The theory of ethics may have been conceived by Aristotle, but defining what constitutes ethical planning behavior has never been more complex, and the potential impact on a career rarely so dire. Meeting planners have long worked under a code of ethics, but those lines defining ethics are not as clear they were a decade ago.

Repercussions for unintended ethics violations can be as severe as those for willful misconduct. “More and more planners are losing their jobs because of an ethical violation, and usually they were unaware it was a violation,” says Joan L. Eisenstodt, Eisenstodt Associates LLC, Meetings & Hospitality. “There have been so many cutbacks, especially with governmental organizations and their meetings, that scrutiny has intensified about all spending. There is a greater awareness about ethics at all levels.”

A consultant, facilitator and trainer specializing in planner ethical awareness issues, Eisenstodt says that in the 21st century, ethics awareness has exploded throughout the profession. “There is a real anxiety about ethical issues in the hospitality and meetings industry. I have been doing more work on the local level, speaking with and conducting training for state and regional chapters of the national organizations. For corporations, it’s become part of their yearly training, and many do it online where one must take an ethics test at the end.”

Ethics Guidance

All the leading meeting and event planner associations, such as the Convention Industry Council (CIC), MPI and PCMA, have ethics policies — codes of conduct — that outline the proper behavior, explicating what constitutes professionalism. But the rise in planner anxiety over what is ethical behavior in today’s business climate became more evident in 2011, when the CIC implemented the strongest code of ethics and guidelines in the meetings profession. CIC also instituted a system of disciplinary procedures to investigate and enforce this code of ethics.

“The feedback has been generally positive or neutral after we announced our updated ethics policies,” says Karen Kotowski, CAE, CMP, who is CEO of the Convention Industry Council. “We see more attention paid to the optics of certain practices like FAM trips, because our industry as well as all businesses, including the government, are under greater scrutiny. As a meeting industry trend, we are hearing more talk about CSR, ethics and good business practice. CIC member organizations have introduced and are enforcing their own codes of conduct or ethics and provide sessions at their annual meetings on the topic.

“We’ve always had policies and procedures that CMPs agree to abide by, and in 2011 we established new oversight to address what happens if they aren’t followed,” says Kotowski.

Kotowski points out that no ethics-related complaints have been received by the CIC, nor was a rising number of ethics violations the motivating factor for putting “teeth” into the code. Instead, the new codes answer the need for stronger and more explicit codes of ethics. “Having a code of professional conduct is a requirement by the National Center for Credibility Assessment (NCCA) for accredited certification programs,” says Kotowski. “While not an NCCA-accredited program, the CMP follows NCCA best practices. A code of ethics is a set of principles and rules used by organizations or individuals to govern their decision-making in choosing between right and wrong. Some may include the recourse or disciplinary process within them. The procedures are available on our website (www.conventionindustry.org) for anyone to view, and it explains who can bring allegations and how.”

Ethics Awareness Grows

The catalyst for renewed emphasis by the profession about ethics seems to have originated outside the meetings industry. “One of the reasons is that there are more ethics crises in the news related to large corporations,” says Elizabeth Henderson, M.E.Des. “Enron and WorldCom were both ethical lapses (of ‘creative accounting’) that brought down the corporation. The global financial collapse in 2008 also spawned events-related incidents, such as the AIG effect, that raised awareness of ethics.”

Henderson is co-author with Mariela McIlwraith, CMP, CMM, MBA, of Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility in the Meetings and Events Industry (John Wiley & Sons Inc., 2012). She also is the chief sustainability expert for Meeting Change, a meeting consultation company. (McIlwraith is president of Meeting Change).

Henderson points out that since planners interact with individuals from an array of other professions, the unscrupulous behavior of the latter has a guilt-by-association impact on the former. “The ethical lapse here is related to the lack of transparency and the resulting lack of trust involved in the financial collapse. The tie to meetings was that days after receiving a massive federal taxpayer funded bailout, AIG held an expensive incentive trip at a five-star resort costing $443,000. This led to meetings being classified as ‘excessive’ or ‘luxury expenditures.’ This focused attention on the meetings industry and on the ethics of the industry.”

“Ethical issues have received heightened attention based on the economic news in the last few years as well as the increased training in the industry,” agrees Lisa Laubgross, CMP, a meetings industry expert and consultant. “Most certifications include ethics awareness as part of their training as well as signing a document to act in an ethical manner to uphold the designation. Meeting planners should initiate conversations regarding ethics with their upper management/client to discuss best practices and behavior before an issue comes up.”

Corporate Codes of Conduct

Even with policies in place, the uniqueness of the planning profession can present sticky issues. “Most ethical areas are gray and dependent on the policies of one’s employer and one’s industry,” says Eisenstodt.

“Surprisingly, many companies and organizations do not have ethics policies, and if they do, do not have specifics for different departments who might face ethical dilemmas. Often these specifics will not cover scenarios that a planner experiences, and I have known of planners who have lost their jobs because they did not understand how their company’s ethical policy related to their jobs as planner.”

Often a corporation’s code of conduct insufficiently addresses realities faced by planners, whose job description can include what appears to be an abundance of perks. “Employees are made aware of ethics at an orientation or in the employee handbook, but that is usually the end of it, until a problem occurs, and it occurs often for planners,” says Eisenstodt.

“Planners are in the position of accepting lunch, dinners, flights, and some of that is part of doing the job. But if that isn’t clear from the beginning, the appearance of a conflict of interest can be career-damaging.”

FAM Trip Abuse

Ethics experts agree that the most common breach is FAM trip abuse. FAM trips are expense-paid trips to a venue and/or destination to “familiarize” the planner with the meeting setting. For many planners, taking a FAM trip to a destination they have no intention of booking is tantamount to a free vacation, but for the destination, promotion can be paramount. “FAM trips are always being offered, and they really want meeting planners to attend,” says Sharon Marsh, CMP, CMM, meetings group manager, Medtronic Inc. “When I tell them that the destination is not one we will use because of internal corporate policy and/or regulatory guidelines, they still want me to attend as I may change industries in the future. Going on a FAM trip when you know you most probably won’t use the destination/property is like stealing.”

A tarnished reputation, job dismissal and the loss of a CMP credential are the potential consequences of FAM trip abuse. “The suppliers have a responsibility in this unethical behavior,” says Marsh. “They push meeting planners to attend when they are not a properly qualified lead for the FAM. And suppliers continued to invite meeting planners who are known to take advantage of FAM trips over and over again. Suppliers need to say no when a planner asks them for something, such as free rooms, for considering the use of the property.”

Potential for FAM trip abuse exists even on legitimate junkets. “Taking FAM trips, especially where they are staying at multiple hotels, is a major ethical issue with planners,” says Eisenstodt. “Also, if a planner is taking free spa visits or other amenities that she knows will not be used at the meeting being planned, that is an ethical violation. The hotel of course is eager to give away this perk to get the business, but if there is no intention of using it, that’s a problem. I know of a planner fired specifically for this sort of violation.”

A simple spa visit leading to job termination? “A site visit is hard work, all planners know that,” says Eisenstodt. “There’s a lot to investigate and evaluate. But to everybody else in the company, it looks like fun and not work at all. It is very easy for a planner to appear to be abusing the site visit, especially by people who are over them in the company and have never had to go on a site visit. It’s best to err on the side of caution.”

Rewards Points

Hotel rewards points are another ethical pitfall planners are now more aware of avoiding. “Most of the time, frequent flyer miles and stayer points in a hotel go to the individual, but not always,” says Eisenstodt. “Those programs have been around long enough for the companies to have developed guidelines. But points of the hotels are often not covered, because they are for room blocks, and (because) only the planner is involved with these vendors, it has to be known who has ownership of the points. It’s probably better to have them be collective for the company and not the individual planner, to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest. The point policy should also be clearly stated with the hotel, prior to any contract.”

Eisenstodt adds, “That policy must also take into account all possible contingencies: whose points are they; whose names are on the accounts they go into; and what happens to those points if that person is terminated.”
Laubgross warns, “It is not ethical for the staff to accept planner points on an individual basis offered by various chains. Any points accrued had to be used to benefit the group being served by the accumulation of points.”

This is another conflict of interest issue, where the point accumulation by an individual can be seen — regardless of the planner’s actual intentions — as an incentive for selecting one venue over another. This same dilemma becomes magnified when planners utilize a third party when contracting for different components of a meeting.

For some corporate planners, the entire process is implemented in-house by his or her staff, while others contract third-party planners for the event. Employing contractors, however, does not eliminate your ethical responsibilities. “Failure to disclose commission, particularly by a third-party planner, is a problem I see rising more and more,” says McIlwraith.

While mainly with hotel bookings — although other relationships with other vendors can fall into this pattern — third-party planners also will receive a commission for the sale from the hotel, depending on the hotel and the number of hotel rooms utilized. “The planner is the one ultimately responsible and has to answer to employers,” says McIlwraith. “Everything has to be spelled out in the contract, including any commissions paid out or other economic benefits for all participants in the contract.”

Intellectual Property Rights

Other, newer areas of concern include intellectual property rights and social media, causing ethical, legal and even moral turmoil.

The pressure to make corporate meetings unique and memorable has never been higher. To that end, planners often contract with third-party event organizers, a process that includes reading through proposals. “If the planner then takes the idea as her own, bypassing the third-party planner who submitted the idea to them, that is breach of ethics,” says McIlwraith.

Of course the problem with intellectual property issues is that ideas cannot be copyrighted, only the expression of the idea. The scenario of intellectual property theft from a proposal may not be one where a planner is intentionally unscrupulous. “It is pretty hard to remember where you got an idea from,” says McIlwraith, pointing out that research for an event can include trade publications, websites, industry seminars as well as reviewing new and old RFPs. “Planners have to ask themselves, would you have been able to construct the plan without that plan, and if the answer is no, you have crossed a line.”

While proving intellectual property theft can be one of the most difficult forms of litigation, other career consequences will be more immediate. “Planners are a small community, and it will ruin your reputation, and make getting other jobs harder,” warns McIlwraith.

Social Media Scenarios

The use of social media by your meeting attendees is an evolving ethics issue.

“I am especially concerned with the potential impact of social media on ethical behavior,” says Henderson. “While meeting professionals have been very quick to adopt social media, and many classes are taught on how to use it more effectively, I haven’t yet seen a session on what not to do. It is a bit of a Wild West when it comes to social media right now.”
What are the potential ethical breaches of social media? “Many corporations have policies that do not allow people to take and/or post photographs of employees, because this could violate privacy,” says Henderson. “At events, meeting professionals should be notifying people what that policy is so they do not inadvertently contravene it. I suspect that most meeting professionals and their attendees haven’t even considered this issue in depth.”

