StarCite Blog Space

StarCite Annual Meeting News: Bookings Soar in 2009

Monday, February 8, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

Last week was StarCite's annual associate meeting in Philadelphia. It was my second associate meeting, and what a difference a year makes. Who knew that 2009 would be such a horrible year for so many people and companies. Although it was a very tough year, it was a great year for strategic meetings management and meetings management technology.

Meetings management came out of the shadows and stepped on to center stage and into the spotlight due to the scrutiny of meetings spend and ROI by the public and senior executives. 2009 was a very good year for StarCite, but it was also great for companies that wanted to get their meetings spend under control, implement efficient sourcing, planning, budgeting and attendee management automation and create purchasing leverage

with hotels and other suppliers. Our CEO Greg Dukat kicked off the meeting by sharing that StarCite had a record number of customer renewals and expansions (many with multi-year contracts). And we signed on a dozen or so new enterprise accounts, the names of which I can't reveal. One of them, however, is among the largest global companies on the planet.

Second, I don't usually reveal information like this in my posts, but the demand was so great among cash-strapped companies last year for new ways to actually hold important sales and corporate events (despite misguided public criticism of events as wasteful) that there was a mass embrace of strategic tools, for example, e-sourcing. As a result, StarCite far outpaced its operational objectives for meetings bookings in 2009 (The rate of increase from 2008 was in the triple digits, and that's all the detail I can share without getting in trouble.).

Aside from higher demand, what drove this growth? The company also made a number of strategic partnerships to bring new functionality and enhancements to our technology during 2009. For example, buyers can now take virtual tours of many of the 93,00-plus properties in StarCite's Marketplace through our deal with VFM Leonardo. That means companies are saving money by skipping in-person site inspections. Another example: to bring the benefits of automated meeting planning and management technology to independent meeting planners and travel agents, we aligned with the meetings marketing organization Acclaim Meetings. And Experient, one of the world’s largest meeting planning firms, last year agreed to use our platform for meetings management, international sourcing and attendee management.

Again, I can't reveal specifics, but expect more key agreements with business partners in 2010 – all with one thing in mind: to bring new value and functionality to our platform. And that'll give customers yet more control of meetings costs and buying power.

At the end of the day, the secret to any company’s success is its people. Greg Dukat believes in that, and as he and I have discussed over many a meal, if we celebrate the successes of our people, success will also result for the company. At the meeting, we gave recognition to our top performers, and I was so happy watching them get their dues in front of their peers and management. It was exciting seeing the progress all the talented StarCite people around the world made possible, especially given the trough the industry was in in 2009.

Despite the challenges, our company was fortunate and managed to pull out a great year -- thanks to our associates, our partners and most importantly, our customers. We have, and I’m not exaggerating, the best quality customers in the world.

So a big congratulations to all of our top performers, and you can bet I will keep you updated on our progress during 2010, too!

Evangelizing About Strategic Meetings Management -- Anytime, Anywhere

Thursday, February 4, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

Some people are media s

hy. I guess they don't like the idea that whatever they say has the potential to be published. And so they go to great pains to set up interviews at ideal times of the day, with lots of quiet around them and a prepared script in front of them.

That's definitely not the case with me. Tuesday, I was quoted in The New York Times article "New Meetings Industry Emerges After a Boom and Bust," and I was most happy to talk about how important strategic meetings management is in today's environment. The story talks about the falloff in meetings demand, the change from lavish to toned-down entertainment and the move toward virtual meetings.

“We try to help companies understand that they have to be more strategic about their travel and meetings spending, and that there has to be a lot more transparency on that spending communicated to senior executives,” I told reporter Joe Sharkey.

I was happy to contribute my views about how the meetings business has changed from the pre-Great Recession heydays to today's more moderate events -- where the emphasis is on savvy meetings procurement processes, controlled spend and measuring return on investment.

But, let me tell you, you would have laughed had you seen the actual interview. Joe contacted me on my mobile phone as I was boarding a flight, carry-on in one hand, boarding pass in another, PA announcements blaring above me and a line of people ahead and behind me. It was definitely not a controlled setting. But, despite the sounds of crying babies and flight boarding instructions and the jostling of the crowd, I did my best to field his questions. Whoever said that multi-tasking is not a valuable skill would’ve changed their views watching me in action!

Thanks for calling, Joe! Read the entire article and catch more quotes on how strategic meetings management is changing corporate meetings for the better.

Even Hotel Execs Adopt Spartan Meetings

Monday, February 1, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

USA Today has provided a unique look at what went on at the recent annual Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS), a very insider-type hotel industry meeting attended by hotel CEOs, developers, owners, investors, analysts and others. I found the story really interesting because, for one, it gave a glimpse of how lodging leaders really expect 2010 and 2011 to progress, and also, it provided a first-hand account of how these executives are still hurting from public criticism of meetings.

Reporter Barbara De Lollis interviewed Choice Hotels CEO Steve Joyce, who said that, given the dramatic falloff in rates and revenue last year, the mood of the conference was "guardedly optimistic" because stronger growth is expected this year -- but not as robust as what's hoped for in 2011.

But what really caught my attention in the interview was the pervasiveness of the sense of a new "appropriateness" at corporate meetings. Even among these folks, "there were parties but they were scaled back and a little less boisterous than years past," said Joyce. "I would say there was a sense of appropriateness - a kind of speed regulator on the fun part of it. It was very business-oriented. At a lot of dinner receptions, a lot of the discussion was on return on investment for their travel in going to this meeting."

