ISSUE
03
09
A DEFINING MOMENT FOR THE MEETING INDUSTRY
+
TECH TRENDS
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TM
March 2009 • Volume 2 • Number 3
EDITORIAL + PRODUCTION STAFF + ADVERTISING SALES
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CREATIVE DIRECTOR
David R. Basler, dbasler@mpiweb.org
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Michael Pinchera, mpinchera@mpiweb.org
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MPI EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT
INTERNATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Bruce M. MacMillan, C.A., President
and CEO
bmacmillan@mpiweb.org
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Katie Callahan-Giobbi, Executive Vice
President, MPI Foundation, MPI Chief
Business Architect
kcallahangiobbi@mpiweb.org
Meg Fasy, Vice President of Sales and
Marketplace Performance
mfasy@mpiweb.org
Trey Feiler, Chief Operating Officer
tfeiler@mpiweb.org
Vicki Hawarden, Vice President of
Knowledge and Events
vhawarden@mpiweb.org
Diane Hawkins, SPHR
Director of People and Performance
dhawkins@mpiweb.org
Greg Lohrentz, Chief Financial Officer
glohrentz@mpiweb.org
Sandra Riggins, Director of
Governance and Chief of Staff
sriggins@mpiweb.org
Didier Scaillet, Vice President of Global
Development
dscaillet@mpiweb.org
Junior Tauvaa, Vice President of
Member Care and Chapter Business
Management
jtauvaa@mpiweb.org
2
the members or staff of Meeting Professionals International.
One+ is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts and no
guarantee of publication of unsolicited editorial content is implied or should be inferred.
Larry Luteran
Chairman of the Board
Hilton Hotels Corp.
Kevin Hinton
hinton+grusich
Kevin Kirby
Hard Rock International
Karen Massicotte, CMP, CMM, BA
PRIME Strategies Inc.
Ann Godi, CMP
Chairwoman-elect
Benchmarc360, Inc.
Carole McKellar, MA, CMM, MCIPD
HelmsBriscoe - International
Eric Rozenberg, CMP, CMM
Vice Chairman of Administration
Ince & Tive
Patty Reger, CMM
Johnson & Johnson Sales and Logistics
Company, LLC
Sebastien Tondeur
Vice Chairman of Finance
MCI Group Holding SA
David Scypinski
ConferenceDirect
Alexandra Wagner
Vice Chairwoman of Member Services
SunTrust Banks Inc.
Angie Pfeifer, CMM
Immediate Past Chairwoman
Investors Group Financial Services Inc.
BOARD MEMBERS
Marge Anderson
Energy Center of Wisconsin
Matt Brody
JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort and Spa
Luca Favetta
SAP SA
Caroline Hill
Carhill Associates
Ole Sorang
The Rezidor Hotel Group
Carl Winston
San Diego State University
Paul Cunningham (Europe Middle East and
Africa Advisory Council Representative)
IIMC International Information Management
Corporation
Rita Plaskett, CMP, CMM (MPI Foundation
Board Representative)
agendum
Katherine Overkamp, CMP (ICLC Board
Representative)
US Airways
Jonathan T. Howe, Esq. (Legal Counsel)
Howe & Hutton, Ltd.
03.09
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SSUE
ISSUE
03
09
COVER ART BY JASON JUDY
A Defining Moment +62
Bad press & misinformed
lawmakers create an opportunity
for a unified industry to prove
its worth and help its members
succeed.
2.0 411 +66
Dip a Toe Into Some Hot Technology
+62
Unplugged and In-Tune +70
Venues that lack technology can
make for ideal meetings—but
beware the addicts.
+74
Divining Value +74
Mitzi Montoya measures the
perceived value of virtual reality.
Solution Time +78
This year’s MeetDifferent opening
general session set the tone for
the rest of the conference.
+66
It Was a Breeze +52
The American Wind Energy Association’s
WINDPOWER 2008 Conference
and Exhibition took Houston by storm
when it visited in June.
+52
+70
+56
Making the Connection +60
Prague is easy to get to from just
about anywhere. Its value compared
to other European cities makes
it enticing, and its service
standards, culture and history
make it irresistible.
+60
TOC pg5.indd 5
The Great Motivator +56
Stereotypes about far-away places
and cultures were put to rest when a
North American group visited Tokyo
and Kyoto, Japan, last May.
mpiweb.org
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E
ISSUE
03
09
CONVERSATION
In It Together +10
Editor’s note
The Energy of Many +14
Global update from the
CEO of MPI
Impressions +16
IGNITION
Boundary-Free
Meetings +44
Claus Westh
Global View
A Dash of Tabasco +46
Tony Carey
Across the Bow
Letters to One+
Overheard +18
Rumblings from the industry
Irrelevant +42
Moldy Mess
Why Meetings Make
Scents +48
Jon Bradshaw
Open-Source Everything
Chicken Little Must Fry +50
Tim Sanders
Transform the World
INNOVATION
Agenda +21
Where to go, in person
and online
Art of Travel +34
+40
The latest in transportable
business technology
RECOGNITION
Top Spots +22
New venues + re-openings
Focus On … +24
Heidi Albertson loves walruses
Spotlight +26
Industry leaders announce job
advancements
Your Community +36
Meg Fasy, volunteer opportunities,
book reviews, webinars, new
industry guidelines
Meet Where? +92
Wow us with your knowledge
+24
+22
CO-CREATION
Hot Buzz +28
Airport news, Hilton moves,
name that island, affluent travel,
IMEX, Thoughts+Leaders, Green
Engage, tips for newbies, save
the fish, Destination Croatia,
Cuban travel, cashless cabins,
restaurant trends, Plus/Minus
Making a Difference +38
IMEX teams with MPI Foundation
Connections +40
Independent planner +
association success story
mpiweb.org
7
0309
www.mpioneplus.org
online
+
Dollars and the Web
In these economic times, renovating your online presence can do wonders. Elaine Pofeldt discusses how to
make your Web site more profitable.
Finding Success
Succeeding in a down economy was a major focus area of MPI’s
MeetDifferent in Atlanta last month. Many attendee questions
from the event will be answered online, along with an exclusive
video featuring attendee perspectives from MeetDifferent with
Deborah Gardner, speaker and president of Compete Better
Now! and member of the MPI Arizona Sunbelt Chapter.
+
Did You Miss
MeetDifferent
in Atlanta?
The complete One+ Real Time
opening general session (OGS) and
the Power Keynote Speakers series
are available for free online—watch
the videos on your computer or load
the audio on an MP3 player and
listen while on the go.
Join a conversation about the
meeting and event industry with
the editors of One+ on their blog,
PlusPoint—consistently updated,
always relevant, sporadically funny.
Complete issues of One+ are available
in digital flipbook and PDF formats!
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In It Together
Do Not Fear the Future
In this high-tech era of always being wired in, do you
think I could successfully argue that by engaging my
avatar with another while driving qualifies me for
legally entering the HOV lane on my commute home?
I was driving home in stop-and-go (mostly stop)
traffic on the major loop around Dallas the other day
watching in envy as cars with more than one occupant
zipped passed me in the HOV lane, and it made
me wonder that exact question. I remembered
court cases back in the 1990s that weren’t
very successful—a woman tried to convince a
judge that her safety mannequin (intended to
protect her from potential assaulters) qualified,
and a man argued to no avail that his dog
(I think it was a Chihuahua) was a
member of his family and therefore
deserved the appropriate status
of “passenger.”
When you think about
it, it’s really not as corny
or ridiculous as you
might think.
The very definition of an avatar by Wikipedia is a threedimensional representation of the embodiment of the
user—is a digital clone next? It’s an interesting question
(to me anyway), and one that I’m sure will be posed
to some unsuspecting highway patrol officer some day
soon. The more our digital worlds overlap our physical
world, the more realistic (and logical) it will begin to
seem.
This issue of One+ is about new beginnings—a
new year with new technologies that are a far cry from
digital clones but, nonetheless, are turning heads and
creating questions in the minds of everyone in our
industry. It also marks a new era for how our industry
does business. Fear seems to surround both subjects like
dark storm clouds, but as our cover implies, there is an
opportunity for all of us to succeed regardless of how
our industry evolves in the coming months and years.
Some people are scared of technology, fearing that
social networking and avatars will make face-to-face
meetings obsolete. The reality is that these technological advances will make our industry even more exciting
and prosperous in the years to come. The technologies
are opportunities not obstacles. We must embrace them
and educate ourselves on how to best use them to our
advantage—by being proactive, we will define our success in the digital age.
Fear of the unknown is also gripping our industry
under a cloud of proposed government restrictions,
cancelled meetings and shredded budgets. While most
investments are faltering exponentially, there has never
been a better time to self-invest. Stay wired in at all times,
research current events, know the statistics, communicate
with friends and co-workers and continue networking
through the many social channels available on the Web.
(If you want to get started, check out Page 66.)
This era will spell out a new beginning for our
industry, a defining moment that will change the way
we do business, but it is up to us to define that future.
It is up to us to define our identities and our roles in the
inevitable success.
David R. Basler is editor in chief of One+.
He can be reached at dbasler@mpiweb.org.
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Contributors
PATRICK JONES is a native Atlantan
who has lived with his wife, son and
two dogs in Cary, N.C., for the past
decade. His work has appeared in Arnold
Palmer’s Kingdom Magazine, Luxury
Living, New Jersey Life, North Carolina
Magazine, GolfStyles and other U.S. and
regional publications. He has previously
profiled such notables as comedian Jeff
Foxworthy and professional football
quarterback Dan Marino.
His favored writing specialties include
business, golf, profiles, real estate, travel,
and, in general, any assignment that offers
an exceptional challenge along with at
least one free meal.
HUNTER HOLCOMBE is a
freelance journalist and a
former managing editor of
Smart Meetings magazine.
Previous to his work in the
global meeting and event
industry, he was editor of a
San Francisco-based technology startup and a political and ghost writer.
Born and raised in
Seattle, Hunter eventually fled to the (relatively)
sunny skies of the Bay
Area, where he was one of
the last graduates of the
award-winning journalism program at the University of California, Santa Cruz. In addition to writing about meetings, he
contributes to such magazines as Virtuoso Life, Sunset and
SOMA. He now lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where writing, Malbec wine and steak consume much of his attention.
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The father/daughter team of JEFF RASCO, CMP, and CHRISTINA
RASCO ADAMS are partners (along with son and brother, respectively, Layton Rasco) in Attendee Management Inc., a registration
services company based in Wimberley, a small Texas Hill Country
hamlet outside of Austin. Running a company that specializes in
online systems, they spend their days with noses pressed to computer screens working in the manic world of the Internet. Always
looking for ways to gain efficiencies, effectiveness and customers,
they stay on the lookout for new technologies and ways of intelligent application to the global meeting and event community. They
have both previously covered tech topics for MPI publications.
03.09
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The Energy of Many
Our Finest Hour
Many of us are searching our memories for some kind
of comparable experience, amidst this crisis, to guide
our actions. It seems to me the only recent comparable is
September 11, 2001.
September 11 was the last time the meetings and travel
industry experienced a crisis that brought global business,
our industry, and millions of households and communities
to their knees.
In the days after September 11 we turned that tragedy
into triumph. Business and government leaders, spurred
on by industry-led campaigns, told the world to get out
there and connect with each other. Confront the challenges
together—meet face to face.
It was our responsibility to pick ourselves up, dust
ourselves off and survive the day, then the week and then
the months and then thrive in the years ahead. And so
we did. We literally flew in the face of fear.
We became a catalyst for innovation, massive meeting infrastructure investment and global expansion.
New meeting technologies were developed. Colleges
and universities began offering courses and degrees in
meeting and event management. Complex business
challenges drove the real need for more substantive communications. Our ability as an industry to
effectively connect people to ideas and opportunities was
mission critical to innovation. Importantly as well, the
economic benefit of our industry helped us all pull
out of the crisis in the weeks and months
following that most tragic day and
we ultimately thrived throughout one of the greatest
economic recoveries of our
lifetime.
A little more than
seven years later, September 16, 2008, marked
a day that again drove
the global economy to
its knees. This time,
however, the tragic turn
of events was played
out over many months
rather than just one
day, and in turn the
economic scale of
the challenge is much
bigger.
This time, however,
government regulators
are not fighting the fear,
they are unintentionally
stoking it. Businesses all over America and the world are
now going out of their way to avoid getting called out by
the media and/or politicians for having travelled on business, or for bringing their employees or customers together
to address the increasingly complex business challenges
they are facing every hour of the day.
The call for the freedom to travel that made business
and government leaders patriots in the days after September 11 is now making them pariahs, but just as it was in
the days following the attacks seven years ago, now is the
time to fly in the face of fear.
Now is the time to attack complex business challenges
with solutions that can only be developed face-to-face. As
part of our commitment to the success of our members and
to the future of our industry, we have launched a new Web
resource for meeting professionals to connect to during
this crisis—www.meetingindustrycrisiscenter.org. We have
included up-to-date information, resources such as the
model meeting and event policy guidelines released in early
February, a video summary of key information takeaways
from the opening general session at MeetDifferent and
more. Share this within your organizations, your chapters
and with your clients. This information is the key to how
successful organizations will come out of this crisis quicker
if they stay connected to their clients, sales force and
distribution channels. It will give you the facts about the
business power of meetings and events and our role as part
of the solution to this global recession, not the cause of it.
We will be updating this site constantly as well as
offering specific knowledge and content that you and your
clients and organizations will need to know as the situation
evolves. I encourage you to bookmark it and check back
often.
This collaboration of industry associations under the
leadership of the U.S. Travel Association is unprecedented.
It is working and expanding, and thankfully it is expanding
quickly. A grass roots effort by www.keepamericameeting.
org will put names to the jobs that are at risk. Check it out
as well.
Our industry and community are under attack. And
while it is a much different type of assault than the horrors
of September 11, the fear is no less real. Part of the solution
though is the same: get out there and connect. MPI and
our association partners remain resolute in protecting your
industry and supporting the recovery for everyone—you
have my guarantee.
Bruce MacMillan, CA, is president and CEO of MPI.
He can be reached at bmacmillan@mpiweb.org.
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Impressions
SOX Makes Sense
[Re: “Sarbanes-Oxley 2.0,” January 2009] SOX has its
pros and cons, but it was implemented for a reason—to
prevent corporate greed (that’s my opinion, of course).
Maybe lawmakers were acting in haste when SOX was
passed, but legislation was needed, and it was needed
quickly after the Enron scandal. With the SEC’s issued
guidance, it appears that SOX is improving to bridge the
gap between supporters and haters. In due time, SOX will
become more of a success story for all.
—M. Tajipour
comment on One+ HTML version at www.mpioneplus.org
About MeetDifferent…
EDITOR’S NOTE: We appreciate
the feedback on MPI and your
magazine, One+. Your ideas
and thoughts are important to
us. Let us know what you think.
E-mail the editorial team at
editor@mpiweb.org.
You Tell Us
What innovative methods
do you utilize to connect with
younger audiences? Send us an
e-mail at editor@mpiweb.org.
16
one+
[Re: MPI MeetDifferent 2009]
We were promised that MeetDifferent would not be your
typical conference. And MPI
delivered! I walked out of the
opening general session [One+
Real Time] empowered, knowledgeable and motivated. I was
delighted by the lineup of speakers. Who knew an economist
could also be a comedian?
I felt like Terry Savage and
Don Reynolds were our very
own personal meeting professional advocates. I felt like
they had been in the industry
with us for years, fighting
our battles and living our
daily lives. I appreciated their
professionalism and directness.
I especially enjoyed hearing
Don Reynolds long-term outlook on the industry, and his
candor of where we could go
and how to do it. I agree that
we need to elevate our profession to the c-suite. We are long
overdue for entrance into that
boardroom.
I appreciate the actual
substance and truth that was
in this session. I enjoyed the
engaged and entertaining set
layout, while still receiving “the
news.” The message was clear:
We will survive and find a way
to thrive in this economy. We
can no longer afford to be
ignored. As was said in the
OGS, we are part of the solution, not the problem.
—Katja Morgenstern
Meeting Consultants Inc.
MPI Georgia Chapter
[Re: MPI MeetDifferent 2009]
I watched the opening general
session [One+ Real Time] from
my home office on streaming
video and it was an easy click
away. I want to thank MPI and
its sponsors for providing this
service. Since I was unable to
attend, it was a great way to
hear keynote speakers and
receive some of the learning
benefits without actually being
there.
—Robert Korin
Hilton Hotels of Hawaii
MPI WestField Chapter
Open Arms
In the most recent issue of
One+, you asked for notes
about where we are going
on our next vacation. I just
returned from a vacation
of a lifetime, a mission trip
to Nellore, India, with Open
Arms International. We
stayed at an orphanage and
had two weeks of amazing
adventures. We held three
conferences offering education for Health Care Advocates
in the villages, a Leadership
Conference for some of the
area pastors and a Women’s
Conference.
We also spent five days
in the villages doing Medical
Camps providing basic health
care support to more than
1,200 people. Working in
the hospitality industry, I don’t
have any healthcare experience. However, my conference
background and organizational
skills certainly came in handy!
The company I work for, North
Pacific Management (a hotel
and restaurant management
company based out of Portland), went above and beyond
to make sure that my trip was
possible. Giving me time off out
of the office and supporting
my trip from home was more
than I could ask. It was a lifechanging opportunity, and I
am so grateful to have had the
chance to experience the beautiful people of India!
—Midge Dobbs, CMP
North Pacific Management
MPI Oregon Chapter
03.09
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Overheard
Do I Know You?
“When the person is a virtual abstraction, an impersonal
representation on a computer screen, the brain treats them
accordingly. We make social decisions concerning many of
our Facebook acquaintances using these ‘impersonal’ brain
areas. In other words, we might push a Facebook friend off
a footbridge, but we’d never push a real friend.”
—Jonah Lehrer, editor at large for SEED magazine, on his blog The Frontal Cortex
Travel to Cuba
Future Leaders
Twitter Away
Safe Not Sorry
“The industry needs to work
together in the ‘war for talent’
and recognize that building
a new generation of industry
professionals with the right
mix of skills and knowledge is
an ongoing task and one that
we all need to commit to. We
see it as part of our corporate
social responsibility commitment and outreach.”
—IMEX Chairman Ray Bloom
on the organization’s Future
Leaders Program
“We consider our Twitter
account akin to an information
booth. Responding to situations after they’ve happened
is a great idea; responding to
situations while they’re happening is even better.”
—Morgan Johnston, manager
of corporate communication
for JetBlue Airways, in a USA
Today article on the importance of social networking site
Twitter.com
“It may only take one accident,
one malfunction or even a
chain of the most unlikely
events to spawn disaster—
and bring a company to its
knees. This is clearly a case
where companies needn’t bet
against the odds.”
—Susan Gurley, executive
director for the Association of
Corporate Travel Executives,
on a report that 16 percent
of global corporations do not
have a policy restricting the
number of executives who can
travel together on a plane
“Were the American people
allowed to travel to Havana,
as they currently are allowed to travel to Pyongyang [North Korea], Tehran,
Khartoum [Sudan] and other
cities whose nations’ leaders are publicly opposed to
American interests, they
could serve as ambassadors
of freedom and American
values to the Cuban people.”
—Chris Russo, president and chairman of the American Society of
Travel Agents, encouraging U.S.
President Barack Obama’s administration to lift Cuba travel restrictions
Best of the Blogs
Get Involved
Posted by Brian McDermott
MPI Minnesota Chapter
Inspect the Property
Posted by Katja Morgenstern
MPI Georgia Chapter
Thinking Makes it So
Posted by Jason Hensel
One+ Associate Editor
I’ve staked the last 10 years of my career on
the belief that the best way for organizations
to be successful is to involve their people in
meaningful ways—to tap into all the skills,
talents and passions they inherently bring
to the workplace every day. It’s a simple notion: More ideas and more ownership from
more people equals better results. I’ve been
fortunate to work with a growing number of
leaders and companies investing in this philosophy.
As with everything, things look better on
paper, in photographs and on the Internet.
I made that mistake when I first started out
in this industry, many moons ago. I was sent
a beautiful sales kit for an outstanding hotel
property in South Florida. I thought all was
well and signed a contract—sight unseen. Six
months before the program, I was vacationing
in South Florida and decided to stop in and
see the property. I was horrified!
On The Positivity Blog, Henrik Edberg offers
eight tips on how to think better. Among
them: “you are what you think,” “your mind
can become a prison” and “when you think,
think in a constructive way.” I’m not saying
that you can think away the economic situation (or the fact that your team lost the Super
Bowl), but by reframing your thinking maybe
you can turn what others think as negatives
into positives.
▲
Find out what the editors of One+ think about the industry’s
hot trends and late-breaking news on the One+ blog,
PlusPoint. Share your thoughts at www.mpioneplus.org.
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Agenda
APRIL 24-26 Perú Travel Mart
LIMA
For planners who dream of taking their groups to the home of the Inca Empire,
the Perú Travel Mart presents hundreds of Peruvian promoters and tour operators to international buyers. The event will feature post-tours to the areas of
Arequipa, Cajamarca and Iquitos. Visit http://perutravelmart.com.pe.
MAY 13-15 Expotur
SAN JOSÉ, COSTA RICA
Join buyers from Europe, Asia and the Americas at the 25th annual Expotur
during two days of scheduled appointments at the Ramada Plaza Herradura Hotel. Suppliers will include more than 250 firms from the air transport, hotel and
tourism sectors. Visit www.expotur.com.
MAY 17-22 Africa Travel Association Congress
CAIRO
At the Africa Travel Association’s hallmark event, tourism ministers, private sector leaders, scholars and media will discuss the challenges related to global tourism promotion to Africa. Engage in working discussions on intra-African industry
cooperation, infrastructure development and investment opportunities. Visit
http://africatravelassociation.org.
