming. In fact, Zugaldia just built an
app for Meetup.
Attendees with the
app get a “card” for each
person who has RSVP’d to
the event. The cards simply
have the name, photo and
self-provided description
of the attendee.
“You can browse the
cards with Glass,” Zugaldia
BY JESSICA LEVIN
says. “If you see a familiar
face, you can refresh your
We already know that people are ready
memory of their name beto embrace wearable technology that is
fore you get there.
hands-free and conforms to what they are
“I will recognize your
already doing. We have seen this with the
face even from an event
popularity of Nike Fuel Bands and with the
two years ago. Just don’t
excitement following the release of the
ask me your name.”
Samsung Galaxy Gear and other smartThe app is also a good
watches.
way to igure out who is
However, Google Glass is different
going to be at the Meetfrom other wearable technologies. Glass
up to let you quickly plan
represents the future of what wearable
who to meet. While you
technology can be. It’s different because
could go on your laptop
it literally changes the way that we view
or smartphone, Glass just
the world around us. By wearing Glass
makes it easier.
and looking through the window, you can
The new Evernote app
see information and have personalized
takes advantage of the new
experiences.
Voice function and makes
As of today, Glass still has limited
it simple to add tasks and
functionality—you can read email, get
reminders and even lashdirections, take a picture or record a video
es of insight that occur to
you while you are walking
and post it to Facebook, record a memo
back to your hotel from a
to Evernote and a few more things. It can
meeting or just at home
connect to Wi-Fi, but requires a Web-indoing the dishes.
terface to connect and only works with an
For presenters, it’s a
Android phone if you want to use a mobile
somewhat different stoconnection. Realistically, it is still in a beta
ry—Glass isn’t nearly as
phase, but programmers worldwide are
useful thus far. There’s no
imagining and testing the possibilities.
great way to control PowThe good news is that Glass and similar
erPoint slides and there’s
technologies will eventually have real
no virtual reality overlay,
CONTINUED ON PAGE 56
so glancing up to look at
the small screen to read
presentation notes isn’t graceful.
Checking out an event’s Twitter hashtag to monitor the
backchannel chatter isn’t going to work very well yet, either.
As for the future of events and Glass and other wearable
tech, the most fertile ground will likely be in inding better
GOOGLE
GLASS AND
THE FUTURE
OF EVENTS
MPIWEB.ORG 55
Nov_Google Glass FEATURE.indd 55
10/23/13 11:32 AM
The most fertile
ground for the
future of Glass
will be in finding
better ways to get
humans to meet.
ways to get humans to meet.
Spurlock speculates that what’s likely to
come soon is an evolution of the so-called
mobile-local-social apps such as Foursquare.
“It would be great to see a noti ication
that a person who has similar interests is
nearby,” he says. “You can imagine a Glass
app that tells you that you share these interests and share connections to these four
people on LinkedIn and these are people
you should meet.”
But for now and probably for the next
year or two, wearing Glass will be very
much about the technology and drawing
attention to one’s self—which tends to be
the one thing that actually annoys many Glass
users.
Case says she often
slides it up on the top Dan Parks, presiof her head to disguise dent and creative
it as a headband. Spur- director for Corlock says he’s getting porate Planners
tired of wearing it be- Unlimited, has
cause sometimes he been working
with Google Glass
just wants to be a guy
for several months
getting his haircut. And
now and shares
even Zugaldia says it
his story, “Learncan be annoying when
ing to Live with
all you want to do is
Glass,” at http://
just get a cup of coffee. mpi.to/OctGlass.
But if Glass becomes affordable and
ubiquitous, they all
hope the tech starts
to fade into the backExpect the
ground—that it beconsumer model
comes almost unnoof Google Glass
ticeable in the way that
to be released
none of us think about
some time in
prescription glasses as 2014—that vague
technology.
date is the result
And if it does, there of a launch being
might be a lot more pushed back
people at conferences several times.
looking up and at one When available,
another, instead of the device should
down at the devices in cost between
US$300-$500.
their hands.
Sneak
Peek
Getting
Glass
GOOGLE
GLASS AND
THE FUTURE
OF EVENTS
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 55
applicability in the events world. And it could
happen quicker than you think.
Today, meeting professionals can:
• Use Glass to take a short video or photos
on a site visit. The hands-free, voiceactivated features allow you to take notes
or carry something while still capturing
the venue.
• Record notes using Evernote when on site
at a meeting. We all know how many
things we are doing, and having some
thing wearable can add efficiency and
help to keep us organized.
• Host a Google Hangout. This can be done
today, but it is expected to get easier to
use with future versions.
