CMP Today

Last week the first event of the five-series FUSE Roadshow, put on by the Convention Industry Council (CIC), Social Tables and Meetings Mean Business, kicked off to a standing-room-only crowd. The event, held on February 17 at the Loews Madison in Downtown Washington, D.C., truly infused attendees in a fun and interactive format!

More than 100 planners, partners and suppliers were in attendance at the initial kickoff of the five-city event tour, continuing at the Loews Hollywood in California on March 9.

"The focus of the event is to fuse planners, partners and property managers together in an intimate setting. We are keeping the events small to promote engagement and garner more efficient and relevant networking," said Karen Kotowski, CAE, CMP, CEO of the Convention Industry Council.

Before the primary education began, The Convention Industry Council held a CMP Information Breakfast for those interested in the program, showcasing the value of the certification and the ins and outs of achieving the elite certification.

Kicking off the learning experience was a session on understanding Wi-Fi and what you need to know, which was presented by Michael Owen, Managing Partner of EventGenuity and current past chair of CIC’s APEX Standards Committee. Check out the APEX bandwidth calculator here.

Karen Kotowski,CAE, CMP, and Mallory Ward, Director at APCO Worldwide, tag teamed at an engaging and motivating session on the importance of not only being an advocate for our industry but how to best tell the story. Highlighting examples and backed by research from the Meetings Mean Business Coalition along with audience participation, Karen and Mallory inspired everyone in the room to join the cause.

After the morning sessions, guests got to relax in the hip and trendy lounge space designed by AFR Event Furnishings. Shortly after, lunch was served family-style further promoting engagement. The menu was infused with the flair of the onsite restaurant Rural Society bringing flavors of Latin America.

Following lunch the education continued highlighting research from Meetings Mean Business and Skift on what millennials want in meetings, introducing the crowd to the word "bleisure," combining business and leisure when traveling.

Dan Berger, CEO of Social Tables, released never-seen-before research their company conducted on site visits, showcasing the different perspectives of both planners and venue sales staff. The research revealed that the four key factors on both sides are trust, sincerity, competence and reliability.

The end-of-the-day coffee chat featured Elliot Ferguson of Events DC and Phillip Dufour, the first male Social Secretary in the White House, and current owner of DU4 Productions. This open dialogue panel brought out interesting facts on their successful career paths as well as highlighting some features and trends in the local DC travel market.

Closing the day with a bang was the "social hour" sponsored by Social Tables in the lounge with yellow coaches, pink and mirrored cubes, and the center of the back room highlighted by winged screens was the golden bar, which was the brains of Heidi of AFR Event Furnishings.

Partnering on an event with three organizations was a great way to add value and different perspectives. This event was a collaborative meeting with CIC, Social Tables, and Meetings Mean Business working together on the education and promotion. Our sponsors AFR Event Furnishings, Loews Hotels and PSAV all stepped up to impress the audience and enhance the overall experience.

Kotowski added "We couldn’t have been more proud to be a part of this event, and we are looking to improve the event continually along the way. Each stop will have unique touches and varied sessions to keep things interesting."

Seating is limited, so register for your spot at a location near you today!

Chair's Corner

Letter from the Chair of CMP Governance Commission Janet Sperstad, CMP

Right around the corner is our industry’s first Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID). Meetings Mean Business Coalition (MMBC) is hosting what has the potential to be the single, biggest global impact of awareness our industry has ever had. It will highlight the value of business meetings, events and exhibitions have on the communities we work, live and play in. By now you have probably heard about Meetings Mean Business Coalition, but to refresh your memory MMBC was created in 2009 by the U.S. Travel Association to showcase the incredible value that business meetings, travel and events bring to the U.S. economy. Its members span all facets of the face-to-face industry, which have come together behind a common goal: providing the resources, tools and information to show the real impact the industry has on businesses, economies and communities.