In addition to violating company policies, social media has a potential for other legal ramifications. “A number of lawsuits have been filed for defamation, related to the use of social media,” says Henderson. “You are responsible for anything, however innocuous you think it might be, that you post on Twitter or a blog and are, in addition, liable for comments on your blogs, moderated or not.”

Shades of Gray

Today’s ethics controversies can be ambiguous, with possible outcomes far from certain. Says Henderson, “In ethics, perception is reality. If you are believed to have acted unethically, that perception can live on even if you have in reality done nothing unethical.”

Of course, the challenge is getting rid of the gray areas. According to Marsh, if something is questionable or causes even the potential of ethical unease, than the behavior is best avoided. “If I don’t want anyone to know what I have asked for and/or received, then it is probably unethical. I won’t do anything that I am ashamed to let anyone know. This should be the rule we all use.” C&IT

Matt Harvey oversees Network Services for audio-visual services company PSAV. Internally known as Client Network Services, the department designs, installs, and manages High Speed Internet Access (HSIA) networks in more than 150 hotels and convention centers. Harvey is responsible for all aspects of new HSIA location sales and installation, event support and business strategy. Harvey began his career with PSAV in 2003 and has held a variety of successive roles before promotion to his current role as V.P., Client Network Services in early 2012. He is an active participant in Hotel Technology Next Generation’s (HTNG) Infrastructure Resource Team. www.psav.com

If you read the Convention Industry Council’s (CIC) recent white paper “Up to Speed: Event Bandwidth and High Speed Internet Access” and checked out their attendee bandwidth estimator (www.conventionindustry.org), you already know how important a great High-Speed Internet Access (HSIA) experience is to the success of your event. But how do you put that information to use to ensure your attendees have a successful Internet experience?

Beltone Electronics kicked off their meeting at The Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa in Tucson, AZ, with a golf tournament to encourage networking and promote camaraderie and team spirit among their attendees. Credit: Steve Donisch, courtesy of Beltone

The legendary sportswriter Grant­land Rice once said, “Golf gives you an insight into human nature, your own as well as your opponent’s.” Attendees who love golf would undoubtedly agree with Rice. The nature of the game, especially its casual pace, allows business people to bond while sharing the fun and joyous frustration of a very trying game.

That’s why golf is often a centerpiece of meetings and incentives. Many attendees need golf to make their experience feel complete or special. Even attendees who aren’t avid golfers want to participate if only to network and advance their careers.

As the meeting industry continues its return to the robust glory days of early 2008, a new challenge looms — rising airfare costs and ongoing mergers that stifle competition and potentially limit practical options for planners. And those factors have been further exacerbated by the pending marriage of American Airlines and US Airways. The nearly $11 billion deal, which is expected to occur in the third quarter of 2013 if it is approved by the Justice Department’s antitrust division, will produce the world’s largest airline.

The ongoing changes in the airline industry over the last several years have dramatically impacted the meeting industry, says Caren Bigelow, CRP, director of travel at USMotivation in Atlanta, an independent planner of meetings, conventions and incentive programs.

“Number one is the reduction in the availability of seats,” Bigelow says. “That has been the biggest factor, along with cost. The consolidation of hubs as a result of the various mergers in recent years means there aren’t as many flights from secondary or rural destinations. And all of that is based on the fact that the airlines have basically changed how they operate based on the economics of that industry.”

The net result has been a more complicated and less enjoyable experience for both planners and attendees. Virtually every flight goes out full now, with a standby list, and that often makes flying merely tolerable at best.
As a result, Bigelow says, the meeting planning process has been changed, too. “When you start talking today about having a meeting or incentive program and you’re discussing destinations, airlift is now your No. 1 consideration or question,” she says. “So, as a matter of basic practice, what we do now with a client is that we will offer a list of potential destinations and then clearly define whether you can get your entire group in by your welcome reception, or if you want to have a meeting start at noon, whether that is even possible.”

A Relationship Gap

Gregorio Palomino, CBMP, CEP, CWP, creative executive officer at San Antonio-based meeting and incentive planning company CRE8AD8, cites a related issue that is contributing to the increasing difficulty of managing airlift and costs. Many companies and meeting planners, he points out, now have preferred vendor pacts with hotel vendors. But nowhere near as many have preferred vendor pacts with airlines, which creates a “relationship gap” between the two key supplier categories.

“The hotels have really worked to make things easy for meeting planners and vice versa,” Palomino says. “But airlines have not really done the same thing. It’s generally much more complicated to do business with the airlines. And some airlines, to this day, do not have a real program specifically designed for meeting planners who are putting events together. So for a lot of large companies that do a lot of meetings, that means they are looking more to third-party service providers like us that have the expertise and experience in dealing with the airlines. As the airline industry has continued to consolidate and cut capacity since 2008, we’ve seen a sharp increase in our corporate business. And our new clients typically say, ‘We don’t really understand the airline side of the business, so we want you to take care of it for now. Now it’s your problem to deal with, not ours.’ ”

Part of the problem, Palomino says, is that airlines could have — and should have — done a better job of communicating directly and clearly with meeting planners in the run-up to each of the major mergers, such as United and Continental. “There was very little information that went out,” he says. “And that just led to a lot of the confusion and concern about what was happening.”

Among the kinds of information that would have been helpful, Palomino says, would have been clear guidance on how to consolidate and manage frequent flier miles and various kinds of rewards points. “United and Continental could have been more helpful in telling us how to protect our miles or points or whatever it was,” he says. “But they didn’t do that. And that lack of communication from the various airlines caused a lot of confusion. And it worried a lot of planners.”

Now the same concerns are surfacing again with the American-US Airways merger. And, Palomino says, it remains to be seen how those concerns will play out.

Spiking Airfares and Fees

Of even more concern to most planners is the sharply rising cost of airfares — a trend that is likely to become even more pronounced with the American-US Airways merger.

“Costs are going to go up,” Palomino says. “I think we’ll see additional fare increases of 10 to 15 percent. And now that the remaining major airlines have even more of a monopoly, it’s going to be even easier for them to control pricing and drive up fares. And the reality is that they have to do that to cover their increasing operating costs like fuel, which is going to continue to go up.”

Michael Patton, CMM, president and CEO of San Diego-based POTHOS, a meeting planning company that has the additional distinction of being a full-service corporate travel management provider, agrees that further fare increases are inevitable.

“Without having done a more detailed analysis,” Patton says, “I would say in general that we have seen very significant price increases lately on behalf of our clients. And those increases have been across the board, not just for the most in-demand destinations. Europe, for instance, has been very expensive for the last couple of years, not so much because of fare increases, but because of the taxes.”

Now, in the wake of the American-US Airways merger and the resulting further airline industry consolidation, fares will continue to rise. “And that’s because the costs of fuel and labor will continue to go up,” Patton says. “It’s as simple as that.”

At the same time, Patton, Palomino and Bigelow concur, it’s also likely that the trend toward new fees will continue to drive up the total cost of air travel.

Because the airline industry is so brutally competitive, Bigelow says, it’s hard to unilaterally raise fares. The clever trick a number of airlines have now mastered is to create a new fee, which essentially represents pure profit, then watch happily as other airlines follow.
United Airlines recently upped its change fee to $200, and some airlines may follow. It also has been widely reported that the airlines most likely collected more than $6 billion in baggage, cancellation and change fees in 2012.

“There was a recent article in the Los Angeles Times about how the airlines are working to come up with ideas on how they can charge even more new fees,” Bigelow says. “And one example was that if you want, United Airlines will deliver your luggage to your home for a fee. Another example is the idea that you can get preferential boarding with first class passengers if you pay a fee. So it looks like when it comes to fees, there is no end in sight.”

Spirit Airlines last year went so far as to charge a fee for carry-on bags, Patton notes. “And what business traveler doesn’t have carry-on bags?” he says, adding that fortunately, no other airline has followed suit, primarily as a result of the PR backlash suffered by Spirit.
On the other hand, Patton says, at least one of the newest fees is even more outrageous than charging for carry-on bags. “Ryanair is now charging for access to the rest rooms on the plane,” he says. “I think that is ridiculous. And you have other airlines that are not charging onboard, but they have hostesses in the gate area who go around inviting customers to go to the rest room before they board. I also think that is ridiculous.”
The good news, Patton says, is that he thinks the addition of new fees might have reached its end. “I don’t really see at this point,” he says, “how they can come up with any more fees than the ones they’re already charging.”

Budget Impact

The practical question raised for many planners by rising air travel costs is how those increases will be absorbed into budgets. The basic issue is whether they will be addressed with incremental budget increases that cover them, or will be subtracted from what’s left of the budget, such as F&B expenditures.

“Based on what I’m hearing, I think most companies will cut back somewhere else to deal with increased air fares,” Palomino says. “I’d guess that less than 20 percent of companies are going to increase their budgets because airfares are going up. But it also depends on the kind of program, or the destination selection. For example, we just had a client that was planning to go to New York for a meeting. But when they saw the cost of getting there and the impact that would have on their planned budget, they decided to go to Destin, Florida, which saved them a lot of money.”
Patton does not believe most clients will cut back on things such as F&B to accommodate higher air costs. “But what I do see in some cases,” he says, “is that clients are cutting back on hosted air for the meeting. They are capping the amount and saying attendees can’t just run wild in booking their flights. And that is particularly true for people such as speakers or other presenters.”

Bigelow has seen both approaches recently. “And it depends on the type of meeting or event,” she says. “For example, there might be a difference, even within the same company, between a typical business meeting and an incentive program, particularly if it is a high-end program.”
The underlying factor, Bigelow says, is that budgets remain tight and nowhere near 2008 peak levels before the recession. And based on that reality, she says, when push comes to shove she thinks companies will cut back elsewhere to accommodate increased airfares rather than increase budgets. “But one thing I do see companies doing to deal with those issues is that they are now planning meetings further in advance to lock in the lowest possible airfares,” she says.

Getting From Point A to Point B

The final piece of the puzzle, especially in light of the American-US Airways merger, is the changes in hub systems, routing and the number of flights available to a particular destination as airline industry consolidation continues unabated.

“Changes in hubs and the routing of certain flights is an ongoing concern,” Bigelow says. “And that concern is increased by the merger of American and US Air.”

Palomino expects that one result of the latest merger will be that more and more flights originating from southern states such as Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma will be routed through Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and Charlotte, NC. And those routing changes could wreak havoc with some itineraries, he says. The net result is that it will likely become more difficult to get some large groups from point A to point B.

