The cohesive, dedicated team at the AAA Four Diamond Rosen Shingle Creek makes every gathering a complete success.

It is encouraging that hoteliers who have served the corporate meetings market for numerous decades are still quite focused on optimizing that service, as opposed to resting on their laurels. From Marriott, the world’s largest hotel operator, to a relatively small chain like Rosen, the brands that many planners rank as “preferred” continually seek to refine their meeting facilities, provide the latest event technology, create innovative F&B experiences, incorporate wellness programs and more.

Hilton Hotels & Resorts

What better example than the on-going group-centric initiatives of Hilton Hotels & Resorts, a company with nearly 100 years of experience in partnering with groups. “From the first airport hotel concept to introducing revolutionary in-room tech, we continuously redefine and lead the standards for corporate travel by providing guests with the offerings and amenities that matter to them the most,” says David C. Marr, senior vice president and global head, full service brands. Research into the current needs of the business traveler is guiding that effort. “The corporate meetings market is a major priority for Hilton Hotels & Resorts and, this year, we launched a specialized initiative to better understand the new generation of business travelers and help them maximize their experiences traveling for work,” says Marr. “The brand conducted a study that revealed the challenges they face, the perks they seek and the incentives that keep them coming back.”

One interesting result of the study is that young professionals face certain health and wellness challenges when on the road: “Sixty-five percent of those surveyed admit they regularly pack workout gear but end up not using it, and 44 percent have gained weight due to traveling for business,” Marr notes. “At Hilton, we have seen a significant increase in the number of corporate travelers who continue to seek out health and wellness offerings when traveling for work. To address this, we have created programs and offerings that make staying healthy easy and enjoyable for meeting attendees.” Hilton’s Meet with Purpose assists planners with integrating wellness elements into their programs. “Popular offerings include the ‘Yoga and Yogurt’ package, which offers attendees a chance to participate in an expertly led yoga class and then visit a gourmet yogurt parfait bar for a healthy balanced breakfast,” says Marr.

This year, Hilton will test a new Meet with Purpose experience: “Mini Boost Camp,” an active meeting break and fitness boot camp that is fun for attendees of all fitness levels. In-room fitness is also a focus of the Hilton brand, which recently introduced Five Feet to Fitness at select properties, including Parc 55 San Francisco, Hilton McLean Tysons Corner, Hilton Anatole and Hilton Austin. Each room includes a Fitness Kiosk, a touch-screen display where guests can receive equipment tutorials and follow guided workout routines. The room also features an indoor bike from British cycling innovator Wattbike and a Gym Rax™ functional training station.

In partnership with Aktiv Solutions, Hilton has also created more than 200 fitness videos as part of Five Feet to Fitness.

Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Wellness is also a focus of the meetings team at Hyatt. “We care for people so they can be their best — and being your best starts with well-being,” says Steve Enselein, senior vice president, events. “One way this comes to life for meetings and groups is through our F&B offerings. With personal preference menus that allow guests to select their option once at the table and seasonal banquet menus that utilize fresh options, we are able to cater to a variety of tastes and dietary needs and utilize food at the peak of its quality. As well-being continues to grow in importance for our guests and customers, we are identifying opportunities to create more well-being touchpoints for meetings and groups, guided by the expertise of our wellness brands Miraval and Exhale.”

“We believe every group is unique, so we work with our clients to make sure we give them a memorable, tailored experience that matches their goals.”
— Cara Banasch

On the technology front, Hyatt is committed to enhancing digital engagement with its guests. Julia Vander Ploeg was recently named senior vice president, global head of digital. Vander Ploeg will report to Mark Vondrasek, global chief commercial officer. According to Vondrasek, she “is a dynamic and reputable leader in the digital space and will play a critical part in helping re-imagine Hyatt’s digital capabilities and increase the frequency and depth of engagement with our guests.” Last year, Hyatt partnered with SONIFI Solutions, Inc. to deliver a personalized in-room streaming solution to hotel guests. SONIFI’s STAYCAST solution, powered by Google Chromecast, was integrated with the World of Hyatt mobile app. Participating Hyatt hotels offer guests simple, seamless and secure streaming of their favorite apps, such as Netflix, Hulu, YouTube and more than 1,000 others, to the in-room television through a Chromecast device.

With regard to meetings technology specifically, the company offers planners a number of tools. “Our Meetings on Demand tool, which focuses on small meetings, provides planners with a hotel’s real-time availability and guest room pricing so planners can easily plan and confirm a meeting online,” notes Enselein. “Once the order is submitted, an event specialist will reach out to the planner to confirm details and share recommendations to enhance the event.” The technological assistance continues once the meeting is underway. “Our Event Concierge app provides a way for planners to ensure all goes smoothly,” he says. “With this app, planners can make requests to the hotel in real time, such as asking for more water. The request is then routed directly to the Hyatt team member who will fulfill the request, allowing the meeting or event to continue without any disruption.” Post event, Hyatt’s Group Bill allows planners to receive a streamlined final bill, Enselein adds.

Planners can also enjoy the convenience of partnering with Hyatt’s National Event Planning Managers, “who travel from meeting to meeting with their designated group to ensure consistency and quality of service across events,” says Enselein. “With a deep knowledge of the customer’s culture, National Event Planning Managers are able to work between the hotel and customer to make onsite processes easier.” In general, the brand’s meetings professionals focus on “cultivating personal relationships with planners in order to serve as an extension of their team, starting with the planning phase all the way through to execution,” he says. “With more personal engagements, we can better understand planners’ needs and collaborate to identify solutions that will work best for planners and their meeting attendees.”

Omni Hotels & Resorts

Sensitivity to the individual needs of group clients is also a hallmark of Omni Hotels & Resorts. “We pride ourselves on really creating a customized experience for any group — from teambuilding activities, sports and wellness activities to innovative food & beverage experiences,” says Cara Banasch, vice president of sales for the brand. “We believe every
group is unique, so we work with our clients to make sure we give them a memorable, tailored experience that matches their goals.”

Providing unique event spaces is also a strong point of the brand. Examples include a speakeasy with four professional bowling lanes at the Omni Louisville Hotel and Omni Frisco Hotel’s partnership with the Dallas Cowboys’ world headquarters, which affords groups access to Cowboys’ venues. In general, the company emphasizes the local character of each of its properties. “Our brand encourages regional focus and local flavor, allowing experiences at each property to be unique,” says Banasch. “This allows our CSMs and culinary teams to work together and create meaningful F&B offerings that are creative and play to the strength of the property.”

Flexibility in meeting planners’ needs and wishes is also enabled by Omni’s ownership structure. “Because of our unique ownership structure, we can be the most nimble partner to accomplish the goals of each planner,” says Banasch. “This structure allows us to be flexible and open to creative vision and innovative use of our spaces.” Planners also find it easy to work with Omni, thanks to “a standardized, global meetings contract that’s easy to understand and has fair and reasonable remedies when necessary,” she adds. “Similarly, we have a two-page contract to make it easy for planners booking short-term meetings and events.”

To facilitate the logistics of planning, Omni has established a partnership with Encore Event Technologies. “Many of our convention center hotels are experimenting with technology that will map out their meeting spaces. Additionally, we are looking at enhancements that will allow for technologically advanced site visits,” Banasch says.

Rosen Hotels & Resorts

Rosen’s collection of convention properties includes the 800-room Rosen Plaza, 1,334-room Rosen Centre and 1,501-room AAA Four Diamond Rosen Shingle Creek. When combined, the hotels form a synergy for larger groups by offering 700,000 gross square feet and 3,635 guest rooms and suites within minutes of each other. The 44-year-old company has hometown roots, and its staff knows Orlando, one of the meeting industry’s pre-eminent cities.

Leslie Menichini, the company’s vice president, sales and marketing, elaborates on the proficiency of the sales staff: “We have a cohesive, dedicated team that truly exemplifies something we call the Rosen Difference. Not only does our entire hotel staff deliver excellence every day, they shatter expectations. I truly believe this is the cornerstone to our overall huge repeat business and multiyear contracts.” She adds: “The longevity of our sales team is also a bit unusual. I’ve been with Rosen Hotels & Resorts for 17 years and will be here when I retire. We have a wealth of knowledge and experience to share with planners from our sales team, more than 50 percent of whom have been with the company 10-plus years. This is an incredible benefit to planners — and our team — who are fortunate enough to build long-term relationships and that all-important ‘shorthand’ that makes a planner’s life just that much easier.”

Rosen Hotels & Resorts is also continually enhancing its trio of properties. The lobby at Rosen Shingle Creek features a new golden palette and metal art murals displaying the colors of the sunset, and the communal seating areas have been expanded throughout the popular Headwaters Lounge. Rosen Centre guest rooms have recently been refreshed with new furnishings, and this fall, Rosen Plaza will introduce stylish new décor for its lobby and meeting space.

MGM Resorts International

MGM Resorts is making major strides in its Las Vegas meetings offerings this year with the recently completed expansion of ARIA’s LEED Gold-certified convention center (adding 200,000 square feet) and the MGM Grand Conference Center expansion, adding 250,000 square feet when it opens in December. In addition, Monte Carlo’s transformation into Park MGM has introduced Phase I of its new 77,000-square-foot conference space. As part of Phase II, Park MGM introduced Las Vegas’ first executive meeting center, Madison Meeting Center, and will debut the Ideation Studio in the fourth quarter. These high-touch, high-tech meeting venues are designed to maximize productivity for small groups.
Additional space is, of course, helpful in accommodating more business meetings, but “we didn’t just add space, we put a lot of thought into making sure we had the appropriate amount of space for the amount of group business we need to make a 4,000-room building actually work,” explains Michael Dominguez, chief sales officer of MGM Resorts. One of the most thoughtful components of MGM Resorts’ meetings product, and in the industry overall, is Stay Well Meetings. “We definitely have doubled down on the Stay Well component, which is now at Mirage, Park MGM and MGM Grand, and with the additional space at MGM Grand, we’ve added more Stay Well components. At MGM, when we first launched Stay Well, it was 40 guest rooms. The second phase ran up to 170 guest rooms, the third phase almost 300, and we’re now north of 400 guest rooms. And it’s all based on demand.”

MGM Resorts collaborates with Delos, the pioneer in wellness real estate, to design Stay Well rooms. “The wellness push is not going away, and we’re trying to take the science and the research that is behind Delos and the wellness side of it because we think that will be sustainable,” Dominguez says. “And we try to educate the industry on what is important and what the science is telling us we should be doing as hotel owners and operators. Delos does a lot of work with the tech world, and when you have technology companies converting their offices to be better in terms of wellness with lighting, air and ambience, we have a belief that when they’re sending people to meetings, they’re going to be looking for the same type of environment. The reason that’s important to us is that the technology sector is our No. 1 vertical.”

Speaking of technology, the Madison Meeting Center and particularly the Ideation Studio represent the height of meeting technology. “The Madison Meeting Center was built with the thought process of a conference center, which I know is not novel in its own concept, but we then combined Stay Well and other technology pieces to make sure we were being a little more innovative on what that space looks like,” Dominguez explains. “In bringing Stay Well into the space, the lighting is probably the most critical [element]. A blue hue of light will actually make us more alert and more conducive for learning and mental acuity than yellow-tone lights, which we’ve had in our meeting rooms for actually the last 30 years. And with LED lighting today, it doesn’t cost me a penny more to have the right hue of light.”

The conference center environment in the Ideation Lab will include cutting-edge Cisco technology called Webex Teams. “The difference with this system is that there are no wires, there’s nothing to connect, but it’s not Bluetooth,” Dominguez explains. “Once you sign in to a Team room, you’re part of the room, so anything being presented, anything on screen you’ll be able to download, keep with you, reference and communicate with other attendees about it if you’d like. But what I think is most important in these types of spaces is that the technology is learning and device agnostic. Which means it will work on IOS, Windows, mobile device, tablet, laptop, etc. And that is unique because when I find these high-tech spaces, I also need a high-tech degree to make it all work. And what we’re trying to do is create a space that is so user-friendly that the space will think for you. What I’m most exited about is that it’s the first time Cisco is using this technology outside of their campus in a hotel environment.”

Caesars Entertainment

Like MGM Resorts, Caesars Entertainment is also stepping up its game in Las Vegas’ meetings industry. Caesars FORUM, a $375 million, 550,000-square-foot conference center, recently broke ground at the center of the Strip. The venue will have skybridge access to Harrah’s Las Vegas and The LINQ Hotel and Casino, and pedestrian bridge access to Flamingo Las Vegas and the LINQ Promenade retail district.

Caesars FORUM will boast 300,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, including two 110,000-square-foot pillarless ballrooms, two 40,000-square-foot ballrooms, six state-of-the-art boardrooms and more than 100 breakout rooms. For convenient move-in, the venue is being built on one floor, along with nine easily accessible loading docks. The LEED Silver-rated facility will also feature FORUM Plaza, the first 100,000-square-foot dedicated outdoor meeting and event space in Las Vegas.

Caesars Entertainment’s new offerings in the meetings market are not limited to Las Vegas, however. This spring, the company announced plans to bring the Caesars brand to two hotels in Dubai’s Jumeirah Beach region and to the Puerto Los Cabos region in Mexico. And the company also recently broke ground on a new conference center at Harrah’s Cherokee in Cherokee, North Carolina. The $200 million conference center and hotel tower will offer 83,000 square feet of conference space and 725 guest rooms, along with dining and retail outlets.

This brief overview of hotel brand developments shows that major chains are actively developing both state-of-the-art meeting venues (e.g., Caesars FORUM and MGM’s Madison Meeting Center) as well as avant-garde wellness programs (e.g., Hilton’s Meet with Purpose and MGM’s Stay Well). But fundamentally, becoming a preferred brand is about the quality of the convention sales and services staff. MGM Resorts provides just one example of a top-notch meetings staff: “Almost 90 percent of our convention services staff are CMPs,” Dominguez notes. “We believe in making sure they are as educated as our industry is, and that they’re up on the latest trends. Our expectation is to continue to reinvent the experience, not to just execute, and we continue to do that on an annual basis.” C&IT

Credit: kurhan/www.shutterstock.com

Inviting families to accompany attendees at meetings and incentive events provides an array of potential positives. Including families can boost attendance, underscore and promote a family-friendly corporate culture and serve as motivation for employees striving to qualify for annual corporate reward programs.

There’s no one kind of company, no one size of meeting, no one type of event that works for bringing family along. The addition of families can be a positive part of any corporate gathering.

Eric Czerlonka, principle creative director with Czerlonka Productions, brought an annual incentive group of 250 to The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colorado, last year.
“This particular client,” he says, “wants to support the importance of family and views this as a way of thanking the entire family for their support throughout the year.”

Czerlonka worked closely with The Broadmoor to create children’s programming that was available to parents during their stay. “It included games, movies and snacks throughout the day, along with access to the resort’s many amenities. In addition, Play at The Broadmoor, the resort’s combination dining and games venue, offered activities such as shuffleboard, pool and bowling for the families. We found this to be a great benefit in our decision-making process.”

