More than 5,000 members of the global meeting and event industry were registered for MPI’s 12-hour-long Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID) broadcast when it began, live from Grapevine, Texas, as announced by host Lori Pugh Marcum, the association’s head of meeting innovation, who guided the day expertly and seemingly with total comfort. In this complex time, it’s understandable that meeting professionals are seeking not just education (the broadcast was worth 12 clock hours), but connection with the industry and their peers. MPI was once again able to offer the entire thing at no cost to participants worldwide. (Yes, it was all recorded and will be available to re-watch next week.)
The chat feature was active, if not busy, all day. As people joined in, many proudly stated the location from which they were celebrating the meeting and event industry: locations throughout the U.S., UK and Canada, but then also countries such as Italy, Ukraine, Mexico, Belgium, Uganda, Thailand, the Netherlands, Turkey, Tanzania and Japan (one specific user even chiming in from Nara, Japan, one of my favorite places on Earth).
The day’s most high-profile session came in mid-afternoon—the State of the Industry panel discussion, moderated by Annette Gregg, senior vice president of experience, MPI, and featuring MPI President and CEO Paul Van Deventer; San Diego Tourism Authority President and CEO Julie Coker; Caesars Entertainment chief sales officer Mike Massari; and IMEX CEO Carina Bauer.
This panel manifested as a heart-felt and informed message of a resilient, human-centric industry that’s working within potentially devastating circumstances (the pandemic), while carefully structuring a collaborative plan for enrichment and recovery.
After Massari gave a quick rundown on the history of GMID, Gregg pulled the panel right into some complicated and large discussions—starting by asking, what have we done well and what have we learned thus far during the pandemic?
“I think there’s a lack of understanding that professional meetings and events are really controlled environments [that can be built around social distancing, etc.] and be safe,” Massari said.
Noting advocacy as a foundational piece of GMID, Van Deventer said that during the pandemic, the value of meetings and events has become extremely clear, if not undeniable, for those outside of it—the general public, politicians, etc.
“The world is so aware now of the importance of face-to-face interactions.” - Paul Van Deventer, President and CEO, MPI
San Diego’s Coker added that it’s incumbent on meeting professionals and their associations to not only advocate for the industry, but also to educate, provide examples of the importance of the meeting industry and show it can operate with—and adapt to ever-evolving safety protocols.
As several of the speakers are based in California, there was some elation about the state’s reopening plans that were announced earlier this week. Massari, although not based in California, said that he believes numerous U.S. states have been waiting for a place like California to begin opening up to essentially show that it can be done safely.
Similarly, IMEX Group’s Bauer noted how Germany, in particular, differentiated business events and leisure events in its restrictions, which showed an understanding of the value of business events and that such gatherings can happen carefully and safely.
“We’re still experimenting, honestly,” Bauer said of her company’s own events, IMEX and IMEX America. “I think the whole industry is still experimenting.”
Coker noted, “We’ve learned that we need to be much more agile in our business model…and to diversify our [revenue streams].”
Additionally, she explained that her team has also realized how much they have to work and communicate with the local community.
“It has helped us create relationships…and helped our members see there’s much more value in DMOs than just hotel leads,” she said.
Just as the advocacy highlighted during GMID (and year-round) won’t likely ever wrap up, Massari expressed the importance of continuing to educate those outside of the industry in order to open up the events business.
“I do think, come July and August, much of this [from the pandemic] is going to be in our rearview mirror,” he said. “Once we get some larger meetings under our belt…those will all be great case studies to share with people [regarding meeting safely].”
“This is a very resilient industry—we learn, and we advance ourselves,” MPI’s Van Deventer said.
He went on to note that for the past few years, in particular, the industry has focused greatly on safety when it comes to violence such as terrorist attacks—and that the industry created new partnerships to focus on that and address those issues. He thinks the industry’s ability to deal with the pandemic will be similar in the way we get back to business safely and effectively.
Bauer very much hopes much of the pandemic effects will be in the past come IMEX America in November—but even if it’s not, her team will still be ready to provide innovative education and networking.
“The fact that we know we can experiment [with formats and technologies] has been fantastic,” Bauer said.