In the interest of daydreaming, here are
some potential uses for Glass in the future:
• Glass could replace the use of teleprompters. By having speakers wear Glass,
planners can save thousands of dollars
in audiovisual costs, have a much more
flexible setup and retain greater eye
contact with the audience.
• Attendees could all wear Glass, eliminating
the need for screens and projectors.
Instead, they could view presentations and
materials through Glass that are personalized for note taking and collaboration.
• Incorporating face recognition into Glass
(an adjustment not sanctioned by Google),
people could wear them at meetings and
be notified of who someone is by simply
looking at them. This would reduce the use
of name badges and eliminate those uncomfortable moments when you see someone and can’t remember the person’s name.
• Glass can be used to navigate through
trade shows where the name of the booth
and pertinent information is displayed. This
info might even be customized depending
on the wearer’s preferences.
Today’s version of Google Glass is just the beginning. Don’t let the lack of current functionality
discourage you. Instead, imagine how you, your
company, your meeting would want to use this
type of technology and see how things evolve.
56 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
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ENGAGEMENT
HOW WOULD YOU
HAVE PLANNED
THIS DIFFERENTLY?
Four meeting pros weigh in with their solutions to a hypothetical meeting
plagued with major attendee engagement problems. B Y M I C H A E L P I N C H E R A
THE SCENARIO:
Through successful
marketing and promotion, an international
organization attracted geographically and
culturally diverse delegates to its three-day
annual conference.
However, as the irst day concluded, organizers
noticed that something was wrong. Cultural silos
had developed. Delegates primarily got together
with others from their own region: Groups from the
U.S. Paci ic Northwest remained separate from their
southern U.S. counterparts; the British attendees
chatted with each other while eastern Europeans
found their own space to gather; the organization’s
only Asian representatives were especially isolated—they enjoyed their internal networking but felt
like outsiders from the larger event.
The result, planners feared, was ineffective engagement between the international delegates—counter
to the primary reason for holding the conference.
ABOUT THE DELEGATES
Total: 245
Business Units Represented: 20
Geographic Representation:
13 countries, 4 continents
Native Languages Represented: 6
At the beginning of Day 2, the organizers brainstormed solutions to overcome the divides that
were keeping their groups apart. With no budget
for signi icant changes and wanting to prevent
disruptions to the conference’s overall schedule,
the organizers moved ahead with the easiest process that they could think of: At education sessions
and luncheons, delegates would be deliberately
split from their cozy groups and assigned speci ic
seating at tables to maximize diversity and grow a
more cohesive organization.
The type-A personalities naturally welcomed
this integration, but many felt uncomfortable being forced to separate from the people they knew,
looking at a circle of unknown faces. At best, basic pleasantries were exchanged before delegates
moved on to the next session with another round
of strangers.
In the end, while this move by the organizers did
provide a degree of greater cross-cultural interaction, it lacked a cohesive engagement strategy and
turned off many delegates.
58 THE MEETING PROFESSIONAL NOVEMBER 2013
Nov_Feature-Scenario-myriad.indd 58
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HOW THEY WOULD
HAVE MANAGED THIS DIFFERENTLY
SHAWNA SUCKOW, CMP
JITSKE KRAMER
MPI Minnesota Chapter
Founder & President of SPIN:
Senior Planners Industry Network
Corporate Anthropologist,
HumanDimensions.nl/en
ELI GORIN, CMP, CMM
MPI At Large – United States
Managing Director, Hospitality
Growth Partners
Forcing people to integrate just
by making them sit next to each
other does nothing unless there is
a plan of action to go with it. For
this to work it would require that
the educational sessions have a
group discussion component and
not be merely informative.
Any seating assignments must
be strategic. The planners should
identify at least one person per
table that would be a good facilitator to get discussion moving,
even among the type-B personalities. As needed, the facilitator at
each table brings up topics to get
people talking and comfortably
engaged.
If time allows try speed networking, ensuring that people
from the same business unit are
not seated across from each other. These types of programs are
quick and effective...they do not
provide time for awkwardly long
discussions and give people an
opportunity to introduce themselves to others quickly. After the
first few connections people may
start to come out of their shells
and open up more.
WHAT WOULD
YOUR PLAN BE?
I would start with a plenary checkin session with the whole group.
During this session I would have
a motivational speech about
the benefits and challenges of
cross-cultural networking. And I
would use exercises that connect
people across sub clusters in the
room.
