This monthly article series allows MPI Ottawa Chapter members to share their recent professional and personal accomplishments with the MPI community by highlighting the News Around Town. Get in touch with Élodie Lortal (elodie.lortal@nac-cna.ca) to make a submission for the next issue!

The biggest takeaway from my experience on the Global Board of Trustees is that the MPI Family is huge! The Community goes well beyond our local chapter, because we have 65 chapters globally. If your career takes you elsewhere in the world, there is sure to be an MPI Chapter there to welcome you.

This event was a fabulous experience and a perfect opportunity to showcase how a large-scale virtual event can be fun and exciting to showcase the inauguration of the President of the United States. It was a black-tie-A-lister-all-the-way event, with performances by some noteworthy figures including Billie Eilish, Tom Hanks, Bruce Springsteen, Train and many others.

I started my business during the recession and it was excruciatingly hard. At the time, hiring an Event/Meeting planner was consider a “luxury”. I was totally oblivious to this and quite naïve. So I blindly forged on full force and got knocked down more times than I want to remember. I hustled my way at networking events. Scoured the business sections of the local newspapers trying to find my next client – believe it or not, this strategy worked more often than not.

I joined MPI Ottawa in 2017 while studying in the Algonquin College Event Management Program. I had recently moved back to Ottawa after spending 4 years in the GTA. I wanted to fully immerse myself in the industry, make new connections quickly, explore job pathways for after graduation, and learn everything I could. Sandy Ouellette, my professor at the time, had offered up a few registrations to students to attend a breakfast education event. I joined MPI following that event.

This monthly article series allows MPI Ottawa Chapter members to share their recent professional and personal accomplishments with the MPI community by highlighting the News Around Town. Get in touch with Élodie Lortal (elodie.lortal@nac-cna.ca) to make a submission for the next issue!

Born in Ottawa, lived here most of my first 30 years with the exception of a university stint in Madrid Spain. From the age of 30-40, I lived in Toronto and opened the D. E. Systems office there. I have been back in Ottawa for ten years now.

With close to 20 years of experience in events and admin, I have a wealth of skills allowing me to serve my clients in many different ways. I wear many different hats: event producer, planner, host, researcher, promoter and DJ! And, I do all that and more in both official languages (English and French).

I am very passionate about events, about bringing people together in celebration of something good or in learning something new. My passion drives me to be detailed oriented and organized, which I think are two qualities that make any planner a great planner.

I was born and raised in Montreal and moved to Ottawa after completing a BA in Sociology and Education at Concordia University. I will always have a special place in my heart for Montreal, but Ottawa is home and I love my city and the quality of life it offers. I have 3 grown children – Sebastien, Nicolas and Alexandra and I am very proud of the adults they’ve become.

I was born and grew up in Koblenz a beautiful town on the Rhine and Moselle Rivers in Germany. Being an exchange student for a year in the US whetted my appetite to work and live internationally. What better industry than the hospitality industry, right? So after my hotel apprenticeship in Bonn, followed by completing the Hotel Management Program at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, I was able to take advantage of work opportunities in top hotels in Monaco, Switzerland, New York City and Munich. I loved them all for different reasons. At the age of 29 I followed my heart to Canada where I expanded my industry experience by working as a regional director for a hotel ownership group and at the Ottawa Convention Centre.

From my work at Colleges and Institutes Canada to my involvement with MPI Ottawa, I truly believe in, and see the power of Nelson Mandela’s words: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” If we continue to learn from each other, the event industry is in a great position to positively impact the planet and build more inclusive communities.

This monthly article series allows MPI Ottawa Chapter members to share their recent professional and personal accomplishments with the MPI community by highlighting the News Around Town. Get in touch with Élodie Lortal (elodie.lortal@nac-cna.ca) to make a submission for the next issue!

Event industry professionals waiting for the world to go back to normal will be disappointed. If you don’t pivot your thinking and adjust to the world situation today, you may never be happy and will always have stress. Now is the best time to consider doing what you’ve always wanted to do. If it’s launching a new business in the hospitality field that’s great. If the industry is not something you are 100% passionate about, perhaps it may be time to reconsider your options. I hope the Pivoted Success podcast helps to ignite your passion!

Our committee is so proud of the event that we were able to bring to life. The post survey results confirmed that 100% of attendees felt comfortable and that we did all that we could possibly do to ensure their safety. We managed to achieve this, while including some fun elements throughout and a grand time was had by all :)

I was born and raised in the capital of Canada although I lived in Vancouver for a short period. I attended Carleton University and graduated with a double major in Law and Psychology. I initially wanted to be a lawyer which is how I met my husband. We now live in Wellington Village with our two kids Logan (3 ½ Years) & Lauren (1 Year).

Having a membership with MPI Ottawa has provided me with many opportunities over the years, both personally and professionally. I’ve had the chance to meet so many people who have not only become colleagues and clients but more importantly, lifelong friends. Over the years, I’ve worked in a variety of roles and many of my opportunities came as a result of my involvement with MPI.

The Canadian Meetings + Events Expo (CMEExpo) is both the first large event that took place in Canada and the very first event that took place inside Metro Toronto Convention Centre (MTCC) since the pandemic started.

This monthly article series allows MPI Ottawa Chapter members to share their recent professional and personal accomplishments with the MPI community by highlighting the News Around Town. Get in touch with Élodie Lortal (elodie.lortal@nac-cna.ca) to make a submission for the next issue!

It was a mix of planners and suppliers. The in-person event sold out; the group took over the whole hotel. There were 30 virtual attendees and the MC, Jennifer Spears, did a great job engaging with both audiences. There was a supplier networking event that incorporated the virtual attendees so they could actively participate.