Joyce said hotel executives are still very much aware of the "AIG effect," and he noted that he got healthy applause when he said the government was wrong in its criticism of TARP recipients holding meetings in luxury hotels.

Frankly, I think the new buttoned-down behavior at meetings -- all business, little or no play -- is what's needed for a while, if we're to get beyond this criticism. Incentive meetings are a different story; those are meant to reward top-performing employees and, naturally, some serious fun (a round of golf, special dinners, glamorous outings) is expected for the event to be successful.

But for most corporate events, like it or not, our industry is under a microscope, and the media, government, stockholders and the public are watching. This is not just me talking, either. Meetings industry polls confirm this trend! If your company is a TARP recipient (or just under C-level orders to cut meeting spend), here's a question you should be asking yourself: Does my current meetings policy reflect this new Spartan atmosphere? Do you need to do some fine-tuning to set spending limits and delineate the types of parties or events that should be allowed for various types of meetings? Don't forget, too, to communicate your changes to company planners and their supervisors. And if you're using meeting planning and budgeting automation, make sure you put those tools to work to automatically snag maverick spenders, rein in those with visions of grandeur and, via attendee management, communicate policy changes to attendees!

Remember: you're in control, and control is what's needed to make today's meetings workable -- and acceptable. Here's more guidance on how to build strong meetings policies and other best practices for an SMMP.

Resorts 'Resorting' to Name Change

Friday, January 29, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

Has your company created an outright ban on holding events at hotels with the word "resort" in their name? If so, you might want to re-think such a sweeping gesture, especially if you're e-sourcing and resorts are responding with competitive rates and services.

I mention this because of a front page Wall Street Journal article I read this week that profiles the desperate fortunes of many resorts. Th

e piece says that some are (pardon the pun) resorting to dropping the word "Resort" from their names. For example, Charlotte, N.C.-based Ballantyne Hotel & Lodge last summer ditched "Resort" from its name, "after several corporate clients indicated it would have a better chance of landing their business if it weren't called a resort," said the Journal. Likewise, Loews Lake Las Vegas--with a white sand beach in the middle of the desert and a master sushi chef--dropped its "Resort" naming too.

This has all been prompted by the lingering "AIG effect," specifically, the public outcry that arose when the bailed out insurer canceled a 2008 sales retreat at the St. Regis Monarch Beach resort in Dana Point, CA. (By the way, that hotel is now in foreclosure.) The perception was that AIG and other TARP recipients were spending public tax money on so-called frivilous, lavish events. Even some non-TARP companies have been canceling corporate events over misperceptions about meetings.

Honestly, much of this is avoidable and unnecessary -- and a real shame. The problem is not in a resort's facilities (spas, gourmet restaurants and the like), but when companies book them in an unmanaged way -- that is, without efficiently soliciting bids from competing properties and negotiating meeting and room rates. In fact, it's been my experience that resorts, depending on their bookings demand and seasonal rates, will respond to an e-RFP with bids that are at par or lower than non-resorts. Resorts tend to have all-inclusive fees, too, which if broken down by value, can come out to be a better deal for each participant. And the icing on the cake at resorts is that your attendees can indulge themselves in amenities on their off hours and on their own dime. Bottom line is this, if you have a well documented sourcing process, you can easily push back and justify your venue choices whether or not they have the word “Resort” in their branding.

Canceling meetings at resorts to avoid criticism may not be the wisest decision, either. Unless you have created and use as standard practice, contract addendums that limit your exposure to cancellation and attrition fees, you'll wind up losing a lot of money by switching venues just to avoid the “negative perception.” Companies that cancel resort events would be better off negotiating with the resort to apply the cancellation fee toward a future event -- once the critical spotlight has dimmed.

Corporate events at resorts are not evil. In fact, they're good when they're strategically sourced, documented and managed as part of an overall SMMP. They're often great value for the purchasing dollar, and they reward hard-working employees or business partners.

It's not the name of a hotel that counts, it's the value, services and return on investment you get from holding a corporate meeting there. If you can’t justify your venue selections with solid sourcing data to your bosses much less the general public, then the negative perceptions of meetings will continue to be front page news.

Be Better Communicators of Meetings Value

Wednesday, January 27, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

At the recent Professional Convention Management Association's 2010 annual meeting in Dallas, the message from top industry leaders (to over 3,000 meetings professionals in attendance) was to beef up your communication skills -- particularly when it comes to telling the story of the value of meetings.

What's behind the push to speak out? It’s because industry leaders are still trying to fight perceptions that meetings are frivolous. This despite the massive public relations efforts undertaken last year by the U.S. Travel Association, the NBTA and other industry groups, lobbying before Congress and the White House and the commissioning of several successful studies showing the ROI of meetings.

It should be clear to everyone that speaking out on behalf of the business value of meetings is going to be an ongoing job. Attendance at some types of large meetings continue to falter (9-15% down, says the American Society of Association Executives and the Center for Association Leadership). Plus, perceptions linger that some meetings in particular, such as incentive gatherings, are negative. In a recent article, Brenda Anderson, CEO of Site, the incentive professionals association, predicted that, as a result of stubborn negative perceptions; meetings and incentives in 2010 will focus less on luxury and more on adding a service or sustainability component.

I think those are pretty good ideas and strategies to add to any meeting.

So how can you speak up for meetings this year? My experience in global program management has taught me that communication to a multi-layered audience is a requirement for any SMMP to be successful. You can’t just communicate generically to the masses a single time and feel confident that your program benefits and processes are now
mainstream within your company.