MAY 26-28 IMEX
FRANKFURT
With more than 3,500 exhibitors from 150 countries, visitors will find an exciting mix of vendors and world-class opportunities at IMEX 2009. Familiarization
trips and up to four-night stays for long-haul buyers will extend potential business transaction time by up to 25 percent this year. Visit www.imex-frank
furt.com.
Connected
WC MADNESS
SHARE YOUR HOME
ORGANIZE U
TheBathroomDiaries.com rates more
than 12,000 public bathrooms in more
than 120 countries, providing a wealth
of information to both travelers and
urban dwellers. The largest enterprise
of its kind in the world, the site offers
rating and fee information as well as
comments from users. For example,
one toilet in Bratislava, Slovakia, offers
“a very interesting pissoir. During the
job, you have a great look over the
Danube and part of the capital.”
If you’re tired of hotels and feeling a
little adventurous, HomeExchange.
com is the business travel alternative
where “you stay in my house and I stay
in yours.” Users choose their destinations, explore interesting listings and
send messages to the homeowners of
their choice. Think of home exchange
as Internet dating for your home.
Half of members even exchange cars.
TripIt.com turns the chaos of your
business trip into order by making
it easy to 1) organize details into
a master online itinerary; 2) automatically include maps, directions
and weather; 3) book restaurants,
theater tickets and other activities
online; and 4) access and share
travel plans, check-in for flights and
print itineraries. The new TripIt Blog
Badge automatically displays your
current location, your upcoming destinations and your travel stats.
mpiweb.org
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Top Spots
N E W VEN U ES + RE-O P ENING S
1. Hotel & Spa Rosa Alpina
3. One&Only Cape Town
The Hotel & Spa Rosa Alpina,
located in the Alta Badia region of
the Italian Dolomites, has unveiled
eight Chalet Loft Suites in a new,
all-wooden hotel wing, growing the
property’s room count to 52. The
new wing was completely built in
wood to blend harmoniously with its
mountain surroundings; no concrete
was used in its development. Just
a two-and-a-half-hour drive north of
Venice and two hours south of Innsbruck, the hotel is accessible along
the Dolomite Drive from Cortina. A
testament to the hotel’s location,
the prestigious Italian Touring Club
voted the Alta Badia region “Queen
of the Alps.” The property originated
in 1850 and offers facilities for small
conference groups.
Situated at the center of Cape
Town’s fashionable Victoria & Alfred
Waterfront, overlooking the marina
and with panoramic views across
to Table Mountain, the 131-key
One&Only Cape Town resort is set
to open next month. The property
will provide a comprehensive range
of luxury services and serve as a
gateway to the myriad experiences
of the continent—from safaris to
pristine beaches to the exploration of the world-renowned
Cape wine region. For guests with
business in mind, there will be a
260-square-meter (3,000 square
feet) meeting and banquet room,
able to play host to 200 for cocktails and 112 for sit-down dinners.
1.
2.
4. Hotel Skeppsholmen
2. Vancouver Convention
and Exhibition Centre
Construction on the expansion of the
Vancouver Convention and Exhibition
Centre has entered its final phase,
with the official opening confirmed
for early April. With open views of
the water and mountains, a downtown location, exterior public space
and interior finishes with abundant
use of British Columbian wood and
unique art pieces, this facility feels
more like a high-end hotel than a
convention center. Upon completion, the expansion will triple the size
of the current center and will boast
Canada’s largest convention center
ballroom and the country’s largest living “green” roof. The existing center
and new expansion will be linked by a
covered connector offering views of
the Vancouver Harbor.
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Opening in October and located
on a small island in Stockholm’s
city center, the 82-room Hotel
Skeppsholmen will be located in two
long buildings that date to 1699,
when the “Long Row” was built to
house Sweden’s Royal Marines.
Ideal for the active and culturally
curious guest, the yellow buildings
are next door to the Museum of
Modern Art, the Swedish Museum
of Architecture and the Museum of
Far Eastern Antiquities, as well as
within walking distance of the area’s
antique ships and waterfront restaurants. The hotel will have event
rooms that can accommodate up
to 100. Neighboring Skridskopaviljongen, the skating pavilion operated
by Hotel Skeppsholmen, offers four
conference rooms for groups of up
3.
2
6
to 30.
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4.
5. Alila Villas Uluwatu
4.
The Alila Villas Uluwatu is a cluster
of buildings, terraces, pools and
gardens located above the Indian
Ocean on a limestone cliff on Bali’s Bukit Peninsula in Indonesia.
Bukit’s landscape is the inspiration
for the resort’s design, and accommodations consist of 56 hotel villas,
26 three-bedroom residential villas
and five cliff-side villas with pools.
Facilities available to guests include
a palm-fringed pool, a fully equipped
fitness center, an extensive resort
library, a cigar bar, an event center
and a wedding pavilion and lawn.
6. Fairmont Battery Wharf
5.
6.
4
1
Fairmont Battery Wharf, a new
hotel located on Boston’s vibrant
waterfront, has 150 guest rooms,
including Fairmont Gold, the brand’s
exclusive lifestyle featuring personalized service with amenities such
as a private reception and a guest
lounge. Located adjacent to the
North End, one of the city’s top
culinary destinations, the hotel offers guests Sensing, its restaurant
from Michelin-chef Guy Martin that
features seasonal New England
ingredients. The hotel also offers
6,000 square feet of meeting
space, including a ballroom, boardrooms and several breakout rooms.
Additional amenities include water
taxi service to Logan Airport and
other Harbor-side locations and 300
linear feet of dock space. The hotel
is within walking distance of the
Freedom Trail, the New England
Aquarium and the new Institute
of Contemporary Art, as well as
a variety of restaurants, shops and
boutiques.
5
3
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Focus On...
Heidi Albertson and her
friends were the Warruses,
waltzing around with their
“harpoons” of justice,
bellowing made-up words
and phrases, mimicking the
walruses they so revered.
Heidi Albertson
Hilton Eugene (Ore.) and
Conference Center
“Once Heidi learned
to play the piano, we
had a very special
time just before I
would leave. We
would sit at the
piano and play
‘Heart and Soul.’
The song unifies
with a simple message of true blending: one spirit to
another. We would
then hug, and I always cried as I left
the house. Many
times it was a year
or so before we see
each other again.”
—Inge Tanner,
sister
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“Heidi is no stranger
to adversity. She
lost her Mom at
a young age, and
when I would find
myself in need of a
shoulder to lean on,
or a sympathetic
ear to tell my troubles to, Heidi was
always there for
me regardless of all
that she was in the
midst of. She was a
great friend in third
grade and has been
ever since.”
—Gail (Bateman)
Eberhard, childhood
friend
“It made no sense at all,”
recalls Gail Eberhard, Albertson’s
childhood friend. “It was just flat
out strange, but because we did
it, other people wanted to as well.
It’s amazing what you can get
somebody to do if you are unique
and don’t worry about what others think of you.”
And while Albertson may have
outgrown her junior high school
club, she has never forgotten that
everyone needs a champion, especially her clients.
“My customers feel that they
are the most important people,
and they are,” she says. “From
front-line employees, banquet
staff and our concierge, everyone
knows who my clients are by
name. Our planners get the full
introduction of all our people,
especially the contacts they will
need at the time of their conferences.”
But Albertson wasn’t planning
for a career in hospitality. She
wanted to be a jockey, but saw
too many accidents happen and
changed her mind. In high school,
she excelled at flute, led the cheerleading squad, served as 4-H Club
president, participated in Future
Farmers of America, played varsity volleyball and studied in the
honors program. She was first
runner-up for queen at her prom
and for the title of Mrs. Oregon
17 years later.
With a degree from the University of Oregon in physical education, Albertson enlisted to teach
high school students—but found
it wasn’t her calling. Hospitality
was. She just recently celebrated
20 years in the industry. “This is
my world,” she says. “I dig it.”
Most importantly, she’s never
lost her competitive edge and an
innate need to always be on top.
But, for Albertson, other people
always come first. “I hope my
legacy shows that I have helped
someone with a career choice or
being a better human being,” she
says. “Always believe in yourself;
you are the one to make a difference. Volunteer for something;
you will never regret it.”
—JESSIE STATES
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Spotlight
Stephanie Schroeder
has opened the Rock
Resorts/Vail Resorts
Hospitality office in
Texas. Born and raised
in Dallas, she has
been in the hospitality
industry for more
than 22 years. Most
recently, Schroeder
served as director of
sales for Associated
Luxury Hotels. She is a
17-year member of the
MPI Dallas/Fort Worth
Chapter.
The operations manager for the
British International Motor Show
has joined the Adelaide Convention Centre as its new exhibition
manager. Alex Tietgen, who
has worked on the London Wine
Show, London Fashion Weekend
and Fashion Weekend Manchester, has returned to South
Australia to put her international
experience to practice in the
newly created role.
Kerrie Van Sickle has joined the
Lake Resort, Spa & Convention
Center in Branson, Mo., as sales
manager. A 15-year industry
veteran, Van Sickle previously
served as sales research and
information manager at the Big
Cedar Lodge in Ridgedale, Mo.
She also worked for the Silverado
Resort in Napa, Calif., and the
Adam’s Mark Hotel in Kansas
City, Mo.
The 304-room Hilton Short Hills (N.J.)
welcomes Peter Webster as general manager. Webster has more than 20 years of
global hospitality experience in the U.S., the
Caribbean and the U.K. Most recently, he
served as general manager for the Hilton
Hotel in Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles, before accepting the same role at the British
Colonial Hilton in Nassau, Bahamas.
Leigh Harry, chief executive of
the Melbourne (Australia) Convention and Exhibition Centre
and president of the International Congress and Convention
Association, has assumed the
presidency of the Joint Meetings
Industry Council. Established in
1978, the organization represents the collective interests of
major meeting industry associations (including MPI).
Visit the careers blog at www.mpiweb.org by clicking
“resources” and then “career connections” to tell the
meeting community about your recent job change.
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HOT BUZZ
Economic
Adjustment
+
The airport industry must not shy
away from its responsibility as a
catalyst for economic growth, employment and business development,
said Angela Gittens, director general
of Airports Council International World, at the organization’s inaugural economics and finance conference in London this February.
“Business downturns and consumer fears have slashed business
and leisure travel, and air freight
has tumbled in the past six months,”
she iterated. “New pressures in the
financial and investment sector are
squeezing our capital-intensive airport business, as are airline business decisions to cut capacity, eliminate routes and services, merge
and even close down. Erratic times
have transformed a dynamic aviation
sector into a volatile one.”
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Hilton,
Ahoy!
Hilton Hotels Corp. will relocate its global headquarters from Beverly
Hills, Calif., to the greater Washington, D.C., metropolitan area this
fall. The decision to relocate is part of Hilton’s ongoing business reorganization and follows a rigorous review of Hilton’s corporate operations.
Potential locations will be evaluated against multiple criteria including
costs, proximity to Hilton’s U.S. and international offices and talent
attraction and retention.
All in the Name
The little island of Machchafushi in the
Maldives has been officially renamed
Centara Grand Island, after the Centara
Grand Island Resort and Spa. Only 200
of the country’s 1,192 islands are inhabited, so to have an island renamed
is an honor and has created quite a
buzz in the idyllic archipelago. Centara
Grand Island is relatively close to the
Male Airport with air transfer of just 25
minutes and speedboat transfer of 85
minutes.
Have Affluence,
Will Travel
Although most suppliers have watched their clients trade
down to more affordable transportation and lodging,
affluent travelers with an annual household income in
excess of US$150,000 appear to be bucking the
trend—in both leisure and business sectors.
According to the Portrait of Affluent Travelers survey,
45 percent of affluent travelers took at least one business trip during 2008 (for an average of eight trips).
Among them, almost all took at least one domestic
business trip, and one third (35 percent) traveled internationally on business. Meanwhile, 97 percent of affluent travelers took a domestic leisure trip in 2008, and
41 percent took at least one trip outside the U.S.
Affluent Business Trips in 2009
29%
48%
16%
7%
38%
60%
2%
Plan
Plan
Plan
Plan
Plan
Plan
Plan
to
to
to
to
to
to
to
take more trips than last year
take the same number of trips as last year
take fewer trips than last year
take none
spend more than last year
spend the same as last year
spend less than last year
Educational
Edge
Global trade show IMEX (May 26-28 in
Frankfurt) expands its educational program this year with four days of content
underpinned by an overarching theme—
exploring the value and purpose of innovation across the industry.
Presentations will examine the forces
rapidly shaping the industry’s future, the
real meaning of creativity, fresh approaches to meeting organization and
the encouragement of innovation when
budgets are tight. IMEX will also launch
a new educational concept—Meetings
Under the Microscope—which will offer
visitors fast-track qualifications for understanding the newest techniques in
meetings planning, environment, psychology and marketing.
In addition to its strong education
tracks, IMEX plays host to one of the
industry’s largest trade shows, featuring
more than 3,500 exhibitors representing 150 countries. Qualified buyers
represent long-haul markets from
across the globe, and a new combination of familiarization trips and two-tofour-night stays extends potential business transaction time by up to 25
percent. Visit www.imex-frankfurt.com.
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2/24/09 9:57:40 AM
HOT BUZZ
Thoughts+Leaders
How do you keep employee morale high
during troubling economic times, especially
given layoffs and company cutbacks?
Andy Cosslett
Chief Executive
IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group)
The most important thing is to keep your promises and live your values in good times and bad.
If people can see that you’re making tough decisions, but you’re doing so consistently and to a
set of values they believe in, then they’ll be much more accepting and supportive.
At IHG we have a group called the Knights, who are the top 280 leaders in the business.
The Knights play a vital role in engaging and informing our people. We’ve got 350,000 people
working in 4,000 hotels in 100 countries, so the Knights help us communicate with everyone. I
hold regular conference calls with them so that they hear all the big news first, directly from
me, and then we give them the tools to cascade that through the company.
Despite the economic climate, we need to recruit another 200,000 people to work in the
new hotels we’ll be opening over the next few years. People have to enjoy working for us, be
proud to work for us and tell their friends about us—looking after our people is a top priority.
Mike Deitemeyer
President
Omni Hotels
First and foremost, everyone wants to know that
their companies have clear
strategies to address this
difficult business cycle.
Since the beginning of
2008, Omni’s corporate
leadership has worked
closely with our properties
to ensure that we all understood what it would
take to achieve solid results this year as well as
set ourselves up for success for the long haul. We
have monitored trends
closely, shared our insights
and provided specific guidance on necessary steps.
Communication has
been at the center of executing Omni’s plans at every level of
the organization. We communicate with all of our associates, as
many are seeking answers in these challenging times. We also
make sure that we celebrate the successes, particularly good
service moments—an all-important hallmark of the Omni brand.
During property visits, we deliberately set aside time to visit
associates across the entire population, often participating in
the morning stand-up sessions.
Eric A. Danziger
President and CEO
Wyndham Hotel Group
We’re committed to increasing our associate
engagement and manager effectiveness by focusing on recognition, communication and career
development. We acknowledge employees by
highlighting their accomplishments in our newsletter and providing them with a gift card and a
certificate of appreciation. Our senior leadership
team members hold frequent feedback sessions
with associates at all levels—we want to know
what we’re doing well and, frankly, what we need
to do better.
We have Monday Morning Huddles during which we celebrate the previous week’s wins and review the week ahead. We also encourage skip-level
meetings, which are informal meetings with an associate’s next-level manager. In addition, we have Webcast meetings to engage our field-based employees. Our career development workshops encourage employees to own their
careers and demonstrate how they can effectively navigate the performance
management process. In addition, regular Lunch & Learns provide employees
with business unit and departmental information that can help them further
their careers with our company.
+
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Green Engage
IHG is trialing a new online system called
Green Engage, which will help hotel general managers manage energy consumption more effectively. Early trials have
shown potential energy savings of up to
25 percent. If fully adopted by all 4,000
hotels across the IHG portfolio, it is estimated that the savings for hotel owners
could be as much as US$200 million.
Hotels directly input data onsite, and
the Green Engage software automatically
compares similar hotels across the world
and lists a series of actions that each hotel
can take to reduce waste and the consumption of energy and water. Green Engage responds to growing levels of interest
from guests who
are looking for sustainable hotels that
manage environmental impact. The
new system will help
IHG hotels:
• Measure their
use of energy and
water and production of waste and
carbon emissions.
They can then
benchmark themselves against other hotels and set demanding but achievable reduction targets.
• Manage the elements of their hotels
that most impact the environment. These
can range from insulating hot water pipes
to introducing recycling programs to
switching to organic cleaning materials to
appointing employees as green champions.
• Report on progress both internally
and to guests and corporate clients.
Save the Fishes
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts
has removed threatened
species Chilean Sea Bass
and Blue Fin Tuna from its
restaurant menus and has
aligned itself locally with reputable
seafood watch organizations, ensuring that
guests receive a comprehensive selection
of sustainable choices. Fairmont’s commitment to ocean sustainability means working with reputable suppliers who purchase
fish that are resilient to fishing
pressure and harvested in ways
that limit damage to marine or aquatic
habitats.
Free Tips for
the First-timer
It’s not enough to just choose an event
at random and show up. As an exhibitor,
attendance won’t ensure your company’s
success. For the trade show novice,
events firm Freeman has introduced its
first white paper, “Tips for First-Time
Exhibitors,” designed to help beginners
connect with the most active and motivated buyers in the market. The research presents pointers from 12
months out to the final 30 days, as well
as hints for “closing the deal.” Visit
www.freemanco.com.
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HOT BUZZ
Destination Croatia
Cuba Libre
Destination management partnership euromic has embraced Croatia’s leading DMC,
Dubrovnik Travel, as its 29th official member. The country draws nearly 10 million
international visitors a year and is easily accessible from international gateways.
Several U.S. representatives introduced
a bill on Feb. 4 to allow U.S. citizens to
travel to Cuba. The Freedom to Travel
to Cuba Act states that the “president
may not regulate or prohibit, directly or
indirectly, travel to or from Cuba by U.S.
citizens or legal residents, or any of the
transactions incident to such travel.”
Stay tuned as lawmakers on the Committee on Foreign Affairs debate the
issue.
+
8 RESTAURANT TRENDS
Plastic Only
American Airlines will begin to transition to cashless cabins this summer onboard flights within the U.S.
and to and from Canada. On these
flights, American will only accept
major credit or debit cards for
onboard purchases such as headsets, light meals, snacks and alcoholic beverages. Flight attendants
will use a hand-held Onboard Sales
Recorder to charge credit and
debit cards, eliminating the need to
search for bills or change. Receipts
will be provided upon request.
Travel Portland now has a presence on
Twitter.com, which allows people to stay
connected with friends, associates, celebrities and businesses through the exchange
of short status updates. Follow the convention bureau @travelportland.
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Mood Music. iPod systems and iEssentials play
lists make it easy and
cost effective for owners
to customize music to
the mood of their restaurants by changing
sounds in different social
spaces and time periods.
As You Like It. Customization and personalization is in high demand.
Menus that are easily
changed to suit various
preferences (vegan, gluten-free or simply
personal tastes) are important.
Fearless Dining. This is the year for cutting back and restoring health to the
economy and to our lives. Creative appetizer menus offering innovative portions to
share and half portion entrées allow
guests to enjoy an evening out without
fear of breaking the budget or the diet.
Half glasses of wine are also popular.
Dinner for Breakfast. Traditional times
for breakfast, lunch and dinner are a
thing of the past. People are on the go,
traveling more than ever before and have
unpredictable schedules. It’s important to
offer services and time flexibility that
reflect busy itineraries.
Think Bubbles. Sparkling tap water is a
bubbly twist on a restaurant staple and is
a more eco-friendly option because it isn’t
bottled.
The Odyssey. The world is flat, and in
recent years people have been traveling
more frequently and farther distances,
and they’re bringing back authentic spices
and cooking methods to their homes.
Expect to see more intriguing ingredients
in their restaurants.
Beauty from the East. Middle Eastern
and Asian specialties are less watered
down and more authentic due to an increased number of foreign nationals.
Avid Diners. Activities that enhance dining experiences—from wine to sake tastings—create more interesting dining options. Diners are looking for a variety of
tastes and experiences when dining out;
in 2009, we will see more sharable
menus that offer a taste of everything.
—Hotel design firm The Puccini Group offices
in San Francisco, Madrid and Moscow
03.09
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Zero Attrition
Omni Hotels offers a new ZERO
Attrition program to meeting
professionals and event clientele
across the brand, waiving the
attrition fees for new contracts
booked and consumed in 2009.
The luxury hotel brand developed
the ZERO Attrition program in
response to the growing need
in the meetings marketplace
for innovative solutions, which
can effectively address today’s
economic conditions.
No Oversight
A new StarCite survey reveals a wide
gap between corporate travel and meetings oversight. The survey found that
while 95 percent of respondents have a
travel policy in place, less than half of
companies have established meetings
policies. These findings come in the
midst of an economic crisis with companies desperately seeking untapped savings opportunities. As a result, many
companies are turning their attention to
meetings spend.
Almond Joy
The Hyatt Regency McCormick Place in
Chicago supported National Healthy
Heart month in February by offering
hotel guests complimentary packages of
California Almonds. Studies show that a
daily ounce of almonds can help maintain a healthy cholesterol level. The
hotel also provided travelers with smart
snacking tips through the “Almonds for
a Healthy Heart” program.
Help for the
Unemployed
AirTran Airways sent more than 50
crew members to volunteer with Habitat Orlando as part of the charity’s
biggest home-building effort to date:
Staghorn Villas, a US$8 million town
home community that will provide affordable housing for 58 local families.
The development is slated for completion in spring 2011.