“And for most of us who do business in those parts of the country, you can’t really determine yet what the impact is going to be,” he says. “But there are going to be hassles and some confusion. I just hope it will be temporary and that within a year or year and a half, the airlines will have it figured out.”

Of particular concern, Palomino says, will be getting large groups from the West Coast to the East Coast. “There just aren’t going to be as many flights,” Palomino says. “And if you’re used to flying on US Airways, but now you’re on an American flight, you might find you have to make a stopover to get where you’re going.”

The net result of those kinds of issues for planners, Bigelow predicts, will be more work, including more time-consuming research, unless they have a full-service travel management department or outside travel management company. “More and more planners are now having to rely on their travel management departments or travel management companies to deal with these issues,” she says. “But I also think most planners are very aware of these issues now, too, so I think they understand the risks of presenting a destination that they can’t deliver.”

And it’s possible, Bigelow says, that the Caribbean — a perennially popular choice for incentive programs and some meetings — could be negatively impacted by the American-US Airways merger.

“American Airlines basically owns the Caribbean,” she says. “So that is a major concern of ours and also of a lot of other planners. We’re waiting to see what is actually going to happen. I have heard that when it’s all said and done and all figured out, that Delta is trying to take over some of American’s Caribbean routes because they are not very strong down there. And we don’t really care who ultimately owns those routes. We just want to make sure that the lift to the most popular destinations doesn’t go away. The concern is based on the fact that lift to the Caribbean was significantly reduced during the recession, and it hasn’t really come back yet.”

Planners concerned about lift to a particular destination should take advantage of tools such as GroupAnalyzer.com, Bigelow says. “It performs live air searches against real-time airline inventory,” she says. “It’s similar to Kayak, but it’s built to help you get 300 people to a particular place on a particular date.”

Patton goes further and recommends that planners consider the option of a third-party vendor, particularly one that has extensive travel management experience in addition to its meeting planning credentials.

“In the current climate, planners need to use professional buyers and not just rely on the Internet for what they consider a commodity service,” he says. “Corporate travel agents who have the resources to do the job are still the best resource for moving people. But many planners continue to go to the Internet and treat air travel like a commodity. I don’t think you can do that effectively any more. You can go into court and represent yourself as your attorney. But the judge will tell you that’s not a very smart thing to do. And the same is true today when it comes to booking your air. The typical corporate meeting planner just doesn’t have the same experience and resources, so it’s not a smart thing to do.”

There also are simple, practical considerations, given the increasing complexity of booking air for a meeting. For example, Patton says, researching the availability and cost of flights for a major meeting to a high-demand destination could take a typical planner three hours. “We can do the same thing in 15 minutes,” he says. “So it also comes down to a question of the value of your time.”

Despite all of the new challenges presented by the rapid and ongoing changes in the airline industry, planners will prevail in the end, Bigelow says. “No matter what ever happens with airlines,” she says, “we’ll always figure out a way to get the job done, because meetings and incentive programs are just too important. So that means we have to.” C&IT

The Marina Bay Sands, with its three towers topped by the Sands SkyPark, overlooks the South China Sea, Marina Bay and the Singapore skyline. Credit: Copyright Timothy Hursley 

The Asia-Pacific region is renowned for its wide choice of exotic and culturally diverse destinations for meetings and incentives. Todd Black, president of Fishers, IN-based First Incentive Travel International, believes it’s an especially good fit for experienced travelers. “For people who do Europe currently,” he notes, “I think there’s about 20 percent of that group that we can entice them with ‘Have you thought about Asia?’ because they’re already committing to more than four nights, and I think that’s what it takes to do Asia, just for the flight alone.”

“We have some good experience over there, and we have some really good partners, as well,” explains Kevin Devanney, president and founder of Incentive Travel Solutions in Charlotte, NC. “We stay abreast of (the region) because we present it often. The quality of the resorts is fantastic. They really have come a long way in the last couple of years. The number of resorts and hotels that we can use with our incentive trips that have popped up in Asia and especially in Australia and New Zealand and China in the last five to 10 years is amazing.”

Devanney explains that traveling to Asia is a new experience for many people. “When attendees are traveling to Asia for the very first time, I think there’s a little bit of apprehension and a little bit more handholding than we typically have with our groups that we take to Paris or Rome. At first, we operate a city tour and introduce people to the culture right away, and they feel comfortable after the first couple of days.”

Singapore

An appealing combination of easy access, excellent meeting facilities, perpetually sunny weather and a reputation for safety make Singapore a top Asian meeting destination. One planner described why their company chose Singapore for an informational international conference for 150 attendees. “We needed a new venue to hold an Asian event, which is an expansion of our current annual conferences held in Europe and the U.S. Singapore was a desirable location, as we knew that language would not be an issue (as everyone spoke English) and many companies that attend our conferences have offices or are doing some business in Singapore as an Asian hub.”
As the site of its meeting, the company chose the upscale Shangri-La Hotel, which is located in the heart of the city and offers 747 rooms and suites. The hotel’s amenities include CHI, The Spa at Shangri-La, which offers a tranquil setting amid 15 acres of landscaped gardens and a waterfall.

“The best features of the hotel were the staff,” the planner notes. “It was a five-star location as far as décor and service. When comparing other hotels, our local liaison said that the Shangri-La was the ‘best of the best.’ The prices were higher than our regular events, but our attendees left feeling they attended a quality event, and much of that was due to the venue and their courteous and responsive staff.”

“I love the whole Shangri-La chain,” Devanney notes. “When guests walk in, they feel at home. They’re very comfortable.”

For planners searching for a hotel that has that kind of jaw-dropping architecture that attendees will want to write home about, it would be hard to top the Marina Bay Sands Hotel — literally. The 2,561-room hotel, which is located in the central business district and overlooks the South China Sea, Marina Bay and the Singapore skyline, has three towers, each 55 stories tall, that are topped with a unique architectural feature called the Sands SkyPark. This lushly landscaped tropical oasis is the size of three football fields and contains restaurants, lounges and a massive infinity-edge pool that offers panoramic views of the city. Across from the towers on Marina Bay are three performance theaters, the ArtScience Museum, and the Sands Expo and Convention Center, Singapore’s largest exhibition and meeting venue, which features more than 1.2 million sf of MICE space across six expo halls, 250 meeting rooms and the largest ballroom in Southeast Asia accommodating up to 11,000 attendees. The center received the 2012 “Best Business Event Venue Experience” award from the Singapore Tourism Board.

There are 300 shops and restaurants at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands including rooftop and waterfront dining and celebrity chef establishments. Sandwiched between the theaters and the Sands Expo and Convention Center is the four-level Marina Bay Sands Casino, which offers its own varied dining experiences and one of the worlds largest Swarovski crystal chandeliers (weighing in at 7 tons!).

The Fullerton Bay Hotel Singapore, a five-star property located on Marina Bay, offers groups a unique option for meeting space. Last year, the hotel introduced three floating “event pods.” Located on the water, the pods were designed to be reminiscent of trading boats. Each of the pods, which are named Compass, Voyage and Port of Call, is equipped with a balcony and rooftop area, and the wallpaper on the ceiling of the pods is finished with crystal beads to reflect the shimmering water below.

South Korea

Despite the threats recently made by the North Korean government, travel officials maintain that South Korea is safe for travel. Sejoon You, executive director of the Korean Tourism Organization in New York, issued an announcement to the travel industry stating, “North Korea has a long history of making confrontational rhetoric and empty threats to South Korea, the United States and other nations as well. All the experts in this matter, both international and based in the U.S., agree that there is no real or present danger that North Korea would act on its threats.”
The Seoul office of the destination management company Ovation simplifies the meeting planning process by offering sample itineraries for South Korea. For a two-night meeting in Seoul, which the company describes as a “sophisticated city with a distinctive Asian spirit,” the company suggests hosting a welcome event at Korea House where attendees can sample authentic dishes based on the royal cuisine of the Joseon Dynasty and enjoy a traditional dance performance. For day two, they recommend that attendees discover the “soul of Seoul” with a trip to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and the Freedom Bridge where more than 12,000 Korean War prisoners walked to freedom in 1953. For an evening event in Seoul, the company recommends a dinner cruise on the Han River.

South Korea also offers scenic and culturally rich destinations for incentive trips. For a five-night incentive, Ovation’s sample itinerary includes Jeju Island, known as “The Island of the Gods,” which has been compared to Hawaii and Bali for its scenic beauty. The itinerary also includes a tour of Seoul and a stop in Gyeongju, listed by UNESCO as one of the world’s 10 most historically significant sites. It includes treasures such as the Bulguska Temple which was constructed in 528, and the Seokguram Grotto, which dates back to the eighth century and contains a monumental statue of Buddha that’s more than 10 feet tall.

China

The destination management company Pacific World operates in China as well as in nine other Asian destinations: Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam. John Lee Yung Chun, regional marketing manager, Pacific World Asia, describes China’s appeal as a meeting destination. “China has developed a 21st century infrastructure for meetings and events, including an extensive network of modern airports, as well as state-of-the-art facilities, world-class hotels, convention centers and resorts, a cosmopolitan dining scene, and unique sites that lend themselves to outstanding gala dinner venues.”
He notes that some of those gala venues include world heritage sites.

“Event organizers can stage very large and impressive galas while experiencing history alive at such venues as the Great Wall and the Forbidden City, which can be put to equally impressive impact for smaller groups and incentives. Exploring China’s rich history and delving into its vibrant imperial and local cultural practices are enriching experiences for delegates, with lots of fun and great memories to be had.”

Black notes, “In mainland China you can see (historic sites such as) the Temple of Heaven and stand in Tianan­‑men Square, which is one of those cool experiences like standing in Red Square in Russia. It’s a must-do.
“China is a bit more for a savvy group,” he continues. “If they’re young pharma reps winning an incentive for the first time, I don’t think China is the most motivating for them. For groups with guys that have already won 10 trips, then you start looking at China.”

Hong Kong

The cosmopolitan city of Hong Kong, with its dazzling skyline and spectacular views of Victoria Harbour, is another popular meeting and incentive destination in Asia. “It’s a dynamic city which truly offers the experience of a lifetime,” Chun notes. “It is built with the infrastructure and services required to welcome and support large groups of visitors and offers unique experiences to attract meetings, exhibitions and incentive programs. It is incredibly safe, with a super-efficient transport system, and all signs are in English.” The city also is a global hub that offers direct flights between more than 155 destinations a week.
“It’s got high-end shopping, high-end restaurants and five-star hotels,” Black explains. “It’s very modern. In my experience taking groups there, they’ve always loved it.” He adds that Hong Kong has more competition in the region than it has had in the past. “Fifteen years ago, Hong Kong was so far ahead of mainland China, meaning that it was much more sophisticated and the infrastructure was better. Hong Kong was like the New York of Asia. That’s not the case anymore. Beijing, Shanghai, and certainly other destinations in China have come up to the level of Hong Kong.”

