Well, goodbye, summer, and hello, fall! To me, the week following Labor Day always signifies the U.S. Open coming to a close, college football starting up and a push for my Chicago Cubs to make the playoffs! But, more importantly, this is really the start of MPIGNY kicking our year into high gear, too. The board of directors conducted its monthly meeting this week, where we continued to plan out the 2019-20 campaign. We’re continuing to focus on what we can do to enhance the level of experience for all of our members. 

A key highlight for September is going to be our first educational event of the year on Tuesday, Sept. 17, on the topic of meeting design. Our chapter is putting a lot of time and resources into this event, and I’m really excited about how it’s all coming together. Everyone thinks they know what meeting design is, but trust me, if you come to this event, you’re going to leave with some valuable knowledge and insight that you didn’t have before. Due to the size of the venue, we have to limit the event to 60 attendees (30 suppliers and 30 planners), so if you want to attend, I would highly encourage you to sign up today, or you may miss out on what is destined to be a memorable experience.  

Finally, I’d like to mention the mentorship program that we’ve just rolled out. The intent of this program is to provide an outlet for those newer members of our chapter who are looking to navigate the NYC hospitality waters in a more effective manner. If you’ve recently joined our chapter or don’t quite feel like you understand how to get the most out of your membership, this program is geared specifically for you! All the details are listed in this e-mail, so please consider filling out the mentee application. We’re also looking for some great mentors who are eager to give back to our community. So, if you have a passion for our industry and want to make a positive impact while not committing too much of your time, please consider applying as a mentor.

Best regards,

Patrick Colomer
President
MPI Greater New York Chapter
Patrick.Colomer@hilton.com

Join MPIGNY for our September God's Love We Deliver volunteer activity. This month, we'll need help in the kitchen!

Kitchen Prep 
Kitchen Prep (10 to 12 volunteers) 
Work as a group in our kitchen on a variety of tasks with guidance from our on-staff chefs.

Tasks may include packaging meals, chopping onions, ladling soup, peeling potatoes or making meatballs. Volunteers can also package meal bundles for clients and assemble children's meal kits.

Clothes must cover your shoulders, underarms, knees, and toes (with closed-toe shoes). Watches, bracelets and dangling earrings must be removed. You can bring your own hat!

We ask all volunteers to arrive 15 minutes prior to their shift for self-checking and a quick orientation.
*** Each volunteer MUST sign up for this event. *** 

Click register now to sign up!

Date:
Tuesday, Sept. 10

Time:
9 a.m. to noon

Location;
God's Love We Deliver
166 Avenue of the Americas
New York, N.Y.

Venue Details
Group volunteering at God’s Love We Deliver: Without the help of our amazing volunteers - more than 10,000 strong every year - we simply would not be able to cook and deliver more than 7,000 delicious and nutritious meals each weekday to our neighbors in need. Outnumbering our staff by a ratio of more than 100 to 1, volunteers work in the kitchen, deliver and package meals and work in our office.

Learn more about God's Love We Deliver by viewing this video! 

The Sept. 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance is an annual tribute to the 9/11 victims, survivors and those who rose up in service in response to the attacks

Join Repair the World in marking the anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy by serving in solidarity with our community at The Campaign Against Hunger (TCAH) in Bed Stuy. TCAH operates NYC’s largest emergency food pantry -- five days a week, New Yorkers in need visit the pantry to receive free food. The pantry is unique because it allows clients to have a choice in the food they are given, similar to shopping at a supermarket. Clients can choose from fresh fruits, vegetables and various food items according to their preference instead of receiving a prepackaged pantry bag.Volunteers will be giving support in the backroom (sorting items to be brought into the pantry) or front of the pantry (serving clients).
 

Wednesday, Sept. 11
2 p.m. - 6 p.m.

The Campaign Against Hunger
2010 Fulton Street
Brooklyn, N.Y.

REGISTER TO HELP NOW

You are now part of an exciting, growing $1.5 trillion industry! But with that scale, meeting planners are increasingly undergoing senior management scrutiny, tasked with justifying the outlay for meetings and generating ROI. Your challenge: How to design a meeting experience that will satisfy corporate aims AND fully immerse, motivate and inspire attendees? This seminar will examine the role meeting design plays in responding to the challenge, as you plan meetings for 2020 and beyond.

Key takeaways you will get from this session:

• The role of design in the meeting planning process
• A current perspective on meeting design from a masters panel
• Future trends in meeting design
• Techniques to implement immediately in planning any meeting or event

REGISTER NOW

Our speakers:

• Dianne Devitt - President, DND Consulting (session facilitator)
• Lisa Keenan - President, Keenan Creative Forces (presenter)
• Rob Burnett - Director of Marketing (presenter)
• Bill Behmke - AVP Global Meetings, AT&T (masters panelist)
• Drew Condon - Senior Event Designer, Steelcase Event Experiences (masters panelist)
• Matthew Saravay - President, Wizard Studios (masters panelist)

*CMP/CEU credit is pending approval. 

Venue Details
Steelcase WorkLife Center is an ecosystem of interconnected and interdependent spaces that are designed to support the physical, cognitive and emotional well-being of workers. Using research and insights from workplaces and universities around the world, Steelcase Event Experiences transforms event spaces through experience design and premium-quality furniture to create powerful, purposeful events that inspire engagement, communication and collaboration.

Save the date for MPIGNY's October Education Panel!
A registration link and e-mail with more details will be coming soon. 

Your Idea or Mine?