Czerlonka notes that the addition of family did not directly affect the choice of destination or resort. “The beauty of the resort, its surroundings and the service are key to the success of the program,” he says. “However, a family component does change how we view the resort options.”

Activities, dining and choices are key, whether or not family is along. “The Broadmoor offers luxury shops right on property, golf and amazing restaurants,” Czerlonka points out.

Additionally, he says, there are options off-property that make The Broadmoor and Colorado Springs an ideal incentive destination. “Seven Falls, The Broadmoor’s fly-fishing camp, Garden of the Gods and the Pikes Peak Cog Railway (currently closed for an operational assessment) are just a few of the experiences that groups gravitate toward.”

Czerlonka also likes that whether attendees fly into Colorado Springs or Denver, the transfers are easy. “Transfers from Colorado Springs to The Broadmoor are very convenient, and the close proximity allows you to manage transportation costs,” he says. “For those who decide to fly into Denver, we’ve found that the drive to Colorado Springs is one that is full of amazing views, and our guests don’t mind the 90-minute trip to the resort.”

This particular group had meal functions for all attendees including family, with at least one surprising result. “The culinary team at The Broadmoor was very creative with providing menus for the kids. We actually found adults going for the children’s food items at times!”

“It’s a way for the company to…give the qualifiers a once-in-a-lifetime travel experience that they are able to share with the ones that they love.”
— Michael Dalton, CIS

At the end of the day, Czerlonka says there are some differences in meetings and programs with families vs. those without. “I believe the big difference is that the parents are looking for a balance and a safe alternative to having the children with them all day. Our goal is always to give them peace of mind that their children are in good hands.

To that end, we dedicated event managers from our team who partnered with The Broadmoor team in caring for the kids. From a planner’s perspective, this is definitely an additional element that needs to be considered.”

When a western U.S.-based corporate group was looking for a site for its incentive program, it turned to Kip Lambert, CIS, with Destinations, Inc. of Utah. Ultimately, the group of 720 headed to the Grand Hyatt Kauai on the Hawaiian island of Kauai.
“Hawaii in general and Kauai specifically are wonderful, family-friendly destinations,” Lambert says. “Additionally, availability of airlift, ease of access, cost, quality of lodging and entertainment all contributed to the selection.”

Lambert says that having family along is important to the company and to its employees. “Company officials feel that having family attend helps qualifiers maximize their incentive experience by being able to share the trip with those important in their life. And each qualifier wanted to earn this trip so that his or her family could enjoy this incentive vacation experience.”

Lambert notes that the Grand Hyatt Kauai perfectly fit this group’s culture and the attendees’ needs. “The Grand Hyatt Kauai has a great mix of beautiful public spaces, pools, kids’ areas and a large ballroom, making it a great choice for this program.”

While arranging childcare was the responsibility of each qualifier, Lambert says that families were encouraged, though not required, to attend all activities and group events. There was just one function open to qualifiers only.

In terms of extra work during the meeting, Lambert notes that the only added consideration was making sure that enough child-friendly items were available at the buffets.

That said, adding family to the mix does complicate some planning. “The biggest challenge to bringing family along was the extra logistics needed in booking airfare, rental cars and other group transportation,” Lambert says.

In addition, having families in attendance may lessen peer-to-peer qualifier interaction during the event. “I feel like group events definitely end sooner or fizzle out quicker because people want to attend the event yet also want to end on time or end early so that they can spend the max amount of time with family. This makes meetings succinct and to the point with much less mingling afterward,” Lambert says.

To other planners who might work on a family-friendly program, Lambert has this advice: “Make attendees aware that if their airfare is booked and then they decide later that they want to bring family, it can be difficult at that point to book the same flights at an affordable cost or to find seats together,” he says. “I suggest you have them first make the decision as to whether or not they are bringing family and then book airfare only after that decision is made.”

Additionally, he suggests, “Provide some kind of group childcare during those events where just the qualifier is invited. That might include games, an activity, etc.”

Noël Mladinich, CMP, CMM, manager of meetings and events at Raymond James Financial, Inc., brought a group of 100, including family members, to the Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg, Virginia. “When our attendees are happy, they are more productive, and including family helps support the company’s culture,” Mladinich says.

The group was looking for a property that offered a relaxed and inviting setting and family-friendly activities, and Salamander fit the bill. “Salamander Resort has great meeting space, sleeping rooms and dining options,” Mladinich says. “Plus, there’s a wonderful pool area and kids’ activities, including the unique equestrian options.”

In addition, the region and resort also offered good airlift options and overall costs were in line with the meeting budget. Typically, the primary attendees spent their mornings in business meetings while family members had free time.

“We offered a family-friendly activity and invited guests of all ages to meal functions. We had a kid-friendly buffet at the dinner and s’mores at our fire-pit farewell function. We also had lawn games and a photographer on hand for family photos,” Mladinich notes.

There were no challenges in organizing the meeting. In fact, Mladinich says, including family is an enhancement. “It adds depth and a personal touch to a business meeting. It’s nice to see attendees with their families and for those families to get to know one another. Attendees truly appreciate being able to bring their loved ones, and they enjoy sharing the experience with them.”

To other planners and companies trying to decide whether or not to include families in a corporate meeting or incentive program, Mladinich says, “Give it a try. I think you’ll find it provides a high ROI.”

Families Abroad

Family-friendly meetings aren’t limited to those taking place within the United States. It’s not unusual for incentive programs located in other parts of the globe to include family members as well — and with good reason.

Michael Dalton, CIS, president of SITE Ireland, with Moloney & Kelly, part of the Hosts Global family of DMCs, says incentives in particular make sense for family members.
“By the nature of the business of incentive travel, qualifiers have gone above and beyond their targets, meaning they are likely to have spent a few late nights at the office and time away from their family. The incentive program is a reward not just for the qualifiers, but also for their families. It’s a way for the company to thank the spouse and kids for their support and understanding throughout the year and to give the qualifiers a once-in-a-lifetime travel experience that they are able to share with the ones that they love.

“Time with family is precious,” Dalton adds, “so companies recognized that by rewarding a qualifier’s entire family, it also benefits the company significantly by generating huge loyalty among the staff.”

Dalton worked on an annual incentive program for a North American client last July that included 75 couples plus children. The group stayed at The Killarney Park Hotel in County Kerry and Dromoland Castle in County Clare. The choices of areas to visit and specific hotels were influenced by the fact that children would be present.

“A safe, secure destination is a priority for any incentive program, but beyond this, it was more detail orientated in relation to property and activities,” Dalton says. “Both locations used in this program have a strong reputation for delivering exceptional experiences for families on leisure as well as corporate incentives, so this was a good added bonus. We ensured there were child-friendly activities and a dedicated space with childcare professionals to run activities for children while parents were in meetings.”

Moreover, Dalton says, “Air access from North America is extensive to Ireland with additional routes being added every year, making it an ideal location for North American clients. The quality of both properties is world class, and the value proposition for the destination is exceptional.”

For this particular group, Dalton notes, “Children joined all of the evening events, and a special menu was designed to cater for their needs as would be done for any other attendee. The entertainment was all family-friendly and interactive.”

The only real issue regarded setting up certain activities. “It was important to set minimum ages on some of the activities, and as we didn’t know before registration how many children would attend or what their ages would be, it made it difficult to predict.”

Like others, Dalton says that including children introduces some complexity to the planning process. “It adds another layer to the planning aspect having to ensure that you have an additional space to accommodate the children’s needs and ensure that they have the same fantastic destination experience as the qualifier.”

Dalton’s best advice to planners working on a program that includes children is: “Always add a contingency into your budget to allow for any additional unforeseen expenses that may arise, such as ad hoc activity packs for children during transfers. Ensure that your DMC can provide you with the maximum occupancy per room in each property and specify bed types, along with what is classified as a child age versus an adult at the proposal stage.”

Nicky de Champlain is part of another Hosts Global DMC, JPdl Destination Management Canada, based in Quebec. She worked with a group of 375 for an annual convention based at Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City. She says that the fact the event takes place in July makes it right for family inclusion. “It allows families to be together during the summer when children are, for most part, out of school,” she says. “Parents can attend the business meetings yet still be with their families for a portion of the day.”

De Champlain also notes that including families had a “huge bearing” on the selection of the city and hotel. “Quebec City is safe, easy to walk and offers a variety of restaurants, shops and attractions. And many of these are within a short walking (distance) from the hotel.”

A dedicated program for children was offered during the convention. “The same space in the hotel was booked for the duration of the meeting,” she says. “It had specific opening times with a specific schedule of activities, days and evenings. And qualified personnel were onsite at all times the Children’s Club was in operation.”

The Club offered activities, games and workshops for a range of ages, and food and beverages were also served to the children at the Club. In addition, de Champlain says, “We also customized off-site activities to cater to families, both cultural and active.”
Among the family-friendly events at the convention was a Family Day. “We had strolling and interactive entertainment, and a special child-friendly menu was created,” de Champlain says. “Specific food stations with lower tables were adapted for children, and there were mixed seating areas with lots of colors that were vibrant and fun. A special reserved area was also set up for children, which provided better viewing of the stage and the main entertainment show.”

There was a gala evening for adults only at an off-site venue while a special evening for children was offered within the hotel. The children’s final night was grand, fun and made them feel very special!” de Champlain says.

In considering the differences between meetings with and without families, de Champlain says, “We found that the participants were more relaxed knowing their families were with them, yet they were also enjoying the conference program. The participants enjoyed every little bit of free time they had to be with their families. They got to discover a city that they may have never traveled to as a family. The participants were very appreciative of what was offered for the children.”

While de Champlain agrees that inviting families can boost attendance, she also points out that there’s a financial factor to consider. “It’s OK to charge a minimal fee to bring children,” she says. “To do it right, make sure you have the budget to have the proper program in place. If you don’t have the money to do it right, don’t include children.”
Planners seem to be in agreement that while families can add some logistical challenges and unforeseen expenses, the positives and benefits of having them along, for attendees as well as for their companies, are well worth it. C&IT

The sounds of a band echoing throughout the formal gardens, as well as a grand fireworks display, created a successful event at Vizcaya Museum & Gardens in Miami.

Success, according to legions of leaders from industry, politics and beyond, is in many ways dependent on failure. John C. Maxwell, noted author and speaker, put it this way: “Without failure, there is no achievement.”

Elon Musk, founder of SpaceX among other companies, famously points to his resume of “epic failures” and says, “If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough.”

So how do the most talented in our industry create successful programs? And what do they do when success eludes them? We asked eight meeting and event professionals for their insights.

One thing is clear: Most of us don’t like the word “failure.”

“We don’t use the word failure at our company,” says Paul Nix, CMP, CTA, DMCP, president of Capers DMC, a Hosts Global member in San Antonio, Texas. “We view ‘failures’ as an opportunity. Simply put, they are learning experiences.”

Dana Weaver, CIS, with Growmark, Inc., and a SITE Foundation trustee, also sees challenges as opportunities. “Beware of a planner who says, ‘Everything always goes according to the original plan.’ In fact, alternate plans are implemented more often than not. I believe there are no problems; just lots of opportunities to discover new solutions.”

Nell Nicholas, senior director, global accounts with HelmsBriscoe, believes learning from mistakes is a lifelong proposition. “I feel blessed that I’m at a stage in my career where I can more easily learn from my mistakes than perhaps when I started in the industry. Didn’t we all think we were infallible in our 20s? For me, the life lesson is to accept that mistakes are an inherent part of the learning curve, and we are never too old to learn something new, professionally and personally.”

In the end, it’s really about how you face challenges, what you learn and how you move forward.

Rhonda Brewer, MICE industry consultant and SITE president in 2015, describes an event that went sideways when the contracted entertainment didn’t show or respond to calls. “Since we had prepaid, we didn’t have a plan B,” she says. “We went into action calling multiple providers of the same service. We ended up with a show — just not the show that was promised. Fortunately, no one knew what to expect, so in the guests’ eyes, it was still a successful evening. But in our eyes, it was much more stress and not what was promised.”

Planners will always be challenged with “curve balls,” Brewer notes. It’s how they deal with them and how they communicate to the client that turns things around. “Honesty on the situation and what you are doing to resolve it is the best plan of action. Assess the situation,” she advises. “How will it impact the client and guests? How will it impact your budget? Then quickly determine steps to resolve or come up with an alternative — and communicate, communicate.”

“Beware of a planner who says, ‘Everything always goes according to the original plan.’ In fact, alternate plans are implemented more often than not.”
— Dana Weaver, CIS

Weaver recalls a challenge early in his career at Growmark, an agriculture supply company, which traditionally had an average qualifier group size of 150. In the last three months of the earning period the year Weaver arrived, the group more than doubled to 352, leaving two months to make adjustments.

“We needed more resort rooms, more rental cars, more space for activities, more dining area, more meeting space, more awards and more gifts,” he says. “I learned that my reputation as a buyer/planner is important in these situations. I also have to have a full understanding of the industry, knowing what’s possible and what is not possible to overcome a problem. As our incentive programs are open-ended, I learned that selecting resorts with 500-plus rooms gives me flexibility to add rooms if needed. I also learned that the participants who earn the reward don’t know the original plan, so most changes go unnoticed by them.”

Colleagues also make a difference. “Attending industry education and networking events allows me to engage in conversations about opportunities to overcome unplanned situations,” he says. “The best resources are other planners who help me think through situations and discover solutions.”

Amy Maxey, manager, global conferences and events with Hyland, a software company, learned a hard lesson in 2014, when she joined the company. “Balancing customer expectations, budget and growth can be a nightmare for planners,” she says.

That year, rising production and F&B costs coupled with increased attendance were making it difficult to balance the budget. One strategy was to eliminate free-flowing coffee, bottled water and bottomless bowls of candy bars. Refreshments were limited, water stations were set up.

“To say customers noticed these changes is an understatement,” Maxey says. “The positive conference survey results we were accustomed to took a nosedive that year. Let’s face it, attendees don’t have insight into conference food and beverage pricing, which is often highly inflated compared to what is paid at the grocery for the same item. Our attendees didn’t understand the reasons, they just knew they were thirsty and hungry all week.

“In our quest to control costs, we lost sight of the negative impact on an otherwise successful event. Education and networking are important to any conference; however, attendees remember the experience over everything else. Ensuring positive customer experiences in all we do is essential at Hyland. It’s part of our culture and core values. To hear that our customers and employees had a negative experience at our flagship event was devastating.”

The question the following year became how to ensure a positive customer experience while maintaining costs. Maxey says their strategy started with planning early and working with the hotel and vendors to create custom menus and networking events that would provide a positive experience without breaking the bank.

“We also looked at ways to negotiate new contracts with vendors to save costs elsewhere. We cut back on our general session set and restructured our networking event schedule. Through our partner, Experient, we negotiated additional incentives, such as food and beverage discounts and rebates, into our contracts to help offset costs. Finally, we researched conferences of similar size and scope and realized we weren’t charging enough. Through a nominal increase in registration fees, we increased available funds and improved attendee experience.”