You’re Grounded
Singapore Airlines has announced plans
to reduce capacity in the year beginning
April 1 by 11 percent from the preceding 12 months. In the course of the
year, 17 aircraft will be decommissioned from the
operating fleet. Before
recession hit major markets, the plan was for
only four aircraft to be
phased out—one for conversion to a freighter and
three to be returned to lessors at completion of lease contracts.
Short Fall
The overall 2 percent growth in international tourism for 2008 is thanks to
the strong results of the first part of
the year before the collapse of the
financial markets, according to recent
news from the U.N. World Tourism
Organization. The second half of the
year showed an abrupt shift in trend
with international tourist arrivals flat or
showing negative growth. Overall, the 5
percent growth between January and
June gave way to a 1 percent decline
in the second half of the year.
mpiweb.org
28-33_Hot Buzz 0309.indd 33
33
2/24/09 10:22:35 AM
At the Movies?
Nah, Still on
the Air
Airpla
Airplane
of Travel
Carve Your
Y
Words Onto
Ont
O
Wooden
n Ca
Card
Send a
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trruly unique
truly
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card
home
while away
aw on
while
Ca
business.. Carve
an
old-fashio
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wiith C
pierced with
Cupid’s
city
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scene from your
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your design
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about them. (Suck.
uk.com, £5)
34
one+
Watch yo
your
our favorite
sh
shows ontthe-go or
pl
play video
gam
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games with
the privacy
of yyour own
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vi
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virtual
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The
AV
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Vuz
zix ffeatures
Vuzix
a wear
rabl virtual
wearable
62-inch big screen
compat
compatible
with
almost any audio/
video de
evic Ditch
device.
scre
the small s
screen, and
watch
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in beautiful, crystalclear high resolution. (Vuzix.com,
US$349.95)
Power Your
Laptop with
Solar Satchel
The Voltaic Generator
is the first solar bag
powerful enough to
charge a laptop using
high-efficiency solar
cells. It includes a
batter
battery pack customdesign
designed to efficiently
store a
and convert the
electr
electricity generated.
It will also charge
cell phones and
m
most other handh
held electronics.
(Vo
(Voltaicsystems.
com, US$499)
03.09
pp 34 Art of Travel 0309.indd 34
2/22/09 7:32:51 AM
0309_035.indd 35
2/12/09 9:28:40 AM
Your Community
Meet Meg Fasy, CMP
Meg Fasy, CMP, joined MPI in February as
vice president of sales and marketplace performance, responsible for the organization’s
global sales efforts—which include advancing
partner relationships, overseeing revenue
streams for advertising and strategic partnerships and supporting MPI Foundation
fundraising efforts. Here’s the scoop on MPI’s
newest leader.
Education: Pennsylvania State University
Former Job: Vice president of venue development for nTAG Interactive, a former provider of Event Data Management solutions
for the meeting industry
▲
Book Smart
Committees: Green Meetings Task Force
(Convention Industry Council) and Corporate
Event Marketing Association board member
Favorite Food: Watermelon
Pet Peeve: Negative people
Dream Vacation: Luxury safari in Africa
Relaxation Technique: Spa, spa and more
spa
First Concert: Yes (the band)
Community Service: National Multiple Sclerosis Society, American Heart Association
and Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Biggest Challenge: Three-time cancer
survivor
The MPI Knowledge Team seeks
reviewers to evaluate books and
other resources for the MPI
Store. Each critic will review a minimum of three resources during
a one-year term ending April 30,
2010. Reviewers will help MPI
keep a continuing stream of rel-
evant resources available to members of the meeting community.
Applicants must be MPI members, have an expertise in at least
one of dozens of topics and commit to reviewing materials within a
three-week time frame. Materials
will be available as e-books or in
MPI is offering a series of Webinars for
members looking to advance their careers
online. To register, visit www.mpiweb.org,
click on education, online learning and the
Harvard & Kiplinger Webinar Series.
March 10 Winning With Analytics:
How to Make the Right Decisions Now
(Harvard Business Publishing)
March 12 Creating High Performance
Coaching Cultures (Crane Consulting)
March 16 Enduring Truths about the
Practices of Leadership (Unbound Ideas
LLC)
March 17 Creating a Sustainable World
(Soundview Executive Book Summaries)
March 24 The Unique Challenges of
Executive Women Leaders (Unbound
Ideas LLC)
March 31 Get a Grip on Gen Y: How
to Successfully Recruit, Manage and
Retain Our Next Generation of Young
Professionals (Unbound Ideas LLC)
36
one+
hard copy. For more information,
e-mail Marj Atkinson at matkinson
@mpiweb.org or call 1-972-4066516. Visit www.mpiweb.org
and select the resources menu
followed by “bookstore” to submit
an application.
Volunteer With MPI
Applications to serve on 2009-2010 MPI committees,
advisory councils and task forces are due by 9 p.m.
CST March 26 (current volunteers need not apply).
Evaluation and interest forms for current volunteers
will be distributed this month, and all member appointments will be finalized by May 15. Newly appointed
members will assume positions July 1. Apply at www.
mpiweb.org. For more information, contact Janice
Parker at 1-972-702-3048 or jparker@mpiweb.org.
Got a Minute?
Become more involved in the MPI community in as little
as 15 minutes by sharing heartfelt details, interesting
anecdotes and crazy tales from your experience as a
member.
MPI’s community is full of inspired members whose
MPI experiences have made real differences in their personal and professional lives—and we want to hear about
it. Visit www.mpiweb.org/mpistories.
03.09
pp 36-38 Community Foundation 0309.indd 36
2/23/09 7:43:01 AM
MPI, Industry Issue Meeting Guidelines
MPI has united with leaders from several industry
organizations to issue guidelines on acceptable business travel practices for companies that received
emergency lending from the U.S. government. The
guidelines—built upon existing corporate best practices—are designed to ensure transparency and accountability and protect the millions of American jobs
supported by corporate meetings and events.
The standards support U.S. President Barack
Obama’s recent call for the boards of directors of
companies that have received emergency government loans to develop guidelines on conferences,
events and employee recognition programs. For the
full story see Page 62, and visit www.meeting
industrycrisiscenter.org for up-to-the-minute
information.
Proposed Guidelines for TARP Beneficiaries
1. The CEO shall be responsible for
implementing adequate controls to
assure that meetings, events and
incentive/recognition travel serve
legitimate business purposes and are
cost justified.
4. The amount spent for an employee
performance incentive/recognition
event shall not exceed 2 percent of
the total compensation of eligible participants or 10 percent of total award
earners’ compensation.
2. All proposed meetings, events and
incentive/recognition travel organized
by the company must serve one or
more specified legitimate business
purposes. Each proposed meeting,
event or incentive/recognition travel
with a cost exceeding US$75,000
must be supported by a written business case identifying a specific business purpose.
5. The process for approving meetings, events and incentive/recognition travel and the procedures for
assuring adherence to this policy will
be subject to independent audit to
confirm policy adherence.
3. Total annual expenses for meetings, events and incentive/recognition travel shall not exceed 15
percent of a company’s total sales
and marketing spend.
6. At least 90 percent of incentive
program attendees shall be other
than senior executives (as defined by
applicable U.S. Treasury Department
guidelines) from the host organization.
8. All internal meetings or events attended only by senior executives (as
defined by applicable U.S. Treasury
Department guidelines) and/or board
members shall be devoted to specific
business purposes, and participating
senior executives shall be responsible
for any expenses incurred for nonbusiness related activities.
9. The CEO shall certify to the board
at least annually that the foregoing
policies are being followed, and are
sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that the company’s expenditures
for such purposes are not excessive.
10. These policies shall be subject to
modification only with board approval
stating the specific business rationale
for the change in policy.
7. Performance incentives shall not
promote excessive or unnecessary
risk-taking or manipulation of financial
results.
mpiweb.org
pp 36-38 Community Foundation 0309.indd 37
37
2/22/09 12:32:37 PM
Making a Difference
IMEX Fuels MPI Merit Scholars
Industry trade show IMEX has announced plans
to fund a series of MPI Foundation scholarships
worth €40,000 over two years. IMEX has a
strong history of supporting the MPI Foundation,
including significant financing for the Culture
Active© Tool, which
served as an anchor
for the organization’s
global education program. The new grants
will be awarded based
on merit.
“We wanted to
contribute more to
the education of the
industry, building on the
theme of the current
IMEX-MPI Future Leaders Forum,” said Carina
Bauer, IMEX director of
marketing and operations. “Our hope is that
Carina Bauer
it is very much linked to
MPI’s new global knowledge plan with different
scholarships going to professionals in different
regions around the world.”
Future scholarship opportunities may include
travel and admission to MPI’s signature events
in the U.S., Europe and the Middle East as well
as courses associated with the organization’s
certification programs: the familiar Certification
in Meetings Management (CMM) and the new
Global Certificate in Meeting Operations I and II
(GCMO).
Bauer says IMEX and the MPI Foundation
are a natural match, each concerned with the
promotion of the meeting and event industry
worldwide.
“People understand, now more than ever, the
importance of coming together as an industry,”
Bauer asserted. “It’s vital that we speak with the
same voice—not at odds with each other. We all
want to promote events for the motivating and
training of the global workforce.”
The MPI Foundation and IMEX hope to launch
the scholarship program this spring.
Did You Know?
The MPI Foundation published its
first book, Meetings & Taxes, in fiscal
year 1987-1988. It was the same
year that ITT Sheraton Corp. pledged
US$250,000 to develop an Educational
Research Foundation Resource Center.
To contribute to the
MPI Foundation, visit
www.mpifoundation.org.
FOCUS ON FOUNDATION
January 2009 Contributors
The MPI Foundation thanks the following organizations and individuals for their generous support.
U.S. CORPORATE
Platinum Donors
AT&T Park
Carlson Hotels
Dallas CVB
Detroit Metro CVB
Fairmont Hotels
Hilton Hotels
Hyatt Hotels
IHG
Las Vegas CVA
Loews Hotels
Marriott Hotels & Resorts
Omni Hotels
Starwood Hotels & Resorts
The Venetian
Wyndham Hotels
Gold Donors
American Express
AV Concepts
Bloomington CVB
Maritz
MGM Mirage
ProActive
Silver Donors
Aimbridge Hospitality
Anaheim CVB
Aramark
Atlanta CVB
The Broadmoor
Fort Worth CVB
The Greenbrier
Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
hinton + grusich
LA Inc.
LXR
Meet Minneapolis
Millennium Hotels
Park Place Entertainment
Pier 94
PRA
PSAV
Puerto Rico CVB
St. Louis CVB
38
one+
Weil & Associates
Bronze Donors
Associated Luxury Hotels
Benchmark Hospitality
Destination Hotels & Resorts
Dolce
Experient
Gaylord Opryland
Global Events Partners
Hard Rock International
HelmsBriscoe
PC Nametag
Philadelphia CVB
SearchWide
Seattle CVB
Walt Disney World Resorts
Walt Disney Swan and Dolphin
Wynn
Small Business Donors
4th Wall Events
Best Meetings
Concepts Worldwide
Creative Meetings and Events
Dianne B. Devitt
InnFluent, LLC
Kinsley & Associates
The Laureli Group
Meetingjobs
Meeting Revolution
Meeting Site Resource
One Smooth Stone
OnTrack Communications
Spets
SYNAXIS Meetings & Events Inc.
Special Donors
Blumberg Marketing
Boca Resorts
Katie Callahan-Giobbi
CVent
David DuBois, CMP, CAE
Folio Fine Wine Partners
David Gabri
Jonathan T. Howe, Esq.
George P. Johnson
Carol Krugman, CMP, CMM
Little Rock CVB
Kevin Olsen
Pasadena CVB
Production Plus Inc.
SAS Institute
Ken Sanders
Dave Scypinski
Mark Sirangelo
Visit Raleigh
Friends of MPI
7th Wave Communication
Balance Design
Michael Beardsley
Mitchell Beer, CMM
Jennifer Brown, CMP
Tim Brown
Ivan Carlson
Vito Curalli
Marianne Demko Lange, CMP,
CMM
Gaylord Palms
Gaylord Texan
William Gilchrist
Richard Harper, CMP
Hattiel Hill, CMM
Hattie Hill Enterprises
Interactive Visuals
Dave Johnson
Beverly W. Kinkade, CMP, CHME
Leadership Synergies
Tony Lorenz, CMM
Larry Luteran
Margaret Moynihan, CMP
National Speakers Bureau
Joe Nishi
Didier Scaillet
Linda Swago
Melvin Tennant, CAE
C. James Trombino, CAE
Helen Van Dongen, CMP, CMM
Jerry Wayne
CANADA CORPORATE
Platinum Donor
Fairmont Hotels and Resorts
Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Gold Donor
Caesars Windsor
Convention Centres of Canada
Delta Hotels
PSAV
Silver Donor
AV-Canada
AVW-Telav
Calgary Telus Convention Centre
Cascadia Motivation
Coast Hotels & Resorts
Evolution
Hilton Canada
IHG
Marriott Hotels & Resorts
Canada
Ottawa Tourisim
Stronco
Tourism Calgary
Tourism Toronto
Tourisme Quebec
VIA Rail Canada
Bronze Donor
The Conference Publisher
D.E. Systems Ltd.
Destination Halifax
Direct Energy Centre
IncentiveWorks
Tourisme Montreal
Tourism British Columbia
Tourism Vancouver
Special Donor
Accucom Corporate Communications Inc.
ADMAR Promotions
Calgary Exhibition & Stampede
Cantrav dmc
Centre Mont-Royal
Gold Key Donors
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts
Malaga CVB
The Rezidor Hotel Group
Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre
VisitDenmark
British Columbia
Carolinas
Chicago Area
Georgia
Greater Edmonton
Greater New York
Gulf States
Heartland
Houston Area
Japan
Kentucky Bluegrass
Indiana
Manitoba
Minnesota
New Jersey
Northern California
Ohio
Oklahoma
Orange County
Oregon
Ottawa
Philadelphia Area
Potomac
Rocky Mountain
Southern California
St. Louis
Tennessee
Texas Hill Country
Toronto
Virginia
Washington State
WestField
Silver Partner Donors
ExpoForce
RefTech
INDIVIDUAL DONORS
Diamond
Tony Lorenz, CMM
Bronze Friend Donors
Amsterdam RAI
Hotels van Oranje
Ince&Tive
Visit London
Three Star
Elaine Kallio
F. Jennie Nakoa
Katherine Ratcliffe
Destination Winnipeg
Exposoft Solutions Inc.
Fletcher Wright Associates Inc.
Gelber Conference Centre
Groupe Germain Hotels
The Great West Life Company
Investors Group Financial
Services
Mendelssohn Livingston
Naylor Publishers Inc.
The Planner
EUROPE CORPORATE
Heritage Club
EIBTM
IMEX
Diamond Club
MCI
Platinum Key Donors
BTC International
EIBTM/RTE
Starwood Hotels & Resorts
CHAPTER DONORS
Arizona Sunbelt
Atlantic Canada
Fellow
Alan Baptista
Carole Blumberg, MAS
Nicola Wright
03.09
pp 36-38 Community Foundation 0309.indd 38
2/22/09 11:39:57 AM
0309_039.indd 39
2/23/09 7:42:26 PM
WHO:
Connections
Suzanne Seggerman, Games for
Change
Independent Planner + Association Success Story
Maren Perry,
Perry Creative Inc.
A pig disease forced me to
slaughter my swine, a drought
scorched my wheat and corn
and the national bank collapsed.
My money is worthless. The
game is Third World Farmer;
the situations are no game.
They’re desperate.
Suzanne Seggerman was a documentary
filmmaker in the early 1990s when she
stumbled upon a game on Central American
politics. She calls the experience “transformational.” She began seeking out socially
responsible gaming outlets and designers,
managing a list of games she encountered that
advocated social change through education.
In summer 2004, Seggerman and her
colleagues staged an invite-only meeting for
40 professionals interested in social change
through entertainment-based software. The
group quickly realized the need for a central organization to grow and cultivate the
burgeoning industry, and Seggerman found
herself at the helm of nonprofit Games for
Change (G4C). The importance of that first
meeting and subsequent annual gatherings is
not lost on the former filmmaker.
“Conferences are one of the most important ways for people to grow any field,” she
said. “Our festival has been the growth of this
movement. Now groups all over the world
are beginning to raise awareness of these types
of games. Events are a way for people with
40
one+
EVENT:
Games for Change
Festival
New York
May 27-29, 2009
common goals and aspirations to
find each other.”
Three years ago, the G4C Festival outgrew the small nonprofit’s staff, and
Seggerman remitted an RFP for the event’s
planning and organization. Seasoned event
planner Maren Perry of Perry Creative Inc. responded to the summons, doubling the event’s
size to 250 attendees her first year and 400 the
next. She also oversaw the addition of the daylong G4C 101, a workshop for nonprofits new
to the social issue games sector. For Perry, the
festival is a dream job.
“I was really interested in using my management skills for a company that, rather than
planning multimillion-dollar birthday parties,
was contributing to the global good,” she
said. “This was a young organization that was
doing really good work.”
For now, the G4C Festival is relatively
barebones. In addition to the 101 workshop,
the conference offers a small expo, consecutive
plenary sessions and keynotes. Sessions highlight young designers, financing perspectives,
alternate reality games and new technologies.
03.09
pp 40-41 Connections 0309A.indd 40
2/24/09 10:29:46 AM
But its size hasn’t kept Seggerman from booking improbable speakers for her sessions and
keynotes. Jeff Bell of Microsoft Corp. led last
year’s expo, and former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor delivered the closing
keynote. (O’Connor is helping to develop a game
called Our Courts for middle school students.)
Needless to say, the celebrity of its speakers
and the breadth of its cause attract media attention annually from international publications
such as The New York Times, Globe and Mail,
The Korea Times and The Washington Post.
Journalists have called the conference the Sundance of social change gaming.
According to Seggerman, G4C’s members also
span the globe encompassing university professors, governments, nonprofit foundations—even
the U.N. A group of such diversity might confound some planners, but Seggerman says truth in
focus and a singular goal create solidarity among
attendees.
“It’s such a new field, everyone is learning together,” she said. “The single-track festival works
well. It’s an inspiring experience, a way for people
to completely rethink what games are about.”
Even event location—Parsons, The New
School for Design in New York—is no afterthought for Seggerman. The college works with
G4C on PETLab, a public-interest design and research lab for interactive media. Current projects
include a series of games for the Xbox 360 using
the XNA framework (which allows people to create games cheaply) and accompanying curricula
that address social and civic issues. The lab is also
developing Web-based games for teens with potential dissemination through sites such as MTV’s
Think social activism portal. Even the New York
Public Library may help by integrating games
with its existing youth services. For Seggerman,
G4C and the flourishing social change gaming
sector, the possibilities are truly limitless.
“We’re just at the beginning of this thing
now,” Seggerman said. “Just wait until it matures.”
—JESSIE STATES
mpiweb.org
pp 40-41 Connections 0309A.indd 41
41
2/22/09 7:40:26 AM
IRRELEVANT
Mark Your Lunch
Tired of having your lunches stolen by sticky-fingered co-workers?
Are bullies taking your snacks?
Fret no more. Anti-Theft Lunch
Bags from boutique store “the.”
will keep your famished foes
at bay. These (ir)regular sandwich bags have mold-like green
splotches printed on both sides,
making your freshly prepared
sandwich look utterly revolting.
Don’t suffer the injustice of having your sandwich stolen again.
(Thinkofthe.com, US$10 per
package of 25)
42
one+
03.09
pp 42 Irrelevant 0309.indd 42
2/22/09 10:27:30 AM
0309_043.indd 43
2/22/09 10:32:50 AM
Claus
Westh
Global View
Boundary-Free
Meetings
IN 1962, PROFESSOR MARSHALL
McLUHAN spoke at Toronto University
44
one+
03.09
pp 44 Global View0309.indd 44
BIO
about the global village, describing it as the
world coming together through mass media
and technically supported communication.
The meeting without boundaries—or
the virtual meeting—might be one of the
fruits of this global village. Financial crises,
recession and the ecological debate form
preconditions that will force more industries
to adapt to new collaboration techniques.
As more industries face these challenges
they will drive development and innovation.
The fruits are becoming riper as the interest
in virtual meetings is fuelled by economic
motives such as reducing the cost of travel,
accommodations and venue expenses, along
with an emerging corporate trend toward
ecological responsibility.
The virtual meeting is not a new idea. It’s
been well documented in previous articles in
One+ and its predecessor. We have known
and used videoconferencing for years, yet
it doesn’t seem to replace the urge to meet
in person. Neither do the many attempts to
varnish videoconferencing with applications
that enable virtual PowerPoint presentations
and writing on digital whiteboards. Copying the meeting and meeting room functions
might not be the answer. Who says that the
virtual meeting design should be similar to
the analogue? Thinking out of the box, the
technology contains a much richer environment and is not being exploited to its full
potential. Most of the obstacles lie in our
mindset and not in technology.
One major hurdle is the notion that the
physical meeting is the only rich scenario in
which you can build proper relationships
and expand personal networks. It is a tough
assumption to derive from the discussion.
Obviously, the venue side of the meeting and
event industry is interested in maintaining
this assumption. But looking at what really
goes on in the meeting room, we are, generally, not such great networkers. People crawl
along the panels of the meeting room shy of
each other, and that goes for most nationalities. The same people in that meeting room
probably spend more time networking
through LinkedIn, Facebook or even dating
sites to forge relationships. And some will
have more success there than in the meeting
room.
Our teenagers’ use of technology to build
networks is a good example of the opportunities that technology offers. They build
their relationships without limits and across
borders through text messaging, chatrooms
and communities. In their world, it is just as
natural to have been introduced on the Internet as in real life. The younger generations
do not have the technological inhibitions
that the older ones have. Technology will
enhance the development of new meeting
and collaboration methods. And the changes
are coming sooner than later.