Keep in mind, you have a large audience with varying WIIFM (What’s in it for me?) factors at play. For example, the messaging to the C level will be different than communication to planners and administrative assistants. Meanwhile, you'll want to de-emphasize the cost savings and compliance messaging to Marketing and Sales (they don’t care, and will run the other way). The methodology and timeliness of your layered communications should also vary to ensure that your SMMP is not forgotten or ignored. Also keep in mind that, if your company is growing by mergers and acquisitions, you will also have a lot of new employees that need to learn about your SMMP -- and possibly get training.

It is a best practice to make it a regular practice to remind everyone from meeting planners to CEOs of the effectiveness of your SMMP -- in meetings policies, email blasts, company newsletters, executive dashboards with metrics, conference calls, training road shows...whatever forum applies. If you've measured ROI for past meetings, remind your audience of those findings, and by all means, continue to measure and internally publicize your meetings ROI figures.

For my part, whenever I meet with existing or prospective clients, I make it a practice to convey the strong role that meetings play in helping to grow businesses, educating employees and building strong business relationships. Whenever I can, I try to relay the key statistic that for every $1 dollar spent on meetings, $15 is returned.

Communicating meetings value is a never-ending job, but it is requisite for any SMMP to be successful. As I always advise all of our customers and prospective clients, never underestimate the time requirements for change management. Effective on-going communications can be a huge asset and catalyst to shortening the change management timeline and getting compliance on track.

Meetings Media Profiles SMMC Attendees

Monday, January 25, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

The November-December issue of Insurance & Financial Meetings Management ran a story about the new Strategic Meetings Management Certification (SMMC) program, and how it will "change the meetings industry forever." I'm pleased to share the link to the story with you, and I hope you get a few minutes to read it because it also profiles some of the participants of the first core week of instruction, which took place back in November.

Some of the comments from the first SMMC students are just so impressive. For example, there's Lasse Haugaard, who works for the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk. He came all the way to Atlanta because he's been charged with implementing an SMMP, and he said: “Obviously, it takes a lot of work to get an overview of the meetings activities in a company with more than 25,000 employees worldwide. I’ve been finding it difficult to find people who are at the same stage as me. And this is my primary reason (for coming): to seek inspiration from NBTA.”

Lasse attended my first European SMMP Roundtable in London last spring. He was very eager to learn what he could about SMMP, and when I shared that there would be a SMMP certification from NBTA he was very interested in finding out more. Looks like he followed up!

Another participant, Amy Harris, who's VP of SMM for SunTrust Banks, noted: “I’m charged with managing a successful program that grows and changes with the needs of my company. “With the knowledge I gained from the course, along with the perspective I gained from speaking with so many other leaders in our industry, I’ve gained a lot of confidence in my ability to face the challenges ahead.”

Insurance & Financial Meetings also ra

n a picture (below) of the student body of the first core week, including StarCite's own Senior Director of Product Development Jane Wolfe (second row, second from right). The story also quoted Kari Kesler Knoll, who is a key principal in developing the curriculum and teaching SMMC, as well as a dear friend. She's President and Chief Strategist at KK Strategic Solutions (She's center, back row.) “We’re laying the groundwork for future experts to enable every business to be best-in-class," Kari said. "And we’re seeing that the industry and the people in it really want improved structure."

I was also very humbled when the magazine graciously quoted me and mentioned my history with NBTA. I told them that "companies that place a high value on managing meeting spend have a better chance of establishing effective programs than companies that don’t place as much value on procurement." I added: "It’s about discipline and fiscal responsibility. And it’s not a one-size-fits-all approach. To be effective, a strategic meetings program has to be structured to meet the needs of each particular company, and it should be structured with the participation of those involved in meetings in that company.”

Thanks to Insurance & Financial Meetings for giving a big-picture view of the importance of SMMPs and the new SMMC designation, as well as for some great testimony from the first group of industry professionals! Nice to see such a big turnout, too!

Meetings Don't Have to Produce a Ton of Carbon

Friday, January 22, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

I'm a big believer and advocate of green meetings, so when I came across this figure below, it startled me and motivated me to share some thoughts.

Seems that very large events held in a central location can produce over a ton of carbon per attendee, according to a whitepaper from ClimatePath, an organization that provides industry solutions to help event planners, consumer brands, travel providers, and other businesses measure and reduce the climate impact of their business activities. As you can guess, the major carbon produced from an in-person meeting, such as a conference or convention, comes from airline miles. But ClimatePath also figures in emissions from airport transfers, driving and hotel stays.

Now the good news. ClimatePath says that more regional events can produce up to 70% less emissions. And by going virtual, for example, via technologies such as TelePresence or Webex, an event can reduce its carbon footprint by 90%.

The point is here that meeting organizers and planners have options. Meeting managers and planners hold the key to creating earth-friendly events. For example, you can use e-sourcing to research and RFP green hotels. And you can create policies that mandate or encourage analysis of when virtual or face-to-face events would be suitable over a large, central event. Heck, even if your company must go with a large event, you can pick a central location with good public transportation to cut down on your carbon footprint.

Bottom line: just because your organization needs to hold meetings, it doesn't mean that carbon emission contribution is inevitable. We still have choices in making events as green as possible.

Check out this free webinar for more information on creating green meetings while achieving your cost-control goals.

FutureWatch: Slugging it Out with Fewer Dollars, Staff

Friday, January 15, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

Doing more with fewer dollars and less support staff is a common theme in the meetings management industry these days (Actually, this is pretty common among most industries -- at least judging from complaints I hear from friends in other lines of business.). So I wasn't surprised to read a new FutureWatch study that found one in five corporate planners polled are doing more with less, and 14% are concerned about a lack of staff and too much responsibility.

