Planning meetings and events is similar to conducting an orchestra in many ways. Meeting planners are charged with making sure a universe of variables act in concert to ensure a successful program—everything from booking hotel rooms, coordinating food and beverage and hiring speakers, to arranging educational programs.
One of the biggest question marks in the equation, however, is air service. Many cases of passengers being stranded, either in the airport or on the tarmac, have made headlines recently, which has prompted calls for a Passenger Bill of Rights.
Our “Flight Plan?” story, written by Skip Kaltenheuser, details the latest dust-up on Capitol Hill regarding the effort to improve air travel, and also provides tips for planners and attendees to navigate the less-than-friendly skies.
While the frustrating nature of air travel these days may send one to the doctor’s office for some anti-anxiety medication, planning pharma meetings in the South is becoming less stressful.
Our “Prescription for Success” story, written by Contributing Editor Ruth A. Hill, profiles some of the top Southern destinations that are actively courting medical industry meetings.
Moving on to matters close to the heart—or stomach, as the case may be—our team-building feature serves up a plate full of information about culinary programs. As a team-building activity, gathering delegates in a kitchen to prepare a meal fosters camaraderie on many levels, and gives participants an opportunity to show off their teamwork skills no matter where they are on the org chart.
And speaking of cooking programs, I had the opportunity once again to witness the Copper Skillet competition at the recent IACC Annual Conference.
Entering its fourth year, this boisterous event pitting conference center chefs from around the world, ala the Iron Chef, has proven not only to be an opportunity for conference delegates to whoop it up in the spirit of friendly competition, but also as a key marketing tool to increase awareness of the quality of food and beverage service in the conference center segment.
Check out my “Checking Out” story on the second-to-last page of the magazine to learn more about this ingenious marketing tool dreamed up by IACC, along with some photos of the chefs in action.
Lastly, if you haven’t signed up already, be sure to visit MeetingsFocus.com to register for the fourth in our series of free webinars.
Our June 27th webinar, titled “Contract Conundrums” and hosted by meetings industry attorney Barbara F. Dunn from Howe & Hutton, examines the many legal landmines buried in meetings contracts.
For more info, go to www.meetingstoday.com/webinars, where you can also access an archive of our previous webinars, all for free and covering topics including negotiation, working with CVBs and career strategies.
Have a great summer, and enjoy the June issue of Meetings South.