New technologies emerge offering interesting perspectives. Twitter is one example.
Part blog and part chat, it is a way to cast
CLAUS WESTH is an independent business development consultant and
vice president of communications for the MPI Denmark Chapter, as well
as a lecturer at Roskilde University. Author photo by Soren Svendsen.
2/22/09 3:18:46 PM
small messages that keep
track of people and events.
As such, it is a fine project
management tool with the
ability to form the project
and its members into a community. Project members can
receive and send messages
in text, picture or film from
a mobile phone, PC or PDA
on site, independent of time,
place and presence.
Push technology will
ensure that everybody is
notified of updates the minute they are posted. Being
updated with a project is no
longer a matter of attending
project meetings and reading
endless reports. However,
Twitter isn’t being used in
this way—yet.
Another interesting innovation is virtual
world software. It is primarily used as an
identity game for private entertainment, and
there are several “worlds” (such as Second
Life) on the market. Virtual worlds can contain all the elements of a meeting or conference, without a physical location. A congress
in this environment is not constrained by
time or numbers and offers an effective way
of sharing research and knowledge while
creating relationships. The meeting can last
as long as it needs to. Meeting participants
can connect and disconnect as they please,
and when they find the content relevant.
Relationships are easier to form because
virtual world members create profiles and
Thinking out of the
box, virtual meeting
design contains a
rich environment
and is not being
exploited to its full
potential. Most of
the obstacles lie in
our mindset and
not in technology.
have track records that reveal what their
preferences are and what knowledge they
seek and possess. Compared to an analogue
conference it is much more transparent
and on a larger scale. But virtual worlds
and users have been slow to exploit these
opportunities.
Technology does not have the ability
to simulate the analogue meeting, as rich
and complex as it is. It can, however, make
it richer and less complex by harnessing
the meeting process, whether knowledge
exchange, decision-making, collaboration
or project management. But this demands a
change in mindset.
mpiweb.org
pp 44 Global View0309.indd 45
45
2/19/09 3:13:26 PM
Tony
Carey
Across the Bow
A Dash of
Tabasco
WHAT ARE THE KEYS TO ORGANIZING A SUCCESSFUL CONFERENCE? Detailed planning? A good team?
The right venue? Great speakers? Lots
of booze? A stimulating program? Now
you’re talking: stimulation. Everything
else is just contributory.
You can have the best speakers, a huge
budget, a great venue and Cordon Bleu
cooking, but if the delegates aren’t excited
about it, you’re wasting everyone’s money
and, more important, their time.
organize training courses for undertakers.
They will learn quicker, better and more
profoundly if they are stimulated and
entertained. Even undertakers have funny
bones...probably several.
Let’s be specific. I’m not talking about
fancy product launches or the razzmatazz
of a political party conference. I’m not
even talking about what happens on
stage. You can hire “creatives” with
ponytails and designer jeans for that. I’m
talking about the little things that we
take for granted. That’s where we should
be creative—at the low-cost end of the
spectrum of ideas. That’s where we can
introduce the unexpected, where we can
innovate.
Take coffee breaks for example. Why
do we have them? I’ll tell you—because
Next time you plan an event, carry a big “WHY” around
in your mind and every time you decide something, stop
and ask yourself: WHY am I doing this and WHY am
I doing it in this way? And if there isn’t a really good
answer, do it differently, or not at all.
46
one+
03.09
pp 46-47 Across The Bow 0309.indd 46
BIO
Today, thanks to TV, our attention
span is measured in seconds. We need
continuous sensory stimulation—changes
of pace, scene, speaker, style, background,
message. TV producers know this.
As conference organizers we are (of
course) in the INFOTAINMENT business. (Lousy word, but we haven’t the
space to bitch about that right now.)
I don’t care if all you ever do is
hotels include them in the daily delegate
rate. Hey! Who’s running this thing? Me
or the venue?
Why coffee? Why mid morning? Why
those awful assorted biscuits that come
in huge tins called “Party Time?” Why
queue for it? Why bother? The coffee’s
not that good anyway.
Does everyone really want coffee at
the same time? Does everyone even want
TONY CAREY, CMP, CMM, is an award-winning writer and past member
of MPI’s International Board of Directors. He can be reached at
tonycarey@psilink.co.je.
2/19/09 3:36:03 PM
coffee? Did anyone ask the delegates? OK,
I’m being unfair...you can get tea.
So what could be done to break the
mold?
What about ice creams, cheese straws,
fresh fruit, smoothies, milk shakes, slices
of sponge cake or Valium? And don’t
ignore the local edibles such as Bath Buns
in Somerset, churros in Spain, Sachertorte
in Austria, Berliners in Berlin or Danish
pastries (but only in Denmark). I could go
on, but you get the flavor.
Coffee breaks could be sponsored
by Colombia, Costa Rica or Kenya; tea
breaks by Ceylon and China (why not
invite Earl Grey along?).
Now take a look at the duration of
business sessions at the average conference—45 minutes to an hour. Great! All
the surveys show that human beings stop
concentrating after 25 minutes. So why do
we insist on 45-minute sessions? Because
we always have.
Next time you plan an event, carry a
big “WHY” around in your mind and
every time you decide something, stop and
ask yourself: WHY am I doing this and
WHY am I doing it in this way? And if
there isn’t a really good answer, do it differently, or not at all.
Get creative, harness your imagination, think outside the box, stimulate the
senses. Add that dash of Tabasco to the
conference recipe.
Meetings (like all learning) should be
FUN.
Agree? Disagree?
Share your thoughts with
other readers at
www.mpioneplus.org.
mpiweb.org
pp 46-47 Across The Bow 0309.indd 47
47
2/19/09 3:17:52 PM
Jon
Bradshaw
Open-Source Everything
Why Meetings
Make Scents
I’M CURIOUS WHERE YOU’RE READING
THIS EDITION OF ONE+. Maybe you’re
on a plane, in a taxi, in the bathroom, at
the office or at home. No matter where,
pause for a few seconds. Yes, right
now, and focus on your surroundings.
OK, now get curious about how your
five senses are filtering your experience
and how this is making you think, feel
and behave. Is that annoying ring tone
increasing your blood pressure? Is the
lingering smell
of your coffee a
calming influence? Is that
garish painting your CEO
insisted on distracting you?
Dutch psychologist Dr. Kees Keizer and a team of
behavioral scientists from the University
of Groningen recently published a fascinating study in Science based on the
findings of U.S. psychology professor
Robert Cialdini’s groundbreaking book
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion.
Dr. Keizer found that by making subtle
changes to their environment, people can
be steered into overwhelming behavioral
change—specifically criminal behavior,
including stealing money and littering.
48
one+
03.09
pp 48-49 Open-Source 0309.indd 48
BIO
Understanding that the
key to emotional state
management comes from
the stimulation of human
senses is not new.
The fact that human values, beliefs
and behavior can be influenced in such a
way may have personal as well as professional benefits. While I am not suggesting
that changing the color of your teenager’s
wallpaper will turn them into articulate
and socially engaging adolescents or that
after a simple change in the texture of
your bed linen you will find your partner
uncontrollably passionate again, getting
curious about how behavioral science can
be used most effectively within the global
meeting and event industry could make
your next event extra special.
As a creator of meeting experiences,
you are in a unique and privileged position. For years, green-eyed marketers
working with non-tangible brands have
longed for the chance to influence so
many human senses. While it would be
inappropriate to encourage an outbreak
of petty theft, subtle changes in the meeting environment can help delegates access
the appropriate mindset for the event.
Understanding that the key to emotional state management comes from
the stimulation of human senses is not
new; only last week, I visited the “Brand
Experience” floor within the corporate
HQ of a major international hotel chain.
Though most of us would be familiar
with the visual branding, how many
would recognize the almost imperceptible
smell created by the small, innocuouslooking black machines dotted about the
place? The same smell was at that very
minute drifting through thousands of
hotels worldwide in the hope that, along
with the right decor, music and bathroom
JON BRADSHAW presents and trains internationally on a variety of subjects in the field of human performance, specializing in emotional state
management in the corporate and sporting fields. He can be contacted
via www.equinoxmotivation.com.
2/22/09 3:22:40 PM
amenities, it would put visitors in a certain emotional state.
Try this food for thought.
The psychological effects of color
(chromology) are fascinating. Deciding
what emotional state you want visitors
to access may lead you to look at using
different colors in different rooms, adapting slides and even changing the color of
chairs. The common post-lunch energy
slump can be counteracted by creative
visual stimuli.
Use appropriate music at different
parts of the day. A recent training course
I went on used the same energetic music
before the start of every session and even
now, months after the training, when I
hear it my emotional state changes, my
pulse increases and I’m ready to learn.
If you plan annual events, understand
the impact of smells and create a unique
one to help access different ideas and
behavior. As a delegate at several MPI
conferences, I’ve been impressed how the
knowledge committee has adapted learning environments to encourage delegates
to not only think differently but MeetDifferent, too.
Don’t forget the sense of taste. A recent
study found that tea, wine and chocolate were the best foods for cognitive
stimulation. While this news may have
convention bureaus in England, France
and Switzerland salivating at potential
new business, I suggest it may not lead to
a particularly well-nourished (or sober)
audience. Why not get a nutritionist in
to advise on slow energy release foods to
help delegates maintain energy levels?
Subtle changes in the
meeting environment can
help delegates access the
appropriate mindset for
the event.
Finally, the sense of touch: for cheap
plastic chairs, read cheap plastic conference. The perceived value—and therefore
repeat attendance—of a meeting will be
influenced by things that delegates feel
such as chairs, literature and pens, so
where possible avoid limited budgets
diluting the experiential aspect.
If you’re not convinced, then notice
how you felt when you first touched the
quality paper that One+ has used since its
launch. Interesting isn’t it?
mpiweb.org
pp 48-49 Open-Source 0309.indd 49
49
2/19/09 3:31:08 PM
Tim
Sanders
Transform the World
Chicken Little
Must Fry
YOU ARE NOT ALONE.
50
one+
03.09
pp 50-51 Transform World 0309.indd 50
BIO
Chances are, people who are crushed
by their scarcity mindset surround you.
They wonder when the next shoe will
fall, the next trip cancelled, the next layoff announced. Your workplace is like a
morgue—quiet, tentative and stagnant. You
hardly recognize your group these days. Fear
has trumped confidence, and distrust has
dissolved faith. As my favorite philosopher
Yogi Bera once quipped, “It’s déjà vu all
over again!” The business cycle has burped
and you are facing another dip in the economy—the big one, according to the media
pundits.
Meetings are either eliminated or
trimmed back so much you hardly recognize them. Amenities are replaced with bare
necessities as you grapple with the challenge
of doing more with less. Your attendees are
downtrodden, and the tone of meetings has
shifted from thrive to survive. Along the
way, you’ve lost your groove as the scarcity
mindset sets in, and you lose your zeal for
the meetings you cherish.
Regardless of where you are (meeting
planning, production, catering, hospitality or talent), you are not the same person
you were two years ago. Instead of cooperating, you compete for scarce resources.
Instead of being happy for your colleagues’
achievements, you find yourself wondering
why you aren’t getting the same accolades.
Welcome to the world of scarcity.
Here’s the good news: Scarcity is a conscious choice you make. You can change
your outlook as quickly as you change your
mind. And you need to. If you are spending
your time worrying instead of innovating,
you aren’t doing yourself any good.
Being afraid will not save you. In fact,
defying this emotional gravity is your only
way out. If you want to thrive, and help
your company survive, you’ve got to find a
way out of scarcity thinking and return to
working on solutions. It’s time for you to
take a deep breath and refocus your efforts
on producing meetings that inspire attendees
and move the organization forward.
This requires a new paradigm that will
be difficult to adopt during these times—
abundance. Somehow, you need to find the
strength within yourself to adopt the following mantra: There’s enough to go around.
I’ve been through this before, several
times. In my early career in the 1980s, I witnessed an economic downtown that left few
buildings, silos or people standing. We went
from plenty to skimpy almost overnight.
Then, of course, the market came back. In
2001, as an executive at Yahoo!, the dotcom
crash ushered in a fresh dose of scarcity. I
spent almost two years traveling around
the world, preaching abundance to
employees and partners—and most
of us survived.
How did we do it? We found a
way back to the abundance mentality, without waiting for the economy
TIM SANDERS, one of the top-rated speakers on the lecture circuit,
is the author of Saving the World at Work: What Companies and Individuals Can
Do to Go Beyond Making a Profit to Making a Difference (Doubleday, September
2008). Check out his Web site at www.savingtheworld.net.
2/24/09 10:33:13 AM
to catch up with us. You can too. You can
reprogram yourself, and everyone around
you, to sincerely believe that “there’s enough
to go around.” It’s not a trick, it’s a practice.
There are essentially three steps to installing abundance in your life and in the group
of people you work with. First, reconnect
with your abundance. Change your language and thoughts from “what you lack”
to “what you have to work with.” Even if
you have a smaller budget, you still have an
abundance of creative people that can rediscover the art of bootstrapping. That’s one
of the gifts of tough times. Too often, in the
go-go times of our careers, we develop a bad
case of “the spends” and waste too much
money. I challenge you to reconnect with the
resources around you. When you go back to
work, take a look around you and conduct a
quick inventory of your assets.
Next, overcome your perception of
scarcity by giving. If you believe your group
is shorthanded, lend a person to another
group worse off. If you don’t think you have
enough time, offer to mentor a struggler.
Psychologists around the world recognize
giving as an antidote to scarcity. Why?
When you find others that are in need more
than you, you develop a new perspective.
When you give and the next day you still
have enough left over, you realize that scarcity is in your mind—a bad choice based on
your insecurity.
Finally, chase out scarcity thinking in
your organization. It takes exactly one
Chicken Little to bring your team into a
funk. Often, we mistakenly acknowledge
or reward these doom-sayers for telling us
that the sky is falling. We think they are
being practical. But there’s a big difference
between practical and paranoid.
To preserve a good culture at work,
confront the Chicken Littles and let them
know they aren’t adding value. The next
Scarcity is a conscious
choice you make. You can
change your outlook
as quickly as you
change your mind. And you
need to. If you are spending
your time worrying instead of
innovating, you aren’t doing
yourself any good.
time one of your co-workers bemoans a
lack of resources or preferential treatment of
another group, ask them, “Which vantage
point are you coming from? Scarcity or
abundance?”
When times are hard, and the bottom
is falling out, you are either part of the
problem, the coverage or the solution. Being
part of the coverage doesn’t add any unique
value. It just brings extra gravity to the situation. We all need to be part of the solution
to get through this together.
Have you witnessed
something that will
transform the world?
Tell us about it at
www.mpiweb.org.
mpiweb.org
pp 50-51 Transform World 0309.indd 51
51
2/22/09 3:28:34 PM
+
It was a Breeze
BY ILONA KAUREMSZKY
ENORMOUS TURBINES ON FLATBED
TRUCKS, green space retrofitted for an out-
door concert and 776 exhibits demonstrating the virtues of the next big energy source
took Houston by storm when the American
Wind Energy Association’s (AWEA) WINDPOWER 2008 Conference and Exhibition
came to town in June.
“Texas is the nation’s No. 1 market for
wind power. Playing host to the WINDPOWER 2008 Conference & Exhibition in
Houston was a great way to highlight the
success of Texas as a world leader in wind,”
said Stephen Miner, AWEA conference and
education director. “[Texas] hosts more
than 4,400 megawatts of wind power.”
Choosing the venue was a no-brainer.
The George R. Brown Convention Center
(GRB) has an A-list of green initiatives and
ranks among the top 10 largest U.S. convention centers with 1.2 million square feet of
52
one+
exhibition, meeting and registration space.
Organizers believed the facility would be
able to easily accommodate the event.
But what representatives from the
AWEA conference—ranked by Trade Show
Weekly as among the fastest-growing trade
shows in North America—didn’t anticipate
was the high attendance. Thirteen-thousand
delegates, an 85 percent growth, arrived to
seek out the latest industry developments
and technologies, review new products and
services and rub shoulders with leading
industry decision makers.
“GRB offered us the flexibility to grow
the show by 85 percent in attendance and
exhibition square footage,” Miner said.
“This flexibility by the convention center,
its staff and the hotel community was key
to the success of the show. We also took
advantage of the brand-new Discovery
Green Park across from the convention
In an effort to preserve
downtown green space,
the long-awaited Discovery Green, which came in
at approximately US$122
million, opened in April.
The city’s 12-acre, Wi-Ficonnected park includes
an amphitheater, multirecreational paths, two
restaurants, public art
and underground parking
and is in close proximity
to public transit, hotels
and the George R. Brown
Convention Center.
AWEA
What’s New
in Houston
Part of its green master
plan, the George R. Brown
Convention Center is set
to install 100-kilowatt solar
panels atop the 16-acre
roof this year after receiving an $850,000 grant
approval from Houston
Endowment Inc.
The city’s first downtown,
mixed-use development in
20 years, the Houston
Pavilions, opened in October. The three-block entertainment hub includes
dining, entertainment,
retail and office space.
03.09
pp 52-54 Dest Houston.indd 52
2/22/09 11:06:29 AM
+
Fun Facts
Transportation Tips
Houston is the nation’s largest
municipal purchaser of wind energy
according to the Mayor’s Office, which
reported in July that it contracted the
purchase of more than 350 million
kilowatts of wind energy.
Downtown by cab just got cheaper. The
city has a US$6 flat taxi fee for all
trips in the downtown area.
The most heart surgeries worldwide
are performed at the Texas Medical
Center. Considered the world’s largest
healthcare complex, 46 institutions
including 13 hospitals comprise the
facility, which has grown significantly
since it opened in 1943.
AWEA (3)
Use Metro’s Airport Direct for transfers from George Bush Intercontinental
Airport’s Terminal C to downtown. The
transit company calls it the 30/30/30
service. That’s a 30-minute non-stop
trip, leaving every 30 minutes for $30
roundtrip.
The Houston Grand Opera is the
nation’s only opera company to earn
a Grammy, Tony and Emmy.
center to host the first-ever WINDPOWER
Concert, featuring Lyle Lovett. We were
able to grow from two to four exhibit halls,
move our general session from a smaller
theater to a larger exhibit hall and move
registration from a smaller foyer space to
another exhibit hall.”
The conference was also about showcasing the newest technologies, which required
displaying massive wind energy equipment.
No small feat, but GRB General Manager
Luther Villagomez maintains that the venue
offers two big advantages for big shows.
“One is the exhibit floors, which are
capable of handling extremely heavy loads,
and two is an operational staff that knows
how to deal with big equipment,” he said,
adding that WINDPOWER 2008 featured
many large exhibits that would have overwhelmed a smaller facility.
“At the GRB, our exhibit floors have
a load limit of 1,000 pounds per square
foot. This is one of the highest capacities in
North America,” Villagomez said. “Based
on its previous experience at other facilities,
WINDPOWER anticipated making several adjustments such as load-spreaders to
evenly distribute the weight of exhibits coming in on flatbed trucks. Secondly, we had
a ‘targeted’ move-in for WINDPOWER,
mpiweb.org
pp 52-54 Dest Houston.indd 53
53
2/22/09 11:07:35 AM
meaning that every aspect of move-in was
precisely choreographed. The five-day
move-in process started with the biggest
exhibits moving in first, progressing to the
smallest exhibits coming in last. Some of
the largest exhibits needed as many as three
different cranes to complete assembly. Getting all this in and out of the building in a
timely manner allows big shows to begin
seamlessly.”
He says that logistic planning included
using the convention center’s offsite marshalling yards for scheduled truck arrivals,
and some trucks required several days wait
time until it was their turn to move freight
into the building.
“We gained valuable experience in staging a show with heavy equipment demands.
This will help as we seek more business
in sectors that have large exhibits, such as
energy and construction,” Villagomez said.
“Also, with the opening of Discovery Green
(see pg.52) we learned more about coordinating events at multiple offsite locations.”
He notes that from a sales view, the
success of WINDPOWER reinforces the
importance of staying plugged into clients
and their business.
“WINDPOWER was originally contracted for only two exhibit halls. But our
sales team continued to track the show
carefully in the years leading to Houston
and noticed the explosive growth in the
sustainable energy sector,” he said. “As a
result, we recommended to our client that
we put a ‘hold’ on three more exhibit halls
to allow for anticipated growth of the show
by the time 2008 rolled around. As it turned
out, WINDPOWER crushed its previous
attendance records, nearly doubling its
attendance—from 7,000 to 13,000—and
used every square inch of the ground floor,
all 639,000 square feet. By staying in touch
with events that were impacting our client,
we saw an emerging giant and were able
to take steps to accommodate the show’s
explosive growth.”
ILONA KAUREMSZKY is former editor of
Corporate Meetings & Events magazine and
a weekly travel columnist.
pp 52-54 Dest Houston.indd 54
2/22/09 11:09:47 AM
Texas was named America’s Top State for Business in 2008. It leads the
nation in job growth and is home to more Fortune 500 and 1000 companies than
han
any other state. Texas is clearly focused on business – so for your next
ext
conference, you should focus on Texas. Whether you choose a big, bustling city
ity
or relaxing locale, you’ll find time to play as hard as you work.
For more information, visit MeetingsTexas.com.
F
®
© 2009 Office of the Governor, Economic Development and Tourism.
0309_055.indd 55
2/10/09 3:12:20 PM
Happo-en Gardens in Tokyo
+
The Great
Motivator
BY ROWLAND STITELER
TO THE CURSORY OBSERVER, JAPAN—
WITH
ITS
WORLDWIDE
REPUTATION
FOR HAVING A HUGELY COMPETITIVE,
PERFORMANCE-OBSESSED CORPORATE
CULTURE in which 12- and 14-hour work-
days are the rule and not the exception—
would hardly seem like the ideal destination
for an incentive group to relax, recharge,
reflect and take a respite from the stressinducing perils of 21st-century life.