FutureWatch, an annual study by Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and American Express, says that these issues have replaced last year's worries over the economy and falling attendance. So the realities have sunk in, and we're dealing with them, says a summary of FutureWatch, which I read about on management.travel.

But the good news for our industry overall is that the 356 corporate planners polled are expecting nearly 4% more meetings and and 11.7% more participants at their events this year versus last (although, ironically, that'll mean even more work for the already over-stretched). And a good amount of both suppliers (41%) and planners (28%) interviewed expect industry conditions to improve gradually this year.

And if you don't already know this from your own experience, meetings will not return to the way it was before the Great Recession, says the survey. The majority of planners (967 overall meeting planners were polled) expect this year to concentrate on more stringent budget controls, improved operating efficiencies and closer attention to value and ROI of meetings, among other things.

Those are good developments and reflect increasing awareness of strategic meetings management and the planning, budgeting and meetings management software behind it that drives results. Another bonus from technology is that it actually cuts planners’ and managers’ workloads – as it automates routine sourcing, budget-making, attendee management and other tasks.

So, from my perspective, the main message of this year's FutureWatch is that when the going gets tough, the tough get going. And even though we've got our hands full, we as an industry have come to a healthier respect for doing meetings right – the managed way!

Check out this whitepaper on how meetings technology can reduce your work load and help you better manage meetings, too.

Electronics Show Bodes Well for Face-to-Face Events

Thursday, January 14, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

We've just witnessed an important positive indicator in the convention and exhibition business and thankfully it benefited Las Vegas, a destination hurt by a double whammy of negative public perception and the economy.

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES), which closed on January 10th in Las Vegas, is the largest annual trade show in North America, and it attracted more than 120,000 attendees this year – which is significantly up from 113,000 attendees last year, according to an article in The Economist.

While that's certainly good news, even better is an assessment by The Economist that CES's success bodes well for face-to-face meetings. The article quotes Gary Shapiro of the Consumer Electronics Association, noting that there is little demand for virtual shows even in the consumer-electronics industry, folks you would think should be pretty comfortable with interacting online. Yet, "people still want hands-on experience of the gadgets they might soon be buying, and like to press the flesh with customers and suppliers," says the article. It is at CES where the latest and greatest future technology is unveiled. The advance buzz of future products has historically boosted sales in a very profitable way for the companies who invested in attending and showcasing their wares.

But how green are these giant exhibitions? Isn't it better to save at least some of that expended energy and CO2 emissions and move towards more online showcasing? I'm all for creating green meetings, and that can be done in many ways, for example, e-sourcing for hotels and convention centers that practice recycling. And, yes, virtual events are sometimes good green options.

But it turns out that CES attendees have an average of 12 different meetings with customers, suppliers and partners while at the show, according to Shapiro's data. And if attendees had to make those trips separately, it would amount to 1 billion miles of travel -- which translates to a lot of CO2 emissions.

My point is this, sometimes, in order to make the right decision about whether to go virtual or face-to-face, you have to consider metrics like these.

While CES is only one show, its size makes it important because our industry tends to sit up and take notice of it. I'm glad to see that attendance was higher this year and that it continues to be a visible example of the value of face-to-face meetings as well as a rebounding economy.

Four Positive Outcomes of the Economy for Planners

Wednesday, January 13, 2010 by Jessie Berry

It might be hard to see past the negative repercussions of the economic downturn. Between budget cuts, layoffs, and businesses struggling to keep their numbers up, it certainly hasn’t been easy to cope. However, now that the dark clouds have begun to part and a bit of sunlight is slowly but surely peeking through, several positive outcomes have emerged for meeting planners.

Renewed creativity. Meeting planners now have to do more with less, which was one of the overall themes of MPI’s 2010 FutureWatch report. With this being the case, planners have been even more resourceful and creative than ever before to carefully design and plan a meeting on a tighter budget. The result:

Simpler, more effective meetings. Extravagant affairs are no longer a trend within the meetings and events industry, and therefore planners are focusing on creating events closer to home that zero in on productivity and simplicity. Planners have ensured that meetings, although leaner, will be stronger and more effective. This has led them to:

Enhanced performance. Companies are expecting ROI if they are going to expend on meetings, and therefore planners must absolutely be able to measure and prove that in order to justify the purpose of having a meeting in the first place. Between economic pressures and the need for measurable ROI, efficient and productive performance is essential for success. The ultimate result:

Emphasis on value. The value of meetings is now a major trend within the industry, and planners recognize the need for resourceful meetings that will guarantee ROI, with valuable, indispensable meetings being the goal. The positive outcome here is that frivolous meetings can be weeded out and meetings that are absolutely essential can be focused on, saving both time and money for planners and companies.

So what are we seeing as the overall positive outcome of an otherwise negative situation? Planners are tapping into their creativity and resourcefulness to generate more effective meetings while actually performing better to guarantee value. And that is certainly not a bad thing.

2010 FutureWatch Trends: “Digging In and Adapting”

Wednesday, January 13, 2010 by Jessie Berry

The 2010 FutureWatch Report, an annual survey of meeting planners and suppliers conducted by Meeting Professionals International and American Express, was released on January 11 and provides insights and outlooks into the meetings industry for the coming year.

