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Planner's Perspective

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Mary Williams
Director, Finance & Administration
Southern Growth Policies Board
Research Triangle Park, N.C.

Describe your event.
This was Southern Growth Policies Board’s 35th Annual Conference. We had 400 people in attendance at the Hyatt Regency Union Station in St. Louis. The Southern Workforce Summit focused on strategies to build the next Southern workforce to support the Southern region’s economic development initiatives in emerging and high-growth industries.

What surprised you the most about St. Louis?
My first time in St. Louis was for my site visit, and I found it to be a very beautiful city with a lot of character. It’s also very easy to get around in.

Was anybody particularly helpful?
The Hyatt staff was wonderful! They were knowledgeable, extremely professional and on their toes during the entire event. I had complete faith in my convention service manager, which isn’t always the case. That was a real treat and made my job very easy. The Hyatt’s audiovisual team (SWANK) was the best team we ever worked with.

What were some of the unique off-site venues that you used?
We had an extraordinary experience at the City Museum, which is where we held our main evening event. We had the place to ourselves. Our guests were able to roam around and explore the museum before and after dinner. We had the St. Louis Arches (a great youth circus act from the Circus Day Foundation) perform during the reception and after the dinner.

How does St. Louis compare to other places where you have hosted meetings?
I have found that every place has its gems; it’s just a matter of finding them. St. Louis had more viable options than some cities I have been in, which is always a nice position to be in. I really enjoyed working with everyone there. It’s a very friendly place to host a meeting.

Would you return?
Yes.

Do you have any advice for other planners who might bring a meeting to St. Louis?
Take your time and do your research. There’s a lot to choose from, so the task becomes finding the right choice for your group. Also, I would definitely work with the St. Louis CVC. They have some nice procedures in place that will make the planner’s job easier