But stereotypes about far-away places
and cultures often fall away upon closer
inspection, and that was exactly the case
for planner Robin Hulsey, assistant vice
president of Austin, Texas-based National
Western Life Insurance (NWLI), who took a
group of 360 top sales achievers to Tokyo
and Kyoto in May 2008 for an incentive and
sales conference.
“The great surprise for anyone who has
not been to Japan before is that even in
intensely urban places like Tokyo, you can
go just a few steps off a busy street and find
hidden, serene gardens that are tranquil
places where you can essentially take a step
back in time,” Hulsey said.
Almost every attendee on the NWLI
incentive trip was in store for that surprise,
because virtually none of the attendees—top
salespeople from 12 countries—had been to
Japan before.
“That was part of the appeal,” Hulsey
said. “Even though our salespeople are
world travelers, most of them had not been
to Tokyo or Kyoto, and they had a huge
56
one+
What’s New
in Tokyo and
Kyoto
A new landmark that will
have great options for
groups, the 610-meter
(2,000 feet) Tokyo Sky
Tree tower broke ground
last summer and will
open in 2012. The tower,
which will be the tallest
structure in Japan, will
have an observation area
and restaurant near the
top.
The Shangri-La Hotel
Tokyo opens this month
and has 202 guest rooms
and a 4,000-square-foot
ballroom and conference
center on the 28th floor.
The Hotel Granvia
Kyoto, one of the city’s
primary convention
properties, installed a new
Wi-Fi system in December that offers wireless
access that is five times
faster than conventional
802.11 a/b/g service
(the service you will find
at most any Starbucks or
McDonald’s in the U.S.).
The new service offers
access at 300 Mbps
and is free to guests and
meeting attendees, with
multiple broadcast points
set up in the hotel conference center.
KYOTO CB
curiosity about Japan and a desire to go
there.”
And the attendees’ desire to see Japan
and learn about its culture did one thing that
incentives are created for: motivate.
The salespeople involved in the trip
were independent insurance agents who
typically sell for multiple insurance companies, she says, and when the Japan trip was
announced, the potential incentive winners
showed great enthusiasm for qualifying for
the trip. Because the two-city trip—for which
attendees would literally be transported
halfway around the world—was relatively
expensive, the sales achievement qualification bar was set a little higher than previous
incentive trips, and the attendees worked
hard to qualify, Hulsey says.
“These people are sales achievers who
could certainly choose to go other places, and
we were pleased to see they were inspired to
work hard to qualify for our trip,” she said.
The reward the qualifying attendees got
for their hard work was an enriching cultural
experience that each of them will undoubtedly remember for years to come.
“What most people who have not been
to Japan before probably don’t realize is that
this is a culture that maintains the traditions
and values of a bygone era,” Hulsey said.
“And it’s refreshing to experience that.”
Japan is a place where one’s word on
something is an iron-clad pledge, and pride
in a job well done is paramount. Hulsey was
initially uneasy when the hotels involved
03.09
pp 56-58 Dest Tokyo-Kyoto 0309.indd 56
2/22/09 10:56:44 AM
The Ginza shopping district in Tokyo.
+
Fun Fact
Most everyone has heard of what
is arguably Kyoto’s most famous
company: Nintendo. The company
began as a playing card manufacturer and has kept its headquarters in Kyoto, even after its
mega-success, because company
managers like the city’s creative
atmosphere.
KYOTO CB
did not want written contracts, but that
uneasiness faded fast when she realized that
hotels were following out in exact detail
every promise they had made. It was also
refreshing in Kyoto to see cab drivers in
sparkling uniforms and white gloves and see
them jumping out to open doors for their
passengers—these are not just limo drivers,
but regular taxi drivers as well. Hulsey was
pleased, upon bringing the group of 360 into
Narita International Airport in Tokyo from
points worldwide, to discover that not one
single piece of baggage had been lost—a first
in her experience when working with groups
of that size.
James Kent, international marketing
coordinator for the Kyoto Convention
Bureau, says that at least for the past few
centuries, Japan as an island nation looks
outward to the world. (Kent identifies with
that because he hails from an island nation
as well—England.) Young people in Japan
tend to travel the world before they settle
into their careers back home, so there is a
huge world-experience level within tourism
and meeting-related industries, such as destination management companies, in Japan.
That level of international support was
put to its test with Hulsey’s event, in which
attendees spoke English, Spanish, Portuguese,
Chinese and Russian, and needed translation services in their native languages—not
a problem in Tokyo or Kyoto.
Once in Tokyo, attendees were given
a grand tour of the most popular sites,
including the Imperial Palace; the famous
Meiji Shrine complex, which includes an
evergreen forest area, Shinto shrines, an
Imperial treasure museum and an art gallery;
the Ginza shopping district; and a side trip
to the nearby town of Hakone, home of the
Hakone National Park, with a great view of
Mount Fuji.
One of the high points of the Tokyo leg
of the trip was an awards banquet at Happoen Gardens, a venue with winding walkways
through a tranquil garden, complete with
a pond surrounded by 200-year-old bonsai
trees and teahouses.
“We wanted our agents to experience a
traditional Japanese garden and immerse
themselves in the Japanese culture,” Hulsey
said. “And this place met and exceeded our
expectations.”
The Kyoto portion of the trip was
essentially an incentive within an incentive,
reserved for the 160 top qualifiers in the
main group of 360, making the total trip a
nine-day event for the top qualifiers, members of the NWLI Champions Club. Attendees on that portion of the trip took the “bullet train,” which covers the 350-mile route
from Tokyo to Kyoto in two hours and 15
minutes.
Once in Kyoto—an ancient city of 1.5
million with more than 2,000 historic temples and shrines—the attendees had a reception at another tranquil garden, The Garden
Oriental Kyoto, a 450,000-square-foot garden and restaurant complex that includes the
+
Transportation
Tips
A new sightseeing bus, The Tokyo
Shitamachi Bus, which goes to
major tourism attractions such
as the Imperial Palace and Ueno
Park, began operation last spring,
offering an economical way to
see city highlights. The bus leaves
every 30 minutes from Tokyo
Station and costs ¥200 (approximately US$2.)
The Kyoto CB offers the Kyoto
Convention Pass, which provides
discounts on local transit systems.
mpiweb.org
pp 56-58 Dest Tokyo-Kyoto 0309.indd 57
57
2/22/09 10:57:58 AM
Garden Oriental Kyoto
Event attendees enjoying a function in Kyoto.
KYOTO CB (2)
Joint Tokyo-Kyoto Incentives and
Meeting Marketing
The joint Tokyo and Kyoto incentive trip
by NWLI is particularly significant to the two
cities involved because the Kyoto and Tokyo
bureaus are currently engaged in a worldwide joint marketing effort, the first ever by
two Japanese cities, according to Kent.
“We realize that right now, because of the
world economic situation, it might be viewed
by some as not the ideal time to be marketing to incentive and meeting groups to come
halfway around the world to visit us,” Kent
said. “But we also feel that if we do our
work well and show our value as compelling
destinations, we will be laying groundwork
for later this year, or 2010 or whenever the
world economy gets better and groups are
looking for great new destinations.”
Kazuko Toda, director of convention promotions for the Tokyo CVB, says that right
now is certainly a value period for those
groups who do have the budget to consider
visiting.
“Like most cities, we have had cancellations or postponements of conventions and
incentives coming from outside the country,
so there is definitely competitive value to be
found here for hotel room nights and services that are components of those events,”
she said.
Kent says the joint marketing effort has
something of an MPI heritage, in that the
two Japanese bureaus first came together for
the 2007 MPI World Education Congress
(WEC) in Montréal, and a marketing partnership was born. He says Kyoto and Tokyo
will market jointly at the 2009 WEC and
also at this year’s IMEX show in Europe.
Hulsey says that with the economy not
withstanding, groups like hers will undoubtedly be attracted to Tokyo and Kyoto as the
ultimate solution for the “been-there, donethat” syndrome.
“As far as Japan goes, our attendees had
certainly never been there and done that,”
she said. “And our feedback shows they are
now really glad they did.”
former villa of Japanese artist Seiho Takeuchi
and includes a gallery of his works.
The Kyoto attendees also visited Arashiyama, a pleasant, tourist-attractive town on
the outskirts of the city, with shrines and
shops and a view of Mount Arashiyama as
a backdrop; Kinkakuji, or the Temple of the
Golden Pavilion, a famous structure dating
from the Muromachi Period (1336-1573)
and included on UNESCO’s World Heritage
List; the Heian Jingu Shrine, which consists
of four gardens around the shrine, representative of Meiji-era (1868-1912) garden
design; and the Nijo Castle, built in 1603,
a base of power for the shoguns that ruled
ROWLAND STITELER is a freelance writer
Japan for almost 300 years.
based in Crystal Beach, Fla.
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0309_059.indd 59
2/12/09 1:34:11 PM
+
What’s New
in Prague
Prague is situated on both banks of the Vltava
River and connected by the historic Charles Bridge.
CZECH TOURISM (3)
Making the
Connection
BY ANGELA CHIARELLO
“MY MAIN CHALLENGE WAS NOT BEING
FAMILIAR WITH THE CITY, not knowing
geography or language,” said Natalie Chartier, a project manager for Gray Consulting
International Meetings & Incentives (GCI
Meetings), who was enlisted to plan a pharmaceutical advisory board meeting for 25
attendees from around the globe in Prague.
The meeting of high-level physicians, on
topics related to medical education and the
development of pharmaceutical products,
would take place at the InterContinental
Praha. “Global Events Partners connected
+
Fun Facts
In his 1921 play R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal
Robots), Czech writer Karel Capek
introduced and popularized the word
“robot,” which comes from a Slavic root
meaning “to work.”
Albert Einstein was a physics professor
in Prague from 1911 to 1912.
Charles University in Prague opened
in 1347.
60
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me with Motiv Prague and they filled in the
blanks and bridged the gap in my knowledge. They answered all my questions about
Prague.”
With more than 70 affiliates worldwide,
Global Events Partners’ network of DMCs
helps planners connect to the right local
supplier for the job. Each DMC in the network has been screened and selected based
on track record, service and reputation.
Motiv Prague and Project Manager
Dita Hokuvova provided valuable support
throughout the planning process. Over and
over, GCI Meetings’ planners commented
on how professional and responsive the
Motiv Prague team was. In addition to
the preparations, Motiv Prague provided
one of its veterans on site to partner with
Chartier and stay on top of all the details
in real time.
“We were asked to arrange an onsite
meeting manager,” Hokuvova said. “We
chose one of our staff members who is
very experienced with meetings. Our onsite
meeting manager supported the GCI Meetings planners, checking the food and beverage arrangements and schedules for each
A variety of hotels offer plenty
of pricing options in the city
center. New properties
(many of which are in historic
buildings) include Kempinski
Hybernská Prague; Rocco
Forte’s The Augustine Hotel
(opens in March); Four Seasons Hotel Prague; Clarion
Hotel Prague Old Town;
Mandarin Oriental, Prague;
and the Sheraton Prague
Charles Square Hotel (opens
in March).
The Prague Congress
Center was completed in
2000 and has played host
to the Annual Meeting of the
International Monetary Fund
and World Bank and the
2002 NATO Summit.
Prague Castle was founded in
the 9th century and is a monumental complex of palatial, official, ecclesiastical, fortification
and residential buildings from
all architectural periods.
03.09
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+
Transportation Tip
A short drive from the city center,
Prague-Ruzyne Airport is modern and
convenient. The facility was recognized in
the 2007 World Airport Awards and was
recently voted by passengers as the best
airport in Central and Eastern Europe.
Prague’s Old Town Square dates to the 12th century and has
witnessed some of Prague’s most important events.
day, and assisted in keeping everything on
time and running smoothly.”
The onsite meeting manager worked
behind the scenes with the GCI Meetings
team and also offered attendees a unique
dose of Prague hospitality. In addition to
being a skilled meeting manager, Motiv’s
onsite professional is also a tour guide and
extremely knowledgeable about the city.
“The onsite staff person [Hokuvova]
booked for us was a terrific ambassador
for the city. She was very helpful, really
welcoming and gave anecdotes about the
city when appropriate,” Chartier said. “She
really helped to welcome our attendees to
Prague.”
This sort of specialized “concierge”
gave attendees the kind of extra attention
that makes them feel like VIPs and makes
the destination more accessible. It’s also a
great way to share a meeting’s location with
attendees even when there’s very little time
in the program for sightseeing.
This GCI Meetings program—like more
and more meetings nowadays—didn’t focus
as much on the destination as the business
at hand. According to Susan Paschkes,
CMP, GCI Meetings’ sourcing manager for
the event, the group had to be in-and-out.
“The nature of planning medical education meetings for the pharmaceutical industry is such that we’re not focusing as much
on the cultural aspects of the destination as
we are on the business reasons that make
a particular destination the right one for a
time.) Its situation in central Europe makes
it easy to get to from just about anywhere.
And the city’s compact size makes it easy
to move from place to place (and saves on
transfers).
“The city center is filled with restaurants
all in walking distance of most hotels,”
Hokuvova said. “If groups want to include
some sightseeing, most of the historical sites
are in the city center. A two-hour walking
tour can take you past many of Prague’s
attractions without need for coach.”
Hokuvova says another way planners
are mixing business with culture is to utilize
the city’s palaces and castles for meetings
and events. Many of Prague’s unique and
historic sites—gardens, villas, castles and
fortresses—are available for hire.
In addition to the sights, Prague’s people
are warm and welcoming, making it easy
for planners to do business in this historic
city.
“Most people speak a good deal of English and are very welcoming,” Chartier said.
“That is something that makes me want to
come back. Of all the European cities I’ve
done meetings in over the last few months,
Prague was one of the easiest to deal with in
terms of the service standards. They made it
easy to do business there.
“I would definitely bring a group back,”
Chartier continued. “It was a good location for our attendees—accessibility was a
big draw for us. The hotel was very easy
to work with and understood the standards
that we were looking for. The whole city
was friendly, accommodating and welcoming. Prague is an ideal location for business
groups.”
meeting,” Paschkes noted.
The group did have one evening to experience the city, and Motiv’s Hokuvova and
GCI Meetings’ Chartier managed to find
a way to make it count. They selected a
unique restaurant housed in a 13th-century
building in the city’s center. The short walk
from the hotel to the venue took attendees
through Prague’s historical and cultural
center, enmeshing them in the city’s rich history if only for a moment.
“The highlight for our attendees was the
offsite dinner at the Seven Sisters restaurant,” Chartier said. “The walk there was
fabulous. It was a nice fall night, and it had
just snowed a little—it was beautiful.”
Motiv’s onsite meeting manager served as
a guide, leading the group through Prague’s
Old Town Square, past historic buildings
dating to the 12th century and the famous
15th-century Astronomical Clock.
“We chose an interesting place to have
dinner—a 13th-century building with
vaulted ceilings, frescos, an open fireplace
and a live gypsy band,” Hokuvova said.
“Since it was a 10-minute walk from the
hotel, there was no need for transfers. On
the way to the restaurant, the guide used the
time to tell attendees about Prague.”
Prague’s location and size are some of the
key things that make it a desirable meeting
location. (In fact, in GEP’s Annual Survey of
Worldwide DMC Partners, Prague emerged
as this year’s “hot destination” and made
ANGELA CHIARELLO is a New York-based
the “most-often mentioned list” for the first freelance writer.
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A Defining
Moment
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C
ooling October winds
last fall ushered in
salacious
media
stories of corporate
travel “atrocities” and
meeting cancelations
by
hundreds
of
corporations. Apprehensive as news
worsened, Christine Duffy of Maritz
Travel called Roger Dow, chairman of the
U.S. Travel Association, to rally support
from one of the industry’s most powerful
organizations.
Those urgent conversations would
In December, a group of the industry’s
flagship organizations (including MPI)
formed the progressive Meeting, Event
and Incentive Travel Coalition and placed
retainers on marketing and lobbying firms
in Washington, D.C., to fight back against
a biased media corps and pressure from
U.S. lawmakers.
The coalition, led by Dow and the U.S.
Travel Association (formerly the Travel
Industry Association), now provides
a singular voice for the industry and
communicates the sector’s message to the
government, the media and any number
Bad press & misinformed
lawmakers create an
opportunity for a unified
industry to prove its
worth and help
its members succeed.
BY JESSIE STATES
eventually lead to an unprecedented collaboration among meeting organizations
and associations, an alliance that just
might give the industry the backing it
needs to not only combat fallacious media
reports and hollow congressional inquiries
but to also assemble the data to prove its
worth to corporate executives and bring
meeting professionals to the c-suite.
In the coming months as congressmen
interrogated executives from companies
that had received emergency financial
bailouts, Dow and Duffy forged an
unparalleled alliance, working urgently
to unite an industry long fragmented into
regional and sector factions.
of quasi-related groups from corporate
boardrooms to airlines to chambers of
commerce to unions. Industry attorney
Dr. Jonathan Howe of Chicago-based law
firm Howe & Hutton says the goal is to
generate recognition in Washington, D.C.,
and beyond for the industry, its goals and
its economic influence.
In mid-January, MPI and a group of
industry leaders met at the Professional
Convention Management Association’s
annual conference in New Orleans,
committed to an inter-association task
force and agreed to raise US$1 million
through their foundations to conduct an
exhaustive 12- to 18-month study of the
U.S. meeting industry.
The MPI Foundation just last year
completed a comprehensive report on the
industry in Canada, finding that the sector
contributed an overall output of CAD$71
billion and fueled 235,500 full-time jobs.
The report was heralded around the world
as a first-step initiative toward global
recognition. Now industry associations
will generate data for the U.S. market, and
the results will come none too soon, as the
public looks to make meetings a scapegoat
for corporate greed.
Meanwhile, media pressure found its
way to Washington, D.C. Lawmakers
began to misconstrue both the purpose
and advantage of meetings and events in
corporate America. On Jan. 6, Sen. Dianne
Feinstein (D-Calif.) introduced the TARP
Transparency Reporting Act (Senate Bill
133), demanding accountability from
financial institutions receiving federal
rescue funds. (TARP stands for Troubled
Assets Relief Program, and most U.S. banks
and asset management firms have received
some modicum of funding.) If passed,
the act would require the U.S. treasury
secretary to develop corporate governance
principles and ethical guidelines for TARP
recipients, specifically regarding “the
hosting, sponsorship or payments for
conferences and events.”
On Feb. 4, the U.S. Treasury issued
regulations on executive compensation
for bailed-out companies, which included
somewhat vague restrictions on meetings
and events and pre-empted the legislation
proposed by Feinstein a month earlier.
“The boards of directors of companies
receiving exceptional assistance from
the government must adopt companywide policies on any expenditures related
to aviation services, office and facility
renovations, entertainment and holiday
parties and conferences and events. This
policy is not intended to cover reasonable
expenditures for sales conferences, staff
development, reasonable performance
incentives and other measures tied to a
company’s normal business operations.”
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The next day, the U.S. Senate approved
by voice vote an amendment proposed by
Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) making treasury
department review of bonuses and incentives
for TARP executives retroactive.
Duffy says the treasury gave industry
leaders about three days to issue their own
guidelines. She and Dow immediately
coordinated efforts among the associations
that had met in New Orleans, drafting a set of
strategic regulations for meetings and events
held by TARP recipients. Dow presented the
guidelines to the treasury department and
released them to the national press on Feb.
9 in Washington, D.C., while attendees at
MPI’s MeetDifferent in Atlanta contemplated
the industry’s future.
MPI’s event moved attendees and online
viewers across the globe, commencing with
an unprecedented One+ Real Time opening
general session that merged theories and perceptions from international economist Don
Reynolds with specific initiatives and ideas
from the very people behind the industry’s
singular collaboration. An impromptu
session with Duffy and Howe drew hundreds
of attendees, eager and anxious about their
futures and the future of their industry.
By and large, leaders at MeetDifferent
advocated cautious optimism, effusing that
the no-doubt turbulent present presents an
unparalleled opportunity for the industry to
define itself and its invaluable economic and
business contributions.
The proposed guidelines for TARP
beneficiaries spoke for themselves, requiring
bailed-out companies to ensure that 1)
conferences or events with costs exceeding
$75,000 be supported by written business
cases with specific purposes and positive
returns on objective; 2) no more than 10
percent of incentive attendees be senior
executives from host organizations; and 3)
total annual expenses for meetings, events
and incentive/recognition travel not exceed
15 percent of total sales and marketing spend.
(See Page 37 for a full list of guidelines.)
Duffy expects that non-TARP-funded
organizations may also adopt the regulations,
though these businesses may alter the metrics
based on industry and company size as well
as market sector. And Howe says that the
regulations could spread to any organizations
working with government agencies—not just
companies that received emergency lending.
Global industry professionals continue to eye
their U.S. peers, watching for any regulations
(like Sarbanes-Oxley) that might easily jump
borders.
Meanwhile, the U.S. industry is working
to collaborate and rally like never before.
Duffy calls the events of the past months a
“defining moment for the industry,” offering
a singular opportunity to speak with one
voice and collect the proof necessary to prove
the vast power of meetings and events on the
national—and ultimately global—economy.
“Meetings are the primary way for
businesses to facilitate discussion, and to lump
this industry under the cloud of executive
greed is wrong and unfair,” Duffy said. “The
reality is that we were not prepared to react
to the crisis in a speedy manner. But, as in
anything like this, there is always a silver
lining. The opportunity is now there to
contribute in a different way.”
Howe said it is impossible to unscramble
the egg. “We just need to make sure no more
eggs get broken.” But in order to protect,
foster and build upon what remains, the
industry will have to create meaningful
dialogue with the fourth estate—the press.