While the 2009 Survey was dominated by concerns over the worsening economy and the uncertainty and anxiety it produced among planners and suppliers alike, the uneasy tone has lightened somewhat according to this year’s results. The economy wasn’t even listed as a top concern for planners; instead, their top three concerns included budget cuts, doing more with less, and a shortage of staff.

These issues indicate that the industry is adopting a new attitude towards the economy. Instead of distressing over the repercussions the economic outlook previously had in store for the industry, planners and suppliers are now accepting the reality of the situation and adapting to the new trends and practices that have emerged.

Planners reported that they expect a 2.8% increase in meetings this year and are now focusing more on working efficiently, measuring and guaranteeing ROI, and eliminating frills. Planners are now paying more attention to reverting back to simpler meetings without all the glitz and garnish, and public perception of meetings is no longer a top concern but remains a challenge for planners in 2010. When it comes down to choosing destinations for events, meeting planners are not as concerned with perception as they are with overall cost. To maintain lower costs, U.S. planners reported that they will hold 80% of their meetings within the United States, which is a significant increase from 61% in 2009.

As far as technology and meetings goes, planners said that their number one priority is “improving the presentation or audiovisual experience at meetings,” and that providing good alternatives to live meetings is also important. Regardless of whether they’re live or virtual, the value of meetings is also especially important to planners according to the 70% who say they use some sort of measurement to gauge value.

So what do these current trends reflect about the state of the industry? First, it suggests that planners and suppliers are adapting and surviving in the new economic climate by reprioritizing their main concerns and addressing each accordingly. Cost will remain key into 2010 and value will be more important than ever to ensure meetings spend is not wasted. The trend of simple, back to basics meetings highlights this emphasis on value, and corporate social responsibility rounds out the way planners will approach meetings in 2010.

The 2010 FutureWatch demonstrates the resiliency, optimism, adaptability of the meetings and events industry and gives us something to look forward to in the new year.

East Coast Tops HotWire’s January Hotel Rate Report

Tuesday, January 12, 2010 by Administrator

Philadelphia, Washington, D.C. and Baltimore top HotWire’s monthly list of the hotels whose prices have dropped the most.

Philadelphia replaces Houston for the number one spot with a 16% drop. Following close behind are Washington with a 15% drop and Baltimore with 14%. HotWire attributes the Presidential Inauguration last January as the underlying cause of the drop in the latter two cities, seeing as how such an event would cause hotel rooms to spike and then drop over the course of the last year.

Add to these factors the typically slow season hoteliers see in January, and you’ve got exceptionally low rates aiming to pull in customers and fill rooms. Even though most hotels expect to see an increase in travel over the next year, they will still be hesitant to raise rates right off the bat, making this an attractive time to travel and take advantage of the reduced rates.

The other cities who made the list are as follows:
1. Philadelphia-16%
2. Washington, D.C.-15%
3. Baltimore-14%
4. Columbus, OH-14%
5. San Diego-14%
6. Houston-13%
7. Miami-11%
8. New Orleans-10%
9. Orlando-10%
10. Seattle-9%

Room rates will most likely begin to rise over the coming months as travel picks up and demand increases, but for now the East Coast will remain a hot spot for travelers searching for a deal, and, on the reverse, a focal point of hotels struggling to fill rooms.

No More Bed Head at Virtual Meetings

Monday, January 11, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

If video or web conferencing is a significant portion of your meetings program, perhaps it's time to consider creating or fine tuning guidelines around how attendees show up for these events -- meaning how they dress and present themselves when they get on camera.

Currently there’s laptop and home computer built-in web cams that allow for visual participation, and I’ve already heard stories of people who were unaware that their images were being viewed during a meeting. Oh, yes, total embarrassment!

It used to be that you could take part in a WebEx or teleconference from home; you could hang out in your robe, pajamas (and accompanying bed head) with no problem, while participating and taking care of business. Soon, however, it will be a whole different story. Technology will soon require your attendees to be professionally attired for virtual meetings.

I thought about this as I was reading a piece in The San Francisco Gate. Apparently, Skype voice and video calling technology, which can be downloaded free from the web and allows subscribers to call and video conference each other at no cost, will be embedded in high-definition LG and Panasonic televisions with Internet capabilities. And LG and Panasonic will sell webcams that support 720-p high-def pictures.

This will all be available later this year. So, I wonder how many home-based meeting attendees will be turning to their 46-inch flat screens -- to see and be seen in virtual meetings? If you haven't done it already, this might be a good time to prepare for this next generation of virtual technology by updating your policy on virtual meetings to set some ground rules on how home-based attendees should dress. Allow me to make some suggestions:

- business casual attire for virtual meetings among fellow employees, meetings with suppliers, and any non-customer facing activity
- suit or coat and tie for gentlemen, business suits for ladies for all meetings that connect employees with clients and business partners
- combed hair, a shave, makeup (for women) – you can make it a gender neutral policy by asking employees for “visually professional appearance” during virtual technology meetings.

If you're thinking that this is a trivial matter. I beg to disagree. Employees representing your company, whether at an in-person event or virtual meeting, need to present themselves professionally for maximum impact. Besides, every day...seems more like every minute...technology is changing the way companies meet and manage meetings. So isn't it a good idea to be pro-active and prepare for these technological developments to better adapt and use them to your company’s benefit?

Have you created meetings policy rules on how virtual attendees should appear on camera? If so, please tell me about them here!