The strategies worked. “Our Net Promoter Score (NPS) jumped more than 32 points in one year! Our alumni rate (repeat attendees) has increased every year. As planners, we take tremendous pride in the events we produce. These events are built with our blood, sweat and tears, and we want attendees to have the best conference experience possible,” Maxey says. “Following the 2014 event, I read every word on each individual survey and was heartbroken. I made it my mission to turn that failure into success.”

Today, Hyland continues to grow its global customer base and conference attendance. “Our annual end-user conference has more than doubled since 2014, and our NPS scores remain high,” Maxey notes. “That being said, I still read every word on each survey to ensure I keep pace with customer feedback. I’ve started reading the real-time responses in the mobile app during the event to address attendee feedback immediately. Now,
instead of being heartbroken when I see the results, I’m beaming with pride that our customers are having such a positive experience.”

What ultimately separates success from failure? Hard work, preparation, creative thinking and willingness to venture where others have not can define successful events. As for failure, sometimes the issue is out of a planner’s control, and sometimes failure results from an error in judgement. Professionals understand that both success and failure are part of the job.

Danielle Rothenberg, experience designer with AlliedPRA South Florida, is rightly proud of a successful event set at Vizcaya Museum & Gardens, an opulent, Italian-inspired National Historic Landmark.

“The event was crafted as a complete surprise for attendees, beginning with guests entering through the unmarked service entrance,” Rothenberg says. “They were greeted with a specialty cocktail and led down waterfall steps to the sounds of a violin duo echoing throughout the formal gardens. After cocktails, guests were escorted through a secret garden entranceway and around the waterfront to the East Terrace for dinner. Special touches were made throughout the entire event, including a history of the property.”

The site’s architectural, landscaping and natural beauty made the setting stand out, and the thought and service Rothenberg and her team put in elevated the event even higher.

Sometimes, however, situations arise that cannot be foreseen, as was the case with Rothenberg’s high-end incentive program just six hours before check-in.

“A foreign king, his security detail and the secret service were staying at the luxury hotel. They decided last minute to extend their stay. The planner was literally in the air on the way to our pre-con when she was informed that the guest rooms she booked were no longer available. The hotel worked vigorously to secure sleeping rooms at two comparable area hotels.”
T

he biggest challenge, Rothenberg says, was that the group’s meeting space, receptions and meals were already scheduled to be hosted on property. “Don Bontemps, senior event producer, was quick on his feet to save the day. He worked with the hoteliers and client to come up with solutions. Sleeping rooms were selected at one of the comparable hotels, and a continuous shuttle service was arranged between the properties.”

Not as simple as it sounds. “Special arrangements had to be made for continuous use of the hotel’s front ramp for the shuttles. Mr. Bontemps had to coordinate directly with the royal family’s security detail and the secret service to ensure that our group’s movements wouldn’t interfere with the royal family’s arrivals and departures,” Rothenberg says. “It was the definition of every planner’s worst nightmare.”

In the end, hard work and creative re-planning turned disaster into success. Among the positives according to Rothenberg: “Attendees were able to experience not one but two of the most amazing properties in Miami Beach with two totally different design aesthetics.”

The devil, as the saying goes, is often in the detail, as Nicholas has learned. “One client’s objectives is to ‘delight the attendee.’ If that succeeds, she considers it a successful program even if things aren’t going perfectly behind the scenes. We recently booked a unique property that had unconventional meeting space, a good fit for this group. When we saw the A/V setup, however, we realized the screen was too small for the space. We thought surely this would hinder the attendee experience. When we told the attendees that we found another hotel for next time, they made clear they wanted to stay at the unique hotel with unconventional meeting space. As a venue finder, the failure on my part was that I was focused on finding the right ambience, one objective for this program, but failed to consider more carefully the A/V placement. The program was a success, but I gave my client a few gray hairs in the interim.”

For Terry Manion, executive vice president with Meridican Incentive Consultants in Ontario, Canada, a lesson involved a perennial planner challenge — airlines.

“The morning after the welcome dinner of a program in Panama, we were boarding the group onto coaches for tours when we learned our airline had gone bankrupt. The airline took no responsibility and provided no assistance. The only option was to make individual bookings for each of the 220 guests.”

Manion’s team went to work and kept attendees informed. “We set up a communications lounge so people could contact family and co-workers. We triaged guests, booking those first who had to get home for commitments that couldn’t be missed.”

And the program went on as planned. “What we learned,” Manion says, “is that open and honest communications and not leaving participants in the dark was key. By doing our best to reduce guests’ concerns, they continued to enjoy the program, and everyone left Panama on the originally scheduled departure day.”

Sometimes success is in making the impossible possible, which was the case when a client of Nix wanted to buy out San Antonio Riverwalk. “As the DMC, I asked, ‘You mean the second-largest visited tourist attraction in the state of Texas? You want to close it down for a private event?’”

He told the client not to get her hopes up as it had never been done —but didn’t say no.
“We knew we’d never get approval to buy out the entire Riverwalk, so we went to the city with a scaled back request of a buyout of 10 restaurants and two museums on the Riverwalk, with the addition of a large, flat parking lot and a six-block street closure.”
The theme developed into a carnival and culinary night under the Texas stars. Success was realized, Nix says, thanks to a city government that knows the importance of hospitality and to the Capers team’s relationships with the agencies involved.

“City agencies were not a ‘road block’ to our plan but helped us bridge our ideas into a workable plan,” he says. “Agencies included Visit San Antonio (our DMO), the San Antonio parking division, streets department, health department, police department, fire department, downtown operations, parks department, park police and Texas Alcoholic Beverage Control, to name a few.”

Nix says it took many hours of meetings to get approvals, but the plan came to fruition. “We took on this massive project with one main point of contact and then divided the work among team members. We believe anything can be accomplished with detailed planning. The party was a huge success due to out-of-the-box thinking and the great relationship we have with our city government and our DMO.”

The outcome, he notes, “was serving 5,000 people from 10 private restaurants and two museums and incorporating each restaurant and a major catering company on the streets and parking lot to create a true cultural culinary experience of San Antonio. Carnival rides, games and activities were spread throughout the six blocks of closed streets.”

The client called it the best closing-night reception the group had ever had. “That, to Capers, is a true success story.”

It can be brilliant to say yes to the impossible. But saying no can be the smart move, too.
“We want to make our clients happy,” Nix says. “We want their guests to have an awesome experience in San Antonio. Sometimes, however, we don’t realize our own limitations. At times, we say yes when instead we should tell them that what they want can’t be done successfully.”

One such “learning opportunity” arose when Capers was tasked with transporting 2,500 guests from the convention center to a ranch an hour away during high-traffic time.
“We went to work to see what Capers could offer to make this bus ride feel as short as possible,” Nix says. “First, we arranged a police motorcycle escort with every group of busses to expedite transport. Then, we came up with a brilliant idea that we had done successfully on three to four coaches in the past, but never 53 vehicles. We spoke to vendors that had previously provided trivia and other games on bus rides for us. Two turned us down, stating they couldn’t get enough bus leaders trained for so many vehicles. That should have been a red flag for us.”

Ultimately, they found a vendor willing to work with them and shared the team’s expectations and how they sold the overall experience to the client for its attendees’ enjoyment. There were microphones on every bus, and they all worked.

“However,” Nix says, “the challenge was that once a question was answered, game attendants had to put down the microphone and walk back to give that winner a prize ticket. They had to keep the program running while they did this, and no one on the bus could hear them as they walked up and down the aisle. Additionally, there was no consistency with the energy of the bus leaders. Most just read questions from a card and it became boring fast, while some leaders were energetic and kept people engaged.”
What was the lesson learned? “We should have known our limitations and that of our vendors and not offered this service,” Nix says. “From our client’s mouth to our ears, ‘It was a flop.’ Ouch! We failed our client because their guests didn’t receive the experience we had been able to provide for smaller groups.”

With so many complaints, Capers refunded the client’s fee. “We want to make our clients happy. Sometimes we stumble in the process to make that happen. This learning opportunity helped us better know our limitations and those of our vendors. You must be willing to learn from the lows in order to create more highs,” Nix says.

The truth is, failure is inevitable. You can’t always prepare for it, but you can always learn from it. Once a planner discovers that, success is sure to follow. C&IT

Scott Steinberg is an award-winning professional speaker and one of today’s best-known trends experts and futurists. He is the bestselling author of The Business Etiquette Bible, Make Change Work for You: 10 Ways to Future-Proof Yourself, Fearlessly Innovate and Succeed Despite Uncertainty (TarcherPerigee, 2016). Among today’s leading providers of keynote speeches, workshops and seminars for Fortune 500 firms, his website is www.AKeynoteSpeaker.com.

Great stories are what make memorable movies, books and TV shows stand out from the crowd. Similarly, arresting tales and compelling narratives are what help us remember iconic events — and the businesses and brands behind them.

In the corporate world and event planning business, these yarns are constantly being spun in the form of marketing, advertising and promotional efforts. A brand’s story serves as a handy way to convey your company’s message, build credibility, establish an organization’s vision, motivate buyers and build lasting customer loyalty.

Looking to increase interest in your organization and attendance at your events?
Below are eight ways to help audiences better identify with the ideas and ideals you represent, and generate lasting enthusiasm and empathy for both your event-based programs and enterprise.

1. Offer case studies, insights and real-world examples. Connecting ideas with end results and demonstrating how challenges were overcome through applied effort and ingenuity can help build credibility and interest for your event business among customers. To this extent, consider presenting problem- and solution-based content, e.g., whitepapers, post-mortems and case studies, which (like client testimonials and behind-the-scenes examinations) can prove powerful ways to narrate tales of how real-life problems were overcome through ingenuity and insight. When paired with video clips, quotes and commentary from actual attendees, testimonial videos and other personal details, the practice helps put a more human face on both your events and your organization and build credibility in viewers’ eyes.

2. Take viewers behind the scenes and spotlight key teams or contributors. Another easy way to add a personal element to your online event or organization is to highlight the people and teams that make your programs and business so successful and unique. Consider letting real-life contributors with an authentic tale to which audiences can relate share their story, whether it involves personal insights, humorous anecdotes or accounting of recent professional exchanges that relate to your event/company’s mission or core competencies. Doing so not only helps put a more memorable and human face on your events and organization, it also helps others realize that your business is made up of unique individuals who share in similar interests, trials and triumphs.

3. Be an industry insider and subject matter expert. Another effective way to tell your event program or organization’s story is to reinforce your subject matter expertise and authority by serving as a source for advice, insight and innovation. Providing employees (and event contributors) with a public voice — e.g., by letting them pen industry-related blogs, film Q&A videos with leading experts or author whitepapers that showcase new developments and insights — that creates value for readers, listeners or viewers can help produce a vehicle through which to build a compelling content library and establish thought leadership. Doing so allows you to demonstrate your team’s unique perspective and talents, as well as reinforce its position of being on the cutting-edge of your chosen industry. Showcasing key data, research and findings, or providing headline-grabbing articles, video clips and visual assets can help add substance and credibility to your business’s event outreach efforts.

4. Find unique ways to recount and share your origins. Just as Tesla founder Elon Musk and Craigslist creator Craig Newmark are often fond of doing, look for new and novel ways to recount your event or organization’s humble beginnings, and show viewers how it all got started. Recounting your organization’s salad days and revealing some of the personal and professional struggles you’ve encountered puts a more personal face on the business. It also helps viewers better empathize with you and boosts likeability. Just be sure to be positive, straightforward and self-aware — the point isn’t shameless promotion or self-aggrandizement, but rather spinning a compelling yarn which millions can relate to and learn from.

5. Explore interactive and cutting-edge solutions. To make your event business or brand’s story truly stand out, try translating its ideals into more than mere words. Providing interactive options — e.g., apps, augmented reality tools, 3D maps and programs, video games, customizable visuals or videos, surveys, quizzes, user-generated content programs, etc. — may not only boost audience engagement. It may also enhance learning and retention, provide unique context and help customers better understand what your event or business is about. Giving attendees a way to contribute to the conversation by entering their own submissions (via voice, video, votes, visual contributions or otherwise) and allowing commenting/sharing on or remixing of official assets can also be a powerful vehicle for heightening interest and uptake in both event programs and organizations.

6. Don’t just focus on the past — discuss where you’re looking to go. Sometimes, it’s not enough to cover where your events or event business has been. How about sharing your vision with attendees/customers on where you want to go and what’s next on your business agenda? Likewise, consider soliciting their input and feedback — public opinion is the best focus group money can’t buy. All reinforce the point that you’re listening to showgoers and customers, value their opinion and create the impression that the best is yet to come.

7. Salute your community and your heroes. Everyone has someone they look up to — even businesses. Take some time to highlight key community members and fans that have supported you along your journey, and discuss the organizations and leaders who’ve influenced the way you and your events operate. Make sure to point out why you admire the individuals, companies or leaders in question, and how you’ve worked hard to adopt some of their thinking, strategies and principles into your operations today.

8. Speak about topics close to your heart. Touch upon something that drives or inspires you and use it to explain your event brand and organization’s positioning. For example, TOMS shoes was founded around the idea of donating a pair of shoes to a child in need for each pair of shoes purchased. This philanthropic outlook and mission not only drives the business’s core values and direction, but the tale behind it also indelibly wound its way into the public vernacular, where it’s become one of today’s most memorable case studies. Likewise, TED conferences were organized to promote “ideas worth spreading.” By speaking passionately about values and causes that are important to you and your organization, you may gain some new admirers, as well as inspire others to take action and support a cause they believe in, too. C&IT

Credit: nobeastsofierce/www.shutterstock.com

Over the past decade, the planning and execution of corporate meetings have been transformed, primarily by relentlessly innovative and far-reaching technologies, into something more sophisticated than what had preceded, almost unchanged, for a half-century. But throughout that remarkable metamorphosis, one element has remained virtually unchanged — the meeting room.

Now, ongoing breakthroughs in brain science and learning — combined with an ever-growing exploration of and commitment to attendee engagement and interactivity — have begun to have a profound impact on what the meeting room of the future will look and feel like.

But it’s an open question just how far along those considerations actually are.

“It seems to me that the issue is late in being discussed by the meeting industry,” says Samantha Meigs, Ph.D., director of experience design and associate professor of history at the University of Indianapolis. “I did a workshop for planners at MPI’s World Education Congress, which was held in Indianapolis in June. And based on what I heard there, and what I see elsewhere, it appears to me that the issue is being discussed in pieces and then only partly implemented. I also think, based on what I see and hear, that this is an issue that is really just now being discovered and talked about.”

The element of the topic that most interests Meigs is that in the long run, the ongoing and dramatic breakthroughs in brain science and learning will eventually lead to what she dubs a legitimate sea change in the way meeting rooms are designed and meetings are conducted.

But based on her direct observations, such considerations are currently in their early stages.

“What I have found, though, is that too many suppliers, partners and vendors have not been good resources to tell planners how to (change their meetings) and help them do it.”
— Michael Dominguez

Meanwhile, Meigs — who plans conferences in the history department at her university — believes that neither meeting planners nor vendors have yet approached the issue in a comprehensive or “holistic” way.