It won’t be easy…
DEALING WITH THE MEDIA
AFTER BAILOUT, AIG EXECUTIVES
HEAD TO RESORT alleges an early October
WashingtonPost.com headline. Beneath it,
anonymous readers sound off against the
audacity of AIG executives, who had just
received $85 billion in credit from the Federal
Reserve Bank of New York.
“Thanks for the facials and salt rubs,
U.S. taxpayers,” reads one post from a user
identified as AIG VP. “They were thoroughly
enjoyable.” Other readers protested
the “gullibility of Congress,” “immoral
businessmen,” free market capitalism and the
“fat cats” on Wall Street.
“Somebody better go to jail over this,”
wrote tiredofpaying. “I’m sick of spending
my money for someone’s booze and drugs
(or brandy and massages)—there’s not much
difference in the people who gladly take from
us working people and expect more.”
But the event wasn’t an executive retreat.
It was a meeting held by one of AIG’s
subsidiaries for independent life insurance
This Just In…
What your leaders are saying about the state of the industry
“At a time when the U.S. Department
of Labor reports a loss of nearly 200,000
travel-related jobs in 2008 and U.S.
Commerce Department data predict a loss
of an additional 247,000 travel-related
jobs in 2009, it is critical that every effort
be made to protect beneficial meetings
and events. Our associations are hopeful
that with stringent, transparent standards
in place, policymakers and the business
community can embrace meetings, events
and incentive travel as responsible economic
stimulants.”
“What was the inauguration? That was
probably a $150 million meeting where the
president stood up before his people around
the world and communicated a vision and
talked about his strategy of how he’s going
to turn the country around. And he asked
for people’s help to align with that vision.
How is that any different from a business
company CEO and head of sales needing to
do the same thing for their employees and
customers?”
—Christine Duffy, president, CEO of Maritz Travel
“I’ve been in this business now for over
20 years, and I can tell you that every time
our industry has been challenged by crisis
or economic adversity, we came through
it better than ever before. And we did it
because we practice what we preach.
We reached out. We connected to new
ideas that made us better professionals.
We connected to marketplaces that built
our businesses. And we connected to
relationships that protected and grew our
industry.”
—Bruce MacMillan, CA, president, CEO of MPI
—Roger Dow, president, CEO of the
U.S. Travel Association
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agents. Only 10 AIG employees even
attended the trip, and none were executives
from headquarters. If the meeting had been
terminated, the company would have lost
out on key strategic business initiatives; the
city (Monarch Beach, Calif.) would have
lost thousands in tourism dollars and hotel
taxes; and taxi drivers, wait staff and hotel
housekeepers would have lost shifts, income
and potentially jobs.
Duffy recalls that corporations were
not canceling meetings because of the
economy or lack of need, but because of
public perception and fear of governmental
reprisal. AIG certainly wasn’t out of hot
water. On Oct. 10, the company canceled
all nonessential conferences and meetings,
travel and overhead. In the coming weeks
it slashed more than 160 events. Still, an
early November meeting in Phoenix drew
national ire, despite the fact that it was a
seminar for independent financial planners
with 90 percent of costs paid by sponsors
and attendees.
On Nov. 11, AIG Chief Edward M. Liddy
issued a statement decrying the press coverage
of the strategic event. The 150 attendees had
generated about $200 million in revenue for
AIG that year alone. “This conference was
approved because it provides the kind of
communication we must conduct with the
people who sell our products if we are to
be successful and repay the U.S. taxpayer,”
Liddy said.
AIG wasn’t the only company insistently
hacking at its corporate meeting schedule.
Goldman Sachs, U.S. Bancorp and Primerica
are among hundreds of companies that
slashed events in the coming months—when,
in fact, research shows that 53 percent of
marketing and sales managers think event
marketing is the best way to accelerate and
deepen relationships with target audiences
(EventView 2009, MPI).
“Meetings and events drive business results
and are critical to rebuilding the economy,”
said Bruce MacMillan, CA, president and
CEO of MPI. “By restricting businesses from
prudently using meetings and events as part
of their business strategies, we are paralyzing
them and inhibiting economic recovery.”
Nevertheless, in November, planners
predicted that their meeting budgets would
fall by 6 percent this year (FutureWatch
2009, MPI). Research released by the
MPI Cares
As the industry grapples for recognition
in the face of ill-informed lawmakers and
a biased press corps, MPI has taken on
internal and external leadership roles in
the fight to provide value for its community
members.
The MPI Foundation—which has raised
and reinvested more money than any other
industry group—has pledged to help its
peers raise US$1 million toward funding
for a U.S. meeting impact study, and MPI
has made its voice and the voice of its
members heard as part of the Meeting,
Event and Incentive Travel Coalition, tasked
with creating a marketing and lobbying arm
for the industry.
But long-time members know that MPI
has been equipping its community with the
knowledge and tools it needs to survive
and thrive for years. And as the economy
darkened late last year, MPI implemented
three distinctive program tracts to help its
community’s continued success in the new
year.
SUPPORTING MEMBERS
Career Connections offers a marketplace
for employment opportunities. Members
can post resumés and search available
jobs or post open positions at a significant
discount. Internships for the student
community are posted for free.
Renewal Extensions help members who
have lost their jobs for up to six months,
allowing the community to take advantage
of MPI networking opportunities and Career
Connections.
MPI Foundation Scholarships support
the student community through tuition
assistance, and full-time members can
apply for grants to attend MPI programs
and events as well as pay costs for the
CMP or CMM certifications.
Students-in-Transition offers a more
than 50 percent savings over regular
membership rates in the first three years
following a student’s graduation.
Association of Corporate Travel Executives
in February indicates that 71 percent of
member companies will spend less on travel
in 2009.
But the media remain unconvinced. In late
October, Wells Fargo and Co. was forced to
accept $25 billion in the form of a preferred
stock purchase by then-Secretary of the
Treasury Henry Paulson. The company had
not asked for funds. Some three months later
on Feb. 3, the Associated Press pounced,
SUPPORTING CHAPTERS
Recruiting Help comes through MPI’s fivewave e-mail campaign for chapter prospect
member lists. Another such campaign is
scheduled for April.
The Member Care Center has enacted
a new renewal message and intensive
outreach project, and an aggressive
program for renewing and reinstating
members has been launched and will run
through the end of the year.
MPI Foundation Grants are available to
support chapter initiatives for leadership
development, research projects,
scholarship programs, development
of educational programs and building
community.
SUPPORTING THE
INDUSTRY
A Call-to-Action issued by Bruce
MacMillan, CA, president and CEO of
MPI, has called for business leaders to
reconsider cutting events and meetings.
MacMillan has been a leading voice in the
formation of industry collaborations to
promote and foster the industry—including
the recently formed Meeting, Event and
Incentive Travel Coalition.
Business Barometers take the pulse of
business conditions bi-monthly, surveying a
panel of industry leaders.
FutureWatch 2009, sponsored by
American Express, provides a full report to
members and the industry with a critical
forecast of the anticipated business climate
for 2009 and the actual business realities
of 2008.
EventView 2009, a product of the MPI
Foundation, is the longest-running annual
survey of corporate sales and marketing
executives for the meeting industry. Its
findings continue to showcase the value
of events in relation to other marketing
channels. (See Page 82)
running a sensational and misleading piece:
BAILED-OUT WELLS FARGO PLANS
VEGAS CASINO JUNKET. The so-called
junket? A four-day business meeting and
recognition event for Wells Fargo team
members who—in 2008 alone—produced
$230 billion in mortgage loans for U.S.
homeowners. The company promptly
canceled the event to avoid further backlash.
C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 8 3
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2.0 411
66
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03.09
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Graduated to Web 2.0?
Lose you
already? Whether you “tweet” on a regular basis or
have never used “google” as a verb, let’s get your feet
wet and discover how to effectively use the Web’s latest offerings.
Here’s a quick lesson: The first era of the Internet
was all about sending and getting information from
one source to another. Sending e-mail, chatting with
pals, surfing the Web, shopping—a user searched for
information and communicated in a linear way. While
these things remain integral parts of daily life, today’s
Internet introduces a collaborative feel to the way we
communicate and exchange information. The Web
has evolved into a place where we not only get and
pass along information, but we also contribute.
A complete guide to these trends and applications
would fill several volumes and require updating on
a daily basis—the goal here is to review the most
active Web. 2.0 components that, when used well,
can increase efficiency in your professional and personal life, create buzz for your business and events
and innovate the way you meet, communicate and
network.
BLOG IT UP
If you look solely at coined dates,
Weblogs (blogs) are really a predecessor of the Web 2.0 movement.
Blogs started appearing in the
late 1990s as essentially a journaling tool to document thoughts,
descriptions and commentary on
events and post pictures, videos
and graphics. More recently, blogs
have morphed into forums that
reach well beyond the personal
diaries they were initially perceived as.
The uses are endless. Blogs can
be private or public, can restrict
contributors to a single person or
be open to anyone to post content
or comment on material and can
take on any look or layout imaginable. Families and friends use them
to stay connected, news services
use them as means for outreach
and opinion forums, corporations
utilize blogs both internally and
externally and recent elections
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exhibited how blogs could be used
effectively to engage supporters.
The platform is an easy and
effective way to garner interest in events and keep attendees,
prospects, speakers and planners
updated. Posting updates about
the event, such as session topics and event promotions, may be
easier via a blog than altering an
event site. Blogs can even allow
speakers to collaborate and connect with attendees in order to
better develop their sessions to
meld with attendee interests.
Here’s a way to get active in
the blogosphere.
1. You can install blog software
on your Web site (the links to your
blog entries from other bloggers
are good for search engine visibility). It requires a bit of techie
knowledge, but it’s not a big project for your webmaster. An even
simpler way to enter the blogosphere is through a blog application. These make it easy to get
TWITTER
Twitter says it is a service to
communicate and stay connected
through quick, frequent answers
to one simple question: “What are
you doing?”
6:15 PM Feb 3rd from web
Of all the 2.0 apps, Twitter seems
to raise the question, “What is
it good for?” most often. Some
correspondents are not terribly
kind.
7:38 PM Feb 3rd from web
Then we started digging, and
began following a few posters
(guess we shouldn’t call them
twits) who shared items of interest.
5:00 AM Feb 4th from web
During a recent hurricane, our local
paper used Twitter to report on the
devastated areas. With no power,
it was some of our only news.
5:09 AM Feb 4th from web
Then we started seeing industry
pals advertising that they were
on Twitter, and we signed up to
“follow” their “tweets.”
5:42 AM Feb 4th from web
Admittedly, Twitter seemed
the least attractive of social
networking sites. It seemed so “all
about me” and non-collaborative.
8:02 PM Feb 3rd from mobile
In Twitter, a tweet is a posted
message of fewer than 140
characters, short and sweet—
perfect for an SMS message.
5:43 AM Feb 4th from Facebook
Something the kids were doing,
but not a professional vehicle.
Some of the messages are inane.
Who cares?
9:30 PM Feb 3rd from Facebook
your ideas out to the world. There
are several blogging programs
available, so first you will need
to choose a provider. Any search
engine will return numerous possibilities, so poke around and select
one that suites your needs. For a
recent family blog we put together,
we chose Blogger (www.blogger.
com), a Google product.
2. Create an account. Supply
a few pieces of pertinent information, and you’re official.
3. Create the look and feel of
your blog site. Depending on your
proclivities, this could be the easiest or most difficult part of the
process. (Don’t worry, you can
always change it later.) There are
a multitude of template selections, or you can design your own.
Of course, if the blog is tied to an
event or business, stick with those
styles and branding requirements.
4. Most blogging programs
offer settings to help control privacy levels. For our family blog,
When you set up your Twitter
account, you need to choose how
public you want your updates
we chose to make the blog private,
which limits access to the site
to only approved members and
restricts postings to only those set
to “author” status. These settings
can be manipulated to varying levels depending on what is needed.
5. Click on the “post” link, and
now you’re ready to start posting!
Most will take you to a WYSIWYG
(what you see is what you get) editor, which will help you type and
format your message. Submit it,
and you’ve entered the world of
blogging.
While step No. 5 is technically the final step to your first
post, it should not end your blogging career. Blogs can easily get
outdated, and outdated blogs are
worthless. Keep your blog current
with regular posts. If you are relying on a group of contributors to
add to the blog, remind them regularly or create a posting schedule.
03.09
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(tweets) to be. It’s not a contest.
5:47 AM Feb 4th from Facebook
If you don’t select “Protect Your
Updates” anyone can follow you.
It might fit your plans perfectly,
or you might want to be more
selective.
5:50 AM Feb 4th from web
There are three main ways to find
people on Twitter. Search Twitter
using names or locations, send
e-mail invites or search other
systems.
5:54 AM Feb 4th from web
Twitter can search your Gmail,
Yahoo, Hotmail or other address
books and invite anyone it finds.
5:58 AM Feb 4th from web
Look closely, and you’ll start
seeing “Follow Me On Twitter”
everywhere—in e-mail signatures,
Web sites, blogs, Facebook,
MySpace.
6:13 AM Feb 4th from web
Using Technology Feature 0309b.indd 69
Search.twitter.com lets you look
at all tweets trending toward a
specific subject. This can lead to
some great people to follow.
6:25 AM Feb 4th from web
Other account options let you
change Twitter’s looks. You can
add/change a picture and select
from several backgrounds or design
your own.
11:54 AM Feb 4th from mobile
As you choose to follow other
Twitterers, you opt to receive their
updates on your cell or not—they’ll
be on your personal page anyway.
8:02 AM Feb 4th from web
Truly, Twitter is a very simple
micro-blog. We keep looking for the
bigger picture, but the whole thing
is just a bunch of snapshots.
12:02 PM Feb 4th from mobile
You can always decide not to
follow someone later. Those that
really add to the conversation
we’ve added to our list to send text
messages.
You can expand on it, but that’s
not necessary. We connected it to
our RSS feed and Facebook site, so
those are all synched.
11:35 AM Feb 4th from mobile
10:59 AM Feb 5th from mobile
Make sure you’re adding to the
conversation, too. Answering
“What are you doing?” is OK, but
“What matters to you?” is a better
question.
RSS (Really Simple Syndication)
allows you to aggregate
information from many sites
through subscriptions to “feeds.”
6:31 PM Feb 5th from web
11:38 AM Feb 4th from mobile
By adding the Twitter “feed” we
can view those posts, along with
other blogs, mainstream news and
even Facebook entries in one place.
6:58 PM Feb 5th from web
Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and
Plaxo, some of the most popular
social networking sites, all ask
“What are you doing?” Twitterstyle.
3:49 AM Feb 6th from web
And Twitter has millions of
subscribers sending tens of millions
of tweets weekly, so they must
be onto something. Beware...it’s
addictive.
4:24 AM Feb 6th from web
(By the way, if you’re wondering
about our choppy prose in this
section, each entry is a tweet
limited to 140 characters.)
5:20 AM Feb 6th from web
How tweet it is!
8:36 AM Feb 6th from mobile
C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 8 4
2/22/09 2:06:15 PM
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Unplugged
and In-Tune
It’s day two of your company’s annual executive
retreat, a time when the board of directors and
VPs steal away for several days to discuss where
the business is headed. Of course, since you’re
just so damned good, you’ve picked an ideal
Venues That
Lack Technology
Can Make for
Ideal Meetings—
But Beware the
Addicts
destination for the occasion—secluded, pristine,
with upscale accommodations and a killer steak-
BY H U N T E R H O L C O M B E
house. Yet this particular resort is a bit different
from what you’re used to. No Internet access. No
mobile phone reception. No boardrooms with
digital projectors. And—the cherry on the cake—
there aren’t even televisions in the guest rooms!
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Before a cold sweat soaks your forehead, take a closer look at what is happening. The chief technology officer and two
product managers are perched around a
fire pit, sipping wine and chatting amiably
about the response to their latest product
release. Over at the bar, the VP of communications and director of sales are playing
cards—and actually seem to be enjoying
each other’s company (even though they’d
never particularly gotten along). And yesterday the CEO led one of the most productive and engaging brainstorming sessions you’ve ever witnessed. For almost
48 hours, not a single mobile phone has
ruptured the silence…
For today’s workforce, modern gadgetry has become
both a diversion and a drug; take it away provisionally and there’s a sense of peace and focus, withhold
it for too long and the withdrawal symptoms can
become severe.
removal of technology is potent and dramatic enough to create a bubble of distraction-free nirvana, but it can also turn
against you if applied to the wrong meeting. For today’s workforce, modern gadgetry has become both a diversion and a
drug; take it away provisionally and there’s
a sense of peace and focus, withhold it for
too long and the withdrawal symptoms
TAKE AWAY THEIR TOYS…
can become severe.
FOR A WHILE
“You have to really know your group,”
The above scenario is pretty idyllic. The
Low-Tech Venues Feature 0309.indd 72
said Patricia Zollman, CMP, regional
director for HelmsBriscoe, a global meeting procurement company. “The timing
and the length of stay is very important.”
Zollman, who is based in the San Francisco Bay area, recently sent a group of 15
physicians to a remote, upscale cabin in the
Canadian wilderness near the Alaskan border. The objectives were threefold—hash
C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 8 8
2/22/09 12:38:41 PM
Can’t Wait? Mitigate
Athough measurable gains can be made by abstaining from technology for a few
days, it’s rare to find a group that can go completely cold turkey. Depending on
their needs, there are ways to “play God” and bring certain levels of communication with you.
these handy devices can be used anywhere in the
Skype and Other Internet-based
Calling Software. Not only do they charge
world, provided they have line-of-sight with the sky (so
a fraction of what standard international phone calls
no underground bunker meetings). Not only are they
cost, Internet-based calling services are incredibly
perfect for that occasional check-in with the office or
handy and easy to use. Download Skype for free to
a goodnight to the kids, they can also be used with
your laptop, and buy a cheap headset with a micro-
laptops for Internet connection (though not lightning
phone. For static-free calls, however, you will need a
fast). Many remote resorts can rent them to you on-
fairly strong broadband connection.
Satellite Phones. As the name implies,
premises, but depending on the amount of use it may
be cheaper to bring one with you, if available.
Portable Cell-Phone Towers.
You
don’t need to be in bed with the Federal Communi-
Calling Cards. Mobile phones might be ren-
cation Commission to get special cell-phone recep-
dered useless at out-of-the-way resorts, but there’s
tion. As Patricia Zollman, CMP, regional director for
a good chance there will at least be a landline phone.
HelmsBriscoe, did for one corporate group, you can
These fees can be exorbitant, but the problem can be
ameliorated with a single pre-paid calling card (with
“rent” small, portable cell-phone towers
to boost or establish reception at
some out-of-the-way destinations.
plenty of minutes).
Keep in mind that you will only
Unleash Your Laptop.
They can
have service for that one car-
do almost anything these days. If you’re wor-
rier, and you have to be close
ried about a lack of presentation equipment,
consider what is possible with portable technol-
enough to another tower to pass
on the signal.
ogy. You can bring a larger laptop with a 17-inch
screen for smaller presentations, or copy
PowerPoint files onto a dozen
cheap flash drives, so everyone
can follow along with their
own laptops. Your attendees can later use these
flash drives to swap
info back and forth
during the retreat—
without requiring
e-mail access. If
anyone wants to display
Web pages at a venue that lacks
Internet, ask the company Web guru
to download them for you in advance.
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Divining
VALUE
Dr. Mitzi Montoya measures the
perceived value of virtual reality.
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PVP is the whole idea of projecting
yourself into the [virtual] environment.
My interview with Dr. Mitzi Montoya, a leading
researcher in computer-based virtual environments,
is set in a real coffee shop, face to face.
The irony is not
lost on me.
B Y PAT R I C K J ON E S
Ideally, our meeting would take place in
the online realm that garners much of her
academic focus these days—“in world”—
however, my not-yet-birthed avatar would
probably be technically challenged and keep
her experienced digital alter ego waiting for
days.
Online virtual worlds are making great
strides and becoming increasingly “real,”
but the value of face-to-face meetings cannot be duplicated, according to Montoya,
Zelnak professor of marketing innovation
in the Department of Business Management at North Carolina State University in
Raleigh, N.C.
Montoya’s current research and publishing pursuits focus on measuring the
effectiveness of virtual worlds as a valuable
business tool. She and colleague Dr. Anne
Massey, dean’s research professor in information systems at Indiana University, have
developed a measurement scale to assess the
perceived reality and value of interaction
in virtual worlds—something they call Perceived Virtual Presence (PVP).
When Montoya and her research team
announced the PVP scale late last year, she
said the more “present” users feel in vir-
tual worlds, the greater the effectiveness of
training, collaboration, education or presentation.
“PVP is the whole idea of projecting
yourself into the [virtual] environment,”
Montoya says, sitting across from me at a
real table over a real cup of coffee in a real
cafe where the aromas cannot be digitally
synthesized. “We talk about it along three
dimensions. We talk about feeling immersed
in the environment or feeling like you are
there. It is also about being absorbed in
whatever task you are supposed to be working on. And then it is being engaged with
the other people so that you have the sense
that the avatar that you are looking at is the
other person that you are working with.
Those are the three dimensions: environment, task and people orientation. There
are measures to those relationships. Technically, how you get there is you ask people a
battery of questions and try to identify the
underlying dimensions that are behind what
people are saying.”
In sports, getting lost in the moment and
performing at your best is commonly called
“being in the zone.” In psychology, it’s
called “flow”—a state of mind that leads to
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objects interacting together and to have a it, but if it is not well designed, then you
sense of being there. That is the whole idea completely missed the mark.”
Engineering and marketing must comof presence. It makes a difference in how
municate with each other—product innopeople interact and engage.”
vation is a very interdisciplinary process,
she says.