Suppliers- Five Trends to Expect in 2010

Friday, January 8, 2010 by Administrator

Everyone knows that the economy has its grip on the meetings and events industry. Although the outlook for 2010 hints towards optimism and recovery, suppliers still need to be prepared to face some of the challenges and trends the recession has prompted over the past year. Here’s what to anticipate according to details from MPI’s yet to be released FutureWatch 2010:

• The need for flexibility. Many corporations will still be somewhat hesitant when it comes to planning and executing meetings due to tight budgets and more scrutinized cost control. The result for suppliers is shorter lead times as well as rigid contract negotiations that allot protection for cancellations, which are still likely to occur as organizations make last minute decisions and budget cuts.
• Continued low rates. It comes as no surprise that the top priority for planners when selecting destinations is the overall cost of the meeting, with the top concern of US planners being the hotel rates themselves. Suppliers can therefore expect the demand for low rates and promotions to prevail, which will continue to be attractive to planners looking for a deal.
• ROI justification. As the amount of meetings being planned begins to increase, so will suppliers’ workload and overall productivity, requiring greater effort and efficiency. Meeting planners are not going to commit if they can’t be guaranteed a high ROI justification for their clients, which puts the pressure on suppliers to perform.
• More RFPs. Once again, as the demand for meetings grows, so will the flow of RFPs into suppliers’ hands. Suppliers are going to have to effectively manage and respond to RFPs if they want to follow through on leads and generate more business.
• The value of meetings. Even though the industry faced harsh criticism in light of the recession, 2009 highlighted the importance and value of face to face meetings. Organizations recognized this and will continue to seek suppliers that can provide better, high quality meetings that will not only contribute to profits but also yield a better overall experience for attendees.

Even if some of these factors end up being minor issues in 2010, the one thing everyone can look forward to is the fact that 39% of suppliers see gradual growth in their businesses for this year, in addition to about a third of them planning to rev up their sales and marketing efforts or work to renew commitments and relationships with clients. With this generally optimistic outlook and assertive attitude towards the new year, suppliers will hopefully begin to regain their footing sooner than expected.

Figure in Those Fees for 2010 Events

Friday, January 8, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

I saw a story about travel predictions for 2010 that reminded me of the importance of factoring in the rising costs of travel-related fees into meetings budgets.

The piece drew predictions from several sources, including the U.S. Travel Association, which has worked so hard to shine a positive light on the meetings industry and prove that managed corporate events are productive rather than wasteful.

Unfortunately as the pressure for supplier profitability mounts, we will be certain to see un-budgeted travel costs rise due to ancillary fees imposed on consumer and business travelers. Anyway, here are a few fees to consider when budgeting, sourcing and reporting for travel related services:

- Airline fees for checking bags (e.g. $20 for the first and $30 for the second), booking tickets via a reservation center ($20), choosing seats, flying in prime time (like spring break), even switching to an earlier flight;
- Hotel and resort fees, for example, $15 a day for Wi-Fi use (whether you use it or not).

Aside from the fee issue, there's some good consumer-type advice in the article that can work just as well for your company meeting planners to help them lower costs, for example:

- "Take a step or two down from what you chose when you had money to burn." That means source for sleeping and meeting room bargains at lower-star yet comfortable hotels.
- "Don't overpack your carry-on." It's happened to me; I've seen airline personnel at security direct passengers back to check-in to check their overstuffed carry-ons. Because so many people are trying to avoid checking bags and paying outrageous fees, the overhead bins inside planes today are as stuffed as the top of the wagon on the "Beverly Hillbillies." And have you noticed that the size of the carry on bags are WAY over the specified limits? Seriously I saw someone the other week bring on a hard sided garment bag that was twice the size of the standard carry-on. I'd like to know how they got past security -- much less the gate personnel.

But travel fees don't have to be a surprise. You can use your e-sourcing tool to query hotels and airlines on their list of fees to make sure you stay in budget. Plus, you don't have to take fees lying down. When sourcing for hotels, try and negotiate those fees away.

And use your attendee management tool to inform attendees of fees, link to an airline or agency booking tool, as well as to provide helpful communication on avoiding fees. In short, SMMP automation offers a lot of different avenues to help avoid and manage fees.

Now a bit on how I feel about this: While the corporation is struggling to reconcile these extra fees and create new policies on reimbursement of the fees, the government and suppliers keep adding them to the total cost of the trip. At the end of the day, consumers are starting to rebel. Someday I hope that the marketplace realizes that for every action, there's a consequence. If you want travel to continue to be cut and frozen, keep adding more costs to it so the customer (corporations) cut even more!

Whoever coined the term "downward spiral" couldn't have come up with a better descriptive of the current situation!

New Poll: Less Travel, More Buying Opportunities

Friday, January 8, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

Out of a discouraging new story on Purchasing.com, comes a bit of good silver-lining-type news for 2010 -- in terms of business and meetings travel.

Purchasing magazine reports on a new USA Today-sponsored Gallup poll that says Americans aren't likely to travel more than they did in 2009 -- despite the "optimism being expressed by travel industry leaders and market analysts who have said the slowly improving economy would increase demand for airline tickets, rental cars and such services as hotel meetings and business-gathering catering."

The story made reference to NBTA's recent forecast that corporate travel would grow next year (69% of buyers thought corporate travel would grow), but also features a quote from American Express, which this fall had forecast rising business travel spend and more sophisticated meetings management as 2010 trends, now predicting that demand for most travel services likely won't return to pre-recession record levels anytime soon.

OK. So, despite the positive signs we may see around us, such as Wall Street's climbing numbers, it's still going be a struggle getting business travelers in the air and meeting rooms filled. But there's a silver lining. Featured in the story was PricewaterhouseCoopers' U.S. lodging forecast that American hotel occupancy levels fell in 2009 to 55.2%, versus a peak of 63.3% in 2006. And that metric will rise to just 55.8% in 2010.