Meanwhile, as re-opening expands, Coker anticipates there will be a lot of job fairs and education to drive the meeting and hospitality workforce, to which Massari said he expects business to come back fast and hard.
“We’re scared to death of [a quick and heavy reopening]. But it’ll be a great problem to have.” - Mike Massari, chief sales officer, Caesars Entertainment
Further, he believes that, going forward, jurisdictions will focus more so on creating protocols than establishing restrictions.
“The protocols will stay around for an extended period of time—some of them, permanently,” he said.
“Some of [that] will stay because it’ll be a better experience,” Bauer said in agreement, noting that everyone will appreciate that.
When asked about positives from the pandemic, some on the panel said that the incredible people within the meeting and event industry powered them through. And Van Deventer got personal: “What’s really been meaningful to me during this has been to really get introspective.” This past year has really forced him to look inside and, every day, find and see the good that’s around him, such as spending more time with his family, when in non-pandemic times he’d typically be traveling.
In closing the State of the Industry session, MPI’s Gregg said, “Thank you for the good leadership you’re showing and keeping the faith during this time.”
Some Additional Highlights from MPI’s GMID Broadcast
Recipients of MPI’s 2021 RISE Awards were announced, staggered throughout the day.
- The MPI Italia Chapter received both the Membership Achievement and Industry Advocate awards
- The MPI Caribe Mexico Chapter received the Chapter Award for Innovative Educational Programming
- The MPI Greater New York Chapter received the Chapter Award for Marketplace Excellence
- Zaman Ishaad, CED, CMP, DES (MPI Toronto Chapter), received the individual award for Young Professional Achievement
- Greg Elam (MPI Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter) received the individual award for Meeting Industry Leadership
- Kate Copeland, CMM, CMP, DES (MPI Connecticut River Valley Chapter) received the individual award for Member of the Year
Read our full story about this year’s RISE Award winners.
Ruud Janssen and Anthony Vade—live from Switzerland and Canada, respectively—discussed the Event Design Canvas and Event Design Certificate Program and how they adopted virtual and hybrid formats years ago. The Event Design Collective’s new book, Design to Change, is available right now in audio format (read by Vade) and will be released in print this summer.
Curiously, throughout Lee Papa’s MindfulLee Style morning meditation, the chat remained active with meeting pros sharing mindfulness tips. That said, the consensus opinion was that this brief calm in the morning helped put attendees into a clear, productive mindset.
The Event Leadership Institute’s Howard Givner (MPI Greater New York Chapter) explored trends and how the world of meeting/event pros are changing due to the pandemic and will be different after recovery during “The Post-COVID Jobs Landscape: New Roles & Responsibilities, and the Skills Employers Are Looking for Now.” The data he provided throughout was spot on, according to seemingly everyone commenting in the chat during the session. As with most of the day’s sessions, participants sought copies of the slides used; with Givner’s presentation it seemed as though everyone wanted them and more. An incredible session!
Still before lunchtime in the U.S., Greg Morris, CMP, director of meetings for Destinations International, and Antwone Stigall, CMP, DES, CED, chief events officer for Antwone Stigall & Co., discussed diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)—and how to incorporate those important aspects into your event strategies. While expressing the value in having fun with DEI—it doesn’t have to and shouldn’t be a chore—during their session, “Incorporating Equity, Diversity & Inclusion into Your Business Event Strategies,” one of the day’s standout quotes saw light: “Don’t appropriate, celebrate!”
In “The Path Forward: Best Practices to Managing Contracts” session, Barbara Dunn and Steve Rudner—both lawyers experienced with meeting industry issues—covered such important legal topics as cancellation fees, variability of regulations, vaccination requirements (or the lack thereof) and more, leading chat participant Karrie Newby to write: “Legal Titans! I’m riveted!” Even if you’re not one drawn to legalese, the legal voices participating in MPI events are always engaging and informative.
Best practices for engaging hybrid events and how industry pros can transition to that format successfully. This session played out like an interactive case study as Ariel Cole (MPI Virginia Chapter) shared how her chapter’s 2020 Annual Educational Conference successfully utilized a virtual events platform.
MPI’s Global Meetings Industry Day: Virtual was sponsored by Grit Productions & Expositions, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, SOCIO and Foster + Fathom.