The first Hotel Indigo in Hong Kong recently opened in the city’s historic Wan Chai neighborhood. One of the most unique features of the 138-room, 29-story hotel is the glass-bottomed infinity pool that juts out from the building’s rooftop.

Macau

This special administrative region of China, which is located across the Pearl River estuary from Hong Kong, is probably best known as “the Las Vegas of Asia,” but it also is known for its European style of architecture that dates back to the region’s history as a Portuguese colony.

Located on the Cotai Strip, the Sands Cotai Macao complex features five international brand hotels with a combined 9,000 guest rooms and 1.3 million sf of versatile meeting space including 274 breakout rooms: The Venetian Macao; Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central; Conrad Macao, Cotai Central; Holiday Inn Macao, Cotai Central; and Four Seasons Hotel Macao.
Like its renowned sister property in Las Vegas, the 3,000-unit, all-suite The Venetian Macao features stunningly realistic replicas of the architectural icons and canals of Venice, Italy. The sprawling resort complex includes more than 1 million sf of meeting and exhibit space, including the 15,000-seat CotaiArena and 1,800-seat Venetian Theatre. Its acclaimed amenities include more than 30 world-class restaurants, 330 retailers at Shoppes Grand Canal and a Mayo Clinic Health & Wellness facility.

The CotaiExpo at the Venetian Macao features more than 800,000 sf of exhibition space, and is one of the largest exhibition centers in Asia. It is complemented by more than 75,000 sf of pillar-free ballroom space and 108 meeting rooms with nearly 270,000 sf of flexible meeting space.
The Sheraton Macao Hotel recently completed its 2,067-room Earth Tower, which brings the hotel’s total room count to 3,896, making it the largest hotel in Macau and in Starwood’s global portfolio. The hotel apparently does everything in a big way — it offers more than 160,000 sf of meeting space, including a main ballroom the size of more than 11 basketball courts. The hotel also offers guests easy access to The Plaza Macao and The Venetian Macao and The Shoppes. The Cotai Strip also offers 100 international restaurants, lounges and dining outlets.

Malaysia

The year 2012 was a very good one for the country of Malaysia because it welcomed a record 25 million tourists. “Malaysia is one of the most affordable destinations in the world and in Asia,” Pacific World’s Chun says, “with unbeatable hotel rates.” The country’s capital city is Kuala Lumpur, which offers an interesting contrast between modern skyscrapers and heritage buildings from the British era. Malaysia’s beach destinations, such as Borneo, Langkawi and Penang, are ideal for incentive programs or pre- and post-meeting tours.

Thailand

Hyatt is expanding its presence in Thailand with the anticipated opening of the Park Hyatt Bangkok in 2014. The new hotel, which will feature a dramatic “twisting coil” architectural design, will contain 222 rooms and be connected to a 150-store retail complex via skybridge. Hyatt’s other Thailand properties include the five-star Grand Hyatt Erawan in Bangkok and the beachfront Hyatt Regency Hua Hin located 140 miles southwest of the capital city.

Japan

The Ritz-Carlton, Okinawa, which opened last year, is surrounded on three sides by an 18-hole championship golf course that overlooks the ocean. The hotel also is known as “Gusuku,” which means “castle” in the local dialect. The property offers 97 guest rooms and suites.
While Tokyo is Japan’s largest city, Kyoto is consistently ranked as the country’s second most popular city for meetings, conferences and events. Kyoto served as the nation’s capital for 1,000 years, and is now home to 17 UNESCO world heritage sites, many of which can be used for events. The city is located in close proximity to Kansai International Airport, and Tokyo is just over two hours away via the fastest bullet train in Japan.

Philippines

The five-star Fairmont Makati opened late last year in the central business district of Manila. It contains 280 guest rooms and suites offering beautiful views of the Makati skyline. The hotel’s tower also is home to Raffles Makati, a 32-room all-suite hotel and Raffles Residences, which offer 237 one- to four-bedroom suites available for short- and long-term stays.

 Australia

“I think Australia is in everyone’s top five of ‘wow,’ ” notes Black. “Forget dollars. When a client says I want a destination that’s going to motivate, Australia is one of them. For the ultimate ‘get out there and sell and you’re going to win this trip,’ Australia is definitely there.”
“Down in Sydney,” explains Devanney, “I stick to our old standbys like the Park Hyatt Sydney or the InterContinental or the Four Seasons.” After an extensive multimillion-dollar renovation, the luxurious Park Hyatt Sydney reopened last year. The 155-room harborfront hotel delivers stunning views of the city’s iconic opera house.
“If you venture out into the wild, into the bush, then that’s where I really see a lot of great options for people,” Devanney continues. “We’ve used the Sheraton Mirage on the Gold Coast many times, and it’s been fantastic. There are great trips out to the Great Barrier Reef for our groups there.”

New Zealand

Whether they’re attending a business meeting or enjoying the rewards of an incentive trip they’ve earned, attendees naturally like to feel welcomed by the destination they’re visiting. According to the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2013 released by the World Economic Forum, New Zealand is one of the friendliest countries in the world.

This popular Southern Hemisphere destination, which encompasses two major islands, also is legendary for its incredible scenery. Actor Martin Freeman, who starred as the title character in the recent movie “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” was obviously taken by the country’s scenic beauty. “The backdrop is so beautiful, people will think it’s CGI (computer-generated imagery),” he notes. “It looks too perfect.”
Devanney likes to use some of New Zealand’s lodges for his programs. “When we go to New Zealand, we tend to have smaller groups — 25 couples or something like that,” he says. In the Northland, one property he likes to use is Kauri Cliffs lodge. Set on 6,000 acres overlooking Matauri Bay, the lodge offers 22 guest suites and a two-bedroom owner’s cottage along with golf, tennis, a spa and secluded beaches. On New Zealand’s South Island, he has used the Matakauri Lodge, which is set on the banks of Lake Wakatipu in the Queenstown area and offers spectacular views of the accurately named Remarkables mountain range.

Getting There

Devanney made an interesting observation about the amount of flying time it takes for attendees to travel to Asia. “It always amazes me that (flying time) is the biggest conversation before the trip, but after the trip it is very rarely mentioned. After the trip, they talk about the destination.” Obviously, the attendees decide that their trip to Asia or the Pacific was well worth the time it took to get there. C&IT

Brooke Sommers, CMP, CMM, participated in photographer Robert X. Fogarty’s “Dear World” message of hope project. Credit: Robert X. Fogarty

Corporate giving is a given, whether it takes the form of community involvement or environmental responsibility. The impetus for doing good may come from an embedded corporate mission and culture, a public relations move to offset negative optics, a mandate from shareholders, or more purely and simply, from societal expectations. But in this age of brand engagement, nothing connects as powerfully with customers and employees — especially Gen Yers who want meaning in their work — as a company with heart. And meetings play a critical role in that win-win process.

A growing number of meeting planners report that they almost always incorporate some type of CSR into the agenda, whether it’s engaging attendees in a local community service teambuilding project during a multiday meeting or incentive, participating in a charity golf tournament or contracting only with “green” vendors and suppliers, including convention centers, hotels, restaurants and other venues.

MPI recently completed a two-year study on corporate social responsibility, says CSR champion Andrew Walker, manager of events at MPI. One of the key findings from the study’s report “The Value of CSR in the Meeting Industry” is that “86 percent (of survey respondents) believe that the meeting industry will become more involved in CSR in the future because society expects it, and that the industry needs to respond to broader changes in the business environment.”

Walker says that based on the two-year study’s findings, MPI will introduce “six modules that take meeting professionals along the path of CSR. The modules include case studies, white papers, videos, presentations, articles and booklets in the areas of defining CSR, integrating, communicating, exceeding expectations, identifying best practices, and certifying and measuring.”

Finally, according to Walker, MPI’s 2012 Annual Business Barometer states that, overall, 25 percent of meeting professionals say their organizations are “very active in CSR,” and an additional 59 percent say their organizations are “somewhat active in CSR.” Also, “European and Canadian meeting professionals claim a higher level of current CSR activity, as well as higher predictions for the future, than their U.S. colleagues, with the Europeans projecting the highest levels of future involvement.”
One can only wonder if CSR certification for planners is just around the corner — maybe a CSRP? “There has been some talk within the industry about this type of certification, so we may explore further,” comments Walker.

Pay It Forward

A CSRP would be a natural fit for meeting planner Brooke Sommers who already has a CMP and CMM, and who adamantly believes there is always room for CSR.

“I think what should be stressed here is that CSR at meetings can be simple and cost-effective,” explains Sommers, owner of Strategic Conferences & Events LLC, a soup-to-nuts meetings and events planning company located in Westminster, CO, that works mostly with computer, software and technology companies. “Sometimes business unit leaders feel they don’t have the money or the time for it in the program, and that’s just not true. Even on the smallest scale, it is better to incorporate some type of CSR than choose to do nothing at all.”

Regardless, it’s Sommers’ observation that CSR is growing in leaps and bounds. “With all the emailing, texting and tweeting that goes on today, we don’t have a chance to get to know each other as individuals, and CSR activities, in addition to the altruistic benefits to local communities, help to do just that.”

When time is a consideration, Sommers recommends simple, adjunct activities during registration, lunch or a reception. She suggests planners have tables set up around the perimeter of the space for people to stuff packets or envelopes for a charity. “It’s a real ice-breaker and lets people choose when to get involved and how much time to put into it without feeling any pressure to do so,” Sommers states.

At an event she orchestrated in New Orleans last May, Sommers enlisted photographer Robert X. Fogarty and his Dear World portrait project. “Dear World” began as “Dear New Orleans,” when, following Katrina, Fogarty asked residents to write messages of hope and “Love Notes to New Orleans” on their hands, arms, chest and fingers, and photographed the results. People who were photographed donated money to aid the city. He now uses his distinct message-on-skin-style to tell compelling stories of subjects regardless of religion, race or language — an art project/social experiment that connects people emotionally and hopefully inspires the notion that working together can lead to good.

Corporations can invite Fogarty to their events to take pictures that engage their attendees to connect with each other on a more personal level. In addition, his interactive keynote event, Dear World Live, explores the subtle and powerful connections of colleagues, strangers, friends and family at annual conventions, leadership retreats and on college campuses throughout the country and the world.