As evidence of that, she references the 2018 “Meeting Room of the Future” report released in June by the International Association of Conference Centers (IACC), the organization’s third annual look at the issue. This year’s report focused on supplier and vendor perceptions, while last year’s reflected the views of meeting planners.

Meigs cites a key finding in the new report: Resistance to change among meeting planners is an obstacle to progress. “Mike Van Der Vijver of Mind Meetings notices,” the report says, “that while meeting planners discuss the need for creating memorable meeting experiences, creativity and co-working between delegates, there is a continuation of relatively traditional programming and often a resistance to changes in meeting formats.”
“That finding is something I also found to be true in the workshop I did at MPI,” Meigs says. “There are certainly some planners who are open to innovation, but a lot of the people were automatically defaulting to what they had always done before.”

Ellen Sinclair, the Brunswick, New Jersey-based senior vice president of major hotel and IACC-certified conference center operator Benchmark, A Global Hospitality Company, sees that longstanding criticism of meeting planners abating. “I see that shifting significantly now,” says Sinclair, who has chaired the IACC report team for each of its three years. “And one reason for that is that at Benchmark, we typically see a turnover of 30 to 40 percent per year among meeting planners we work with. So there is a new, younger generation of planners coming on board every year. And those new planners are embracing change. They’re willing to try new things.”

Michael Dominguez, chief sales officer at MGM Resorts International in Las Vegas, goes further. He categorically rejects the claim that planners remain resistant to change. “Candidly, I see the opposite of that as true,” Dominguez says. “Everybody is trying to change their meetings now. What I have found, though, is that too many suppliers, partners and vendors have not been good resources to tell planners how to do that and help them do it.”

A Low Bar?

Dominguez’s premise seems to be somewhat reinforced by what the 2018 IACC report touts as its most significant finding. “The report shows that high-quality internet will be the most important meeting element in the coming years, and that the success of meetings today depends on the quality of a meeting venue’s internet infrastructure,” IACC CEO Mark Cooper noted in releasing the report. “Some of those surveyed reported to have created ‘internet disaster recovery plans’ in the event of internet outages mid-event, a sure sign that venues and planners understand the important role that internet plays in meeting collaboration and connectivity.”

Widely respected, Bellingham, Washington-based meeting industry technology expert Corbin Ball, who served as a volunteer on all three IACC reports, reinforces that conclusion. He, too, cites the ongoing need for high-quality, consistent internet service as a vital interest in meeting rooms. “To me,” he says, “that ranks higher than anything else. And Wi-Fi is truly the lifeblood of meeting communications today.”

That said, Ball adds, the still unreached frontier on the ever-closer horizon is adequate bandwidth at every hotel, conference center and convention center in the country — and the world. “And the venues are definitely realizing that and stepping up now,” he says.
Sinclair agrees with Ball — and the IACC report — that the bandwidth required to facilitate flawless internet and Wi-Fi service is a critical consideration. “Most attendees travel with multiple devices these days,” she says, “so you have to have the bandwidth available to provide fast and reliable service for all those devices.”

Nevertheless, given the forward-looking issues that address genuine innovations in meeting room design based on brain science and learning, it seems that undue focus on something as fundamental as the quality of internet service confirms Meigs’ point about the relative level of the debate on the meeting room of the future.

Reimagining Space

A more enlightened discussion of the topic, rather obviously, goes to the
issue of the meeting room itself. And to IACC’s credit, the 2018 report addresses that factor.
“One of the things that both this year’s and last year’s report touched on was the flexibility of where the meeting takes place, where collaboration takes place,” Sinclair says. “And part of the issue now is not just what happens in the meeting room, but also what happens around the meeting room. That means those other spaces become just as important as the main ‘meat-and-potatoes’ meeting rooms where your sessions are taking place.”

As part of that evolution, now underway, Sinclair says, ancillary and alternative spaces will begin to supplant what has traditionally been just another numbered — and standard — meeting room down the hall, so to speak.

Dan Freed, an architect in the Coral Gables, Florida, office of global architectural and interior design firm CallisonRTKL, echoes Sinclair’s observation that an important evolution underway is how meeting space is perceived and used. Until recently, says Freed, who has designed more than a dozen major-flag hotels for brands including Wyndham, Hilton and Loews, a meeting room was a meeting room, and they also basically looked and felt alike. Now, thoughtful considerations of the adjacent space are being studied as a further way to enhance the attendee experience.

“What we see now is an interest in secondary spaces that are not what you would traditionally think of as meeting space,” Freed says. “For example, we’re seeing more interest in casual meeting areas, instead of a clearly defined — and confined — space. It’s sort of a new hybrid combination of what used to be called meeting space and pre-function space.” And, he says, the essence of the concept is the attendee experience the space engenders. “And the desire for more informality is what is driving the increase in demand for spaces like that.”

Beyond that, and proving more context for the discussion of the meeting room of the future, Freed says, is the simple fact that in research CallisonRTKL does, an increasingly high percentage of attendees — close to half — “do not want to be stuck in a boring old meeting room.” And, Freed adds, meeting planners and attendees are now much more interested in casualness and comfort, elements that until fairly recently were almost entirely ignored in the design of meeting space.

In turn, the evolution of the definition of meeting space now includes elements like the “event lawn” and “wellness garden” that are being incorporated into the new Callison-designed Hilton Miami Dadeland, opening in November.

One fast-moving change Sinclair sees today is demand for different kinds of seating. “We see more and more planners asking for that,” she says. “Some want people to sit at a high-top table. Others want them to be seated in soft chairs. And there can be a mixture. For example, in a room for 100 attendees, you could have four different types of seating in the same room, based on personal preferences. And in some cases, now we even see people who prefer to be seated on big pillows on the floor. I’d say that over the last year, that sort of flexibility and attention to personal preferences for comfort has become a genuine trend.”

Another trend is a changing meeting room landscape over the course of a day, Sinclair says. “For example, the room can be set up classroom style when you come in for the morning. Then you go out for a break and when you come back, it’s couches and soft chairs. So just by changing the layout of the room, you can stimulate creativity or collaboration. And in turn, some of the research into brain science and learning shows that different layouts and seating arrangements can contribute to attention and retention. At Benchmark, we’ve been paying a lot of attention to that sort of thing because we think it is very important.”

Another long-overdue consideration now becoming mainstream, Sinclair says, is natural light in all areas of the venue, including meeting rooms and ballrooms. “In the past, a lot of meeting planners did not want any natural light in their space because they thought it was distracting,” she says. “Now people won’t buy a room that doesn’t have natural light.”

Freed enthusiastically corroborates the view that natural light is currently among the most important changes in the design of meeting rooms. “There should be natural light in every meeting room we create,” he says. “Traditionally, the hotel industry has thought that you need sterile rooms with no natural light. But I think those days are in the past.”

Another consideration that Freed sees increasingly being raised in the design of new hotels is the personality of the local destination. “One of the interesting things about the ‘experiential meeting’ debate that has been going on for quite a while now is that whenever, as a culture, we talk about experience, we talk about local experience. So we are now seeing that reflected in the discussions about meetings. When an attendee goes to San Antonio, they want to feel like they’re in San Antonio and when they’re in Miami, they want to experience Miami. So as a hotel designer, it’s important to us to think about the things that really embody the destination. And then we translate those things to the meeting space we are creating. And the tools we use can range from something as simple as the color palette to the views that are generated from the meeting rooms.” Progressive design of meeting space, Freed says, now include elements that mimic cultural or geographical aspects of the local destination, as opposed to the relatively generic look and feel that major-flag hotels have displayed in the past.

Raising the Bar

While the debate goes on about what the meeting room of the future will look like, one hotelier in particular, Las Vegas behemoth MGM Resorts International, has significantly raised the bar with the development of two new facilities at its $550 million Park MGM, formerly the Monte Carlo, which made its debut in April.

Its Madison Meeting Center caters to meetings for 10 to 50 attendees. The 10,000-square-foot complex features 10 flexible rooms that can accommodate various layouts ideal for classroom-style training, certifications, product seminars and workshops. It also offers moveable ergonomic furniture, built-in audiovisual equipment and rolling whiteboards.
It incorporates the DELOS Stay Well Meetings protocol, developed in cooperation with health-and-wellness guru and DELOS board member, Deepak Chopra, and previously deployed at the MGM Grand and Mirage properties. The Stay Well program features state-of-the-art air purification, energizing lighting, science-based menu options, soothing aromatherapy and other wellness features designed to enhance the productivity and overall wellness of attendees.

“We have based the things we’re doing on the underlying science,” Dominguez says. “For example, a key question in the meeting industry is why attendees get tired in the middle of the afternoon. And the reasons are twofold. One is that you’ve been sitting in really crappy light all day long, which means a yellow hue. We have gone to blue-hued light in our Stay Well meeting rooms. And that’s important because blue light allows your body to suppress melatonin. And that allows you to remain alert and attentive.

“The second reason is that because you’re indoors all day, you’re not getting enough Vitamin D. So what we now know from the science is that it’s not just important that the food you eat at the meeting to be nutritious, but also for it to be Vitamin D-infused. So that is now a focus on our menus.”

The Park MGM’s new Ideation Studio, which will open this fall, provides spaces ideal for corporate retreats and brainstorming sessions, with eight unique environments and four distinctive room types that each can accommodate groups of six to 25 attendees. Each space has been intentionally planned with a wide array of workspaces to spur collaboration, productivity, creativity and innovation.

“The basic idea was to design a space that was specifically created for collaboration and consensus-building. And again, the facility is based on underlying science.”

The Long View

From an academic perspective, the meeting room of the future will address factors that reach far beyond material considerations, such as seating, lighting or nutrition, although those things are vital to the final result, Meigs says.

The single most important factor, she explains, is what she calls a “minds on” level of attentiveness from attendees. “It’s the mental equivalent of ‘hands on,’ and it means a more in-depth way of talking about things and communicating,” she says. “It means having people be more actively involved in engagement with your material and with problem-solving.”

The inherent flaw in the current way meetings are conducted is that levels of attention and engagement among attendees range from minimal to meaningful and effective, along with everything in between.

How can that reality be overcome? “One way is to do anything that is unexpected and presents some kind of a challenge,” Meigs says. “The idea is to do something to get people involved in a way other than what they would normally expect. That gets them fully engaged, as opposed to just listening to somebody give a report or read a paper.”

Perhaps the most critical element of the larger discussion, Meigs says, is that her academic understanding of experience design differs quite sharply in one key respect from what meeting planners typically do. “True experience design, as I think of it, is all about sort of letting go of control. And meeting planners are typically very much in control of everything, which they have to be. But I think that control is also antithetical to the idea of a better experience. In the future, the most successful results are going to come from letting go of control, which seems to be a very difficult thing for people in the meeting industry to do.” C&IT

The 3,044-room Mirage features The Beatles Love by Cirque Du Soleil. Credit: The Mirage

T he numbers don’t lie. With 950 flights arriving daily at McCarren International Airport, and more than 150,000 hotel rooms on offer — most of them dedicated to the meetings and conventions market — it’s not hard to understand the appeal of Las Vegas as one of the world’s top conference and incentive destinations.

Rewarding Experience

“Las Vegas offers an amazing opportunity to hit our clients’ experiential and financial targets for their customer audiences,” says Colleen Hardy, vice president, sales and marketing for RT Travel & Incentives (RTTI), a San Juan Capistrano, California-based meeting planner. “We steered our client Golden Harvest toward Las Vegas, because of the tremendous value in luxury accommodations, airlift and entertainment it affords.”

For a rewards trip offered by Golden Harvest to its seed advisors, RTTI selected The Mirage to host the 350 attendees last February.

“RTTI has shared a successful partnership with The Mirage in Las Vegas for over 10 years,” adds Hardy. “We have confidence their team will work seamlessly with ours. Together, we have provided exceptional value, executed top-notch experiences and delivered huge ROI for clients again and again.”

The MGM Resorts-owned casino, which cost a record-breaking $620 million (in 1989 dollars) for Steve Wynn to build, was a game-changer for The Strip, replete with an erupting volcano that stopped traffic on Las Vegas Boulevard. It broadened the gaming-focused revenue base for hotels to encompass dining and entertainment, and Wynn lured illusionists Siegfried and Roy with a $50 million contract. The success of The Mirage launched a two-decade building boom for the city, as one hotel after another was built, each aiming to cash in on or eclipse Wynn’s winning streak.

“Las Vegas offers an amazing opportunity to hit our clients’ experiential and financial targets for their customer audiences.”
— Colleen Hardy

Some of them did, but three decades later The Mirage still occupies a prime position near the center of The Strip action, and continues to shine as one of the leading “second-tier” properties on The Strip, maximizing bling for buck.

“Our group didn’t have especially unique requirements,” says Hardy. “But we do feel The Mirage offered opportunities for enhancing the audience experience, such as an exclusive buyout at 1 Oak nightclub for the welcome party, and access to The Beatles Love by Cirque Du Soleil for the final night. For both, the hotel offered ways to customize with group signage and dedicated desks for greeting attendees. These were unique touches to truly set the audience apart from other guests at the hotel and make them feel special, which both the client and the attendees just loved.”

The 3,044-room Mirage has ample meeting space for all but the largest groups, including an 89,400-sf Events Center and the 40,000-sf Grand Ballroom, along with a variety of breakout rooms.

RT Travel & Incentives did schedule one offsite activity at Topgolf. “It elicited a huge response from both the client and their attendees,” recalls Hardy. “Given the venue’s beautiful layout and exposure to the outdoors, fabulous weather helped with this event’s success, but not enough could be said about the outstanding service and overall quality of experience that was received.

“Hello Las Vegas was also key to the success of this event, especially as it relates to transportation,” she continues. “Their team made the logistics of group movement a breeze with excellent service and knowledgeable staff. They provided a breadth of unique, offsite activity options, such as Red Rock excursions and helicopter tours for small group experiences, which received rave reviews from attendees.”

Hardy also praised The Mirage sales, convention and catering crews. “They were all by our side every step of the way and truly served as an extension of our team,” adds Hardy. “Their specialized expertise and tenure at The Mirage confirm the hotel’s commitment and dedication to the meeting, conference and incentive industry. The Mirage offers a solution for clients looking for uncommon value, quality and consistency of experience wrapped in a casually elegant package. It really hits the mark for clients, who might ordinarily have concerns about bringing their audiences to Las Vegas.”

Major New Developments

Other news from MGM Resorts International includes a lighting of the new marquee and signage for Park MGM, the new hotel concept stepping into the shell of the former Monte Carlo. The building is receiving a head-to-toe makeover that introduces a boutique feel to guest rooms, along with the intimate, customizable Madison Meeting Center. When the project is completed later this year, two products will emerge — Park MGM and a distinctly Las Vegas version of NoMad, a 292-room property on the tower’s top four floors.