In all types of organizations and groups, success relies on individuals gaining buy-in from other individuals and teams. A nod, smile or (virtual) handshake are all highly coveted results inherent to agreement. Learn new ways to unleash your fresh and innovative ideas in a nonthreatening way to yield influence over behavior and motivation to build consensus. 

Join established professionals in the field of organizational development for an engaging discussion on:  

• Leading without authority
• Collaborative decision-making tools and process
• Empowered adult states at work
• Building relationships and working cross-functionally in complex organizations
• Communicating to different learning styles

Once you have evaluated these new strategies, there will be a voluntary workshop facilitated by professionals to test drive how to create buy-in.

Timeline:
7:30 a.m. - Registration, Networking, Continental Breakfast 
8:15 a.m. - Welcome and Panel Discussion
9 a.m. - Workshop 
9:30 a.m. - Program Concludes 

Moderator:
Jason Myers, President, Organization Development Network of Greater New York

Panelists:

• Paula Martin, CEO, Matrix Management Institute 
• Ian Hughson, Leader Enterprise Business Agility, IBM
• More to be announced soon!

Location:
IVY LANE at 116 East 60th Street. New restaurant and event space that will accommodate approximately 175 seated, 220 standing. The venue has two floors, one full-service bar and lounge complemented by three dining rooms that will also be available for private dining and full buyouts until 4 a.m.

It’s that time of year again: Join us for an evening of libations, excitement and winnings at our annual extravaganza! This is where meeting and event professionals from the greater NYC area (Including NJ, CT, PA, and beyond) come to network, bid on fantastic auction items and participate in a fierce mixology battle where supplier mixologists mix up their original cocktails.

Come on … Mix it up! Show us what you’ve got and participate as a mixology sponsor.

You get to host a bar, mix a cocktail and name your creation for a chance to win the “MPIGNY Drink of the Year,” which will be featured at the 2020 Genie Awards; so, you get a two-for-one sponsorship! E-mail Michelle Marie Adams for full details.

Calling all auction items! Donate a little piece of your company to the best auction in NYC!

Show off your company and donate a service, item or experience to the auction. Hotel accommodations, dining/shopping/spa certificates, show tickets, gift bags -- really anything that you feel would be the perfect representation of your company’s product and/or service.

Just click below, and it will take you to our online donation link; it only takes two minutes!

DONATE HERE

For more information or questions, e-mail michellemarieadams@gmail.com.

The 2019 MPIGNY Kalahari Resort Golf Outing was yet again one for the history books, but for different reasons than in 2018! Don't just take our word for it, take a look at our recap video here: 2019 MPIGNY Kalahari Resort Golf Outing Video

Despite the rain, our recent After Six Mix had a fantastic turnout to kick-start the Labor Day weekend at The Standard East Village’s NO BAR on Aug. 28. NO BAR’s openness to the Standard’s outdoor space brought the charm of the East Village into the event, along with its delicious appetizers and amazing staff, creating a perfect, welcoming atmosphere for new and repeat guests to mingle. Thank you to The Standard East Village!

The Genie Awards are just around the corner, and it's time to celebrate our chapter! Nominate a fellow member for Planner of the Year, Supplier of the Year or Young Professional of the Year; tell us about a committee that amazed you or a speaker who inspired you. Now is the time to recognize your GNY star.

Nominate a Member

Join the Recognition Committee this spring to help put together another fantastic Genie Awards! Want to know more, or interested in being a sponsor? E-mail info@mpigny.org for more information!

Are you interested in getting more involved with MPIGNY? It is a great way to meet new clients and industry partners through volunteering with a committee! Visit our website for more information on how to get involved here: MPIGNY - Join a Committee

We added a new campaign this year called "People of MPIGNY" and want to learn more about our incredible members! If you are interested in being featured, click the links below to read about some of our members and to complete the handful of questions to be considered for our next issue!

People of MPIGNY
People of MPIGNY Application

A key focus for the board moving forward is going to be the engagement of the meeting planner professional. We consider sustained planner participation to be a vital part of this chapter’s success. So, with that in mind, we’re rolling out the red carpet this year with the objective of increasing our planner engagement at all of our events.

Many thanks to the London Convention Bureau for graciously sponsoring several one-year planner scholarship opportunities that will increase our planner base and enhance overall engagement. Interested planners can apply here: London Convention Bureau Planner Scholarship. 

Our chapter has a bright future ahead, and we want you to be a part of it. If you’re interested in growing your own career and maximizing your return on investment within MPI, please feel free to reach out to any of us on the board as we’re truly here to help.

In that spirit, MPIGNY launched a mentorship program in which we haved paired up a select few of our newer members of the industry (10 years or less) with some of our veteran chapter members for mutual growth and career development. The Power of Two: MPIGNY Mentorship Program is a yearlong endeavor that we envision as being highly rewarding to the select few who are accepted into the program. This is a minimal time commitment and something you’ll truly feel proud of! 

Please apply for the Power of Two: MPIGNY Mentorship Program here:

Mentor Application | Mentee Application

Did you know that MPI can help you cover costs for a preferred MPI membership and help fund your MPI Academy courses (including CMM, HMCC, Experiential Event Series, Meetings Essentials, Basics Boot Camp and more)?

Yes, it’s possible. The MPI Foundation provides MPI members professional development and career opportunities through grants and scholarships. MPI Foundation scholarships are awarded on an ongoing basis. Applications received by the end of the month will receive notification by the end of the following month. Conference scholarships do not typically follow the normal application cycle but will be reviewed each month. 

More information can be found here: MPI Foundation Scholarships