At Sommers’ New Orleans event, Fogarty asked attendees to write on their arms what their message to the world would be. “It’s an amazing experience,” Sommers recalls. “Everyone checks out each other’s arms to find out what their message is and why it was chosen. It’s a great conversation starter at a welcome reception, followed by a video montage for the final night of the photographs, and people really get into it and get to know each other while getting a message off to the world.”
What was Sommers’ message? “Live your passion.” Other ideas run the gamut from sourcing event entertainment from an organization that benefits children, like a children’s chorale — “rather than spending tons of money for a top performer,” she notes — to donating an attrition of rooms to a local shelter, which she claims some hotels will do.

Sommers highlights two other CSR events she has organized:
A channel sales incentive, hosted by a Fortune 500 company and their partners at Gran Melia Resort Puerto Rico, featured a book drive for The Kingdom Academy, a new school dedicated to providing affordable, quality education for the local children. Sommers relates: “As part of a pre-mailing, we sent a children’s book to the attendees and asked them to bring it with them, plus another new or gently used children’s book, and they did. Some brought bags of books for the kids. Then, we brought in children from a local school to the resort where we were meeting, provided them with a boxed lunch, smoothies and face-painting activities. The children then got to pick books for their classrooms. Attendees didn’t have to stay for the duration of this CSR event but they were so engaged with it that they all did. The children had to participate in a reading challenge at school, and the top readers from each class won the opportunity to go to the hotel to collect the books.”

During a meeting of 800 technical sales and partner attendees, Sommers’ client hosted a Texas Hold ’em Poker Tournament, with proceeds benefiting two local Dallas charities: Attitudes & Attire, which promotes personal growth and self-sufficiency for single mothers, and the Children’s Craniofacial Association, which helps “empower and give hope to individuals and families affected by facial differences.”

Sommers says, “This was a very cost-effective option. Poker tables and dealers are a minimal expense, and in this case, the client was able to obtain a grant to fund the charitable donation.”

The attendees were able to sign up as players or have a night on their own. As players dropped out, they could donate their chips to one or both charities, and the charity with the most amount of chips at the end of the night got the majority of the financial donation. At the closing general session, someone from each charity was able to get up and talk about their charity and the impact it makes on the local community. In this instance, the corporation offered a matching program that allowed individuals to go online and make a personal donation that was then matched by the company.”

Cause Before Profit

Paying it forward is the primary mission of two young social entrepreneurs, as they are called in this new age of CSR, Guy Futi and Anthony Chamy, both doing good things in the world through their individual companies while operating out of Montreal, Canada.
Guy Futi founded Maji Water and whimsically refers to himself as Head Water Boy. “I find that members of the new work generation, of which I am one, not only want careers that promise high incomes, but they also want those jobs that provide meaning to their lives,” he states. “At Maji Water, we strive to achieve both, and we do it through driving sales, incentive programs and other initiatives that provide the revenue to achieve the company’s social goals,” he says. “And, we’re always keeping an eye on the triple bottom line: the three Ps of People, Planet and Profits.”

But to do so he put the cart before the horse — that is, his CSR goals informed his business: He incorporated a mission to provide clean water to crisis-affected regions of the world into a new business venture — Maji Water Inc.

Established in 2010, the company is now fast approaching the $1.4 million mark (US$). In the beginning, the basic idea was that one purchased bottle of Maji would result in three bottles of purified water in needed areas of the world, although the company has expanded its altruistic goals, as well as its base of operation from small community stores to larger retailers, including hotels and restaurants.

“Our strategy is to work closely with our sales force and retailers,” Futi explains. “We’ve developed a unique model. Retailers, by selecting Maji, have the opportunity to build their own ‘well’ to save an impoverished village throughout the world. We allocate 15 percent of all the gross profit to the Maji Foundation, which operates admin-free. Let’s say we generate $1 million (US$) in revenue from one retailer of our product — $65,000–$125,000 of that goes to the Maji Foundation, which then re-allocates this to building a well in that company’s name somewhere around the world.”

To accomplish that end, the sales staff gets all the perks — commissions, bonuses and, most importantly, incentive travel.

“When our sales staff meets planned quotas, they are rewarded with a unique experience by way of an incentive travel trip to a foreign country as well as an extraordinary experience — one that helps build a well or other water-related project — and they are ecstatic to have an opportunity like that, too,” states Futi. “For instance if a sales associate was the lead in closing down a big account, not only does he get his bonus, but he gets to decide if he wants to personally partake on a well-building mission.”

Maji Water hosts an annual event at a local hotel or unique venue for clients, friends, associates and prospective customers. Last year, the festivity was at Galerie MX in Montreal.

“This was a big networking reception,” Futi explains. “We served appetizers and wine, as well as Maji water, and the gallery was decked out with photographic canvases of all past water relief missions.” In addition, Maji introduced its new glass bottled water line.

“The goal is always to get people to drink our bottled water because the more of it they drink, the more we can contribute to those areas of the world that are in need of safe drinking water. One purchased bottle here, produces three bottles there, and more,” adds Futi.

What does the future hold? Maji has set forth even greater goals that include sanitation and irrigation in impoverished areas of the world.

Ethical Incentive Travel

For Anthony Chamy, CSR equates to ethics. He believes that the meetings and hospitality industry in particular should adopt a universal code of ethics pertaining to corporate social responsibility when traveling.
With that in mind Chamy’s ecotourism company Kepri Expeditions was born. From the start, concepts such as ecotourism, social and environmental awareness, carbon footprint and cultural respect were the inspiration; global leadership in the sustainable travel industry formed its mission.
Now in its 10th year of taking adventurous, individual travelers and corporate incentive groups on fantastic journeys off the beaten path, Kepri’s goal is to create trips that enable cultural exchange and promote a responsible way of travel.

As Chamy describes it, “We take corporate groups to exotic destinations which help reward and rejuvenate incentive qualifiers. Custom-designed to each particular group’s needs, our leaders know the places and people in their native countries, making it possible to create a cultural bridge between the travelers and the local communities. Each journey includes cultural activities and outdoor recreation, as well as workshops and networking opportunities within the most amazing surroundings.”

While the travel group promises to build strong bonds among colleagues by creating memories for a lifetime — such as crossing a river in Colombia’s jungle; trekking in the Peruvian Cordillera Blanca; or celebrating with the Baja tribes in Egypt — its travel philosophy and methodology aims to foster a maximum ROI as a motivational tool, a CSR commitment, personal development and employee engagement.

“Everything we do is always with the utmost values in mind,” Chamy notes. “We are an ecotourism company that is politically and socially correct, always trying to adjust the tourism industry to make it more responsible with respect to the local economy, environment and culture.”

In doing so, the CSR issues Chamy has witnessed while on the road are from a different perspective. “One of them is when our corporate event travelers sometimes do not want to mix with the local population and even offer to pay extra to have their own plane, bus or boat as way to show their employees or clients that they are offering them more privileges, whereas we always feel that there is more value in getting our travelers to actually live cultural exchanges with the populations they visit, even if that means traversing the desert on a camel,” Chamy adds.

Here to Stay

Weighing in on CSR is veteran planner Maureen Santoro, CMP, manager of group operations for Atlas Travel Meetings & Incentives in Milford, MA. Santoro has 20 years of experience planning meetings for companies of all sizes and works out of the Boston office. According to a recent guest post on theprofessionalassistant.net, Santoro confirms that CSR is an emerging segment of corporate meetings that is likely here to stay.

Admitting that there is a good deal of debate among corporate managers over whether companies should engage in CSR, Santoro also adds, “There is a cost associated with performing a CSR volunteer activity both in terms of money and risk management. Besides being one more line item in the meeting budget, there are risks of possible injuries that might be sustained during some of the volunteer activities. Still, the sense of pride and accomplishment experienced by the volunteers, as well as the good press generated, means that CSR is quite worthwhile to most meetings.”

When queried further about the “good press” aspect of giving back especially at meetings, Santoro explains that “volunteering in the destination where the meeting is being held brings goodwill to the community and casts your company in a better light than the days of old when the corporate meeting was perceived as just an excuse for a huge party. With the economy as it is, local charities and organizations not only benefit from the participation of companies and the publicity it brings, but they also rely on it. Local charities always need volunteers just to keep them running, so they appreciate the temporary, complementary work force. In short, it is a win-win for everyone.”

Sommers’ professional CSR advice to novice planners is, basically, don’t go it alone.

“CVBs of the targeted destination are very helpful, but not so much with the DMCs (destination management companies) and hotels. In fact, I think DMCs and hotels have to educate themselves on the subject and identify those organizations or situations in their communities that could use a little CSR applied to their causes. Both should know what is needed but often they do not.”

There are some hospitality brands that would beg to differ, notably Ritz-Carlton and its VolunTeaming program and Fairmont Hotels & Resorts’ “Meetings That Matter” program, both of which help planners coordinate local volunteer projects for groups. And through Marriott International’s “Spirit to Serve” program, planners can arrange voluntourism activities that also directly benefit the local community — for example, at the Aruba Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino, groups can work on building or upgrading orphanages, schools and parks.

“Some hotel chains are making CSR part of their overall list of activities for companies looking to book rooms with them,” says Santoro. She describes two programs that The Fairmont Banff Springs offers: “One of them involves volunteering at a local church where volunteers can pitch in to help provide a free hot meal to deserving Banff residents. Another activity, done primarily during the summer months, organizes volunteers to help clear debris and trash from the trails of Banff National Park.”
She adds, “Fairmont is a good example of a group that takes CSR seriously. In addition to those examples, they have a written corporate policy that emphasizes CSR and promotes green initiatives. They work closely with local community organizations to bring about responsible corporate tourism.”

More than anything else, while companies have made CSR part of daily corporate life at the office, Santoro firmly believes in the company meeting as a vehicle for doing good.

“It is the company meeting that is a good place to start down the road of CSR,” she says.

And when asked what “Dear World” message Sommers would write on her arm today, she replied, “CSR = Pay It Forward.” C&IT

A rendering of the Las Vegas Global Business District. Credit: Las Vegas CVA

Don’t ever think that a corporate meeting group has seen or experienced everything that Las Vegas offers 24/7. Every visit to the Entertainment Capital of the World is guaranteed to elicit “wows” from not only first-time attendees but veterans as well. That’s because Las Vegas is constantly reinventing itself, adding and enhancing hotels and resorts, meeting and event venues, dining and entertainment experiences and much more.

More than $5 billion in new investment projects will pour into the destination over the next several years, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA). “This is an exciting time as the confidence in the Las Vegas brand continues to build with new projects and ongoing reinvestment,” said Rossi Ralenkotter, president/CEO of the LVCVA in a news release. “The billions of dollars being invested in Las Vegas for unique experiences and world-class facilities and amenities show why Las Vegas continues to be the premier leisure and business destination.”