In April, MGM Resorts and subsidiary CityCenter Holdings sold the 392-room Mandarin Oriental Las Vegas to an undisclosed buyer, and recently announced that the 47-story property will be rebranded to Hilton’s Waldorf Astoria label in August. The location is one of only two on The Strip without gaming, but the Aria Resort & Casino is immediately next door. The hotel will receive a renovation, with Waldorf Astoria brand touches and improvements in mind.

New York developer Witkoff and Marriott International announced that the languishing, blue-tinted Fontainebleau tower, opposite Circus Circus, is finally getting a new lease on life. The 60-story high-rise has remained unfinished since the 2008–2009 recession hit Las Vegas, but a decade later the Fontainebleau structure will be recast as The Drew Las Vegas — with almost 4,000 hotel rooms along with more than 500,000 sf of convention and meeting space. The Drew will be Marriott’s first Edition brand hotel in Las Vegas and the tower also will include The Strip’s first JW Marriott.

Other projects planned for the north end of The Strip include an $860 million expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center (taking over the former Riviera land); the Chinese-owned Resorts World project, slated to open in 2020; Wynn West, a 2,000- to 3,000-room project penciled for the land opposite the current Wynn hotels; and $1.5 billion Paradise Park, a 47-story hotel tower that began construction in January behind Wynn-Encore.

The Cashman Center, an exhibition space near downtown Las Vegas, was shuttered at the end of 2017. However, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that plans are afoot to build another expo center downtown — this time, next door to the existing World Market Center, the large building immediately next to the I-15 freeway, heading north into downtown. The expo center will spread 350,000 sf and represents the largest construction project downtown for several years.

In May, Caesars Entertainment revealed completion of a $125 million redesign of the 2,052 guest rooms at Bally’s Las Vegas. Nearly every guest room at the 2,800-unit property has been renovated within the last four years. Measuring more than 440 sf, Bally’s guest rooms are already slightly larger than is standard on The Strip. And, as part of Caesars’ Code Green initiative, which aims to reduce landfill waste, the company donated a majority of the furniture from the renovation — more than 2,000 rooms’ worth — to charitable organizations such as Habitat for Humanity Las Vegas and the hurricane relief efforts in Houston, Texas.

New residency acts have been announced by Caesars Entertainment, including multi-platinum recording artist Gwen Stefani at Planet Hollywood’s Zappos Theater. The new show, “Gwen Stefani — Just a Girl,” opened June 27 and is currently scheduled to run through March, 2019. And Mariah Carey is winging into Vegas with her all-new show, “The Butterfly Returns,” opening July 5 at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. Also at Caesars Palace, the adults-only, tented show “Absinthe” has extended its run, with a long-term deal in place through 2028.

Just down the road, Caesars Entertainment also revealed plans for a new, Southeast Asian-themed entertainment zone called Kind Heaven, a partnership between Caesars, Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell, and the team behind Hollywood franchises such as “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones.” Set to open in 2019, the $100 million project will be located across the street from Caesars, between Harrah’s and the Flamingo and connected to the Linq Promenade. Guests will wear devices to track food and drink purchases and the multiple themed areas will include virtual games, a faux forest and stages where bands will perform. The venue will be open to all during the day, but segues to adults-only after 8 p.m.

Located immediately behind (east) Linq, a groundbreaking for Caesars Forum is taking place this month. The $375 million project will build a LEED Silver-certified conference center featuring 300,000 sf of flexible meeting space, including two 108,000-sf ballrooms. A 100,000-sf outdoor plaza will connect directly to the Linq Promenade and to the Las Vegas Monorail. Caesars Forum is set to open in 2020.

Later this year, the 3,027-room Cosmopolitan will complete its year-long project to renovate most of its guest rooms, emphasizing modern design and comfort. Wraparound terrace suites and city rooms emulate the feel of an urban penthouse, with neutral colors and splashes of bright accents. All rooms will have a virtual concierge to book dining reservations, purchase show tickets or automate the lighting and temperature, and groups will be able to utilize iPads to alert guests to plans and events.

The Cosmopolitan is also getting a refresh on dining and entertainment, including this summer’s debut of Red Plate, featuring a sophisticated, modern take on Cantonese cuisine. And this fall, Block 16 Urban Eatery & Bar is set to open and will offer six distinct food experiences, including District: Donuts Sliders Brew, a New Orleans-based chain renowned for its breakfast sandwiches; the Southern chicken joint Hattie B’s Hot Chicken; and Tekka Bar, a Japanese handroll and sake concept that originated in Las Vegas. Other recently opened dining options at Cosmopolitan include the first West Coast outpost for noodle bar Momofuku; the New York dining destination Blue Ribbon; and the Southern California hot spot Eggslut.

Built-in Value

Meeting costs can add up, but many planners find that some expenses — airfare, entertainment, transfers — allow Las Vegas to stay competitive with other destinations. Such was the case for Lauren Andrews, director of site selection and contract services for Atlanta-based event management firm Meeting Expectations. Andrews booked a 600-person event for Encore at the Wynn Las Vegas for a Bay Area software company.

“Typically, this event is hosted near the client’s headquarters in San Francisco, however, we found there was a cost savings by hosting the event in Las Vegas,” Andrews explains. The software company chose Encore for its January 2018 gathering in part due to the availability of the resort’s theater for a general session. The 2,034-room Encore also has a 20,650-sf ballroom, along with the usual breakout rooms, totaling 60,000 sf overall.
“Generally, we spend a good portion of our budget on general session production.

Fortunately, Encore has a built-in theater for high-end entertainment, equipped with the lighting and staging necessary for this part of the program. There was a rental fee per day for the theater but it was a significant cost savings compared to what we spent in previous years, which included the buildout of the stage and lighting within a hotel ballroom.

“Encore is considered one of the top resorts in Las Vegas,” Andrews adds. “Keep in mind, we were coming from a city where it was a cost savings to move the event to Las Vegas and Encore. However, if you are coming from another first-tier city where the prices are not as high, be prepared to think through your AV, food and beverage, and other major line items.
“The Encore Theater was the base for our general session and it elevated the event to the next level. It felt like a true production. While most would think, ‘Wow, this cost a lot of extra money,’ in fact, we saved on budget by hosting the event outside the company’s headquarters city.

“From the quality of sleeping rooms and meeting space, to the food and beverage provided by the banquet staff and in-house restaurants and the entertainment — everything was under one roof with a consistent, well-maintained feel. We did not need to pay to transport our team offsite — everything our client needed was under one roof.

“We liked having the option of having an offsite venue onsite,” says Andrews. “There are two nightclubs at Wynn Encore that we had the option of using for breakfast, lunch or reception-dinner-after party. We did use one of them for an evening function and our attendees appreciated not having to take transportation to and from the locale — instead they could walk up to their room whenever they desired. In addition, the venue was already themed so no additional décor was needed. Our evening event was a big success.”
Andrews did note there were some challenges during the contract negotiations, that the resort did not have much flexibility with the terms. But otherwise Encore delivered the needed components at a price the company could afford.

“The purpose of the Revenue Kick-Off Meeting is to motivate and educate the sales team, and Encore was a great fit to host this event,” she explains. “The associates were excited to come to train on new techniques while also feeling rewarded by staying at one of the nicest properties in Las Vegas. In the end, the quality of the experience was that of a first-class event.”

The Reno Alternative

While Las Vegas is the drawing card for corporate and incentive groups looking to set a meeting in a city with all the bells and whistles, planners with small and medium-sized events also should consider looking 400 miles north, to Reno and nearby Lake Tahoe. Sure, you’ll trade a desert backdrop for one defined by the Sierra Nevada mountain range, but costs are usually less, and there are still gaming tables for those who want them.

“Reno has many options for team events, food venues and entertainment,” suggests Kelli Cavallaro, marketing operations manager for Reno-based Hamilton Robotics. In April, the company held its 75-person Operations Meeting in Reno, hosting the event at the new Renaissance Reno Downtown Hotel.

The Renaissance is the year-old reincarnation of the former Siena Hotel. Set alongside the Truckee River, the 214-room Renaissance is the first non-gaming, branded, full-service luxury hotel in the city’s history. Following an extensive renovation inside and out, the hotel now features upscale restaurants showcasing local flavors and offers 13,198 sf of event space, composed of eight rooms (the largest has a capacity of 650). The hotel also has a full-service spa, fitness center and pool, targeting both business and leisure guests.
“I wanted a non-casino hotel in Reno, and the location in the heart of downtown and the lodging was excellent,” Cavallaro explains. “The Renaissance is for small to medium groups, making the experience more intimate. It offers state-of-the-art features and the guest rooms are beautiful — the décor is a nod to Reno history.

“The meeting rooms are all located on the same level, and they provided an excellent room layout with natural lighting. Catering was very good and the food was always on time, with a nice selection — they also customized menus for us.” Cavallaro says the hotel’s AV department was very responsive and that signage was adequate throughout the property. The hotel needed to accommodate several breakout groups, and Hamilton Robotics organized offsite events.

The hotel also has an unusual facility for receptions or teambuilding: an event space dedicated to Bundox Bocce, with seven indoor and two outdoor courts. The indoor space features a sports bar with dining and large screen TVs, shuffleboard and skeeball, while the outdoor courts are regulation size, 90 feet. The outdoor space also includes seating for dining and drinking, as well as fire pits with seating, darts and ping pong tables.

“They helped us plan a great teambuilding event here, including setting up a video gaming room,” says Cavallaro. “All of the event staff went above and beyond to provide an excellent meeting experience and they were extremely responsive to any special requests and needs we had before and during the meeting.

“This hotel wants everyone to appreciate all that Reno has to offer and helped us plan and coordinate offsite events,” she adds.

Planners who want to impress stakeholders with budget-friendly site selection and still give attendees something to write home about know Las Vegas and Reno will hit the mark every time. C&IT

Perhaps no state in the union has the allure of the aptly named Golden State. And though every region of California has its own appeal, the state’s more than 1,200-mile coastline is in a class of its own.

It has starred in some of Hollywood’s most famous movies, celebrated in literature and in evocative ads, and it has drawn dreamers and doers to its shores since before California formalized statehood in 1850. It’s no surprise that many of the meeting destinations below are set along California’s Pacific coast, bays, marinas and beaches.

San Francisco

The city and bay have been immortalized in literature and song, but that alone would not be enough to bring savvy planners to San Francisco. With nearly 34,000 hotel rooms and more on the way, diverse culture, an inherent romance, renowned attractions, excellent transportation and meeting space galore, the city is a natural for meetings.

“Downtown San Francisco is a great place for international events due to location and airlift for attendees coming from all over the world,” says Stefanie Ordoveza, global events manager with OSIsoft LLC, a California-based software company.

In April 2018, 2,600 attendees participated in the company’s PI World 2018 event. “With our event at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square, it’s an easy BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) ride from local airports and is located in an area with plentiful entertainment options for those interested in exploring one of the most beautiful cities in the world,” Ordoveza says. “It also provides many options for you to grow your group in the space. We started with 1,000. Now we are over 2,500!”

“The Hilton San Francisco Union Square…is located in an area with plentiful entertainment options for those interested in exploring one of the most beautiful cities in the world.”
— Stefanie Ordoveza

San Francisco, she adds, “offers a wide range of options depending on what is important to you and your meeting, especially in terms of size, cost and atmosphere. The Hilton San Francisco Union Square is the largest hotel in the city that can accommodate our room block as well as meeting space needed to host our 2,600+ attendee conference without having to move to a convention center. Not to mention that its sister property, the Parc 55, allows us to do even more while providing the same quality service and feel.”

Like other planners, Ordoveza notes that it is people that make the real difference. “What we love most about hosting our event at the Hilton is the hotel’s team. The event services team is truly top-notch and each individual on that team becomes an extension of our own leading up to the event and onsite, making our lives a little bit easier when the event gets going. It’s always nice to see familiar faces who know pieces of our program as well as we do,” she says. “And that team continues to deliver exceptional results without forgetting a touch of hospitality or service. That goes a long way once the conference is in full swing and you’re running on fumes.”

For those who may not know the hotel as well, Ordoveza notes it’s important to be strategic. “The hotel has many different spaces in different locations, so it is important to share your ground plans with the hotel staff well in advance to ensure that you’re using the space in the most effective manner for your attendees.”

Sacramento

Affordable and accessible, with more than 2,000 hotel rooms within walking distance of the city center and a convention center currently being expanded, along with other meeting-friendly transformations in the works, Sacramento is an excellent option for meeting planners.

Mike Testa, president and CEO of Visit Sacramento, puts it this way. “Sacramento has undergone a major transformation in the past few years. The Golden 1 Center, the cornerstone of the city’s downtown redevelopment, opened in 2016. The new Kimpton property, the Sawyer, was completed in 2017 adjacent to the arena. The new home of the NBA’s Sacramento Kings is the most technologically advanced arena in the country and sources 90 percent of its food within 150 miles — a given in America’s farm-to-fork capital.”
In addition to sports, he points out, “the arena showcases concerts, theater and meetings. And adjacent to the Golden 1 Center is Downtown Commons, nicknamed DOCO, a three-acre outdoor plaza featuring concerts, entertainment, innovative restaurants, boutiques and a stunning $8 million Jeff Koons sculpture. Large murals brighten outdoor spaces in the central city and visitors sample and relax at the many craft breweries, coffee bars and wine-tasting rooms. And Money magazine recently ranked Sacramento International Airport (SMF) fourth among the top 80 U.S. airports.”

Santa Monica

When it comes to Santa Monica, it’s hard to beat its accessibility to one of the world’s busiest airports while simultaneously providing “away-from-it-all beach-town” appeal.
Misti Kerns, CEO and president of Santa Monica Travel & Tourism, describes the town’s dual personality.

“With fresh ocean breezes, 300-plus days of sunshine, with iconic beach vibes and 40 hotels, Santa Monica offers corporate meeting attendees the perfect balance between meet and play. They will want to extend their stay. Our charming seaside town is full of unique venues and beautiful beachfront settings. It’s home to more than 100,000 sf of creative and unique event space and nearly 500 restaurants. All that,” she says, “and we’re located just eight non-freeway miles north of Los Angeles International Airport and well-connected to the greater Los Angeles area, making Santa Monica an ideal Southern California base for corporate meetings.”

Marina del Rey

Marina del Rey sits just south of Santa Monica, and though it’s tiny — less than two square miles — it’s a highly valuable piece of real estate in Los Angeles County and a superb meeting destination. It’s home to the largest man-made small craft harbor in the world, among other assets.

Debby DuBose, CEO and event specialist with Los Angeles-based Conference Solutions International, worked with a group of 260 for a meeting in Marina del Rey in December 2017.

“Marina del Rey is a unique destination as it’s within close proximity to the airport and is also near the beach,” DuBose says. “And there are lots of offsite activities close by, such as bike rentals, parasailing and paddleboard.”

The group was based at The Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey, which DuBose calls “a beautiful property located right on the marina surrounded by yachts. They have great meeting space with natural light and one of the best club lounges I’ve ever seen. The rooms are very spacious with balconies providing incredible views of Los Angeles. The meeting space is very private and has a nice flow for prefunction and meeting rooms.”