#GMID21 Report from Las Vegas
A panel event at the Las Vegas Convention Center’s new West Hall, a 1.4 million-square-foot expansion of the facility, included Steve Hill, CEO and president of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority; Chandra Allison, senior vice president of sales and marketing, The Venetian Resort; Chris Flatt, executive vice president of hotel sales and marketing, Wynn Resorts; Stephanie Glanzer, chief sales officer and senior vice president of sales, MGM Resorts International; and Michael Massari, chief sales officer, Caesars Entertainment. About 50 people attended the event—socially distanced.
The panel addressed a range of topics, including the recent expansion of more than 2 million square feet of meeting and event space in the past year and the Convention Center Loop, the innovative underground transportation system that will move attendees across the Las Vegas Convention Center’s 200-acre campus in just minutes. Both the West Hall and the Convention Center Loop will celebrate their official debut during this year’s World of Concrete, set for June 8-10.
Massari, co-chair of the Meetings Mean Business Coalition, discussed the “safe meetings” theme for GMID this year and all the panelists gave updates on safety protocols at their respective properties.
The panel also discussed the recently released results of an LVCVA quantitative research study of business travelers that showed 91 percent miss the face-to-face interaction of in-person conferences, conventions and trade shows, and 74 percent believe Las Vegas is best prepared to safely host in-person conferences, conventions and trade shows in the second half of 2021. - Rich Luna
#GMID21 Highlights from Orlando
Visit Orlando, the Orange County Convention Center (OCCC), Orange County Government, the City of Orlando and destination partners, celebrated GMID in numerous ways.
- Mayor Jerry L. Demings issued a proclamation to officially declare April 8, 2021, as Global Meetings Industry Day in Orange County.
- Venues around Orlando were light up in blue, the official color of GMID, to commemorate the day.
- Orlando destination partners participated in a new #OrlandoLovesMeetings social media campaign to celebrate the importance of meetings and events to Orlando.
- Visit Orlando executives spoke at special events for the International Drive Resort Area Chamber of Commerce and the MPI Greater Orlando Chapter.
Other #GMID21 Highlights from Around the World
The MPI Japan Chapter shared a video of their achievements and challenges over the past year (including the chapter’s 25th anniversary) while also celebrating GMID and the global meeting and event industry. The video is hosted by the chapter’s president Keiko Hosaka.
The MPI UK and Ireland Chapter experimented with the 8x8 virtual event format—eight sessions, each lasting eight minutes—with topics such as “Safe Events in a Post-COVID World” and “Events Can be Good for the Planet.”
Meeting professionals in Africa held a hybrid GMID event, including speakers such as Drew Holmgreen, vice president of brand engagement for MPI, who discussed ways the association is looking to make its education and content more accessible to those on the fast-growing continent.
Miguel Neves, CMP, a member of the MPI International Board of Directors, and others took to social wunderkind Clubhouse for seven hours throughout the day for some auditory-only networking and togetherness under the title GMID Parking Lot Party.
The MPI Greater New York Chapter joined forces with the PCMA New York Area Chapter, SITE Northeast USA and EventFluence for “Behind the Curtain: Planning a ‘Meet Safe’ Hybrid Meeting”—the groups’ first joint hybrid event in the Big Apple. Seen in the photo above, NYC & Company president and CEO and Meetings Mean Business Coalition co-chair Fred Dixon kicked off the event at Conrad New York Downtown. (Photo courtesy Front Page Photography.)
MPI President and CEO Paul Van Deventer joined PCMA’s Sheriff Karamat and BTC’s Alejandro Tabche, virtually, for a panel, involving the MPI Mexico Chapter, exploring successes and challenges on the road to reopening the industry. Also, in Mexico, but technically the night before GMID, the Museo de la Industria de Reuniones (Meetings Industry Museum) officially opened at the Zacatecas Convention Palace.
The MPI Minnesota Chapter gathered in person and online, with panelists from diverse industry organizations such as ILEA, NACE, SGMP, SITE and more!
The MPI North Florida Chapter had a hybrid gathering, “Risky Business: Preparation vs. Predicaments,” including the session “Don’t Be a Hero – Just be Ready,” led by Alan Kleinfeld (MPI Carolinas Chapter).