Several projects, such as the visionary Las Vegas Global Business District project, are underway. Announced in February, with a $2.5 billion price tag, the international business destination will be completed in phases and include major renovations of the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC). Plans for the center include more exhibit and general session space; additional meeting rooms; upgraded technology; more food and beverage outlets; a grand concourse connector with additional lobby space; and outdoor public gathering spaces.

Designated in 2011 as an official World Trade Center site through an agreement with the Consumer Electronics Association, the global business district will attract national and international conventions and meetings and enhance Las Vegas’ global popularity. “It will launch Las Vegas ahead of all of our competition and solidify our standing as an international business center,” says Amy Riley, senior director, convention sales for the LVCVA. “We will be able to leverage our brand as a World Trade Center, and we are the only convention center in North America with that designation.”

Meanwhile, Las Vegas continues to set new records. In 2012, Las Vegas hosted a record 39.7 million visitors, up 2.1 percent over 2011. The total number of conventions and meetings increased 13.6 percent.

The improved results stem partly from continuing efforts to market Las Vegas. Between September and December 2012, the LVCVA conducted a “100 Day Challenge,” says Riley. “The point was to challenge our new and existing partners to meet us at over 60 events throughout the U.S. and help them fill in what they needed for 2013 and moving into 2014. We met at everything from a baseball game to an event at a zoo to receptions in different cities. It was very successful.”

No U.S. destination beats Las Vegas when it comes to meeting space. A combined total of more than 5 million sf of meeting, exhibit and convention space is available at the three largest exhibition facilities in Southern Nevada — the Las Vegas Convention Center, Sands Expo & Convention Center and Mandalay Bay Convention Center.

Magnetism Draws Groups Back

Las Vegas is like a magnet. Groups keep coming back year after year. Las Vegas lures groups of all sizes, too. The city has shed its reputation among some planners for making small groups a low priority. “It’s like any other tier-one city; there is always room for the small group,” says Hugh Hunt, president of Hunt Conference Group Inc., a Grapevine, TX-based meetings, conferences and special events company. “I do board meetings for corporations that love Las Vegas for that purpose. Many properties have divisions catering to groups of fewer than 100 people.”

Las Vegas was the ideal destination for one of Hunt’s larger clients, an oil and gas company, which last January hosted a five-day meeting of approximately 300 salespeople at the 390-room M Resort Spa Casino. Located just south of The Strip, the M Resort features more than 92,000 sf of meeting spaces including the new M Pavilion with a capacity of 2,300 people, a 7,200-sf special event space called LUX, and the 100,000-sf Villaggio Del Sole outdoor events plaza.

The M Resort’s customer service was exceptional. “The group has been a client for more than 15 years so we pretty much knew the M Resort was the place to take them to get the service and attention they wanted,” says Hunt. “We were the only group in the hotel so we had all the attention. Even though we were just 300 people, we were a full house to the hotel. That’s rare for Vegas properties.”

Hunt chose the M Resort for several other reasons: The group wanted to stay off The Strip but remain close to it. Also, Hunt enjoys a good working relationship with the M Resort’s sales staff, some of whom previously worked at other area properties. Furthermore, he was able to negotiate reasonable room rates for his group.

Hunt also was impressed with the layout of the hotel. “A lot of times when you come into a hotel in Vegas, you come into a lobby that is a casino,” says Hunt. “With the M Resort, the casino is off to the right a good distance, and you don’t see what’s going on in there. You come into a beautiful lobby and check-in area that makes it look like the hotel only does meetings. And the meeting space, ballrooms and breakouts are all in one area.”

The oil and gas group is one among the thousands of Las Vegas’ loyal repeat customers. According to Hunt, this group has met in the city at least eight times, including twice at the M Resort since it opened in 2009. “Any group I have, if they are a fit for the M Resort, it would be on the top of my list,” adds Hunt.

Huge Attendance Booster

First-timers find out very quickly that meeting in Las Vegas is a huge attendance-builder. According to Dennise Cowart, director of events for Irvine, CA-headquartered Sage Software Inc., her company eagerly anticipates meeting in Las Vegas for the first time next year. The annual Sage Summit, a six-day conference for Sage’s customers, resellers, salespeople and executives, will be held at the 3,309-room Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, which boasts 1.6 million sf of meeting space. More than 3,000 attendees are expected.

Sage has been interested in holding its summit in Las Vegas for years. In 2011, the company surveyed attendees about meeting in Las Vegas, and the response was positive, says Cowart, who is based in Austin, TX. Still, the company was concerned that gaming might detract from the summit’s focus on new product training and networking.

The Mandalay Bay staff allayed the company’s concerns during Cowart’s visit. “The hotel provided data, case studies and referrals showing that groups meeting in Las Vegas increase attendance. It was also appealing that upon entering the convention side, the fact that you are in Vegas is almost non-existent. There is no gaming over there,” says Cowart.

The large amount of space, attractive facilities and connected access to the Mandalay Bay Conven­tion Center also factored in their decision. “To get maximum value from the networking experience, it’s better if everyone is under one roof in terms of the meeting space and hotel,” says Cowart. “We are also very breakout-intensive with about 600 learning sessions. Every room has a standard AV setup and a dozen rooms are dedicated to hands-on learning labs. We bring in computers and set them up so customers can train on our software.”

Negotiating a good deal also was an incentive. “One attraction was having good, competitive room and food and beverage rates,” Cowart observes. “We are very heavy on food and beverage. We provide breakfast, lunch and snacks every day, and a reception almost every evening. The hotel was very willing to negotiate, based on our spending history.”

The Mandalay Bay also helped with a small but important food and beverage detail for the summit’s trade show component of about 200 software developers and vendors. “One of the challenges we always face is that we like to host a reception with the trade show. Trying to come up with really good food that people can walk around with is always a challenge. The chef was very creative in providing great food for that,” says Cowart.
The summit’s attendees also will enjoy entertainment and attractions. Cowart is considering including an offsite activity at The Linq, Caesars Entertainment’s 200,000-sf retail, dining, entertainment and hospitality district that is scheduled to open later this year. She also is considering a welcome reception and concert at Mandalay Bay Beach, an expansive aquatic area with a 1.6-million-gallon wave pool, 2,700 tons of genuine beach sand and about 100 cabanas, bungalows, day beds and villas.

Entertainment Is the Icing on the Cake

While groups meeting in Las Vegas vary in size and have different meeting needs, they all appreciate the boundless supply of recreational activities and exciting, unique entertainment available on The Strip and beyond. USMotivation, a full-service incentive company based in Atlanta, plans several meetings a year in Las Vegas, such as the product introduction meeting held in January for a technology company’s 1,000 dealers, executives and service managers from the U.S., Mexico and South America.
The three-day meeting was held at The Venetian/The Palazzo. The long list of things to do in Las Vegas was a big draw for the group, according to Monica Thein, senior account manager, travel operations, USMotivation. “In locations that don’t have so many things to do and ways to get around, you have to plan a lot more activities,” she says. “There is so much to do on your own that you don’t have to plan as much as in destinations that are larger or smaller and more spread out, making transportation a big component. In Las Vegas, you really don’t need transportation so you save in that way.”

The plentiful meeting space and entertainment options at the The Venetian/The Palazzo also were a plus. Attendees were wowed by a 10-minute performance of The Blue Man Group during the opening session, and many chose to attend the complete electrifying performance during their own time. The group held a welcome reception at the property’s Lagasse Stadium, a 24,000-sf restaurant and sports bar featuring Chef Emeril Lagasse’s cuisine, more than 100 HD TVs, plush stadium-style seats and luxury boxes. Also, attendees saw comedian Larry the Cable Guy at Haze Nightclub, Aria Resort & Casino’s flagship nightlife venue.

Las Vegas Motivates

Mark A. Prine, divisional vice president, major accounts, for USMotivation, planned a sales incentive program for 2,000 participants in April. Prine agrees that the good airlift and reasonable airfare, as well as the abundant space options make choosing Las Vegas an easy decision. Prine chose the 3,993-room Bellagio for an annual recognition event for top sellers and managers, which is known for the distinctive Fountains of Bellagio — a mesmerizing show of water, music and light.

An incentive program in Las Vegas is a top motivator, and Prine uses that carrot to help incentivize his client’s employees. Prine explains the process: “We have a year-long communications campaign and website dedicated to this program, with twice-monthly updates on the website that show who is in the running to earn the trip. We do mailers, emails, texts throughout the year to keep the program objectives front of mind,” Prine says. Prine also does “a full ROI analysis from both a cost analysis as well as in-depth survey analysis measuring participant experience and satisfaction.”

The attendees loved Las Vegas and found the overall experience “fantastic” and were “very excited about the venue,” adds Prine.

One key reason he says is the variety of available shows and activities, and the amount and type of space. These are two key factors that differentiate Las Vegas from other destinations.

Along those lines, Prine singled out Hyde Bellagio and the Conservatory as two unique venues at Bellagio. The very popular Hyde Bellagio, designed by Philippe Starck, is a new indoor-outdoor space with floor-to-ceiling windows — which showcase the Fountains of Bellagio — small plates and intimate places for networking. Later in the evening, the space morphs into one of Las Vegas’ hottest nightlife venues. Prine says Bank at Bellagio also provided great nightlife experiences for attendees. For a change of pace, the Victorian Gazebo in the South Garden of Bellagio’s Conservatory & Botanical Gardens features daily, live musical performances. Attendees participated in many activities including an event at Bellagio’s Tuscany Kitchen, the first exhibition kitchen of its kind in Las Vegas and designed specifically for meeting and convention groups. Also, performances by David Copperfield, Bon Jovi, Elton John and Blue Man Group were on the agenda, as were Zarkana Cirque du Soleil at Aria and Le Rêve – The Dream at Wynn Las Vegas. On the activity side, Prine says Adrenaline Rush, Red Rocks Biking, Hiking and Hummer Tours, Richard Petty Ride Along and River Float were the top winners.

But the fun and excitement did not stop there. Prine’s group also was treated to a dine-around, leadership dinners, a business session with winner recognition and awards; and a unique shopping experience where each winner and guest selects their prize in a boutique-like shopping experience.

Green meetings and connecting at meetings are easier to accomplish now thanks to Event+, his company’s new mobile app. “Being sustainable and going paperless are important to businesses today,” says Prine. “The Event+ mobile app can replace or supplement printed collateral, which many times is out of date the second it is printed. Everyone carries a smart phone with them these days. Maps, agenda, activity times, and most importantly, real time changes are all reflected in the app.
“Social networking and messaging within the app is also very popular to connect with other attendees, particularly when you are in such large venues,” Prine adds.