The group did not use meeting or function space outside of the hotel, and DuBose adds that in addition to multiple food options and incredible views, the club level at the hotel has “an amazing staff.”

If planners are looking at beach destinations such as Santa Monica and Laguna Beach, DuBose encourages them to “add Marina del Rey to the list. The Marina del Rey CVB offers a lot of incentives to planners looking to save money, and the value at the hotels is much better compared to a lot of other cities.”

Newport Beach

According to Visit Newport Beach, the town’s convention and visitors bureau, “A big reason to host a meeting or convention in a destination location is that when you remove yourself from your everyday surroundings, magic happens.”

That magic is augmented by more than 200,000 sf of flexible space and a diverse selection of hotels to choose from.

Experian chose Fashion Island Hotel for its EITS Annual Leadership Conference in June 2018. Patricia Trimarco, executive assistant to the CFO, and Yvette Ferencik, executive assistant to the CIO, worked together on planning the conference.

Ferencik says proximity to both John Wayne Airport and LAX were among the reasons for booking Fashion Island Hotel, but not the only reasons.

“They also offer recommendations for car transfer service, first-class rooming accommodations at competitive rates, a restaurant with a top-rated chef, spa service and a variety of meeting rooms and catering service on- and offsite. Also, the hotel is located within walking distance to the renowned Fashion Island Shopping Center. Fashion Island,” she adds, “provides an all-inclusive destination, which is critical to any conference.”

Trimarco notes that there was no need to book conference or function space outside of the hotel because, “Fashion Island Hotel has a variety of room sizes to accommodate every need.” In addition, she says, “We gave the hotel event coordinator our idea of doing ‘The Great Gatsby.’ He took our vision and brought it to life. He showed us a venue that was so perfect for our event. It was amazing. Our team is still raving about it. Job well done!”

But this wasn’t the first time the hotel came through for the Experian team. “We had our prior year’s conference at the Fashion Island Hotel and we were blown away by how they exceeded in all areas. It was a no-brainer to choose them again,” Trimarco says.

“We were very impressed with the sales team; they listened to what we wanted and made sure they delivered what was promised. We were introduced to the lead for each area of the hotel and they all exceeded our expectations. The view was spectacular and the hotel was very clean. We were impressed with the amazing food, service and accommodations.”

Ferencik agrees. “Our three-day conference encompassed all areas of the hotel, from dinners, meeting space, AV, catering, offsite special events and overnight accommodations for 100 people. The Fashion Island Hotel team worked closely with us on every detail and executed with perfection.”

The hotel, she adds, “offers a destination that includes all requirements for a high-level conference, which enables meeting planners to coordinate with ease.”

All in all, it amounted to “excellent service provided by delightful employees,” Trimarco says. “There were no challenges and every detail was met.”

San Diego

Like much of California’s southern coast, San Diego offers exquisite beaches, sailing opportunities and year-round idyllic weather, making it a destination for any month of the year. It’s a city where attendees and planners want to be, a place with attractions that draw visitors from around the world and that easily augment a conference schedule for groups of all kinds. Among its extensive selection of hotels are historic properties, beachside hotels, golf and tennis resorts and boutique options for smaller groups. According to the San Diego Tourism Authority, there are more than 135 conference hotels to choose from.
Additionally, the San Diego Convention Center features 2.6 million sf and is within walking distance to 11,000 hotel rooms as well as excellent restaurants and shopping, and the airport is a mere three miles away.

When the Ben & Jerry’s team from Vermont was looking for a spot for Ben & Jerry’s Global Franchise Meeting, January 2018, they chose Paradise Point Resort & Spa, set on a 44-acre island in Mission Bay.

“There was so much we loved about Paradise Point, but what stood out the most for our group was the lush island feel of the resort,” says Greta Barker, with Ben & Jerry’s global communications team. “The ideally located casitas were a great break from a 40-plus-story hotel. The beach bonfires were a great way for our group to continue networking after our official events.”

All of the company’s meeting events were held at Paradise Point, which features 80,000 sf of space. There was one off-property event, a one-day community project in San Diego, which Barker says was to “help give back to the local community.”

Barker calls the San Diego meeting “one of our highest attended and rated events ever. We can attribute that to an affordable hotel rate, a lot of flight options, ease of transportation from the airport and to the fact that it’s a family friendly resort with many tourist attractions nearby.”

Barker says she initially met with Paradise Point representatives several years ago. “I had met one of their sales agents at a Connect Market Place conference. At the time, they didn’t have enough large ballroom space to fit all of our events, but we continued to stay in touch. We had received a contract for another hotel out of the country for our 2018 Global Franchise Meeting, but even with the contract in hand we weren’t excited about returning to a venue we had previously been. We figured if we weren’t excited our attendees wouldn’t be either, so we picked up the phone and called Paradise Point out of the blue. Our sales rep informed us that they had just added a new pavilion space and that we would now be able to fit all of our large events. The rest is history.”

From the start, the planning process was a positive one. “Leading up to the event, we had very positive experiences with our meeting planner and the reservation teams,” Barker says. “Onsite, we were very pleased at the flow of our events due to the layout of the conference center. Our group is also made up of a lot of foodies, and the chef and his team really delivered! It was the best conference center food we have ever had.”

Barker worked with the in-house PSAV team for audio-visual needs. “They really knew the space and best options to maximize our look and feel but still stay within our budget,” she notes.

To other groups considering Paradise Point, Barker says, “Make sure you have enough rooms in your block since you will be blown away at how high your meeting attendance will be due to being at Paradise Point in San Diego! We’re already looking forward to going back in 2020!”

In terms of challenges, there was just one — not surprising when construction and renovation come into play — but Barker says the hotel rose to the occasion. “They only issue we had was that the planned renovation fell behind schedule a bit and not all the rooms in our block were updated prior to our arrival. But the team did an outstanding job of making sure our group was all in renovated rooms once people checked in.”

Barker credits the San Diego Tourism Authority with getting things started on the right track from the beginning.

“We worked closely with the San Diego Tourism Authority when originally looking at the San Diego market. They were fantastic at scheduling visits to the hotels, tourist attractions and alternative venue options for special events. It really helped our planning process to understand the area. It also helped confirm that we were on the right track of picking the right hotel for our group.”

Wherever you look in California, there’s a destination that offers a sublime mix of views, attractions, service and an enviable choice of hotel and meeting options. In addition, it likely also offers that quintessential something that only the Golden State has, and that attendees and planners want. C&IT

Planning a meeting, especially one that is large, complex or takes place in an unfamiliar location, can be a formidable task. Planners overwhelmed with stretching tight budgets and juggling multiple daily tasks may lack the time to handle every meeting detail.

That’s why many planners seek help from CVBs and DMCs. But many of them, especially novices, aren’t as familiar as they should be with how CVBs and DMCs function, and how to work with them to get the best assistance possible.

The two organizations have fundamental differences but serve overlapping functions.
DMCs are for-profit operational and logistical experts on destinations including properties, venues, vendor selection, themed events, ground transportation, teambuilding, group tours, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs and entertainment. They typically have extensive local contacts and can save planners time but at a cost. Typically, DMCs charge either management fees for various services or a lump-sum fee, and require at least partial payment up front.

CVBs are free or low-cost destination marketing organizations charged with attracting meetings and visitors while providing information on everything a destination offers. CVBs organize site visits, filter and distribute RFPs, and encourage competing properties to work together to house groups large enough to require several hotels.

Some CVBs are funded by hotel taxes or other public funds. Other CVBs are financed by its members, which can include hotels, DMCs and other suppliers. This latter type of CVB may tend to recommend only its members to planners.

Working With CVBs

Planners can benefit from the experiences of those who have worked successfully with CVBs, including two who worked with VisitCharlotte, a division of the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority (CRVA).

Anita Palmer, project coordinator and meeting planner for Moorestown, New Jersey-based Bayada Home Health Care, worked with VisitCharlotte to hold a meeting in May 2018 at the Charlotte Convention Center (CCC) for 2,200 employees, directors and executives.

According to Palmer, VisitCharlotte helped plan the meeting in several ways. “Based on my programs and needs, they helped select and coordinate all 11 hotels,” says Palmer. They helped assign banquet rooms in the CCC for 18 awards banquets based on my numbers. They helped arrange AV according to our basic AV package for each luncheon. They anticipated needs and were quick to respond to my questions and many requests. They referred décor and linen companies. They also sent me links and PDFs on happenings in Charlotte.”

Palmer offers the following advice on the best strategy to use when working with CVBs.
“Clearly share who your group is and what you and they expect from the CVB, convention center and hotels,” says Palmer. “Provide all of your information on meeting needs in writing, including schedule of events, food and beverage, AV, etc. Also anticipate and discuss concerns your attendees may have. Regarding communication with the CVBs, using the phone is sometimes quicker than text or email. …Keep it simple and to the point.”
In June, Charlotte-based Bojangles’ Restaurants, Inc. held its 40th anniversary convention at the CCC and The Westin Charlotte. The meeting included about 1,000 Bojangles’ employees, franchise owners and executives.

Indispensable Partners

VisitCharlotte and the CRVA were indispensable partners, says Elizabeth Ingram, events coordinator for Bojangles’ Restaurants, Inc. “They were extremely helpful throughout the sales and contract process following our selection of Charlotte as the destination,” she says. “They were all a joy to work with and truly wanted our convention to be a success.”

The CVB recommended offsite activity options for Bojangles’ attendees including kids’ programs available throughout Uptown Charlotte. Other CVB recommendations that attendees enjoyed included the U.S. National Whitewater Center and Carowinds amusement park, an outdoor facility featuring rafting, biking, zip lines and live music. Attendees played golf at local courses and enjoyed a performance at the CCC by Needtobreathe, a Grammy-award-winning Christian band.

“Be sure to check out any CVB website, as their online identity should give you a feel for the destination as a whole.”
— Marco Bloemendaal

Charlotte’s CVB also helped Ingram work efficiently and obtain value. “Their ability to put me in touch with the right folks throughout Charlotte for our convention was extremely helpful in terms of saving time and money,” says Ingram. “They are very in tune to what happens around the city, so they can easily assist planners with all types of event details.”
Ingram’s advice on working with CVBs is simple: “Allow them to be a planning partner for your event. Utilize their expertise and experience working with various community businesses to help your event succeed.”

Planners who have never planned a meeting in a destination may find CVBs most helpful. But planners who are familiar with a destination also find CVBs useful.

Big Easy CVB Help

For example, Memphis, Tennessee-based Servicemaster Global Holdings Inc., a provider of residential and commercial services, has held several meetings in New Orleans. Servicemaster’s most recent events in New Orleans include a meeting at Ernest N. Morial Convention Center last year for about 2,500 attendees from the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. In January 2018, the company held a meeting for 250 attendees at the Hotel Monteleone.

According to Julie Rule, CMP, manager, events and community relations for Servicemaster, familiarity with New Orleans makes working with CVBs even more efficient.

“We may be familiar with many New Orleans properties, but CVBs provide the most up-to-date information on the latest in the hotel business. We work with the CVB staff to help them understand the profile of our attendees and which features and benefits would be most important to me as the planner and for attendees. We’ve relied on their help for hotel sourcing, DMC selection, restaurant reservations, tours and activities and charitable give-back programs.”

Rule says that one of a CVB’s most valuable services involve helping planners select vendors. “Since we’re headquartered in Memphis, it’s difficult for us to know all there is to know about all the vendors in the New Orleans area,” says Rule.

New Orleans & Company (formerly the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau) helped Rule narrow the list of suppliers quickly. “Their website and staff are professional,” says Rule. “As with all CVBs, they allowed us to do our own negotiations, but were always a quick phone call or email away for us to ask for advice or recommendations.”

Rule values the impartiality that New Orleans & Company showed in recommending vendors and properties. “Their CVB does an amazing job at remaining neutral throughout the process, while at the same time pointing out the pros and cons for our attendees,” says Rule. “Not every property is right for every group, and not every group is right for every property. That’s something we firmly believe, and we appreciate their integrity and honesty.”

Rule’s advice: “Consult with your CVB from the very beginning. They’ve seen successful programs and can make recommendations to you of what works well. They’ve also seen what doesn’t work well and can steer you in the right direction.”

Tips on Using CVBs

Experts offer the following advice on how to get the most from working with CVBs.

• Contact the destination’s CVB before writing the RFP and selecting hotels. It’s the best way to familiarize the CVB with a meeting’s needs; it may also allow CVBs to get credit for room-night production in its reports, and that builds good will with CVBs for the future.
• Be up front about goals and budgets, and communicate with the CVB throughout the planning process.
• Include sufficient detail about hotel needs in RFPs given to CVBs for distribution to hotels.
• Supplying detailed information in RFPs helps ensure that proposals returned to planners match their needs, and reduces the number of responses that must be screened. Once a list of possible hotels is selected, take advantage of a CVB’s knowledge of local properties to discuss pricing and availability challenges.

According to Robert Reso, vice president, convention sales, New Orleans & Company, CVBs want planners to do the following: “Provide as much information as possible so destination experts can help ensure you get complete responses for your RFP search,” says Reso. “This goes beyond dates, rates and space. Provide information on the type of meeting, a rough profile of attendees and the overall objectives for your event.”

Reso adds that planners should always indicate whether hotel specifications are flexible. “Sometimes, adjusting some programming or timing can make all the difference in the world, and hotels once thought to not be the right fit may actually be the best option,” says Reso.

Explain the Purpose

It’s also crucial for planners to describe the purpose of a meeting. Here’s an example, from a CVB perspective, of how knowing the purpose can help a planner:

A planner was searching for a location in New Orleans for a very sensitive meeting. When CVB officials asked about the purpose of the meeting, they learned that it involved the acquisition of another organization and consolidation of about 25 percent of its sales force.

According to Reso, “By explaining the purpose of the meeting, we were able to help hotels tailor a proposal to focus less on the festive atmosphere of the city and more on the business aspects of hosting a meeting at its hotels. The hotels were able to offer space that was more private, as opposed to space that may have been in more visible areas of the hotel.”

A CVB’s intimate knowledge of a destination also can help planners find popular types of teambuilding activities that aren’t well known. For example, VisitCharlotte helped Professional Trade Publications Inc., which specializes in home décor, find a CSR activity during its Concrete Décor Spring Training Show. Visit Charlotte connected the company to the Men’s Shelter of Charlotte which, due to budgetary restrictions, could not pursue improvements to its facility. “Attendees interacted with shelter residents and assisted in constructing a new patio.”

Know Online Tools

Planners and CVB officials agree that its crucial to thoroughly explore a CVB’s online tools. “Be sure to check out any CVB website, as their online identity should give you a feel for the destination as a whole, and it will get you started on learning more about the CVB, how it works and who to contact,” says Marco Bloemendaal, senior vice president sales, VisitMilwaukee.