Not such good news for hotels but better for organizations looking to negotiate favorably on sleeping and meeting rooms. As I've said a few times in this blog, if you're a meetings or procurement manager, with numbers like these, it's never too late to approach preferred vendors and work out more favorable deals. You'll both benefit -- and that's the best kind of arrangement.

Low Cost Travel and Hotels Still in Vogue for 2010

Thursday, January 7, 2010 by Administrator

With all the latest data and statistical reports flowing in about the fate of the travel industry as we enter into 2010, it’s difficult to determine what will actually hold true over the course of the next year. However, one thing is for certain: the traveling habits of both business and leisure travelers have shifted to a more modest, low cost mode of air and hotel usage, according to the most recent findings of the Ypartnership and the U.S. Travel Association.

Due to the hard hitting effects of the recession and the fear of losing their jobs, Americans have skimped and stashed: we now uphold the highest rate of savings observed in eight years. Add to higher savings rates the tendency to be more cautious with spending habits, and the US is now undergoing an adjustment to the way we travel.

Both at home and abroad, the trend towards luxury vacation and travel destinations is fading in accordance with the mood the current economic state has cast across the travel industry. Business and leisure travelers alike are moving away from luxurious hotels and resorts in stereotypically opulent destinations, and opting for more modest hotels and atypical vacation destinations. Expending on extravagant trips and vacations is no longer in good taste with the economic climate, which explains why destinations like the Caribbean and Hawaii have seen more severe decreases in hotel occupancy and RevPAR than other markets.

Instead of splurging on high cost trips, first class air fare, top notch transportation services, and world class hotels and restaurants, the attitude towards business and leisure travel is now more subdued, more wallet friendly, and more inclined to accentuate simplicity and value. Hotels have made it easy for travelers to find affordable rates thanks to their aggressive discounting and promotional campaigns, which typically have included free room nights, giveaways, and other perks and benefits for choosing their hotel.

That being said, hotel rates aren’t expected to rise significantly in 2010. In fact, PricewaterhouseCoopers forecasts that room rates will be even lower this year than they were in 2010. Obviously, the economy as a whole will be the ultimate determinant in what will have people traveling more and increasing the demand for rooms.

Regardless, the new trend in traveling may reveal a whole new set of perceived destinations in 2010, bringing increases in revenue to markets that formerly took the backseat to their more luxurious counterparts. While the notion of luxe is surely not entirely tarnished, it may take on a new luster as our idea of travel evolves along with the economy.

Prime Pipelines: National and Global Hotel Growth

Thursday, January 7, 2010 by Administrator

According to Smith Travel Research, several cities and regions around the world have emerged as focal points of hotel development and growth at the close of 2009.

National Occupancy & RevPAR

Nationally, the hotel industry overall experienced increases in occupancy and RevPAR in year-over-year measurements. Hotels around the country rung in the new year with occupancy increases to 45.5% and RevPAR rising to $45.37 by week’s close on January 2. Leading the growth in occupancy and RevPAR was the St.Louis, Missouri-Illinois market, followed by the Atlanta, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-New Jersey and Boston markets, respectively.

Global Development Pipeline

Hotel markets across the globe are experiencing active hotel construction projects, with the Asia-Pacific region leading as the largest pipeline underway. Specifically, Shanghai, Mexico, Brazil, London, and United Arab Emirates boasted the largest hotel development pipelines in their respective regions at the end of 2009. On the other end of the pipeline, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean and Mexican markets were the regions with the smallest active hotel development pipelines. The breakdown of development is as follows:

Asia-Pacific: 232,680 rooms>Shanghai with 13,057 rooms
Europe: 97,266 rooms>London with 5,154 rooms
Middle East and Africa>119,560 rooms/United Arab Emirates with about 48,000 rooms
Central/South America>19,292 rooms/Brazil with about 7,700 rooms
Caribbean/Mexico>18,291 rooms/Mexico with about 11,000 rooms

These numbers all bode well for the global hotel industry, indicating that a slow but steady recovery is on the way. Find more updates on hotel industry numbers and performance at Smith Travel Research online.

How Will The Sunshine Act Affect Your Medical Meetings Reporting?

Tuesday, January 5, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

If you're a meetings manager at a drug company or medical device manufacturer, it would be a smart move to get up to speed on just how the so-called Sunshine Act, a bill sponsored by Senators Charles Grassley (Republican-Iowa) and Herbert Kohl (Democrat-Wisconsin), is going to affect your strategic meetings management program...and what you should do to prepare if it passes and becomes the law.

And let me forewarn you, there’s good and bad.

The Sunshine Act requires drug companies and medical device manufacturers to disclose quarterly to the Secretary of Health and Human Services details on anything of value given to physicians, such as payments, gifts, honoraria, or travel. It applies to companies with more than $100 million in annual revenue, and it aims to create a single, national system for the reporting of information (versus the current hodgepodge of individual state and industry regulations that now exist). The bill would set up standard processes to report on the:

- Identity / location of individual
- Amount spent
- Dates of spend
- Type of expenditure (e.g. food, travel, gifts)

If it passes, the Sunshine Act will require a sea change in the way meetings managers at health care providers capture and collect the meetings-related spending that their companies need to comply with new federal HCP reporting rules. The bill will affect our industry in particular, as meetings and events are, by far, the largest type of health care provider-attributable spend.