BACK TO THE FUTURE
“So, by accident, my random [academic
Montoya has been a professor at North
Carolina State University since 1995. She path] led me right to where I needed to be
graduated with an engineering degree from in terms of having the different perspectives
Michigan State University and worked for that you really should have in place to study
a few years in the automotive industry as a innovation as a process and the decision
design engineer before returning to the aca- making in that process.”
Montoya, 40, has spent much of the
demic world.
Her father an electrical engineer, Mon- past two decades researching innovation
toya’s fascination for technology came and new product development. She is at
the forefront of learning how teams make
about naturally.
“He said I could study anything I wan- decisions while utilizing the best available
ted in any of the engineering disciplines,” technological tools.
“As the working world has changed and
Montoya says, grinning. “So he had a
people
have become more
peo
distributed
around the globe
dist
to do
d that work, my primary
are great examples that you see
area
are of research is on virtual
in [gaming] leadership behavior that is
teams,”
Montoya says. “That
tea
exactly what you need in management.
work,
for the most part, has
wo
been
bee supported by traditional
media
such as e-mail and colme
environment that, strong hand in saying I could be any kind laborative software. Artificial environments
frankly, is a waste of engineer I wanted to be as long as I was are simply a new way to support virtual colof time? Compa- an engineer. And I have said the same thing laborations.”
Those not yet familiar with virtual
nies need to know to my eldest son. I think it is great advice.
that information. You can do anything you want out of the worlds may cringe at what sounds like pulp
science fiction. But for those quick to pooThe whole focus college of engineering.”
Montoya returned to Michigan State to poo the new, consider as you’re Googling
of what I look at
is how people work collaboratively and the earn a doctorate in marketing, which, on today that 15 years ago you probably didn’t
first take, seems an unusual blend of aca- anticipate your life revolving around the
best way to do so.”
Montoya reaches for a sip of coffee and demic study to complement her engineering World Wide Web.
“I can frankly tell you that the first time
looks me directly in the eye, highlighting an discipline.
Not so fast, says Montoya, who can I ever saw a virtual world, I thought it was
important point.
“Virtual technologies are certainly not logically walk you through the connections the stupidest thing that I had ever seen,”
better than face to face,” she says. “That and explain precisely how she found her Montoya says, laughing. “However, I will
also tell you that we are looking at the bubis still the richest form of communication. niche and calling.
“If you think about it, a new product or ble of a new generation of the workforce
Setting that aside and, now, looking at how
[virtual worlds] compare to other technolo- service has to be both well designed and it that grew up in the gaming generation, or
gies, you have additional non-verbal cues. has to meet some need in the market,” she whatever you want to call them. This is
And you have a different sense of being says. “The reason we see such high failure their world and this is their environment.”
Montoya’s two sons, 15 and 11, think
there with the other person or avatar rep- rates in product development is because it
resentation, if you will, than you do over could be a great design—brilliant engineer- it’s hilarious that their mother is working
the phone. It is part of the ability to look at ing—but no one wants it. Or people want with virtual worlds—naturally, a relative of
maximum productivity.
“It is the sense of getting lost in the
moment,” Montoya says. “A lot of research
has been done that looks at high-performance athletes. When they flow, and when
they are in the moment, they are not breaking down how they are performing at their
peak. For instance, in basketball, they see
the court and just know where to be and
what to do.”
Read a book and you can visualize and
become absorbed in the story. That’s flow,
she says, and the same concept applies with
virtual worlds.
“So how do you break that perceived
virtual presence down and measure it
and relate it to people working better this
way than other ways? Does it matter or
is it a waste of time? Those are all really
important
questions,”
stions,
tions,
she says. “What iff [a virtual world] is just a flashy
There
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video games—in her research.
“But it is very natural for them. It is very
natural for the younger generations in terms
of how they are comfortable interacting. So
we started studying [virtual worlds] and
what we see is there are some huge benefits
from the collaboration it allows. Collaboration is what most of work is about, right?”
Montoya elaborates on the embrace of
technology by today’s youth—last year, one
of her peers co-wrote an article published in
the Harvard Business Review, “Leadership’s
Online Labs,” that studied gaming behavior
to identify leadership characteristics.
To read “Leadership’s Online Labs,”
published in the Harvard Business
Review, visit the One+ blog at
www.mpioneplus.org.
“It was fascinating,” she says. “There
are great examples that you see in [gaming]
leadership behavior that are exactly what
you need in management. If companies had
some sense, they would pay attention to
that and recruit from the gaming world.”
In fact, leading technology companies
such as IBM, Nortel, Sun Microsystems
and Microsoft have developed their own
proprietary, behind-the-corporate-firewall
virtual worlds that promise to revolutionize the way their global workforces partner
and train.
There are large obstacles, however, for
gaming aficionados expecting to zoom into
the executive ranks.
“It is very early in the acceptance and
understanding of virtual worlds,” Montoya
says. “I did a recent presentation where
most of the CEOs were in their 60s and said,
‘This is crazy. It looks like a waste of time.’
And, you know what, I get that. But it is
what the upcoming and younger workforce
is expecting. The leading-edge tech companies are using this. But the mainstream companies that are not tech-based are not using
it yet. They’ll wait. And there is some value
in that. Because by the time they are ready, can do to simplify that.”
Planners can potentially set up attendees
a more stable and simple solution will be
with unique avatars, passwords and login
available.”
The steady surge in the popularity of col- information.
“There could be a whole new service
laborative virtual environments could have
significant implications for everyone in the business that arises around the ability to
corporate environment, and that includes facilitate your clients’ entrance into and
those in the global meeting and event indus- movement through a virtual event,” Montoya says. “And maybe a virtual event pretry, according to Montoya.
“It is no secret that a lot of companies cedes another live event as a primer. I look
have cut down on travel or cut out travel at it as a way for [meeting and event plancompletely,” Montoya says. “They are ners] to supplement what they are currently
suspending attendance to events and meet- doing.”
ings. So if you are going to have to listen
to an event by teleconference, it is death by THE ROI OF PVP
PowerPoint. Personally, I put my phone on Naysayers to the ultimate success of virtual
mute and focus on other things. It is defi- worlds should start work on developing
nitely more engaging if I can go into a vir- an avatar with a more optimistic outlook.
tual world and there are things for me to do Montoya says that the early results of her
and not just sit and listen. I can do. I can research confirm the burgeoning success of
interact with other people or objects.”
collaborative virtual worlds—and PVP is
Navigating on her laptop with the deft- one of the key cogs in its long-term success.
ness of a professional driver behind the
“A lot of it is about the quality of
wheel of a Ferrari, Montoya demonstrates the experience,” Montoya says. “As a
some of the possibilities in a virtual world. researcher, I break our results down and try
Her avatar strolls into a large conference to say, ‘OK, are there really performance
hall, searches for an available chair and benefits to working this way versus that
takes a seat. A presentation is loaded on the way?’ That is the nature of the studies that
wide screen behind the stage and the event we design. And then you have to step back
is ready to start at its scheduled time. Mon- and say, ‘Are we seeing performance bentoya can turn her avatar to her neighbor efits?’ The short answer is, yes, we are seeand talk shop or discuss the weather.
ing benefits in collaborative efforts through
“I think [virtual worlds] are a comple- this technology.”
mentary technology—a new skill set that
After a non-avatar handshake, Montoya
meeting and event planners need to learn logs off of her laptop, takes a final sip of her
and figure out,” she says. “There are actu- coffee and heads back into the real world to
ally a lot of complications in playing host further her research into the future of virto a virtual event because you have a lot tual worlds.
of people of different skill sets
PATRICK JONES is a
that might want
freelance writer based
to come. So
now, instead of
outside of Raleigh, N.C.
arranging
air
travel and hotels,
you are arranging avatars. It is a non-complicated process to design your own avatar,
but it is a huge hindrance to people just getting started. There are things that [planners]
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Solution Time
ONLINE
CONTENT
Whether or not you were able to
attend MPI’s MeetDifferent 2009,
you’ll find new compelling content at
www.mpimeetdifferent.org, where
multimedia coverage of the historic
event continues online.
The complete One+ Real Time
opening general session (OGS) and the
Power Keynote Speakers series are
available free—watch the videos on
your computer or load the audio on an
MP3 player and listen while on the go.
Also, every edition of the One+ Onsite
daily publication can be downloaded in
PDF format.
The audience submitted questions
during the OGS; however, the session
was packed with so much content,
we couldn’t possibly answer them all.
Because there were so many great
questions that we couldn’t get to on
site, we’re answering them online.
And in an exclusive MeetDifferent
video, Deborah Gardner, speaker and
president of Compete Better Now!,
MPI Chairman Larry Luteran stepped on
stage at the One+ Real Time Opening General
Session and looked the audience squarely in
the eye.
“The challenges we face are formidable,”
said Luteran, senior vice president of group
sales and industry relations for Hilton Hotels
Corp. “However, in the midst of crisis, there
is always an opportunity to discover and
implement solutions that will drive positive
change. Rather than merely reacting to the
situation, we have the opportunity to guide
our collective destinies.”
The opening general session’s battle cry—
one that is apropos for all of the industry—
was one of survive and thrive.
“There are basically two things we have
to consider as we face the challenges that
confront each of us. One is short term:
survival,” Luteran said. “The second thing
we want to consider is how we will face the
global conditions that will be our new reality
as we implement the new plans for our
future.”
Luteran then turned over the stage to
world-renowned financial consultant and TV
commentator Terry Savage, who moderated
several discussions about the challenges and
opportunities facing the global meeting and
event industry.
“Today, we want to start a conversation
that will get all of us thinking about
solutions,” said Savage, a syndicated
columnist from the Chicago Sun Times and a
regular commentator for CNN, CNBC, PBS
and NBC. “That is the beauty of a challenge.
It presents us with the opportunity to think
bigger and to share our experiences and best
practices. A good challenge is the father of
solution.”
The One+ Real Time opening general
session at 2009 MeetDifferent in Atlanta
was certainly unique.
“As we sat down to design the session,
we knew that the status quo mix of high
production, entertainment and canned
marketing messages wouldn’t fit into
the experience and environment we
were creating for MeetDifferent,” said
Brooke Bode, MPI director of knowledge
management. “MeetDifferent this year was
all about tackling reality and providing real
gathers attendee insights.
JAMES TKATCH PHOTOGRAPHER,
WWW.TKATCHPHOTO.COM
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Pathable Connects
Attendees
One of the main reasons people
attend a meeting, conference or event
is to network, and meeting the right
people can be very hard. But with
Pathable—an online community for
This year’s MeetDifferent Opening General
Session set the tone for the rest of the
conference.
BY JASON HENSEL
conferences and events—many MPI
MeetDifferent 2009 attendees were
able to explore and communicate with
each other before, during and after
the conference.
According to Alan Baptista, MPI
director of community development,
solutions and vital education and connection
opportunities to an industry in need. Taking
this into account and playing off of the idea
that we were in CNN’s backyard, Atlanta,
we decided to turn the session into a news
show focusing on content, people and stories
based on our flagship publication, One+.
“We carried the theme of ‘Survive and
Thrive’ throughout the program, segmenting
it into two distinct feature stories—‘Survival
of the Fittest’ and ‘A Brave New World,’”
Bode said. “We built the cast of dynamic,
energetic and relevant subject matter
experts. The scripting, timing and staging
were crucial to the success of the show.”
Several business innovators and big
thinkers took part in the discussion including
Don Reynolds, an economist and former
chairman of the board for a US$120 billion
pension and investment fund; Craig Ardis,
director of global event management for
Zimmer Inc.; Walter Akana, a senior-level
career consultant and personal branding
strategist; Mike Gamble, co-founder,
president and CEO of SearchWide; Roger
Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel
Association; former MPI Chairwoman
Christine Duffy, president and CEO of Maritz
Travel; Issa Jouaneh, vice president of global
meeting solutions at American Express;
Grace Dyson, director of training at Turner
Broadcasting; and Cindy D’Aoust, senior vice
president for Maritz Travel and head of the
MPI Future of Meetings task force.
“The hospitality industry has more jobs
than the auto industry, and you haven’t asked
for $35 billion,” Reynolds said to roaring
applause. “Go back and tell your boss, ‘By
laying off jobs, you’re adding to the length of
the recession.’”
Highlighting the session were a series of
questions sent to Savage via text message,
which ranged from “What are the new skills
planners need to learn in this economy?” to
“What degree has the media contributed to
the depression?”
“The inclusion of interactive technologies
such as the live webcasting and text message
questions added to the viral nature and
Internet explosion of the show’s exposure
and impact,” Bode said. “We are extremely
pleased with the final product and hugely
Pathable participation is still going well
after MeetDifferent as an attendee
meeting point to share insight and
conversations about the event.
Pathable statistics during
MeetDifferent 2009 (total activity
from three weeks before and one
week after the event) show that
1,700 profiles were created, 589
participants chose to activate their
Pathable profiles, 7,078 invitations
were sent to connect with and among
the attendees, 1,367 total messages
were sent during the almost four
weeks reported, 85 consecutive
conversations took place in Pathable,
848 bookmarks were created by
participants and 12,056 Pathable
searches were made during the four
weeks reported.
“The use of Pathable as an experiment
of social networking during a major
conference was an overwhelming
success by the engagement numbers,
positive comments and constant
use of those participating in this
experiment,” Baptista said.
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HALL ‘N QUOTES
How do you plan to survive
and thrive in 2009?
“I work for a destination, a CVB, and basically
we are hoping that more short-term business
is going to come and help us out. We live
off room tax, so that’s very important to us
along with filling our hotels, so we’ve got to
get out there and hustle and get any of the
short-term business the best we can.”
Sandy A. Mukitarian
Palm Beach County CVB
“Be smarter with our money. One of the
things we’re trying to do is, of all the
materials that we use, ask how we can reuse
them. We’ve been able to reduce our costs
and still provide everything we have in the
past, but for cheaper and at the same time
helping the environment.”
grateful to our staff, partners and cast
who made it happen.”
Presenters at the session also
included William Pate, president and
CEO of the Atlanta CVB; Rita Plaskett,
MPI Foundation chairwoman; and, of
course, MPI President and CEO Bruce
MacMillan, CA.
“Regulators are now calling
for greater business prudence over
organizational investment in meetings
and events,” MacMillan said. “Well,
guess what? We’ve been equipping
our members with the knowledge and
the tools to make meetings and events
deliver business results for years. That
is one of the founding principles of our
community, and it is why meetings and
events are not the problem—they are
part of the solution.”
The rules are changing, MacMillan
says, but that is what MeetDifferent
is about and why people attended the
conference.
“MPI is here to help you understand
the new rules, relationships and
realities in this brave new world and
then help you connect to the resulting
opportunities,” MacMillan said. “Our
promise is that we will provide you
with the relevant educational content
at every touch-point. We are also
committed to providing opportunities
to build marketplace connections in a
community that you built.”
Production for the event was provided and sponsored by VT2 Studios,
audiovisual equipment and technology
were sponsored by PSAV and speaker
services were provided by the National
Speakers Bureau.
JASON HENSEL is an award-winning
Mark Mizell
Healthcare Management Systems Inc.
“The end of 2008 took a toll on me. I was
one of the ones that lost my job due to
budget cuts. Now, I’m focusing on getting my
resumé out there and connecting. I’m so glad
I came to this conference. This was the best
thing I could have done for myself, because
I’ve connected with so many people.”
Linda Anderson
Come Cruise with Us & Tours Inc.
“What I’m going to do to survive and thrive
in 2009 is take really, really good care of my
customers, and I’m going to take really, really
good care of my staff. Those are the ones
that have to work together day to day. It’s not
about money; it’s about how we get through
this together.”
Jeff Rasco, CMP
Attendee Management Inc.
“Selling! Getting out there, being with our
clients and keeping Anchorage top of mind.”
associate editor of One+.
Shelli Stanton
Anchorage CVB
Networking and Keynote Sessions
MeetDifferent networking kicked
off Saturday with a community service
project at the Atlanta Community Food
Bank where MPI volunteers sorted,
inspected and packed donated items
for 800 non-profit agencies in metro
Atlanta. That night, attendees mingled
at a welcome reception in the Georgia
Aquarium and later hit the tables at
the MPI Foundation Blackjack Tournament at the World of Coca-Cola.
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Attendees danced to the sounds
of The Maxx at the MPI Foundation
Rendezvous Atlanta on Sunday at the
InterContinental Hotel Buckhead and
on Tuesday found themselves moved
to tears at BuildDifferent as they presented bicycles to students from Bethune Elementary School.
That evening, the Closing Night Reception reminded everyone that having
fun with friends and colleagues is criti-
cal to thriving and surviving. Attendees
danced to music from The Tams and
the Platinum Band while dining on sushi, pot roast and cheesecake.
Though networking is often primo,
this year’s Keynote Sessions proved
equally popular. Stuart Varney, Alison
Levine and Warren Brown spoke to
standing-room-only crowds, with many
watching from computers in the Global
Village.
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09 Uncovers Growing Value
of Industry
The Twitterverse was abuzz with #meetdifferent
tweets from onsite attendees and industry
professionals doing their best to participate in
the event from their home or office computer.
Useful, insightful and sometimes ridiculous…
that appears to be the nature of this medium.
DavidOConnor: Just watched MeetDifferent opening session. Calling
congressman & senators in AM to say we are the solution, not the
problem. Great session!
GreenA_V: I love that @laurelcootePMB watched the OGS via web
but is here at #meetdifferent :-)
Jeffhurt: My pick 4 best Twitterati 2 follow #meetdifferent tweets
@GreenA_V @MD09 @jkhewett @JessicaLevin @PYMLive @
mmcallen Keeping it real frequent
GreenA_V: I have the biggest urge to hollah “Broooooooooooce”!!!
#meetdifferent
jeffrasco: Feels funny to be in the office after #meetdifferent.
Learned tons -starting to share with the team. Thanks MPI for
loading up the site.
Jeffhurt: @mmcallen Yes we took #meetdifferent 2 a new
Twitterizon! Couldn’t have happened if Tweeps lk u didn’t share.
mmcallen: @Jeffhurt was really cool having you along for the ride.
Felt like we “met different”. #meetdifferent
jkhewett: I think part of the solution is to “experience” for yourself
how valuable the tools are . last week at #meetdifferent proved it
Meetings are the best driver of
ROI, and accelerate and deepen
brand relationships, according
to preliminary findings from
EventView 2009, the largest and
longest-running annual survey
of senior corporate sales and
marketing executives worldwide.
Between December and
February, 1,000 senior
managers from North America,
Europe and Asia Pacific were
interviewed via telephone with
the goal of bringing clarity to the
value and role that events play in
the marketing mix.
EventView is produced
through a unique collaboration
among the MPI Foundation, the
Event Marketing Institute and
George P. Johnson. A greater
examination of EventView 2009
data will be featured in the April
issue of One+.
The following is an advanced
look at some of the early survey
findings, drawn from more than
two-thirds of the sample set.
• 46 percent choose event
marketing as the discipline that
best accelerates and deepens
relationships followed by public
relations (22 percent)
• 64 percent of respondents
state that they do engage
in some form of post-event
measurement with 34 percent
of them measuring to justify
expenditures
• Among global respondents,
companies that measure are
over two-and-a-half times more
likely to receive increases in their
marketing budgets than those
that do not measure
• 24 percent choose event
marketing as the marketing
discipline that provides the
greatest ROI, followed by Web
marketing at 19 percent
• 12.3 percent of overall
corporate budget is dedicated to
marketing with 25 percent of the
average marketing budget spent
on event marketing
• 45 percent of respondents
indicate that event marketing is
taken under consideration along
with other mediums; 27 percent
characterize events as a vital
component of marketing
MEETDIFFERENT 2009 SPONSOR QUICK LIST
Diamond Level
Atlanta CVB - Host City and
co-host of the Welcome
Reception
Atlanta Marriott Marquis Closing Night Reception
host sponsor
Cancun CVB - MeetDifferent
2010 Promotional Luncheon sponsor
Freeman - Decorating
services, presentation
management services and
audiovisual support of the
professional education
sessions
Georgia Aquarium - Welcome
Reception host sponsor
Georgia Department of Economic Development/Georgia
Tourism - Welcome Reception and transportation
supporting sponsor
Georgia World Congress Center - Convention Center
PSAV Show Solutions Division
- Audiovisual equipment and
technology support for the
Opening General Session
VT2 Studios - Opening General Session production
sponsor
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Platinum Level
Tourisme Montréal - Breakfast in Bed sponsor and
registration bag co-sponsor
Gold Level
Active Production and Design
Inc. - Audiovisual Equipment for the Welcome
Reception
Content Management Corp. Content archiving, itinerary
planner and provider of professional education content
for MP3s
Keppler Speakers - Provider
of speaker services for
Opening General Session
PRA Destination Management - Welcome Reception
décor, entertainment, logistics and coordination
Silver Level
Canadian Tourism Commission and its Partners - Your
MPI sponsor - Caesars
Windsor, Ontario Tourism
Marketing Partnership
Corp., Ottawa Tourism,
Québec City & Area Tourism and Convention Bureau,
Tourism Toronto, Tourism
Vancouver, Travel Alberta
International
Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las
Vegas - Lounge Area and
MPI Foundation Blackjack
Tournament sponsor
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta
International Airport Transportation supporting
sponsor
Hyatt Hotels & Resorts Leadership Reception
sponsor
IHG (InterContinental Hotels
Group) - MPI Foundation’s
Rendezvous Atlanta host
sponsor
Mexico Tourism Board
- 2010 Promotional Luncheon co-sponsor
Myrtle Beach Area CVB MPI Chapter Leadership
Forum luncheon and breaks
sponsor
Rentsys Event Technology
- Computer products and
services sponsor
World of Coca-Cola - MPI
Foundation’s Blackjack
Tournament venue sponsor
Bronze Level
a2z Inc. - EXPO and conference management software
sponsor
American Audio Visual Center
- Closing Night Reception
production sponsor
Fort Worth CVB - CMM/CMP
Breakfast sponsor
Gaylord Hotels - Press Office
sponsor
Savannah CVB - Transportation supporting sponsor
Walt Disney Destinations BuildDifferent sponsor
Wolfgang Puck Catering Welcome Reception food
and beverage sponsor
Contributing
Level
Alpharetta CVB - Conference
supporting sponsor
American Airlines - Official
Air Partner for the MeetDifferent 2009
American Coach Lines of Atlanta Inc. - Transportation
supporting sponsor
Amusement Masters - MPI
Foundation’s Blackjack
Tournament supporting
sponsor
Bold American Events &
Catering - MPI Foundation’s
Blackjack Tournament supporting sponsor
Catch the Moment - Photography sponsor
Cynergreen - Provider of
Green Wattlerbottles
Destination South Meetings
& Events - Welcome Reception and Closing Night
Reception logistics and
production sponsor
Elite Green Car - VIP transfer
sponsor
Elite Transportation - Transportation supporting
sponsor
Event Transportation / Atlanta
- Transportation supporting
sponsor
Georgia Power - Conference
supporting sponsor
George’s Motor Coach Transportation supporting
sponsor
Georgia Music Hall of Fame
- Closing Night entertainment sponsor
Greene Classic Limousines Transportation supporting
sponsor
Hershey Resorts - All attendee in-room amenity
Hilton Hotels Corp. - Community of Honorees Breakfast
sponsor
James Tkatch Photography Photography sponsor
MeetingMetrics - Provider
and sponsor of online surveys and meeting results
measurement
Omnipress - Learning
Journals
Pathabale - Provider of online
social networking services
pc/nametag Inc. - Registration supplies and conference bags sponsor
Presenting Atlanta - Closing
Night Reception event planning assistance
The Atlanta Link - Transportation supporting sponsor
The Conference Publishers Session scribing sponsor
Wyndham Hotel Group Wyndham START Walking
Challenge sponsor
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C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 6 5
“The problem is many media stories on
this subject have been deliberately misleading.