In this example, I’d introduce
something that makes connecting fun. Don’t force people to connect, but invite and inspire them
to do so. Help people to take the
first step to walk up to someone
they don’t know. During the second day, have “diversity bingo”
as a low-cost activity. The game
works just like bingo except that
the cards consist of different traits
such as age, type of pet, country,
expertise, language, food, transport, etc. To complete a bingo
card, you have to get a different
name and signature in each box.
The first five people to hand in
a full bingo card receive a prize,
obviously with a lot of applause
and honor during one of the last
plenary sessions.
TERRENCE YOUNG, CMP
MPI Washington State Chapter
International Events Manager,
Pyrotek Inc.
Inevitably individual attendees
will find something in common
with other attendees from another region, but we have to guide
them to discover what it is. We
use simple tools throughout our
weeklong global sales conferences to achieve this.
One really needs to start outside of the classroom and before
the event in order to get cultures
to mix. We create global teams
prior to the conference—consisting of 7-10 participants—that collaborate in advance on client case
studies that they need to present
at the event. It’s up to that team
to decide whether they communicate via Skype, GoToMeeting or
e-mail.
Try “minute to win it” games
placed on cocktail rounds where
impromptu groups can have
mini competitions. Usually by the
end of the night you’ll hear a lot
of screaming and laughing and
it’s not just one group from one
region—it’s a total mix. Offsite
activities can also be designed
to mix attendees based on their
interests.
I just facilitated networking sessions at a conference with a very
diverse audience. Fortunately, the
conference organizer recognized
the importance of connecting the
different groups. She hit the problem head-on with three dedicated, 30-minute general sessions
just for networking exercises. As
planners, our gut reaction may
be that general session time is
too valuable for networking exercises, but for this particular conference, networking was a major
objective.
One exercise had people
pairing up cross-generationally. In another, participants met
others who shared a common
professional challenge. In the
final session, attendees gravitated to topics of interest and met
like-minded others. Everyone
walked away with relevant new
connections, and they were encouraged to follow up with each
other after the conference and
build those new relationships.
How would you have addressed the issue of tearing down networking barriers
at this or future events? Join the conversation with your peers on LinkedIn at
http://mpi.to/NovCS.
MPIWEB.ORG 59
Nov_Feature-Scenario-myriad.indd 59
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SPECIAL SECTION:
Wine Country
CONTENTS
PAGES 64-65
PAGES 66-67
Visit Napa Valley Grand Traverse Resort
and Spa
CLAY GREGORY
President and CEO, Visit Napa Valley
Wine Country Special Section.indd 63
“The
“T
“The
he Napa
Nap Valley offers meeting and event attendees the
o
op
port
po
rtun
un
n to gather in unique and unconventional settings,
opportunity
like
k a winery
win
n barrel room, a wine aging cave or a boardroom
that
th
att opens
op
peen up to stunning views of the valley. We know these
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10/24/13 4:09 PM
WINE COUNTRY SPECIAL SECTION
Visit Napa Valley
WWW.VISITNAPAVALLEY.COM/MEETINGS
C
ome experience the Napa Valley—where world-class
wines, historic surroundings, miles of nature preserves
and a spirit of wellness set a slower pace, inviting you
to relax, savor and restore.
Receive a warm welcome in our winery tasting rooms,
where you will sip our superlative wines while you discover
the stories behind our legendary wine-growing heritage.
Our farm-to-table culinary scene will delight you, with more
Michelin-star rated restaurants per capita than any other
wine region in the world. A vibrant art, live-music and theater community will satisfy your cultural cravings. And our
healing hot-spring waters, crisp-clean air and luxurious spa
resorts will renew you. You’ll want to stay a little longer.
Meeting Space
The Napa Valley region offers more than 200,000 square feet
of meeting space, from ballrooms to barrel rooms and wine
caves to vineyards.
Accommodations
With more than 5,500 rooms in more than 150 distinctive
properties, the Napa Valley offers a wide variety of gracious
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Dining
The Napa Valley’s culinary scene is thriving, with more than
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Airport & Transportation
The valley is accessible from four international airports: Oakland (50 miles/81 km), San Francisco (57 miles/95 km), Sacramento (64 miles/103 km) and San Jose (82 miles/129 km).
Off-site Experiences - Wine, Food, Arts & Wellness
The Napa Valley has been endowed with the perfect
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classes for groups of nine to 16 looking to escape the
conference room.
• Groups at Raymond Vineyards can test their palates
and collaboration skills with the Winemaker-for-a-Day
Program. Participating guests learn the winemaker’s art
while blending a red wine from Napa Valley’s esteemed
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• Oxbow Public Market in downtown Napa is home to more
than 23 local food purveyors and restaurants. A guided
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purveyors and enjoy blending workshops, salumi tastings
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• The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena welcomes groups for a range of events and hands-on
workshops, including culinary and wine education
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• Napa Valley Bike Tours offers custom cycling tours that
can include a picnic lunch, wine tasting and riding among
the vines.
