After two challenging years, there’s no doubt that the meetings and events industry could use an industry-wide celebration to commemorate and honor the return of in-person experiences. And what better way to celebrate the industry’s renaissance than by joining Meeting Professional International (MPI)’s fifth annual Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID): Virtual Experience, broadcasting live April 7 from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. CDT. 

As an annual international day of advocacy that shines a light on the positive impact that conferences, conventions and trade shows have on people, businesses and the global economy, GMID is an initiative of Meetings Mean Business (now a division of U.S. Travel), and is hosted by MPI global, its chapters and many other organizations, which, in pre-pandemic years, organized in-person meetings around the globe to celebrate the industry’s special day. 

As in past years, thousands of industry professionals are expected to attend the virtual gathering. Last year, it attracted 3,500 attendees, who spent an average of five hours participating in the event, according to MPI officials.

Featuring an extensive array of events, summits and experiences hosted by industry leaders and organizations, associations, partners and supporters from around the world, this year’s GMID will also be toasting MPI’s 50^th birthday, a special occasion promising fun surprises for all attendees, according to MPI officials. 

“This year, attendees can expect a global experience as industry partners from all around the world join the broadcast,” said Kay Gunn, MPI manager, education operations. “There will also be many opportunities to engage. Wordly will provide a translation feature, we’ll have the chat available throughout the broadcast, participants will engage in polls and we have a few more cool features that we’re excited to share this year!”   

She added, “We all know where we’ve been as an industry over the past two years. This year’s GMID is illuminating where our industry is going and what’s coming next.” 

Here are just a few of the must-see events on tap at this year’s GMID virtual celebration:

• Women in Leadership Panel: Hosted by MPI Senior Vice President of Experience Annette Gregg, this enlightening session will feature three women leaders who have paved their way to powerful roles while bringing others with them. Join Casandra Matej, CEO of Visit Orlando; Gerilyn Horan, vice president of group sales for Hilton; and Michelle Mason, president and CEO of ASAE, in a candid conversation about gender equity in the workplace that will explore pay transparency, effective mentorship and overcoming barriers to achieve success.
• State of the Industry, 2022 and Beyond: MPI’s annual GMID panel of industry leaders will take part in a rousing discussion of near-term predictions and long-term impacts expected to shape the future of the meeting and event sector. From technological innovations and DEI-focused change to the labor shortage and the overarching reimagination of the in-person value proposition, participants will have a chance to hear and learn from the event industry’s most forward-focused leaders on how current trends, economic shifts and world events will impact the future of meetings.
• WEC How We Did It 2.0 (with Melinda Burdette, MPI): Join MPI for a deep-dive conversation about their strategy and execution of World Education Congress Grapevine (Nov. 2020) and Las Vegas (June 2021), two industry-leading hybrid events that MPI delivered to a global audience representing 17 countries. From early critical choices to duty of care to the realities of hybrid, MPI’s hard lessons offer a pathway for meetings and events moving forward as well as a blueprint for the industry’s recovery. 
• 2022 RISE Award Recipients: Each year, MPI honors its best and brightest chapters and volunteers through the Recognizing Industry Success & Excellence (RISE) Awards, which recognize community members from across the globe, celebrating the spirit of leadership, impact and innovation. This session will recognize and celebrate the 2022 recipients in seven categories: Young Professional Achievement; Member of the Year; Meeting Industry Leadership; Member Achievement; Innovative Educational Programming; Industry Advocate; and Marketplace Excellence.
• Event Wellness Design Micro-Course: While meeting and event professionals continue to plan safe, engaging events using virtual and hybrid platforms or in-person, what’s next? While attendee safety should always be top-of-mind when designing an event, why not take safety to the next level by focusing on attendee wellness as the next step in industry recovery? In this course, participants will learn some of the primary components of holistic attendee wellness, how they can infuse zero-cost solutions into the fabric of their event design and how they can start envisioning wellness as a fundamental event design component to create more transformational experiences.
• Tech Session with Socio Labs: In this course, attendees will gain inspiration for how to build more engagement into their events and create best-in-class experiences for all attendees using event technology. Learn what it means to build hybrid-ready events, including how to create an engaging and inclusive experience for everyone; how to be prepared to pivot if needed; why tech tools are important, even for in-person; how hybrid can enhance the event experience for all attendees; and how to up-level the in-person experience to make it worthwhile.

The event will also be livestreaming a few MPI chapters hosting in-person events this year, including the MPI Turkey Chapter; MPI Africa; the MPI Carolinas Chapter and the MPI Chicago Chapter. 

Access the full Global Meetings Industry Day: Virtual Experience schedule here. Those unable to attend the broadcast can download a free recording that will be available to all registrants following the live event. 

While GMID: Virtual is complimentary to all participants, MPI is asking attendees to consider donating $10 toward supporting the MPI Foundation and its incredible efforts. 

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