Right now, many pharmaceutical and health care companies with their own HCP reporting solutions pay huge sums to third-parties to capture meeting spend information. Or, worse, companies are using old-fashioned, paper-driven processes to store and capture data. But clearly, if health-care providers don't wish to be overwhelmed by the demand for comprehensive meetings data aggregation, they'll have to adopt new, more efficient and automated ways to get the information they need to be in reporting compliance. This is especially risky for companies who do not have a consolidated meetings/events program nor any technology solution to assist with all of the data capture and reporting.

My advice for meetings managers at health care providers is to:
- Work with your purchasing and compliance officers and others (for example, generals counsel and travel managers) to nail down the specifics of what the Sunshine Act will require from you;
- Investigate technology that will easily and efficiently capture the meeting spend data you need and integrate with your own HCP reporting solution;
- Make sure that the HCP meetings reporting technology you're considering can also be configured to specific policies that your compliance organization sets around how regulations are interpreted and followed (because this can vary from company to company).

Also, it's very important to consider whether the automation you're considering will work smoothly with your existing, overall processes for HCP regulatory reporting. For example, StarCite's HCP reporting for meetings tracks all meetings spend on behalf of HCPs, utilizing the tool's Attendee Management, Spend Management and Business Intelligence Reporting modules. HCP meetings reporting integrates with your company's own HCP reporting solution.

In the very near future, watch for a new StarCite whitepaper on changes to come in HCP meetings-related reporting! Once it's published, I'll share a link to it here.

A Tribute to 2009's Strategic Meetings Management Leaders

Monday, January 4, 2010 by Kevin Iwamoto

As we begin 2010, I want to take a moment to mention some of the tremendous accomplishments of some very exceptional meetings managers during 2009.

Last year was truly the 'Year of the Meeting!' as our own business travel industry, the major media and the government all put a huge focus on corporate events and strategic meetings management. Some of it was positive, like the launch of NBTA's Strategic Meetings Management Certification (SMMC) program. And some of the attention was negative, like the misguided focus by the press and in government circles on corporate events as extravagant investments in recessionary times (when in fact it's been proven that meetings contribute enormously to a company's bottom line.

But aside from these major trends last year, were stories of some very hard-working and talented people who created or improved upon innovative strategic meetings management programs (SMMPs) at their companies. While I don't have large enough space in this format to mention them all, I want to draw your attention to some highlights:

Many were featured in Corporate Meetings & Incentives magazine's "20 Changemakers,” including:

- Louann Cashill, Meeting Services Manager at Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. (Louann significantly expanded centralized and automated hotel sourcing throughout her organization and worked pro-actively with hotels to re-book contracted space that planners had canceled for future meetings and re-negotiate credits.

- Lee Ann Adams Mikeman, VP, Conference Planning & Special Events, Science Applications International Corp. (Lee Ann and her team are streamlining the meetings payment process to track payments and reconciliations via their meetings technology system. She's also integrating her firm's online booking tool for air ticketing with the meetings technology platform.

- Other "Changemakers" who created outstanding meetings solutions for their firms included: Debbie Andersen, Senior Manager, Americas, Meetings & Conventions at Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics; Jeff Calmus, AVP, Conference & Event Planning at MetLife; Susan Lichtenstein, Director of Travel and Global Meeting Solutions at Cisco Systems Inc.; Donna Foppoli-Patrick, Manager, Group Meetings, Events, and Travel, Medtronic Inc.; Marybeth Roberts, Director of Global Meeting Management, Amgen; Tom Tolvé, Senior Manager, Meeting Operations, Novo Nordisk; Tracey Wilt, Manager, Global Travel & Meeting Management for Xerox; Alice Woychik, Director of Meeting Solutions at Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation.

Learn the full details of how these meetings executives enhanced their management programs by reading the full article in Corporate Meetings & Incentives!

And then there were others, singled out elsewhere, such as in Business Travel News, both for their outstanding contributions to their own companies and the industry at large, including:

- Debbie Dayton, Global Head of Travel Related Services at Deutsche Bank, who was named BTN's 2009 International Travel Manager of the Year. Debbie, along with VP and meetings program project leader Shawn Radek, made great strides last year consolidating and automating business and meetings travel processes worldwide. The bank, automated budgeting, requests for proposals (RFPs), reporting, reconciliation and data modules. In just one improvement, Deutsche Bank's automated budgeting now projects the total cost of an event, including transportation spending -- before the meeting is approved. Further, the bank stays on top of things by pre-loading average negotiated hotel rates, airfares, F&B costs and other metrics biannually.

- Cynthia Shumate, Executive Director of Global Travel and Meeting Services, Estee Lauder, who was featured in BTN's 2009 Large Market Benchmarking Report for creating a new SMMP. Cynthia's program now covers U.S. meetings -- about 12 large, annual gatherings of up to 350 attendees, plus thousands of smaller meetings for employee training and product launches. Expanding internationally is on the horizon. Among accomplishments, Shumate has centralized registration and sourcing of meetings, deployed a single meetings technology platform, created a central policy and launched a meetings charge card.

There are so many other meeting, procurement and travel executives that brought strategic meetings management improvements to their firms in 2009. In doing so, they elevated our whole industry. It's unfortunate that I can't mention them all -- because you'd be reading this post all day. But my sincerest appreciation for being leaders in our industry goes out to you all, even if you're not singled out here. You know who you are!

Let's continue the progress we're making in creating new, higher standards in indirect expense management for corporate meetings and events, and let's make 2010 another 'Year of the Meeting!'