The vast majority of CVBs in large and small destinations are constantly improving their websites and offering more ways to research destinations and venues, market meetings and build attendance. For example, VisitMilwaukee’s reimagined website now has 1,500 pages of content and 5,000 photos and videos.

The websites continue to become more planner-friendly, increasingly mobile-compatible and easier to navigate. New tools improve the ability to build customized itineraries, share via social media, book hotels and perform other tasks.

Some CVBs offer tailored online marketing campaigns to help promote meetings across various social media channels. Services can include customized welcome videos, print and video blogs, and customized microsites.

CVBs also are launching more specialty sites in areas such as medical tourism, local chefs and golf. Also check online customer testimonials from other planners.
While CVB online resources offer valuable information about destinations, nothing beats phone and face-to-face contacts for establishing relationships with CVB officials.

Tips on Using DMCs

Planners should consider using a Destination Management Company for meetings that are large, complex or take place in an unfamiliar destination — if they have the budget for a DMCs services.

Some planners hesitate to hire DMCs because they are on tight budgets, want to do everything single-handedly or feel that outside help is unnecessary. However, planners who can afford it can take advantage of DMCs’ relationships with local vendors and buying power due to the volume and frequency of purchases.

Planners also can save time. According to Candace Bisconte, partner, Orange County Access Destination Services, “Some find time saving as most valuable, some crave creative input and event design and others enjoy the security of knowing they have a partner to support in the planning and execution of the meeting once onsite.”

Much of the time savings DMCs offer include the work they do compiling price summaries and comparisons for the many activities and events that make up most meetings, especially large ones. “Collecting quotes from each vendor and considering the additional costs for labor, delivery, staffing and miscellaneous charges attached to each offering must be done correctly and within the budget parameters of the meeting,” says Bisconte. “A substantial amount of time is spent on this.”

Planners also should take advantage of a DMCs detailed knowledge about local venues and restaurants. Suppose a planner seeks a restaurant for a dinner seating 15 top executives, with the following requirements: the atmosphere, décor and menu must represent the company’s corporate culture; the chairs and table must be wooden, ornate and high-backed; the reception area must be separate from the dining room and allow a free and easy flow between the two spaces. Few are better in assisting to make this happen than a DMC.

Is it Worth It?

The bottom line: Planners must determine whether the expense of a DMC is worth the time saved and other advantages. Using a DMC, especially for the first time, can be challenging.

Here’s some advice on hiring and working with a DMC to get the greatest bang for the buck.

• Decide whether to contact a DMC early in the planning process.
• Choose a DMC with a track record for achieving good results for similar events.
• Be straightforward about budget requirements.
• Share which parts of the event will be handled by other vendors outside of the local DMC.
• Determine an event logistics and production timeline, and communicate expectations for meeting deadlines.
• Screen two or three DMCs. Ask for references from vendors and clients that have worked with them.
• Find a DMC with a record for negotiating good deals with vendors for upgrades, add-ons, etc.
• Choose DMCs that can provide fast service because meetings have shorter turnaround times.
• Request a breakdown of all fees and commissions. Some planners have had the perception that some DMC costs may be unnecessary. DMCs believe there is no justification at all for such a perception. Still, get a detailed accounting of all costs.
• Consider negotiating a long-term, discounted contract, with a DMC located in a frequently visited destination; one that delivers good service within budget.

Although CVBs and DMCs are different organizations with different purposes, both have one thing in common — making life easier for planners. C&IT

Credit: Frontier Group

Emerging destinations aren’t necessarily undiscovered places — perhaps a more fitting description would be newly discovered. Sometimes called second-tier cities, there is nothing “second” about them, except that they have less traffic, are less expensive and have less attitude than their more famous big sister cities.

Listed below (in alpha order) are our choices for domestic cities that are benefiting from a newfound popularity among U.S. and international corporate meeting planners. It may have started with a new convention hotel or new and better airlift or a noted chef who has returned home to open an award-winning farm-to-fork restaurant.

What these destinations all have in common are vibrant, business-friendly downtowns, efficient and affordable deluxe accommodations and meeting spaces, and CVBs that are more than ready to assist planners with organizing large or small conferences, meetings, events and offsite experiences.

Asheville, North Carolina

The 513-room Omni Grove Park Inn unveiled its new Seely Pavilion this year. The arts-and-crafts-inspired venue offers more than 3,200 sf of function space and overlooks the property’s golf course and Blue Ridge Mountains. The pavilion features exposed trusses, reclaimed wood and a stacked hearth around a large fireplace, polished concrete flooring and floor-to-ceiling doors and windows. Other amenities include a subterranean spa, a Donald Ross-designed golf course, four locally sourced restaurants, an outdoor pool and indoor and outdoor tennis courts. The property offers 86,852 sf of meeting and event space, including 31 meeting rooms, two ballrooms, outdoor terraces and patios, and an 18,000-sf grand ballroom for up to 1,800 guests.

Biltmore, America’s largest private home, is a 250-room mansion built by George W. Vanderbilt in 1895. There are extensive gardens and winery on the 8,000-acre estate. There are many group experiences available; from the Land Rover Driving Experience to fly-fishing to team cook-offs and customized tours. Opening this fall, the Amherst Ballroom will be Biltmore’s largest event venue with 11,000 sf of meeting and exhibit space.

Newly opened properties downtown include the AC Hotel, with 132 rooms, a 325-space parking garage and 2,000 sf of meeting space. The rooftop restaurant and bar “Capella on 9” offers views of downtown and the surrounding mountains. The Cambria Downtown Asheville has 136 rooms, and 7,440 sf of meeting and event space.

“The combination of…(Hotel Marina del Rey’s)location, excellent food and a remarkable staff are perfect for creating an intimate and nurturing environment.”
— Barbara Englis, LCSW

The Asheville Foundry Inn, part of Hilton’s upscale Curio Collection, is set to open later this year with 3,000 sf of functional meeting and event space on The Block, a progressive and multicultural hub, as well as the historic heart and soul of the African-American community.

“We organize an annual employee appreciation event for a corporate client that runs a chain of convenience stores,” says Kelly Dickinson, meeting and event manager for the Michigan-based Special D Events. “The two-day annual event draws about 300 attendees; the most recent took place in July of this year. We are working on contracting with the same property, Crowne Plaza Asheville, for 2019 and 2020.

“The client is headquartered in Pennsylvania, and this event started out being held at the Seven Springs Mountain Resort in that state,” says Dickinson. “But after 40 years the company had grown so much that they needed to add a Southern location. Asheville was the perfect fit for the group because it offered a similar vibe, a family-style mountain destination, with golf and lots of other activity options, so there is always a Northern (Pennsylvania) and a Southern event (North Carolina).”

Dickinson says that group activities included a Biltmore tour, a New Belgium Brewery tour, bingo, arts and crafts, zip-lining, chair massages and other events. They also did cocktail receptions, entertainment (usually a comedian), fireworks and an after-party. “There’s just so much to do in Asheville, and the western North Carolina mountain hospitality can’t be beat,” she says.

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

The city has a number of exciting annual events including their own Mardi Gras, culinary and music events and Louisiana State University (LSU) football. New venues include White Star Market, opened May 2018, a contemporary urban gourmet food hall located in the Mid-City neighborhood, showcasing some of the most unique food and drink offerings in the city. With 10 noted local vendors, and more to come, the new venue is on the ground floor of Square 46, Baton Rouge’s newest and most exciting mixed-use development.

The big attraction for planners considering Baton Rouge is the completion of the 299-room Baton Rouge Marriott’s $28 million renovation, which finished this spring. The renovations involved expanding guest rooms and bathrooms, in addition to the remodeling of the hotel lobby, restaurant and meeting areas. Expanded meeting space, now 29,979 sf, includes 25 event rooms (largest capacity 1,000) and 19 breakout rooms. The 20th floor of the 22-story Marriott includes an expanded concierge lounge for gold and platinum members. Stinky’s Fish Camp, which already has a popular Florida location in Santa Rosa Beach, opened on the ground floor of the hotel, specializing in fresh fish and seafood.

The city’s downtown 290-room Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center is adjacent to the Shaw Center and the River Center Convention Center, less than five minutes to the Louisiana State Capitol and three miles from LSU. It offers 20,000 sf of flexible meeting and banquet space, and specializes in large scale corporate and catering events.

Boulder, Colorado

Boulder is enriched with natural beauty, hip urban culture and vibrant outdoor adventures. TripAdvisor recently named it one of the “Top 25 Destinations in the U.S.” and one of the “Top 100 Destinations in the World.” It is located at the base of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, has only 103,000 residents, and a compact, business-friendly downtown.

“I think Boulder has a phenomenal growth strategy, we’re surrounded by 45,000 acres of wide open spaces, land that we call Open Space,” says Kim Farin, director of marketing for the Boulder CVB. “Land that the citizens own and can’t ever be developed. Developments in Boulder can’t sprawl because of the Open Space plan, and they can’t grow up because of the height restrictions. This is what makes Boulder a great town for corporate groups: because it’s condensed, everything is right here.”

Columbia’s CVB, known as Experience Columbia, is getting a stream of queries from corporate planners who love what they are hearing about the city’s growing reputation as more than a pleasant and friendly college town. As the state capital of South Carolina, it’s a business-friendly city that offers affordable meeting venues and great Southern charm.

The 221-room Hilton Columbia Center property is next to the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center (CMCC). The Hilton offers 5,956 sf of flexible function space, while the Sheraton Columbia and the Columbia Marriott are both within walking distance of the CMCC. Built in 2004, the downtown CMCC is a modern and architecturally significant 142,500-sf facility that includes a 17,135-sf ballroom, 15,145 sf of meeting space and a 24,700-sf exhibit hall.

Lexington, Kentucky

Lexington’s first-class facilities and unique attractions make it an appealing destination for meetings and incentive groups. Lexington’s Blue Grass Airport is just 10 minutes from downtown, and the city offers close proximity to more than 7,900 affordable hotel rooms.

The Lexington Center offers 66,000 sf of exhibition space, 40,000 sf of meeting rooms and an additional 25,000 sf of prefunc tion spaces. In the heart of downtown, the Lexington Center complex includes the famous 23,000-seat Rupp Arena.

Meetings utilizing the convention center, plus the adjoining Hyatt and Hilton hotels, have 169,000 total sf of flexible meeting and exhibit space under one roof, with more than 100 restaurants and bars within walking distance.

Marina del Rey, California

Located in the heart of the Los Angeles coastline and only four miles from LAX, Marina del Rey offers more than 100,000 sf of waterfront meeting space and 1,100 hotel guest rooms.

Long known as an eclectic beach destination, all five of the city’s main hotels have undergone renovations in the past few years, and the number of corporate meetings and events has grown tremendously in that time.

The 370-room Marina del Rey Marriott has recently renovated all meeting and public spaces, including the California Ballroom, the hotel’s largest space at 6,072 sf, and the 4,264-sf penthouse-level Bayview Ballroom, in which floor-to-ceiling windows offer panoramic coastline views.

The 134-room Hilton Garden Inn Marina del Rey offers easy access to the area’s amenities, as well as 7,245 sf of flexible meeting space. The Ritz-Carlton has updated its ballroom at 8,190 sf, and additional event spaces add 6,500 sf on the hotel’s marina level.

Yacht rentals are popular for meetings and business programs, and the local CVB maintains a list of numerous skippered vessels available for charter. Hornblower Cruises & Events has been updating its five local ships, including the Entertainer, with 6,600 sf of event space on three decks, accommodating up to 550 passengers. Two new Marina del Rey hotels, Courtyard Marriott and Residence Inn, broke ground in 2018, while the Pier 44 redevelopment project with new restaurants has an estimated 2019 completion.

“For our group of about 62 attendees we chose the Marina del Rey Hotel this past April for its location, on a lovely marina and close to LAX, its food, meaning the popular Salt restaurant responsible for the catering, and service,” says Barbara Englis, LCSW, program manager for Paras and Associates, a provider of technology systems that enable immediate access to language interpreting via video and telephone. “The purpose of the meeting was to facilitate a productive exchange of information among managers from the Health Care Interpreter Network. We have organized this meeting of network members several times over the past decade at lovely, small hotels and at the Hotel Marina del Rey for the last three meetings. The combination of the hotel’s location, excellent food and a remarkable staff are perfect for creating an intimate and nurturing environment.

“The meeting rooms at the property are exceptional,” Englis continues. “We use one meeting room for the whole group; it has a lovely Marina view, fresh air and wonderful light, all amenities that make an event in Marina del Rey successful. There is a second, smaller room next to it that is perfect for shared meals. An early evening reception allows you to take full advantage of sunset over the marina.”

Omaha, Nebraska

This year more than 40,000 shareholders attended Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting at Omaha’s CenturyLink Convention Center and other venues in the city. The average occupancy rate of greater Omaha’s 15,000+ hotel rooms during the annual May event is 95 percent. Sure, most of the attendees are coming to hear, see and hopefully meet with CEO Warren Buffett, but also because they want to spend several days in Omaha, one of the most intriguing emerging destinations in the Midwest.

With more new hotels and dining venues opening each year, the city’s Downtown Convention District is emerging as a very convenient and affordable destination for corporate meeting and event planners. The heart of the Convention District is located just 4.7 miles from Omaha’s airport, and within walking distance of boutiques, galleries, restaurants and offsite venues.

The newest addition to the Downtown Convention District is the 333-room Capitol District Marriott, opened in 2017. The hotel includes 17,000 sf of flexible meeting space and is located directly across from the CenturyLink Convention Center, providing additional convenience for meeting groups. The Marriott is the first phase of a new $205 million entertainment district that is quickly taking shape downtown. When complete, the Capitol District will include apartments, retailers, restaurants and an outdoor entertainment venue. The new property is within walking distance of TD Ameritrade Park and Omaha’s Old Market Entertainment District.

CenturyLink Center Omaha is a hybrid facility that offers more than 346,000 sf of convention center space with an 18,300-seat attached arena. The convention center consists of 194,000 sf of contiguous exhibition space, more than 63,000 sf of meeting space including 16 meeting rooms, a 30,996-sf ballroom and an extra 79,400 sf of prefunction space. A glass-enclosed skywalk links the convention center to the 600-room AAA Four Diamond Hilton Omaha with an additional 15 meeting rooms.

“In April of this year we organized our annual Home Instead Senior Care network meeting in Omaha,” says Rob Helling, vice president of creative development for Omaha-based Sonburst Communication, a firm which does meeting planning, production and marketing for a number of clients. “We brought 1,500 franchise owners from Home Instead to the city for three nights of business and social events, using the CenturyLink Convention Center for our larger meetings and Hilton Omaha as our host hotel, where we booked every meeting room and guest room in the property.”

Helling’s group also used the new Capitol District Marriott, the Hilton Garden Inn and Hampton Inn as additional accommodations, and she believes that Omaha is emerging as one of the best destinations in the country for corporate meetings and events. “Even if we were not based in Omaha, I sincerely feel that the city offers great quality and value, and some of the best F&B in the nation,” Helling says. “Most of our corporate meetings are cost-driven, and I would put Omaha up against any convention city in the country regarding affordability. CenturyLink is efficient and high quality, as are the hotel meeting facilities in the city. We have international groups that want to come to Omaha every year because of the ease of getting around the city, the great steak restaurants we have, and the friendly service they get everywhere they go. They enjoy it because Omaha is a cosmopolitan city, but not in a threatening way.”

