Every January the meetings industry comes together for the
most important event of year. This year the PCMA Annual Meeting took place in
Dallas Texas. From the moment I arrived at DFW, it was obvious that PCMA knew
how to greet its guests. There were several volunteers in the baggage claim
area with signs welcoming the PCMA attendees. I was offered a bottle of water
and was escorted over to the ground transportation area. From the time of arrival PCMA
certainly set the standard for meeting planners nation wide.
It is important when planning to attend the annual meeting that you
bring your energy and come hungry! From dawn until dusk hotels and convention
bureaus hold breakfast meetings, receptions and dinners around the PCMA
educational programming. By the time I reached the opening reception I had
already been to the Starwood party and the New York chapter receptions. A lot
of hard work necessarily goes into putting on an event that can impress thousands of us
who do the same work. The opening
reception was beautifully done with Southwest Texan flair. I got to sit on a
live bull, enjoy some Texas Barbeque and eat a candied apple. The room was
beautifully decorated, and set up in such a way that you wanted to visit each
area to find different types of entertainment and food.
While the networking is a very important part of the
meeting, it is equaled by the outstanding educational programming. The best
session I have attended in several years was "Beyond Borders: Advanced
Solutions for International Meetings". As a 25 year veteran of meeting
planning, I have been fortunate enough to manage a top 200 trade show, high-end
conferences and events as well as international meetings. Since it had been
over five years since I planned a meeting overseas, I needed to "brush up" on
my knowledge of the international markets. This session was broken out into roundtable discussions such
as risk management, attendance building strategies and managing cost. There was
a lot of information sharing from meeting planners and international providers.
Every 15-20 minutes we were given the opportunity to switch tables and move
onto another discussion group. There was so much information taken away from
this type of sharing. The New York Chapter has incorporated this type of
learning into its programming. It's a great way for us to have a more
interactive experience and share with our peers.
I want to thank the New York Chapter of PCMA for giving me
this scholarship and the opportunity to attend the annual meeting.
|