It’s going to be quite a year

Happy New Year to our global CMP Community, EIC Members and Strategic Partners. It’s going to be quite a year — more on that in a bit!

I’ve just returned from our annual EIC Board Retreat, held this year in San Diego in conjunction with PCMA Convening Leaders 2024. Congratulations to the PCMA team, Visit San Diego and the entire hospitality community for an incredible event showcasing one of the world’s most beautiful cities.

During our Board Retreat, we toasted our new Chair Ana María Viscasillas, MBA, CDME, DES, CED and welcomed new members Michelle Mason, FASAE, CAE and Elizabeth Niehaus, along with Bob Gilbert, who returns to the board after a few years.

Here’s our full roster:

2024 Board of Directors Officers

• Chair: Ana María Viscasillas, MBA, CDME, DES, CED: Federación de Entidades Organizadoras de  Congresos y Afines de Latino América, Board Liaison and immediate Past Vice President COCAL
• Chair-Elect: Senthil Gopinath: CEO, International Congress and Convention Association
• Immediate Past Chair: Sherrif Karamat, CAE: President & CEO, PCMA and CEMA      

2024 Board of Directors

• Jason Dunn Sr.: CEO, National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals (NCBMP)
• Robert (Bob) Gilbert, CHME, CHBA: President and CEO, Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI)
• Stephanie Harris: President, The Incentive Research Foundation
• Michelle Mason, FASAE, CAE: President and CEO, ASAE: The Center for Association Leadership
• Elizabeth Niehaus: Executive Officer, IELA (International Exhibition Logistics Association)
• Tina Wehmeir, CMP, CAE: CEO, AMC Institute

This amazing group of leaders, along with our EIC Council and volunteer leaders, will be actively involved in helping EIC celebrate its 75th Anniversary this year.

While in San Diego, we also held a critical CMP Competency Profile workshop centered on the next phase of the update to the CMP IS and Domains in preparation for our refreshed exam and related materials coming in late 2024 or early 2025. We also held the first meeting of the APEX Commission Critical Issues Working group, an important task force focused on identifying the most pressing issues shaping the future of our industry.

There was a common thread to all these activities: A united commitment to building on our industry’s resiliency and agility and a focus on working together to turn our shared vision into meaningful actions.

This year’s efforts by the CMP Commission and our SMEs on the CMP Competency Profile project will be some of the most important, impactful work we’ve done in recent history and will lay a solid foundation for our future. This global collaboration will lead to the update of the CMP exam, study materials and other related projects. I can’t stress enough how exciting and essential this work is. 

Their work will shape the conversations and content at this year’s CMP Advance, 11-13 March in Toronto. Building upon the extremely well-received content for last year’s event in New York, the 2024 CMP Advance will bring together a diverse cross-section from our global community for two powerful days of peer-to-peer learning and building meaningful connections. It’s especially exciting to be returning to Toronto, host of one of the first Conclaves. Many of our industry leaders were at that event — it’s thrilling to think what leaders will emerge from this year’s class. Many of our CMP Fellows will be in Toronto. It’s always inspiring to hear their stories.

As I mentioned earlier, we are celebrating our 75th anniversary as the global federation for the business events sector. Through our diverse membership and global community and our work in advocacy, research, professional standards and recognition, we are uniquely positioned to lead the conversations that will shape the future of our industry.

Throughout 2024, we will reflect on our extraordinary history while focusing on a future filled with possibilities for our industry. We will celebrate the foresight of our founders and reaffirm that together we are indeed stronger. Exciting times indeed.

Again, a big thank you to our amazing volunteer leaders and wonderful team for their dedication and steadfast commitment to EIC’s bigger purpose.

Amy Calvert, CEO Events Industry Council