So what does all of this have to do with you and the CMP? Everything. This is where the rubber meets the road. Putting CMP behind your name is more know stating you passed the test. You represent the subject matter experts, the skilled professionals, and the best of the best in our industry. Without you, our industry would not be the profession it is today. You help bring to life who the skilled professionals are, what they do and the business values of meetings. Employers seek out CMP candidates more than any other candidate. Having this credential sets you apart from others and helps the event industry show the real power of what business meetings, events and exhibitions collectively do for people, businesses and communities. There are more than 10,000 of us in 55 countries around the globe. Let’s raise our voice on April 14 together as a family of CMPs and advocate for what we know to be true, Meetings Mean Business.

Advocacy most often doesn’t happen by grabbing a bullhorn and shouting. But in quiet moments, in conversations, and standing up when moments like GMID come about. When I met with the U.S. Department of Labor last year to discuss the event industry being broken out from hospitality industry into its own sector, MMBC played a critical role in my discussions. I never would have achieved the success I did without the facts, figures and stories MMBC provides. The other lynch pin in this success is the CMP. Having a body of knowledge represented by a credential was the turning point. You didn’t know it but you supported me and our cause to be defined as its own sector. I ask you to support GMID however you best can. To learn more about what you can do to make a difference, check out the Global Meetings Industry Day website here.

Thanks for being a CMP and standing up for our profession. Together, we can do anything.

Peace. Janet

CMP Events

CMP-HC Webinar – Navigating Around Meal Caps!

In today’s complex Life Science environment of trying to navigate around meal caps to ensure we deliver compliant meetings ... in addition to working more frequently cross-border and having to take into account meal caps by participating countries – doing a little algebra is of order to determine the lowest common denominator we have to work with.

Let’s explore some industry best practices and trends to help us meet those goals, get to the bottom of what EFPIA is all about and discuss reporting requirements, while reviewing available tools to do it correctly and efficiently.

Key learning objectives:
• Industry best practices around medical meetings and meal caps
• Compliant meetings across the globe
• Demystifying EFPIA in relations to reporting and meal caps

Register now! for the one-hour webinar on Tuesday, March 8 at 1 p.m. EST featuring Agnès "AC" Canonica, CMP, CMM, HMCC, Global Director, Strategic Meeting Management at AHM.

Join Us as a Hosted Buyer at IMEX 2016!

Join the Convention Industry Council’s CMP Only Group as a hosted buyer at IMEX Frankfurt 2016 – the show that’s constantly innovating and presenting new business discoveries, AND where you’ll find best in class education and inspiration at every turn.

Qualifications:

Must have planned three events that took place outside buyer's home country
Two in the past 18 months and third can be in the past 18 months or in upcoming year, which must be a confirmed event
Buyers from outside Europe, should submit at least one European event if possible.

Above all, IMEX puts you – the planner, the buyer, the director, the business owner – at the heart of the show. It’s your business agenda that matters here.

Applications open Monday, November 23!

Email events@conventionindustry.org to be first to receive it.

Why join our group?

Experience the only Hosted Buyer Group exclusively for CMPs
Network with CIC staff and attend a hosted dinner
Have flexibility to attend other events and no pressure

Why IMEX?
Thousands of like-minded meetings and event executives from all corners of the world make their way to IMEX in Frankfurt every year. Why? Because they know from personal experience that just one visit puts them ahead for the rest of the year.

You can enjoy the same advantages:

Achieving six months of supplier meetings in just three days. With the most flexible appointment system in the industry, as an IMEX hosted buyer YOU choose the exhibitors YOU want to meet at the show. Planning your business this way easily takes you half the time it would by email or phone!
The credibility of meeting face to face. Forge and build new and existing relationships in the warm, welcoming and vibrant IMEX community. It’s hard work but it’s a lot of fun too!
Inspiration and ‘a-ha’ moments round every corner. The educational opportunities at IMEX are second to none – with sessions across 10 different tracks covering everything from personal development, to technology and creative learning – all at no cost.
For Corporate and Association Executives: The IMEX team knows how much you want specialist education and private networking time together – that’s why they’ve created two special events dedicated to you and your specific needs. Both are on Monday April 18 – Exclusively Corporate @IMEX and Association Day & Evening.