These one-sided stories lead you to believe
every employee recognition event is a junket,
a boondoggle, a waste, or that it’s for highly
paid executives,” said John Stumpf, CEO
of Wells Fargo & Co., in an ad strategically
placed in several highly respected newspapers
early last month. “Who loses besides our
team members? The workers who depend
on our business. The hospitality industry.
Hotel housekeepers. Restaurant servers. The
airlines.”
It now falls to the newly formed Meeting,
Event and Incentive Travel Coalition, with
Dow at the helm, to spread that industry
messaging through direct and indirect
lobbying and communications campaigns in
How You Can Help
Send Letters. Mail the postcards inserted
in this issue of One+ to lawmakers in
Washington, D.C., and share your thoughts
on the economic value of the meeting
industry. Find out who your legislators are at
www.congress.org.
Sign the Petition. Lend your support and
send a message to legislators nationwide that
supporting the meeting industry will hasten
economic recovery in the U.S. and abroad.
Visit http://keepamericameeting.org.
Educate Yourself. Attend your chapter’s
sessions, read blogs by industry leaders,
pay attention to national and international
newspaper articles. Attend webinars
such as “Our industry is under attack!
How do we respond to these challenges?”
on March 6 (www1.gotomeeting.com/
register/763976399).
Know What to Say. The U.S. Travel
Association has issued talking points for
planners who get questions from their
CEOs, co-workers, friends and the media
about the new guidelines and the economic
impact of meetings and events. Visit www.
meetingindustrycrisiscenter.org.
Washington, D.C., as well as to the leaders of
the country’s mega-corporations.
“We must share that positive story,” Dow
said. “We have not, as an industry, done our
homework, and shame on us. That’s what
we’re doing now—getting the research,
defining what the economic impact is and
what the value of these meetings is.”
Dow recalls a phone call from financial
news service Bloomberg.com, requesting a
quote following the cancelation of a U.S.
Bancorp meeting at a Ritz-Carlton in Florida.
“I said, ‘They’re not stupid, they planned
that meeting and it had great business results,
but you scared the dickens out of them and
they canceled it and it had a great business
purpose.’”
It’s this reality that the travel coalition
faces as it urgently works to repair the
industry’s reputation and educate lawmakers,
corporate executives, the media and the public
on the intrinsic value meetings have on not
only local communities but on the business
bottom line. The travel coalition has planned
a 12-month, three-platform campaign to help
people understand the business impact of
meetings and events, examining the industry’s
impact on the economy, local communities
and individuals.
“I don’t think that people in Washington,
D.C., have connected the dots that jumping
on this bandwagon and saying that people
should not move forward with their meetings
and events actually puts more people out
of work,” Duffy said. “And the people that
they’re likely to put out of work are not
senior executives.”
The U.S. Travel Association estimates
that meetings and events are responsible
for 15 percent of all travel-related spend,
create nearly $40 billion in tax revenue and
generate more than 1 million jobs, without
which the current unemployment rate of 7.6
percent would rise to 8.2 percent and cost the
average American household an additional
$136 in taxes annually.
Yet, the media have failed to embrace the
numbers, and according to MPI’s MacMillan,
the meeting industry is under attack. He
says that misguided public perceptions and
proposed government regulations threaten
jobs, businesses and the communities they
support. But he adds that things will improve
now that the meetings sector is rallying and
proving its worth.
“Working with organizations and
corporations in our industry, we will relay
our story—and the opportunity our industry
provides—to legislators and boardrooms
everywhere,” MacMillan said. “Recent
events mark an unprecedented opportunity
for our industry, and together we will use the
power of meetings to get our economies and
our businesses moving.”
MacMillan may be right. Perceptions are
already beginning to change. On Feb. 17, The
Wall Street Journal called out Republican
and Democratic leaders for holding the same
types of business meetings politicos had been
bashing for months. Earlier last month, CNN
commentator and finance expert Terry Savage
empathized with meeting professionals as she
moderated the MeetDifferent 2009 opening
general session.
“[The meeting industry] will make the case
for the fact that America needs to meet, needs
to talk, needs to do business,” Savage said.
“If I were doing this story, I would fly out to
Las Vegas and get the taxi drivers sitting in a
long line of taxi cabs saying, ‘Well, we were
supposed to get 45,000 people coming in but,
darn, Wells Fargo canceled it, and I’m about
to lose my home.’”
It’s now the industry’s task to ensure that
the media receive the right message—and
it now has the professional and financial
backing from the U.S. Travel Association and
a corps of trade organizations.
Too, if the past is any indication of
things to come, challenges may spread
before they retract, and the international
meetings community will need a strategy for
protecting itself across the globe. What the
industry accomplishes in Washington, D.C.,
and in media markets across the U.S. may
eventually become a framework for even
greater, international collaborations.
“The industry is coming together,” Duffy
said. “We are speaking with one voice. And
we now have a consistent message to tell the
other side of the story.”
JESSIE STATES is an award-winning journalist and assistant editor of One+.
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C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 6 9
WIKIS
Even if you don’t know it, you are probably familiar with wikis. When was the
last time you pulled one of those lettered
encyclopedia volumes off the shelf? Can’t
remember? In the Internet age, we tend
to head to Wikipedia instead. Wikipedia
is one of the best-known and most-used
examples of wikis. As defined by Wikipedia (how appropriate), a wiki is a page or
pages that enables visitors to contribute or
modify existing content. According to its
Web site, there are hundreds of thousands
of visitors making hundreds of thousands
of edits to articles and contributing new
ones each day.
Using Technology Feature 0309.indd 84
Don’t let the size of Wikipedia intimidate you. It is a massive example of a
concept that can be used effectively in much
simpler contexts. The platform creates an
open environment in which users can add
and edit the pages’ content within a simple,
easy-to-use interface, making it an effective
tool to allow groups to collaborate.
In his video “Wikis in Plain English,”
Lee LeFever offers the example of a group
of friends planning a trip. Rather than trying to coordinate through a barrage of
e-mail, the friends utilize a wiki to organize
the trip on one cohesive space they can all
visit and contribute to.
The Meetings Industry Wiki (found in
the Resources section at www.mpiweb.
org) exhibits how wikis can be used to
share information among a large group
of people from across the globe. All members are able to add articles or edit existing
articles with the click of a button. With no
programs to download, the only pause is
to enter your username and password.
It’s simple to create your own wiki. In
fact, one wiki program touts that you can
create your own in under 60 seconds. Read
on.
1. Like other Web 2.0 trends, there are
several applications you can use to build
your wiki. Do a little research and choose
a provider, then create your account. While
larger wikis may incur fees, many of the
providers do not charge for moderate-size
wikis. We tested Wikispaces (www.wiki
spaces.com) and PBWiki (www.pbwiki.
com) and preferred PBWiki, although both
are fairly straightforward.
2. Next you’ll name your wiki. The
name you choose will be incorporated into
the domain so the URL to your wiki will
look something like http://yourwikiname.
wikiprovidername.com.
3. Seconds later, you will be on your
2/22/09 11:57:11 AM
In his video “Wikis in Plain English,” Lee LeFever offers
the example of a group of friends planning a trip. Rather
than trying to coordinate through a barrage of e-mail, the
friends utilize a wiki to organize the trip on one cohesive
space they can all visit and contribute to.
Audio podcasts have been around forever (in Internet time), but until fairly
recently, video was far less common.
Video streaming has been available but
required significant resources to house and
feed the files on demand. Four years ago
that changed with the birth of YouTube.
MEDIA BROADCASTING
Also, Apple’s popular iPods gained a video
Being able to put video presentations viewer, and the popularity of podcasts grew
quickly and easily online is very cool. It into another medium. Suddenly, anyone
could be a media broadcaster, potentially
has extremely practical applications, too.
wiki. Click the edit button and the page
will become editable. You will be able to
add text and images and format the page.
4. Hit save and your page is now part of
the wiki world. Invite others to your site to
view and contribute.
reaching millions on their computers,
media players and mobile phones.
At first, self-posted videos were quite
often of poor quality—amateurish productions that were simple, silly pleasures
(think water-skiing squirrels). Today, YouTube and its sister video hosting services
provide educational, promotional and
every other imaginable variety of video in
environments that are simple (and free) to
use. One of the features that makes them
most attractive from our perspective is the
ability to post a video and instantly have
the HTML code necessary to embed the
video in your own Web site, blog or social
networking page, or to simply send the
link to your audiences in an e-mail.
To get started, you usually need to set
up an account with one of the services.
Some of the most popular are YouTube,
iTunes, Blip.tv, Revver, Digg, Mevio and
Crackle. Interestingly, Google (which
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Finally, consider lighting and location. You are a great presenter, and you’ve written a killer script, but if the image is
muddy or washed out, viewers can become distracted. A welllit subject against a neutral background allows the viewer to
focus more on what’s important: you and your message.
owns YouTube) also allows subscribers to
upload and share videos. If you already
have Google e-mail, blogs or any of its
other services, it is easy to move around
between the applications. Social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook
also offer simple solutions for video
uploads.
Once your account is established and
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you are in the program, browse your computer for the file you wish to share, name
it and provide a description. You may also
be asked to provide a genre (business, special interest, comedy) and select whether
your video is available for the public or
will be for private use. Most files that you
record on a digital camera, or even your
cell phone, will be in a proper format, but
check with the service for preferred file
types. YouTube likes H.264 compression
in MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 formats—most of
which are standard.
If you plan to produce your video to
promote your meeting, property or services or for other professional purposes,
you will want to record with the best possible quality. Select a good camera, and
consider one that can record in high-definition digital format. If you use tape, it can
be converted, but that’s an additional step.
Many people feel the audio component is
even more important than the video quality. Although you can use the microphone
built into the camera, for the best overall
production you will want your camera to
have an audio input so you can hook up
an external mic for optimum quality.
Finally, consider lighting and location. You are a great presenter, and you’ve
03.09
Using Technology Feature 0309.indd 86
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written a killer script, but if the image is
muddy or washed out, viewers can become
distracted. A well-lit subject against a
neutral background allows the viewer to
focus more on what’s important: you and
your message. You can rent or purchase
tungsten studio lights, or take advantage
of outdoor locations and natural light to
produce professional-looking clips.
Your show may be one continuous take,
or you may want to break up the video
with extra shots for emphasis or explanation. Editing software such as Windows
Movie Maker or Apple iMovie are probably already on your computer, but others
such as Apple’s Final Cut or Podcast Producer, Sony’s Vegas or Yahoo’s JumpCut
may offer the more sophisticated options
you seek. Any of these allow you to weave
together different shots, audio and graphics for an effective videocast.
Using Technology Feature 0309.indd 87
PULLING IT ALL TOGETHER
Web 2.0 focuses on what we’re dubbing
the three Cs—content, collaboration and
connections. The components of this generation of the Internet transform the way
we use the Web, but in simple ways that
are accessible to all users and opening up
a world of creativity.
Not long after you start tweeting, blogging and wikiing, it’s easy to see the need
for one more C—coordination. Take a
look at your inbox and you’ll see that the
last thing you need is to be inundated with
more stuff to sift through, particularly
when half those tidbits are 140 character reflections on someone else’s life. Not
always efficient, nor effective.
Never fear, the trend toward integration is moving at the same 2.0 breakneck pace. Social networking sites have
applications to connect your Twitter and
other accounts to their pages. Spots such
as MyYahoo or Google Reader allow you
to follow news blogs through RSS feeds,
monitor Facebook and check the weather
and sports scores from a single vantage
point. Additionally, mobile phone technology is allowing even greater access (drivers beware). As these technologies develop
further it will become even easier for us to
enjoy the Wonderful Wide Web and utilize
all four Cs.
JEFF RASCO, CMP, and CHRISTINA
RASCO ADAMS are partners in Attendee
Management Inc. based in Wimberley,
Texas.
Connect to One+ editors via social media
on the PlusPoint blog by visiting
www.mpioneplus.org.
2/22/09 11:59:59 AM
C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 7 2
out some work projects, bond with each
other and simply take a breather from the
“real” world. For each of these goals, a
connection to the real world would have
only drained away time and focus.
“It was not the easiest thing; they had to
take a biplane to get there,” she said. “But
they wanted a unique experience. It was
perfect—but too many days [without technology] and they would have gone crazy.”
The purity of focus Zollman’s physicians enjoyed is a rare quality these days.
As if public speaking wasn’t challenging
enough, today a presenter has to combat
iPhones, instant messaging and that new
(urgent!) Facebook e-mail alert. It can be
deflating to see an audience with more
faces bowed down to hidden or brazenly
non-hidden BlackBerrys than looking
respectfully up at you (reason enough to
dub it the “CrackBerry”). The flipside of
this new reality is that you can harness the
powerful contrast of sans technology to
produce an unusually memorable and productive meeting. But pull this stunt with
the wrong group of people and you may
During one event at a secluded conference center
that lacked Internet access and televisions—and had
only sporadic mobile phone reception—the general
response among attendees was positive. However,
for a select few, the effect was the opposite.
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find an angry mob on your hands.
“For me, it is a killer if there is no connection for cell phones or Internet,” said
Luca Favetta, Geneva-based senior director of global events EMEA for SAP SA, a
global IT and business solutions company.
Favetta explains that, because the majority of his attendees are heavily involved in
IT, technology is perhaps the most important criteria when selecting a venue. Even
if his clients occasionally dream of escaping from the digital world for a few days—
or if Favetta thinks it would be good for
them—the reality is that the event simply
would not happen without technology as
the backbone.
“If they knew they could not use their
BlackBerrys, they would not even travel,”
he said.
Zollman also has experience with individuals that do not react well to technologic
isolation. During one event at a secluded
conference center that lacked Internet
access and televisions—and had only sporadic mobile phone reception—the general
response among attendees was positive.
However, for a select few, the effect was
the opposite.
“Some of them simply hated the fact
that they didn’t know what was going on
in the outside world,” she said.
Michael Noesen, CMP, event marketing manager on the CMG events team
for Microsoft Corp., recently attended
a three-day, board-retreat cruise for the
MPI Washington State Chapter. As a
Microsoft planner, technology is naturally
a critical element to his site selection. In
fact, he frequently installs additional
Internet cable at his venues to handle the
enormous bandwidth requirements of his
attendees.
Yet, as an attendee on this particular
cruise, where there was no Internet or
mobile phone reception, he found that
everyone was able to focus on the following year’s business plan—distraction free.
“When the purpose of the meeting is
to focus, or actively participate, I see how
there is a clear benefit [to having no technology],” he said.
03.09
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Decrease the Norm, Increase Productivity
Group Activities for Tech-Free Evenings
When you subtract all the minutes that would have
have to feel like work. Just make sure someone is tak-
been used checking voice mails, hammering back e-mail
ing notes.
responses and surfing the Web, you’ll find your attendees have quite a bit more time on their hands. Even
Team Building.
more conspicuous are television-free evenings. If this is
these venues are often the best places to work on per-
the case, and you don’t want everyone at the bar all
sonal bonding and team building. Consider high-intensity
night, be prepared with some additional activities to fill
and competitive outdoor programs such as scavenger
the void.
hunts.
With no outside distraction,
Evening brainstorming. People think dif- Fun and Games. Technology-free resorts tend
ferently in varied environments, and nothing beats a
to have a fair amount of recreation and activities on
boardroom like an open fire under a starry sky and a
hand, both indoor and outdoor. Tap the onsite experts—
glass of wine. A casual brainstorming session in a relaxed
they are masters in pre-Web entertainment.
setting can be unusually productive, and it doesn’t even
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Noesen admits that he was a little bit
antsy, wondering about the status of certain issues waiting back at the office. But
what was key for him was making sure
everything was taken care of in advance, so
he didn’t have to worry about being online
and accessible.
“I had people covering for me—that
was important,” he said.
A GOOD TIME FOR
FRESH IDEAS
With the challenges the current economy is imposing on business, there may be
no better time to milk new ideas (maybe
even a few drastic ones) from the corporate
world. And Elaine Macy, director of global
incentive sales for Preferred Hotel Group,
says tech-barren venues are the perfect
places to do that.
As a planner, Macy held several events
at remote, upscale venues such as The
Resort at Paws Up, in the mountains of
Western Montana. There, she orchestrated
several successful board of directors meetings—the only outside communication
is one-way, via television. Once or twice,
Macy brought along a satellite phone for
the occasional call, but she says the meetings would not have been nearly as effective if everyone had Internet and mobile
phone access.
“You can bring in technology—but I
think that is a waste of time,” she said.
“You should go to a regular place for that.
Here you should take advantage of the
lack of technology.”
Once the decision-maker is positive this
is the right step, make sure the attendees are
well aware of what they are getting into.
Much in the way that camping—without
showers, beds or Starbucks—is a rustic
adventure, it can also be fun to relinquish
technology for a few days. But preparation
is paramount; you do not want anyone
showing up with a mobile phone charger
in hand and no clue what they are getting
themselves into.
“It’s a very tough admission for your
guests,” Macy said. “You need to communicate loud and clear, before you go, what
to expect and what the goals are. Most
people are never away from the Internet
more than a few hours.”
THE EXPANDING WEB
It’s remarkable to concede that, just a
decade ago, finding Internet access and
mobile phone reception was not just a
trivial concern, it was often a non-issue.
Today, most residents in modern countries
can expect extensive coverage. Sprouting
from the U.S. and Europe, that blanket of
coverage continues to expand across the
globe every day, even to places that have a
hard time supplying fresh water and food.
Technology is the way of the world, and
hotels and governments everywhere know
they must be connected (and upgraded) if
they want to attract travelers and business
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Once you find that perfect gem, keep in mind that
no matter how charming, quaint or relaxing it may
be, there will always be attendees willing to trade it
all for a single Ethernet outlet. If you can, try to leave
them back home, at the office.
clients.
Though the U.S. takes credit (or blame)
for launching these technologies, Europe
long ago sprinted ahead in terms of broadband and mobile phone coverage. For
instance, in the western U.S. there are many
areas that have no mobile phone reception.
International coverage depends largely on
the infrastructure of the country, but most
major cities will be fully equipped.
Elsa Taicher, CMP, product manager for the professional communication
and relations department of Galderma
“We are too involved; it’s good to disconnect for a while.”
Outside of Europe and major international cities, seeking out an unplugged
resort should not be incredibly difficult.
Almost any developing country—such as
those in Latin and South America, Southeast Asia and Africa—have rustic and
upscale resorts that offer both technologic
and physical isolation. Closer to home, tap
your nearest rural oasis (the Alps, Arizona,
the Canadian Rockies or Montana) for
tech- and connection-free gems.
Once you find that perfect gem, keep in
mind that no matter how charming, quaint
or relaxing it may be, there will always be
attendees willing to trade it all for a single
Ethernet outlet. If you can, try to leave
them back home, at the office.
International, a France-based dermatology product company, regularly plans and
attends conferences throughout the world.
“I’ve never been at a meeting where
there was not Internet and cell [reception],”
she said. “It’s everywhere these days.”
She argues, however, that it is important
for busy professionals to disconnect every
now and then, whether it be for vacation
or a small, focused meeting.
“I was in Estonia, and I was surprised
to see everyone at the beach was connected
HUNTER HOLCOMBE is a freelance writer
to the Internet, on little laptops,” she said. based in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Meet Where?
JASON HENSEL
S UB HEAD ?
CONTEST!
Correctly identify this venue and its location and you could win a
(PRODUCT) RED Special Edition iPod Shuffle. Global Fund’s (PRODUCT) RED initiative directs up to 50 percent of gross profits toward
African AIDS programs focusing on the health of women and children. One winner will be randomly selected from all eligible entries.
Submit entries to jhensel@mpiweb.org by April 1, and find out the
answer and winner online at www.mpioneplus.org.
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