Last week, MPIGNY, in conjunction with HSMAI New York, hosted an outstanding networking event at the beautiful SoHo Grand Hotel. I was just commenting to someone yesterday that this was one of the best networking events I’ve ever attended. The entire staff at SoHo Grand went above and beyond for us. It was truly a spectacular experience. I would especially like to thank fellow MPIGNY member Herb McReynolds for the hotel’s hospitality as it was a special night. If you haven’t checked out their hotel recently, I would encourage you do so.

On Tuesday, Oct. 15, MPIGNY will be hosting our second education event of the year, “Winning. Strategies to Create Buy-In.” We’ll cover several concepts such as leading without authority, empowerment in the workplace and perpetuating relationships. This event is going to take place in the morning from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. at the brand new Ivy Lane in Midtown East. This is a great way to get involved with our chapter during normal work hours so please consider registering if you can make it.

The MPIGNY Annual Auction & Mixology Madness is also right around the corner. This event has been going on for decades and is always one of the best industry events of the year. On Thursday, Nov. 7, we’ll be jamming away at the Hard Rock Café in Times Square, so please register. And — as if you needed another reason to register — this year, we’ll be offering a 50/50 Raffle in which 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the MPIGNY Cycle for Survival Team riding on March 7 to help raise awareness for rare cancer research. More details to come on this in the coming weeks!

We are in the final stages of accepting applications for The Power of Two: MPIGNY Mentorship Program. I mentioned this last month, but this program is honestly perfect for so many of you out there who are newer to the industry (mentees) and want to take your career to the next level, as well as those of you who have more experience (mentors) but may not have as much time to give back to an industry that has treated you so well over the years. I would encourage everyone to take a closer look at this program as we’d love to have your participation!

For those of you who are interested in giving back to our community, please join us at an upcoming God’s Love We Deliver volunteer activity in SoHo. We have three more volunteer events already scheduled in October, November and December. If you’re not familiar with what they do, please register for at least one of the activities. It’s an awesome way to give back to a group of people who, day in and day out, are truly making a positive impact in New York City.

Finally, I would like to mention the CMP course that we’re offering this December. Fellow MPI member Joanne Dennison is back offering an intensive, dynamic two-day course over the weekend of Dec. 14-15. It will take place at the Innovation Loft, one of the more unique spaces on the island of Manhattan. So, if you are looking to brush up on your CMP skills, look no further than this course! 

All the details for registering are outlined below, but feel free to reach out to me directly if you have any questions.

Best regards,

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

Join us for MPIGNY's October Education Panel!

“Winning. Strategies to Create Buy-In.”

Your idea or mine? Do you ever feel like you’re working way harder than you need to? Like even the simplest sign-off takes forever? Stakeholders aren’t getting you what you need? Sometimes it even feels like people are deliberately resisting the plan. 

In all types of organizations and groups, success relies on individuals gaining buy-in from other individuals and teams. A nod, a smile, a (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.

Read more about our panelists and RSVP to the educational event here: LINK

Date:
Tuesday, Oct. 15

Time:
8 a.m. to 10 a.m.

Venue Details:
Ivy Lane is a new restaurant opening this fall in Lenox Hill, joining the ranks of Merchants Hospitality’s broad portfolio of restaurants in New York City as the hottest new addition looking to make its mark.

116 E. 60th Street, New York, NY 10022

MPI’s CSR team is dedicated to creating engagement and meaningful opportunities for our members to collectively convene with the purpose to network while proactively creating change in the local community.

Because when people meet with purpose, we increase the opportunity for change and authentic relationships.

Our mission and objectives are:

• To create meaningful, community-based volunteer activities for our members to be engaged
• To foster an ecosystem of local community partners
• To connect member partners with our ecosystem

With that said, please join MPIGNY for our October God's Love We Deliver volunteer activity. This month, we'll need your help in the kitchen!

Kitchen Prep 
Kitchen Prep (10 to 12 volunteers) 
Work as a group in the kitchen on a variety of tasks with guidance from their 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-checkin and a quick orientation.
*** Each volunteer MUST sign up for this event. *** 

Register now to sign up!

Date:
Wednesday, Oct. 16

Time:
1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

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!

Prepare for an extraordinary evening of unbelievable auction items, fantastic raffle giveaways, superb networking and creative cocktails at the annual MPIGNY Auction & Mixology event.

All auction donations are more than welcome, so please donate a little something to the auction and show off your company to the NYC meeting, event and incentive market! DONATE HERE

Registration cost, you say — not as much as you think: $20 planner tickets (Thank you, Kalahari) and low supplier tickets because we want everyone to come, enjoy, bid and, most of all, have a blast!

Click here to register and join the festivities!

Date:
Thursday, Nov. 7

Time:
6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Location:
Hard Rock Cafe New York
1501 Broadway
New York, NY

Join us for the 26th Annual Race to Deliver.

God’s Love We Deliver provides nutritious meals to people in the New York City metropolitan area who are living with severe illness. For more than 30 years, God’s Love has been there for our New York neighbors so that no one has to fight the dual crises of being sick and hungry.

This year’s 26th annual Race to Deliver is more important than ever! God’s Love now cooks and delivers 1.8 million meals each year to more than 7,200 people who are too sick to shop or cook for themselves. So join in the race to help raise awareness for those in need! 

Below are the four steps that each person will need to do. Step 3 is very important — since the race is not run by God's Love We Deliver, the participant needs to sign waivers. You should not be asked to pay any additional fees once directed to the website as the will receive an invitation code.  

Step 1: START registration by clicking here to join team MPIGNY CSR and use promo code mpignycartd.

Step 2: Make sure you click on GO TO MY CAMPAIGN to activate your fundraising page.

Step 3: COMPLETE race registration on New York Road Runner's website with invitation code that will be emailed by the next business day.

Step 4: Share your crowdRISE fundraising page with friends and family to help fund medically tailored meals for our neighbors! ($10 = one medically tailored meal)

Date:
Sunday, Nov. 24

Time:
8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

Location:
Central Park

Contributed by Kalahari Resorts & Casinos

Every meeting attendee is special. But your group will likely include executives, top performers and/or special guests who deserve and expect access to VIP events.

These special events should exude a “wow factor;” they need to be designed to impress. Whether you’re comping invite-only VIPs or setting up tiered ticket pricing for special events, here are five tips to impress those very important meeting attendees. 

Check out these five "wow" ideas on our blog here: 5 Ways to Impress Your Very Important Meeting Attendees

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? Email 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