Why the IMEX Hosted Buyer Programme?
Flexibility is at the heart of IMEX – let them look after you from the moment you register. From taking care of your travel and accommodation, to helping you get the most from the show, IMEX genuinely treats you with the care, maturity and attention you deserve. This team is on your side.

Find out more about IMEX 2016 and the IMEX Hosted Buyer Programme here:

http://www.imex-frankfurt.com/hosted-buyers/hosted-buyer-programme/

Watch this three-minute video to see why other meeting professionals never miss this show:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOX6RVdPJmI

The world is constantly evolving and IMEX is too – with new exhibitors, new relationships and new educational opportunities.

Say YES to the CMP hosted buyer group today and take advantage of all that IMEX 2016 has to offer. Go on. Give yourself an unfair advantage.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Recertification

Need CEs to Recertify? Access CMP Conclave Sessions Online!

Were you unable attend last year’s meeting but are interested in the educational content? Well we have good news, CIC is proud to offer recorded sessions through CIC’s Live Learning Center – your resource for conference education.

CIC is excited to provide our most captivating educational sessions from CMP Conclave 2015, so you can keep up-to-date on industry trends and review best practices between events. Get the education that you need to enrich your professional development long after the meeting concludes.

These sessions will provide you with comprehensive information recap and make great training tools for you and your colleagues, as recordings let you experience sessions online. For just $399, you can access session recordings and continue your professional development.

Click here to sign up to access CIC’s Live Learning Center.

Once the program is in your cart and you click checkout, you will need to login in using this:

Username: CMP Account Email
Password: Last Name

Issues or questions on your account? Email MultiViewMediaSupport@multiview.com.

In Depth

Zika Virus Have You Worried?

F & B: 10 Ways to Save Money and Increase the Wow Factor at Your Next Event

10 Ways to Save Money and Increase the Wow Factor at Your Next F&B Event

Feature provided by Mariela McIlwraith, CMP, CMM, MBA President, Meeting Change

1. Pass the premium items:

At a reception, rather than having premium hors d’oeuvre items available on a buffet, have them passed. It increases the elegance while controlling your costs.

2. Opt for an all-vegetarian meal:

Vegetarian options are usually affordable and can be truly outstanding. If this is a new concept for your group, try starting with a Meatless Monday menu and gauge the response.

3. Serve lesser-known options:

Want to impress your guests with organic grass-fed beef but it’s out of your price range? Try asking for a lesser-known cut and serve smaller portions. The same holds for fish – ask your chef for a recommendation for a local specialty that may be more affordable and can contribute to creating a sense of place. Just remember to check with a sustainable seafood certification, such as Seafood Watch, Ocean Wise or the Marine Stewardship Council.

4. Move the star ingredient to the appetizer round:

If you are opting for a high-priced ingredient, serve a small portion as an appetizer rather than as the main course.

5. Replace dessert:

Opt-out of a traditional dessert, and replace it with squares of brain-friendly dark chocolates, possibly even customized with your event or company logo.

6. Create a signature cocktail:

Instead of a full bar, offer beer, wine and a signature cocktail. It can be designed with the event colors in mind, or might be the favorite of the guest of honor. Check as well if you are able to bring in your own wine and beer for a corkage fee.

7. Rally the food trucks:

Depending on your venue, you may be able to host a food truck fair where participants can taste their unique and often exceptional offerings. As an added bonus, having a variety of food trucks can help you to easily and affordably meet the dietary needs of your event attendees by having kitchens to each requirement.

8. Cut back on rentals:

Limit the number of rental requirements by using in-house linens, selecting a single glassware type for multiple beverages, or setting up a coffee station rather than having cups and saucers at every place setting.

9. Trim portions and courses:

A great way to reduce food costs (and food waste!) is to simply reduce the amount of food served to reasonable portion sizes and limiting the number of courses. A recent report from the Center for Disease Control found that restaurant portions have increased 4 times since the 1950s, leaving lots of room to cut back on quantity. In fact, A 2012 study by Nordic Choice Hotels found a close to 20% reduction in food waste by using smaller plates, without affecting guest satisfaction.