• The di Rosa originated as a shared vision of art collectors Rene and Veronica di Rosa. Their home and famed
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landscape perfect for group picnics and receptions.
We look forward to welcoming you!
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64 ADVERTISEMENT
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1113_065.indd 65
10/18/13 11:11 AM
WINE COUNTRY SPECIAL SECTION
Grand Traverse Resort
and Spa
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Contact Information
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100 Grand Traverse Village Boulevard
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meetings@gtresort.com
66 ADVERTISEMENT
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MPI STRATEGIC PARTNERS
STRATEGIC ALLIANCE
The MPI Foundation continues its drive to provide innovative, career-building thought
leadership development through the following key industry partnerships.
GLOBAL PARTNERS
MPI MARKETSMART BUSINESS
SOLUTIONSTM
ELITE PARTNERS
The MPI Foundation thanks the following investors
for their generous support.
INNOVATOR
Dallas CVB
Encore Productions
Hyatt Hotels & Resorts
Rosen Hotels and Resorts
San Francisco Travel
ADVOCATE
Abu Dhabi Tourism Culture
Authority
AT&T Park
AVT Event Technologies
Caesars Windsor
Canadian Tourism
Commission
Las Vegas CVA
Loews
MCI
Mediasite by Sonic Foundry
GATEKEEPER
AVW Telav Audio Visual
Solutions
Cendyn
Disney Destinations
Hilton Worldwide
Starwood Hotels & Resorts
The International Centre
The Parking Spot
Travel Alberta
ASSOCIATE
Accor Hospitality
Crowne Plaza Hotels Canada
Global Hotel Alliance
Hard Rock Café International
KSL Resorts
Marriott Canada
Philadelphia CVB
The Meetings Show UK
CONTRIBUTOR
Tampa Bay & Company
Visit Orlando
CHAPTERS
Arizona Sunbelt
Chicago Area
Middle Pennsylvania
Montreal & Quebec
Northern California
Ohio
Orange County
Philadelphia Area
Potomac
Rocky Mountain
Tampa Bay Area
UK & Ireland
Washington State
PREMIER PARTNERS
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SIGNATURE PARTNERS
PREFERRED PARTNERS
CHOICE PARTNERS
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IN SUMMARY
LEADERSHIP
TECHNOLOGY
ENGAGEMENT
“Temple of Wisdom”
“The Reality of
Google Glass”
“How Would You
Have Planned this
Differently?”
By Jason Hensel
Reading Time: 8 min.
By Ryan Singel
Reading Time: 7 min.
In an exclusive, one-on-one interview,
Temple Grandin explains the importance
of engaging persons with autism spectrum disorders early on to prepare them
for adulthood and how their unique mindsets could help them thrive in the meeting and event industry.
Grandin also provides advice on how
best to work with persons with such disorders, and what an employer should and
should not expect.
Google Glass holds great potential and is
a game changer in the wearable tech
market, but it’s not quite ready for prime
time and it’s not a panacea, according to
the author—former Wired editor Ryan
Singel—and Silicon Valley veterans.
This story explores what Glass can and
can’t do right now, through the lens of the
meeting and event industry.
Meeting professional Jessica Levin,
MBA, CMP, CAE, an “Explorer” of the technology, also shares insights into her current uses for Glass and the future value it
and other wearable smart devices hold
for the meeting and event industry.
By Michael Pinchera
Reading Time: 6 min.
Through a hypothetical scenario, the
likes of which meeting professionals are
constantly battling, this article addresses
the challenge of ensuring diverse
groups at events network beyond their
comfortable, already-known circles of
colleagues.
International planning and engagement experts Eli Gorin, CMP, CMM; Jitske
Kramer; Shawna Suckow, CMP; and
Terrence Young, CMP, examine the
scenario and present the reader with
actionable, real-world options for overcoming such challenges.
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UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN
“We didn’t really have any
event experience, but we
thought, ‘Why not experiment? Let’s try and put a
comic con together.’
Comic Con India wasn’t
meant to be a business—
even until last year, we
didn’t see it as a business.
But now at the scale
we’re on, we have to
take it very seriously.”
—Jatin Varma, founder of Comic Con India
Read more about this cross-cultural innovator in
the December issue of The Meeting Professional.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MICHAEL BERMAN / WWW.MSBPHOTOGRAPHY.COM
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