New and Noteworthy

Caesars Entertainment is collaborating with Gansevoort Hotel Group and nightlife promoter Victor Drai to build the Gansevoort Las Vegas on the former site of Bill’s Gamblin’ Hall & Saloon. The boutique resort and casino will include the 65,000-sf Drai’s Beach Club and Nightclub. The resort is scheduled to debut in early 2014.

The Linq, which Caesars Entertainment plans to open late this year on The Strip, will feature more than 30 retail, dining and entertainment options. The 550-foot Las Vegas High Roller observation wheel has 28 enclosed and transparent cabins, each of which accommodates 40 people.

MGM Resorts International unveiled details about its new entertainment district surrounding the world-class 20,000-seat arena under development in partnership with AEG. These new experiences will be located Stripside at New York-New York and Monte Carlo resorts and include a public park leading to the new state-of-the-art arena.

The company expects to create an experience that encourages social interaction and people-watching. Construction will be completed in early 2014.

In a statement, Jim Murren, chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International, said, “All great cities offer vibrant pedestrian experiences, and Las Vegas is certainly no exception, as The Strip is one of the world’s greatest boulevards. Our vision is to extend the excitement we traditionally create within our world-class resorts outside onto The Strip, and ultimately in an entertainment district leading to our new arena.”

More of Everything

Planners and groups will continue to rediscover Las Vegas during each visit due to the city’s determination to offer more of everything to meetings, conventions and trade shows. The constant reinvention of Las Vegas will ensure that it becomes an even more popular destination for groups around the globe for years to come. C&IT

Planners participate in a PCMA education session. Credit: PCMA

Advancing through the meeting planning and incentive travel program profession now requires deciphering the alphabet soup of certifications. Like many professions, planners serious about their career must constantly prove competency by acquiring certifications, and augmenting job experience by participating in continuing educational programs.

But making sense of the acronyms has gotten trickier. A range of certifications and certificates is now available. Some certifications are new, others are soon due to be introduced (or reintroduced) in 2013 and even the more established acronyms are undergoing a comprehensive revision. While prerequisites and the amount of course work necessary to complete each one vary, this growing abundance reflects the maturity of this increasingly competitive, and lucrative profession.

“Meeting planner” can be a broadly defined trade. Their core task — organizing a meeting or event — in actuality represents a large and eclectic skillset. Programming content, attracting attendees, assessing venues for site selection and fully utilizing new technologies are just a few of the basic talents planners require. The career can advance to a strategic management level with responsibility for aligning meetings with corporate objectives, measuring business results and ROI, and developing enterprise-wide strategic meetings management programs. While some aspects of meeting and event planning are part of various college-level curricula, outside of the industry there is a dearth of specific training for this supremely unique profession.

Easy access, walkability and new waterfront development make Boston a very “hot” city nowadays say meeting planners. Credit: Greater Boston CVB

Boston Strong. Two powerful words that tell the story of the courageous people of Boston and their supporters who responded to the tragic events triggered by the bombings at the Boston Marathon on Patriot’s Day, April 15, 2013. Boston Strong and The One Fund Boston are shining examples of how the American people pull together to defeat terrorism and overcome adversity. As of this writing, contributions to The One Fund Boston (www.onefundboston.org) are nearing $30 million.

Tricia Endicott, CMP, an independent meeting planner who lives and works in the Boston area, describes what Boston Strong means to her: “Pulling together a conference takes skill, creativity and detail as well as having great vendors to partner with to create a successful event. In Boston, the industry just pulls together for an event whether you are a hotel, caterer, planner, décor, or audio-visual person where occasionally roles even cross over a little. That doesn’t bother us; the goal is the same — to have a successful event and make the client shine. Boston venues and vendors have an amazing sense of ‘knitting together.’ It’s the people that make the difference here. For many of us, it’s not just a job; it’s our passion. You can see a glimpse of that from the tragic events from the Boston Marathon. In Boston, we pull together. We do what it takes. We care.”

Beth Stehley, vice president sales and convention services for the Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau, is happy to report that Boston was back in business very quickly. “Since the tragic events on Marathon Monday, the Boston hospitality community has experienced an outpouring of support from around the world,” says Stehley. “Many cities have reached out to us with both financial and emotional support for the victims and families, and for that we are eternally grateful.

“Over 30 international destinations sent a letter to our mayor pledging support to promote travel to Boston. This complements the offer of various third-party distribution channels to assist in promoting Boston as the place to hold their next meeting or conference,” added Stehley.

Stehley says, “We are so proud and thankful for the resiliency of the companies that had meetings scheduled and did not cancel or postpone them.” For example, Watertown, MA-headquartered athenahealth, a provider of cloud-based Best in KLAS electronic health record, practice management and care coordination services, held its annual conference as planned. A spokesperson for the company, Amanda Guisbond, on April 25 related by email: “We’re hosting our annual’s User Conference today and tomorrow at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston, MA, aka Back Bay and the Boston Marathon finish line. The area just opened up yesterday and is definitely ‘back in business.’ We have more than 1,300 users — mostly physicians — at our conference from all over the country. Naturally, our clients and our employees wanted to do something to give back to those affected by last Monday’s tragedy. As such, we are encouraging all of our attendees to donate to The One Fund Boston, and athenaGives (our corporate charitable contributions initiative) is matching up to $10,000.”

Boston

For meetings and conventions, Boston Strong means a city determined to get back to “business as usual” as quickly as possible to heal and regain a sense of normalcy. That’s what Boston’s CVB, its hospitality partners and the business community have done and continue to do. Boston is a preferred destination for many business niches that have a strong presence in the city, such as health care and insurance. It’s also a college town (in 2010 there were 152,000 students at Boston’s institutions of higher learning), which means the country is filled with people who went to school there and at one point or another, will return.

Boston may be a city that values history and tradition, but it’s gone through some revolutionary changes over the last 15 years or so, much of them propelled by the Central Artery/Tunnel Project, better known as the “Big Dig.”

While the Big Dig had a reputation of being a huge financial black hole (there are estimates its price tag will eventually reach $22 billion), its completion has had a huge aesthetic impact on Boston and spurred development in parts of the city, such as the Seaport District, that have opened up a host of new meetings- and convention-related venues.

The new I-93 and I-90 (Massachusetts Turnpike) interchange means that visitors can easily reach areas along the Boston waterfront such as the Seaport District. And when the old, ugly elevated Central Artery was finally torn down in 2004, it was replaced by the Rose Kennedy Greenway, a mile-long linear urban park filled with landscaped gardens, promenades, plazas, fountains and art, which has reconnected Boston’s downtown with sections of the city such as the Italian North End and the waterfront.
Now, the Seaport District has become a prime destination for planners bringing their meetings to Boston. Filled with acres of empty space 15 years ago, the area saw the construction of the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center (the BCEC was completed in 2004), and the opening of three major hotels: the Seaport Hotel & World Trade Center, The Westin Boston Waterfront and Renaissance Boston Waterfront.

And the development of the area is nowhere close to being completed. Last year, the state legislature authorized the construction of seven new hotels — including a 1,200-room convention headquarters hotel — around the convention center, all of which could add as many as 2,700 rooms to the city’s hotel inventory. Two of those hotels, a 330-room Aloft hotel and 180-room Element hotel, will begin construction later this year. It’s all part of a $2 billion expansion plan also designed to double the size of the BCEC.

One aspect of the waterfront’s development, particularly in South Boston, that had been somewhat problematic was the scarcity of dining spots compared to the numbers staying at the area hotels and attending meetings and conventions at the BCEC. But, the development of Liberty Wharf in 2011 has added a number of high-end restaurants to the area, including Jerry Remy’s Sports Bar & Grill, Temazcal Tequila Cantina, Del Frisco’s of Boston and a huge Legal Harborside with three floors including casual and fine-dining restaurants and a roof-top bar.

The Seaport Boston Hotel & Seaport World Trade Center, which was renovated a few years ago, offers convenient access to the Financial District, Freedom Trail, Faneuil Hall, Fan Pier and the North End. Meetings and events are a cinch as planners have a choice of more than 40 event venues, many with dramatic harbor and skyline views of Boston. Seaport boasts 180,000 sf of space — more than any other Boston hotel — situated in both the Seaport Boston Hotel and the Seaport World Trade Center, a historic Boston landmark connected to the hotel.

All of this new development, as well as a recovering economy, means the city “is hot right now,” says Colleen Kenney, CMP, associate director, events, meetings and conventions for Millennium Pharmaceuticals in Cambridge, MA. “The waterfront is so popular right now. There are great properties there, good restaurants for an offsite dinner, and everything is within walking distance.”

In fact, most meeting professionals will tell you that one of the reasons Boston is such a good place to bring a meeting is that it is such a walkable city. According to the group America Walks, Boston is the nation’s third most walkable city, trailing only New York and San Francisco.

“It’s a walking city, which people just love,” says Endicott, who owns Tricia Endicott Events, Dunstable, MA. “We know that during meetings people just pack their conference schedules. They get up, have breakfast, are in meetings all day, and have a cocktail reception or dinner afterwards. How many conferences do people go to where they come back home and people ask ‘How was the city?’ and the attendee will answer ‘I don’t know, I only saw the airport and the hotel.’ ”

But that’s not the case with Boston. “Boston gives you a chance to see part of the city,” she points out. “If you have 30 minutes of free time you can see something. If you have an hour you can see something else. And that’s a great feeling for someone who wants to be able to walk to a hotel and do something in the limited time available to them.”

While Boston may be one of the nation’s most walkable cities, it’s also one of the most accessible by air, “which is a major selling point,” says Stehley. “Boston’s Logan International Airport is in East Boston, just across the harbor from the North End and the financial district, and, as Stehley points out, “most airports aren’t three miles from the center of the city. And it’s just 20 minutes from the Back Bay.”

Julie S. Nack Locke, CMP, associate regional vice president for HelmsBriscoe, agrees that the city’s easy access to the airport makes Boston attractive to meeting planners and groups, as does “its great shopping, dining, history, sports and other activities.” The city boasts some of the nation’s most revered historical sites such as Faneuil Hall and the Old North Church, world-class museums such as the Museum of Fine Arts and the Isabel Gardner Museum, and a sporting mecca in the form of Fenway Park — home of the beloved Boston Red Sox.

All of which makes Boston an increasingly appealing destination for incentives as well as corporate meetings. Like many other destinations, Boston was hit hard by the crash of 2008, but more incentive groups are returning to Boston.

If there is a downside to trying to hold a meeting in Boston, it’s the fact that the city is too “hot,” say a number of planners.

“It’s gangbusters in Boston,” says Locke. “The rates are super high, as is demand, so you’re seeing less negotiation.”