10. Be flexible:

Allow your chef to customize parts of the menu based on what is in season. For example, the recent California drought affected produce prices and having the flexibility to adapt menus helped the chef control food costs.

APEX - Standards and Best Practices

Have Your Events Been Affected by Poachers?

CMPs in the News

CMPs Honored by ADMEI

Two CMP DMC professionals were honored by ADMEI during their Recognition Awards at the Association of Destination Management Executives International annual conference in Oklahoma City, OK, USA.

Congratulations to all of the honorees especially:

Rhonda Marko, DMCP, CMM, CMP, Destination Nashville, Nashville, TN, was honored for decades of achievement in the destination management profession.

There was a tie this year for the Destination Management Professional of the Year, with Jennifer Patino, DMCP, Hosts Global Alliance, Las Vegas, NV, USA sharing the award with Alexander Rodionov, DMCP, CMP, Tsar Events, St. Petersburg, Russia. Tsar Events is the first Accredited DMC in Russia.

CMP on the Road

CMP Preferred Provider Program Makes Finding CEs Easy!

The Convention Industry Council’s CMP Preferred Provider Program launched in February 2015. Since the launch, we have added more than 100 Preferred Providers who offer quality continuing education for candidates and CMPs.

CMP Preferred Providers are organizations that have formally registered with CIC and are committed to providing education that aligns with one of the 10 domains included in the CMP International Standards (CMP-IS). The CMP-IS domains are: Strategic Planning, Project Management, Risk Management, Financial Management, Human Resources, Stakeholder Management, Meeting or Event Design, Site Management, Marketing and Professionalism.

Preferred Provider education makes it easy to find and complete the educational requirements of the CMP program and have your attendance recorded in your portal record.

Claiming CE Hours

As part of the Preferred Provider Program, sponsoring organizations agree to upload the attendance roster of each of their pre-reviewed events. This usually is completed within two weeks after the event. If the email the attendee has provided to the Preferred Provider matches the email in their CIC account, their attendance will be recorded in their portal record

After the roster is uploaded, attendees will receive notification from CIC that their attendance has been uploaded into their online profile. Once this email is received, attendees simply need to claim their CE hours. To claim CE hours, attendees log onto their portal account, scroll to the Add/Edit Continuing Education section and find the event. To edit the number of hours attended at the event, click edit and then add the number of hours attended for the entire event and click submit.

Attendees do not report each session attended when claiming hours for a Preferred Provider Event. It’s easy! Find event, click edit, enter hours and submit.

If the email address does not match the attendee’s portal account email address, the attendee can still get CMP credit by self-reporting their attendance at each session and uploading supporting documentation – proof of attendance and course description. The attendee can also reach out to the Preferred Provider and ask if they can update their email address so that it matches their CP portal account and ask the Provider to upload the updated email address.

You can find a listing of educational opportunities on our website.

On The Move

CMPs On the Move

Melinda L. Burdette, CMP, is now Lead Events Manager at Meeting Professionals International (MPI) in Dallas, TX.

Traci James, CMP, has recently joined the ConferenceDirect team as a Global Account Executive based in Vancouver, BC, she formerly was an owner of a DMC.

Heather McCroskey, CMP, is now the Director of Meetings at Parthenon Management Group, (AMCI accredited) in Brentwood, TN. She was promoted from her previous position as Senior Meetings Manager.

Barb Roth, CMP, is now Convention Sales Manager for Cirque du Soleil. She was formerly with Mandalay Bay as National Sales Manager for the South East region.

Stuart Ruff, CMP, DES, has been promoted to Vice President, Events and Education for RIMS, the Risk Management Society.

Antwone Stigall, CMP, is now President of West Wing Events located in Memphis, TN.

Make an awesome career move? Let us help you celebrate! Send the details of your latest career triumph to cmptoday@conventionindustry.org. And while you're at it, be sure to log into www.conventionindustry.org and update your official CMP record.