Portland, Oregon

In the past two years there have been a number of new hotel properties which have given meeting planners additional accommodations and space options, in various price categories, solidifying the city’s new attractiveness as a meetings destination. The 204-room AC Hotel Portland Downtown opened in 2017, and its five event rooms, totaling 1,675 sf, are suitable for smaller executive meetings.

Marriott’s Hi-Lo Hotel Portland, part of its Autograph Collection, is a 120-room boutique property that occupies the historic Oregon Pioneer Building downtown, retaining Huber’s Café, the city’s oldest restaurant, within its modern interior. The Hi-Lo offers four eclectic meeting rooms, perfect for client presentations, board meetings, conferences and social events. The event spaces include brass light fixtures, marble countertops and artwork.

The 299-room Porter Hotel, part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, opened in April 2018, offering more than 5,000 sf of event space. The Porter has large, outdoor covered terraces overlooking downtown Portland. Canopy by Hilton Portland Pearl District opened this summer, with 153 rooms, local craft beer and artisanal breakfasts. The property features 1,095 sf of collaborative meeting space, and is a short walk to the Oregon Convention Center.

Portland will become even more attractive to meeting planners when the new $244 million Hyatt Regency Portland opens in December 2019. Located next door to the Oregon Convention Center, the 600-room hotel will feature 32,710 sf of meeting and event space, including a 12,655-sf ballroom.

New offsite activities for corporate groups and incentives include The Nightwood Society (opened 2017), a collaborative of women who are farmers, butchers and creatives working together to produce extraordinary experiences around food and wine. Revolution Hall’s Roof Deck is a restored red brick-walled Washington High School that has been transformed into one of the city’s top destinations for live entertainment. The Roof Deck offers 360-degree views of the city.

Downtown’s Director Park is an intimate venue with an urban vibe and an artistic ambience, making it ideal for a variety of mid-size and smaller events. Located in the heart of downtown Portland, it is designed in the style of a European piazza with movable café tables and chairs. With a banquet capacity of 700; and reception of 1,200.

The Portland Art Museum includes the modernist Belluschi Building, outdoor sculpture courts and the transformed Mark Building, featuring the Jubitz Center for Modern and Contemporary Art. The historic ballrooms at the core of the Mark Building are fully restored with updated lighting, air conditioning and state-of-the-art audiovisual equipment. More than 40,000 sf of event space includes 20,736 sf of meeting rooms, banquet capacity of 560, and a reception capacity of 1,000.

Richmond, Virginia

The Greater Richmond Convention Center maintains 180,000 sf of exhibition space in the heart of the city’s downtown. Due to a number of new offsite meeting venues and new restaurants and hotels, the city is rapidly increasing its corporate meetings business.
Housed in an iconic new building designed by the renowned Steven Holl Architects, the Virginia Commonwealth University’s Institute for Contemporary Art opened in April 2018, and presents the work of contemporary artists through exhibitions, performances, installations and interdisciplinary programs, while offering plenty of meeting space. The Dewey Gottwald Center at the Science Museum of Virginia is the museum’s newest addition, opened in April 2017 and can seat 500 attendees.

“Our last sales conference occurred in February 2018 with about 1,000 participants,” says Anna Taylor, event marketing manager at CoStar Group, Inc. CoStar conducts expansive, ongoing research to produce and maintain the largest and most comprehensive database of commercial real estate information. Headquartered in Washington, DC, CoStar maintains offices throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe with a staff of more than 4,100 people worldwide, including the industry’s largest professional research organization. “We chose Richmond because CoStar Group opened a large research office in Richmond and wanted to bring the company together to celebrate the success of the local office,” Taylor explains.

“Six local hotels were utilized for the sleeping rooms, and a welcome reception was held at The Jefferson, where we displayed local, Southern flair,” she says. “The newly renovated Main Street Station was used for a large seated dinner followed by a concert with local clients. The last night was an awards ceremony held at the Altria Theatre.”

After major renovations, the Crowne Plaza is now rebranded as Delta Hotels by Marriott Richmond Downtown, which is Marriott’s newest upscale, full-service brand. The renovations included adding 2,000 sf of meeting space, updating the guest rooms, adding a restaurant and remodeling the ballroom. This is the brand’s seventh location in the United States.

Richmond’s Main Street Station project completed a $92 million renovation in 2017. The project initially began in 1991, and the restoration of the 100,000-sf train shed was the third phase in this project. The station currently has four Amtrak trains running daily serving routes bound for Newport News and Washington, DC. The station has several event spaces, including The Main Street Station Train Shed, 47,000 sf of event space (capacity: 2,220+) and second-floor space with breathtaking views of Richmond.

The clock-towered Main Street Station offers 10,000 sf of event space (capacity: 395 for seated dinner, 740 for cocktails) spanning two floors, and includes a logia, balcony and grand hall. This space is a National Historic Landmark.

Once planners and attendees give these second-thought meetings destinations a chance, they’ll soon understand why they’ll never be rated second best. C&IT

Credit: AWG Ambassador

No one congratulates planners when ground transportation runs smoothly. But suppose a bus on its way to pick up attendees has an accident, gets stuck in heavy traffic, breaks down or becomes lost?

Such mishaps can ruin an entire meeting or, at the very least, aggravate attendees. Transportation is an attendee’s first and last event experience, so a bad start can curb enthusiasm for the upcoming event, and a mishap at the end can leave negative memories.

It’s difficult for even the best meeting experience to make up for transportation snafus, but with the right planning, attention to detail and transportation partners, everything can run smoothly.

Set Expectations

According to Jessica Niblett, CMP, national sales manager, AlliedPRA Orange County/Los Angeles, many common problems are preventable if planners set expectations ahead of time with transportation vendors.

Start with the site visit. Planner and provider should together walk through what the transportation experience will look like for guests. This can help planners decide if they need additional staff, signage or perhaps heaters if guests will be waiting outside for a shuttle, Niblett explains.

“When conducting a site visit at a hotel or offsite meeting location, I always make a point to show clients exactly where the buses would pull in, where the guests would queue and what needs to be done in order to ensure that transportation can run smoothly, including traffic officers, cones, staff, permits, etc.,” says Niblett.

In addition, she says, “A planner of a group that expects vehicles to be staged and ready 15 minutes or more prior to departure should communicate it to the transportation partner. If guests tend to arrive early or late, let the partner know.”

Even when planners do everything right, glitches occur and one of the biggest is traffic.

Traffic Nightmares

It’s a problem that Niblett knows all too well. “Operating programs in Los Angeles, we always have to account for traffic,” she says. “It can take 30 minutes to go 1.5 miles in downtown during rush hour. The best way to handle this is to be upfront with clients about what backup plans there are if any routes become too congested. Pretending traffic is not an issue will result in unhappy guests.”

Karen Shackman, president, Shackman Associates, a New York City DMC specializing in domestic and international corporate meetings and incentives, offers the following advice on traffic:

“The biggest mistake in negotiating ground transportation is allowing budgets and lowest-cost options to be a determining factor in the decision-making process.”
— Frank Macaluso

“Never underestimate rush hour and potential bottlenecks around special events,” says Shackman. “This sounds like common sense, but even the best planned events requiring transportation of groups can take wildly varying amounts of time if held in a major urban area. I recommend finding unique transportation staging areas that are close to the gala or major event.”

Plan alternate routes and make sure the transportation provider is proficient with the latest traffic apps. According to Shackman, “GPS-enabled transportation may not be adequate if you are transporting a group during peak rush hour. We understand how data on apps can change quickly in New York, so local expertise in anticipating problem areas before they turn red on the app provides a huge advantage in major destination meeting cities.”

Negotiation Tips

Planners typically face the challenge of getting the best ground transportation possible on a tight budget. That requires knowledgeable, savvy and mistake-free negotiating.

According to Frank Macaluso, director of transportation, AlliedPRA Las Vegas, “The biggest mistake in negotiating ground transportation is allowing budgets and lowest-cost options to be a determining factor in the decision-making process. This short-sighted approach saves on budget at times, but often to the participants’ detriment. There are ways to negotiate price based on volume, season, etc.”

Experts offer the following tips on negotiating transportation contracts:

• Expect providers to design a customized plan geared to a meeting’s goals and budget, not just provide transportation. To that end, spell out transportation needs as specifically as possible. Identify how many of what types of vehicles are needed (buses, minbuses, vans, town cars, SUVs). Explain how the vehicles will be used (airport transfer, executive transfer, sightseeing, etc.)
• Provide specific information about pickup and drop-off locations. Determine who will be responsible for getting permission to park vehicles at pickup and drop-off sites. This is especially important for big meetings with many vehicles. Many hotels and venues have a problem with lots of vehicles (especially buses) showing up without prior permission.

Choosing a Provider

Work with a transportation provider early in the planning process. Don’t create your own transportation plan and then ask companies to implement them, because you may overlook key details.

Decide whether it’s best to hire a destination management company (DMC) or go directly to a transportation company. The latter provides a coordinator to manage logistics, and planners bill the company directly. A DMC contracts with ground transportation companies to provide services for planners at a pre-negotiated percentage of the bill. Whether as a DMC or planner, make sure to get quotes from a handful of companies.

Determine whether the supplier knows the difference between “ground transportation” and “event ground transportation management.”  The former simply provides buses or vans to transport groups from one place to another; the latter offers ground transportation services for large groups encompassing numerous and complex movements of attendees from one site to another.

“The two are very different animals,” says Macaluso. “Transportation providers offer basic equipment and drivers. Ground transportation management involves everything from the preplanning process, communication, routes, dispatch, lead staff and ground staff.”

Choose an event ground transportation management provider when possible. “I would say that a client who goes directly to a company for group transportation is going to get just buses and drivers,” says Niblett.

“For a client looking for true transportation management, a DMC would be recommended,” she adds. “This would provide management of the arrival and departure manifest, meet-and-greet staff, handling changes, communicating routing to vehicles and the management of all staff and drivers. Once en route, they can make announcements to guests and are also the primary contact if an accident occurs.”

Vetting Potential Partners

Meetings with many moving parts require experienced and reliable transportation partners who can manage different types of vehicles transporting attendees to multiple venues in a congested urban destination.

Macaluso says that checking references is key. “Client references and testimonials from similar-sized programs are always a good gauge of a provider’s competency,” he says. “What processes did the provider use to meet the group’s needs. It is also important to get an idea of how well the provider has worked with properties and airports.”

Other Questions to Ask

How does the provider select, screen and train drivers? “A high-end transportation company will tell you that their drivers, no matter what size vehicle they drive, are professionally trained ‘chauffeurs,’ not just ‘bus drivers,’ ” says Niblett. “The result of this is that, even if your guests travel in a motorcoach, the driver would show the same professionalism and customer service as a VIP sedan transfer. The chauffeurs trained in these programs take pride in their job and it shows to planners and attendees.”

How do the providers’ dispatch and reservation systems operate? “Transportation companies that specialize in corporate groups usually will have a separate group reservation department and possibly even a group dispatcher during peak times,” says Niblett. “This shows a planner that the company understands group transportation and not just individual transfers.”

What are the providers’ safety and security policies? Ask about contingency plans for challenges such as bad weather, accidents, special needs, VIP needs and security threats. Choose a provider with a proven track record for handling the unexpected.

Here’s more to ask:

• What is the size and variety of the provider’s transportation fleet?
• Will they have vehicles to replace any that break down? Will they have a service truck nearby on standby?
• If they use out of state vehicles, where will they come from, when will they arrive and where?
• Will you get drivers’ names and cell numbers the night before or the morning of the event?
• Do drivers have the proper tags to enter the airport?
• How will addresses and directions be communicated to drivers?
• Does the provider offer onsite transportation coordinators for large meetings that last several days?
• Which types of vehicles provide Wi-Fi access?
• What are the drivers’ standard uniforms? Are they easily identifiable?

Consider Rehearsing

Should planners rehearse transportation maneuvers? “It depends,” says Don Bontemps, senior event producer, AlliedPRA South Florida.

“That would depend on the maneuver, how many vehicles are involved, the number of routes, how many people, etc.,” says Bontemps. “We are working on a citywide group, which has 12-hour daily shuttle service between the convention center and nine hotels. We created four separate routes. We plan on having the drivers be familiar with each route in the event we need to swap them out with other vehicles and drivers. I would also hold dry runs for any drivers who are still unsure of the exact route.”

Experts suggest the following do’s and don’ts when planning ground transportation:

The Do’s
Plan early. It can help lock in good prices and vehicles required. Provide information about dates, times of departure, locations and number of attendees for each transportation even before a contract is signed. Don’t wait until the last minute to request transportation because it may require more flexibility on the types of vehicles, pickup times, costs and other factors.

Know where attendees should meet drivers and the type of signage they will display. Let attendees know whom to call if their arrival time changes. Determine how the transportation company should handle flight cancellations and delays.

Ask who is responsible for making signs. Be specific about what should be on signs including font size, color and logos. Avoid fancy fonts. Signage should clearly direct attendees to vehicles.

Have backup plans. Don’t expect everything to go as planned. Know what obstacles might occur and plan accordingly.

Know how far vehicles will park from a venue. How long will it take vehicles go from where they are parked to the pickup site in traffic.

Keep a vehicle on standby. In case an executive unexpectedly requests a vehicle transfer, have one ready.

Special needs. Know beforehand how many attendees will require access to a special needs vehicle.

The Don’ts
“Don’t assume that the front drive of a hotel or venue will be available for drop-off and pickup,” says Macaluso. “You need to communicate closely with the hotel contacts, and then with your client and their lead trip staff.”

Don’t be surprised by hidden fees. It’s a mistake that many planners make, says Alton Hagen, CMP, DMCP, and general manager of Agenda: USA, a Mission, Kansas-based DMC. “Have the provider describe in their quote all possible additional fees or surcharges that may be applied — airport access fees; wait time surcharges; late reservation additions; change or cancellation fees; early morning or late evening surcharges; fuel surcharges; manifest preparation fees; ‘convenience fee’ for credit card payments; and gratuities.”

Don’t complicate things unnecessarily. Remember that the meeting begins at the airport. “Even if your attendees are arriving from diverse points of origin, when transportation from the airport to the hotel becomes chaotic and too individually customized, it can detract from early-stage networking and delay events,” says Shackman.

Don’t forget amenities. What are the requirements to receive complimentary airport transfer and in-vehicle amenities for VIPs or top staff? The leverage for acquiring such extras increases with large, complex transportation needs.

Transportation logistics, especially for large meetings spread over several hotels and venues, is the thread that holds the event together. Attendees must get to where they want to go on time and without major headaches. If that happens — and the rest of the meeting goes well — planners will have satisfied attendees. C&IT