Kenney is responsible for planning about 500 events a year for Millennium Pharmaceuticals, 25 to 30 percent of which are in Boston. “The No. 1 issue for me is finding quality function space to accommodate the goals and objectives of my meetings,” she says. “If it’s a teambuilding or educational meeting the function space needs to match what we’re trying to do — and that’s not simple, especially in Boston. We book many of our meetings short term, but Boston is such a busy city we may source 20 hotels and get only about four or five proposals that really give us what we need.

“It’s not the hotels’ fault, it’s on us because of the short lead time,” she adds. “But it also tells you about demand for space, since the city is so hot right now.”

Along with the area along the waterfront, the city has seen the development of some new hotels around the city center. The 356-room Revere Hotel opened last spring in Boston’s theater district in the space that once held a Radisson hotel and the Stuart Street Playhouse, and offers more than 35,000 sf of meeting space.

Cape Cod, Maine and New Hampshire

While Boston is certainly the heart of New England’s meeting and convention business, there are plenty of options available to planners ranging from New Hampshire and Maine to the north, and Cape Cod, Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south.

When Kenney wants to take a group out of the city for a teambuilding event, or any other kind of meeting in which a change of scenery will do the attendees some good, she’ll look at Cape Cod, Newport, RI, and Portsmouth, NH. “They’re great destinations with great properties like the Ocean Edge Resort (in Brewster on Cape Cod), and they’re all just an hour or an hour and 15 minutes away. It just changes things up a bit when we want to get people out of their comfort zone.”

Areas such as Cape Cod and Newport, as well as areas to the north in Maine and New Hampshire make good incentive destinations as well.
“A lot of people want warm-weather destinations like the Caribbean,” says Endicott, “but there are so many groups that want to go to the Cape in the summer, or up to the ski destinations in the winter. All with Boston as an entry point.”

Cape Cod hits all the right buttons for groups, says Locke, adding that groups that want a resort that caters to golfers can go to the Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club, which is in the process of completing a five-year $40 million renovation. More than $8 million of that went into renovating the golf course, clubhouse and restaurant. It’s been upgraded to a Jack Nicklaus design, the first on Cape Cod.

To the north Locke points to several resorts, such as the Omni Mount Washington, that attract incentive business.

In Bretton Woods, NH, the grand old Mount Washington Hotel, rebranded as the Omni Mount Washington, has just completed a $60 million renovation of guest rooms and suites, a new 25,000-sf spa, a conference center, the renovation of the main dining room, and the restoration of the Donald Ross-designed golf course.

Farther to the east, The Samoset Resort in Rockport, ME, recently completed a $2 million renovation that includes brand new Italian eatery La Bella Vita Ristorante, Enoteca Lounge and a seaside spa along with three new high-end guest cottages adjacent to Penobscot Bay and the Rockland Breakwater.

To the west, Vermont actually works as a year-round group destination, says Maureen Morgan, director of sales at the Vermont Convention Bureau. Groups and individual tourists flock to the state in the fall to see the foliage, continue to visit the state during the winter for some of the best skiing in the Eastern U.S., and still find plenty to do in the warmer months, weather it’s golfing, hiking, fishing or other outdoor activities.
Morgan says the variety of activities available to visitors makes Vermont appealing to corporate groups. “If you have a group that wants to do some teambuilding activities, there’s going to be a lot to do, whether it’s onsite at the property or close by,” she says. And while Vermont is several hours away from both New York City and Boston, it’s still close enough, she says, to be an attractive destination for companies in those cities that are looking for a place “where they can really get their people away from distractions.”

Connecticut

In southern New England, Mystic, CT, is situated on I-95 midway between Boston and New York City. It’s home to Mystic Seaport: the Museum of America and the Sea, a living history museum celebrating the area’s — and the country’s — relationship with the sea. Mystic also is close to two of the country’s most popular casinos, Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods.
Foxwoods is a complex of six casinos, more than 2,000 hotel rooms, more than three dozen dining venues, theaters, two championship golf courses, and 150,000 sf of meeting space. In terms of actual gaming floor space, it is the largest in the U.S.

Julie Bertolino, executive assistant to the vice president of world wide sales for Rapid7, a vulnerability management and penetration testing company headquartered in Boston, planned this year’s kickoff meeting for her company’s sales and security solutions team, and “wanted to do something a little different this year.”

Bertolino wanted a venue that was self-contained, and would give her plenty of options in one area, while negating the need to move her attendees around. So she chose Foxwoods.

The meeting, which took place in February, was attended by about 130 people, most from the Boston office, but also included attendees from Asia, Amsterdam and the U.S. West Coast. Most of the attendees were driven to Foxwoods by luxury coach from Boston the morning of the event.
“Initially some people were kind of bummed out that they had to get up early to get on a bus,” Bertolino says. “But, on the whole, people would rather have a service take them somewhere than have to drive on their own, and the feedback from the attendees was that there were no issues with the bus ride. They’re young people, and they know how to make their own fun.”
The theme of the event was “Play to Win,” which was appropriate, considering the venue, says Bertolino. Several speakers, for example, used chips as prizes that attendees could use at the tables that night after the daylong meeting and reception. The second day of the two-day event was cut short by an approaching snowstorm (such are the hazards of planning events in New England during the winter), which forced Bertolino to bus everyone back to Boston before the storm hit.

“The staff (at Foxwoods) were really great about staying in constant contact with us, and accommodating us in getting everyone out of there on time and without incident,” Bertolino says. As for feedback from attendees, Bertolino says most were “very happy in the sense it was a great place to keep that high energy up. We’re a fairly young company, so the work-hard, play-hard mantra works here. And with salespeople you really want to keep people interested, and they were really impressed with the whole event.”

Final Thoughts

Steeped in history, the New England states are mainly made up of quaint, small towns surrounded by lush landscapes, fishing villages and bustling, sophisticated cities such as Boston. New Englanders, known to be private, resilient, hardworking people, are often praised and admired for going out of their way to lend a helping hand to strangers without expecting something in return. It’s hard to imagine a meeting attendee who would not want to very soon experience a good dose of “Boston Strong” at their next corporate meeting or event. C&IT

Brad Weaber is executive vice president of SmithBucklin’s Event Services unit. He is a 26-year meetings industry veteran and oversees all of the company’s convention, trade show and event management service offerings. SmithBucklin, the world’s largest association management and professional services company, provides full-service management and high-impact specialized services to trade associations, professional societies, technology user groups, corporations, government institutes/agencies and other nonprofit organizations. www.smithbucklin.com

A couple of years ago I was strolling through an office environment and something struck me as odd — there were no phones ringing. I saw a sea of employees diligently working, most with ear buds in, listening to their favorite tunes as their fingers quickly danced over the keyboards. I could not help but reflect back to a time when a boss had said to me, “Hear those phones, it’s like gold!”

Recently, I attended a sales methodology seminar. The goal of the seminar was for the sales team to not answer their phones. Instead, they had to wait and use the voice mail message that was left by the interested party to mine information and then establish a dedicated appointment time to talk. This way, the salesperson could be more prepared with better information to close the deal. “Hmm,” I thought. With all the talk of the importance of effective communication and the power of face-to-face meetings, I decided to probe a little deeper.

Phones Are Rude

I started meeting with various employees in different companies, as well as with my own teenage son, to find out how they best like to connect. After talking with them for a little while, I asked the question “You don’t seem to mention talking on the phone. Why not?” The overwhelming response almost to the person, including my son, was “Phones are rude.” The premise here is that you do not know what the person is doing or where they are when you are calling and it could be disruptive or rude to interrupt them. Texting is considered faster and more polite. (Clearly, they have not seen me attempt to text!)

Over the years, serving on a variety of hotel or convention and visitors bureau advisory boards has been something I have enjoyed immensely. The topics have changed over the years and lately the discussion typically leads to the engagement of the multiple generations in the attendee space and how people want to be communicated with in the marketplace. Ironically, as I sit on these boards I do not see the generations represented much below baby boomers or perhaps Gen X, and yet we attempt to try to answer the questions for all. The best piece of advice I can give on what the diverse generations value most in communication and face-to-face is to simply ask them. Every board, committee, etc., should have a trusted member representing each generation, whether on an ad hoc basis or a more defined seat at the table to give opinion and feedback. This has proved very rewarding and fruitful.

Multitasking With Multi-Devices

At meetings both internally in an office or at a conference, many times the leader of the meeting will make a comment that everyone should put away their mobile devices, laptops and all other items with an on/off switch. Attendees have an expectation that they will be able to multitask and stay connected to all areas that they want to stay connected to at all times. Wi-Fi at a conference is like air, and more and more people are using multiple devices, which continually adds a strain to what systems are put into place. As we strive to attract more attendees to corporate meetings, it is paramount that we create the environment for multitasking and multi-devices.

Face-to-face means physically being in the same room, but face-to-face, for some — and this number is increasing — also means Skype, FaceTime, videoconferencing and the list goes on and on. One person I spoke with also added texting to this list. I queried, and the response was, “I can shoot out a text, have it go viral and 100 people will show up in four hours for a party or volleyball game. Can you make that happen with a meeting?” While perhaps not practical in the business sense, the point here is that engagement and value propositions are constantly in play, and therefore, show that while the meaning of face-to-face is morphing, its importance remains the same. The silver lining with the turbulent economic and generational landscape is that it has forced everyone to look at the “new” versus the “this is how we have always done it.” Companies that have not taken the step to reevaluate their meetings and ask the question, “If this was the first time we ever conducted this meeting, what would it look like?” are taking a big risk in potentially alienating the attendee of today, and certainly the attendee of tomorrow.

Hybrid Meeting Philosophy

All research and data does point to the absolute importance and value of face-to-face meetings in the physical sense of bringing people together, which I completely agree with. However, the key to a hybrid meeting philosophy — which is a must in today’s day and age — is to find all the strategic pieces to complete the entire puzzle of full attendee engagement. Before launching a hybrid meeting philosophy it is paramount that you understand why you are doing it and what you want the outcome to be. The key to success in hybrid planning is to start small, use it to accelerate the energy of a real-time or face-to-face event, and continue to create and foster a forum after the meeting to keep the online community engaged so they will want to attend your next face-to-face to see what they missed.

The comment “phones are rude” is actually a powerful one and ultimately leads back to the premise of the power of face-to-face. Most interaction on social media and texting ultimately results in physically coming together. The online connection is just a conduit to making face-to-face interactions that much easier. I truly believe that people want a physical connection and to do business with those that they like and trust. The technology we use is an accelerator and not a “replacer.” Now please excuse me, my phone is ringing. C&IT