WEC 2018 promotes designing experiences

With a stronger focus on designing experiences, MPI World Education Congress 2018 unveiled a completely new layout June 2-5 in Indianapolis. Divided into four villages – Experiential, Innovation, Leadership and Social – education sessions, offered in 30-, 60- and 90-minute segments, took place in an open floorplan inside each village. Session topics included everything from customer retention, social media and tech tools to conversations on hot topics such as sexual harassment, ethics and crisis communication. The open layout offered ample opportunities to network with sponsors and fellow attendees as well.

The new layout was created by using the #EventCanvas template created by Event Design Collective which first launched at the 2014 WEC. Sessions were offered during WEC to introduce people to #EventCanvas by showing them how to put it into practice by helping design an event for WEC 22 and also additional sessions to show the process of how WEC 18 came together using it.

Each day started and ended with a pep rally, led by emcee Deena Blizzard, and a set of speakers who fit with the theme of the day. Inspiration was the theme of Day 1 and speaker Dustin Garis of LifeProfit set the tone, encouraging attendees to “revolt against routine.”

Day 2’s theme was Ideation with Duncan Wardle, a former vice president of innovation and creativity for Disney, kicking off the day encouraging people to tap into their creativity.

The day also featured the popular Michael Cerebelli’s “The Hot List” with the latest in performers, tech gadgets and ideas to really create a memorable experience for attendees.

Day 3 wrapped up with Activation as the theme, with speaker Mel Robbins highlighting her 5-Second Rule and the power of 5-second decisions.

Many attendees lived out their childhood fantasy of playing professional football as Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the Indianapolis Colts, played host for a networking lunch during one day of the conference. Punt, pass and kick games took place on half of the field while a smorgasbord of tailgate food - nachos, burgers and more – filled the other half of the field.

While the days were filled with education sessions, the nights were just as busy, too. The opening night party offered a variety of hands-on activations including creating fresh flower crowns and customizing your own essential oils before a concert by Straight No Chaser. MPI Foundation’s Rendezvous party featured plenty of drinks and dancing with music by DJ Warren Peace.

The closing ceremony took place at one of the most notable sports venues - the Indianapolis Motor Speedway which is home to the Indy 500. Attendees created lasting memories by buckling up for an exhilarating ride around the world famous track at speeds of 120 mph.

For MPI-CAC, the highlight of the event was the MPI RISE (Recognizing Industry Success and Excellence) Award win for Industry Advocate for its Industry Xchange 2017 event. The event, which drew more than 1,000 attendees, included Choose Chicago and eight other industry partners to create Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID) education and networking event. MPI-CAC Past President Tina Reedy and 2017-2018 President Cory Fransway created a video message that was shared with attendees while co-chairs Amanda Jackson and Justine Radies accepted the award.

WEC19 is scheduled for June 15-19, 2019, in Toronto.