MPI World Education Congress Attracts 2,500 Attendees

The hosted buyer program.

By all measures, this year’s Meeting Professionals World Education Congress (WEC) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas June 19–22 was a winning event. MPI’s goal at the annual conference was to help meeting professionals stop planning meetings and start designing experiences.

There were more than 2,500 registered attendees of which approximately 55 percent were planners; nearly 70 percent in attendance were MPI members. In addition there were 142 virtual attendees. The MPI Exchange Program, which consists of hosted buyer planners and suppliers and Exchange Room (formerly MarketSquare) participants included 248 planners and 163 suppliers.

Attendees took advantage of more than 70 total education sessions, most of which qualified for clock hours. The sessions were focused on eight areas: Event Marketing; Event Operations; Legal Procurement & Compliance; Personal & Career Development; Technology & Big Data; Transforming Yourself from Planner to Producer; Transforming Yourself from Supplier to Partner; and Security & Risk Management, which received special emphasis.

MPI also introduced several new education offerings from the MPI Academy as part of its new Executive Education Series, including the Women in Leadership Program and a designation program for the highly regarded MPI Experiential Event Series. In addition, the association formally announced it is collaborating with the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security (NCS4) at the University of Southern Mississippi to develop educational programming and resources, with the first course — Emergency Preparedness for Meetings and Events — debuting at this year’s WEC.

Even the glitches turned out to be learning experiences for planners on how to overcome inevitable and unforeseen hiccups during events. When Magic Johnson pulled out at the last minute as keynote, WEC in partnership with MGM Resorts International lined up new entertainment to save the day.

In his MPI Blog, Rich Luna, MPI’s director of publishing, relates this reaction from an attendee: “For me, it was really great,” said Unique Carey, a student attendee. “I got to get the insight on what really happens when things don’t go as planned. You have to have a Plan B and a Plan C, but you really have to work with your partners to make sure you’re getting the right fit for your audience to make sure they’re not losing value at the event.”

MPI honored the recipients of this year’s RISE (Recognizing Industry Success and Excellence) Awards at the annual signature event RISE Awards Presentation and Luncheon. The recipients were selected for exceptional achievements in the meeting and event industry.

The MPI Foundation’s Big Deal at the Palace Ballroom at Caesars, the Rendezvous night networking event at XS Nightclub at Encore and the Not-So-Silent Auction raised $340,000 to benefit scholarship and grant opportunities for MPI members around the world. MPI raised more than $218,000 with the President’s Dinner to support the MPI Academy in its efforts to provide more education to MPI’s global community.

Other offerings included a redesigned Exchange Floor, plenty of networking events, and high-profile keynote speakers, guests and entertainment, including world-renowned spiritual leader Dr. Deepak Chopra and performances by Las Vegas entertainers.

Next year’s WEC takes place in Indianapolis. www.mpiweb.org/indy18.