Jul 10, 2024
Known as a hotbed of creative inspiration for those who plan events, the C2 Montreal (C2MTL) 2024 conference held in Montreal, Canada, May 21-23 featured a “layered” approach to educating attendees on neurodiversity awareness. In the Agora, a large communal space that housed many of the festival’s activations, an interactive station called NeuroLasagna saw reps from two organizations focused on neurodiversity awareness—Better Being and Nuense—lead 15 attendees in making lasagna from scratch. The goal: “To deconstruct the prejudice that all lasagnas must be the same shape, using the metaphor… more
Jul 08, 2024
What do you do when you hit an advancement wall at your job, finding yourself having to fight for your next opportunity or promotion, with nowhere to progress or develop yourself further as an events professional? You start your own company like Meena Chander, founder and CEO of Events Together, Milton Keynes, U.K.-based event design and management company that organizes corporate events, exhibitions, incentives, awards galas, and more. “[After working] for an organization for 10 years…I was made redundant and decided to set up Events Together––the name deriving from the fact that events are… more
Jun 28, 2024
Marriott International is bringing three luxury properties in the U.S. under its umbrella. The hotel giant has signed on high-end properties in New York City, California, and Hawaii, adding 1,340 rooms in the luxury space. And that upscale expansion, said Dana Jacobsohn, the company’s chief development officer, U.S. luxury brands, is no coincidence: “Strengthening and growing our luxury pipeline is a top priority.” Marriott currently has 510 luxury hotels under seven brands: The Ritz-Carlton, including Ritz-Carlton Reserve and The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection; Bvlgari Hotels & Resorts… more
Jun 25, 2024
The Caesars Entertainment team, led by Director of Marketing Reina Herschdorfer, curated a wellness speaker list for its inaugural Global Wellness Summit for meeting planners held June 4-7 in Las Vegas. All speakers are featured on Caesars wellness menu but can also be booked independently. Related: Want Wellness? 20 Ideas to Incorporate into Your Next Event How are event planners incorporating wellness speakers into their events? One corporate event planner who attended the Global Wellness Summit told us they’re offering wellness tracks, in addition to industry-specific education tracks.… more
Jun 24, 2024
In honor of Juneteenth, we want to celebrate and highlight the efforts of African American leaders and organizations in the business events industry. Designated a U.S. federal holiday in 2021, Juneteenth commemorates the day on June 19, 1865 when a Union general read orders in Galveston, Texas, stating all enslaved people in the state were free according to federal law. Back in 1983, the National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals (NCBMP) was officially established by six founding members. Forty-one years later, the non-profit boasts 1,500 members and is led by CEO Jason Dunn, who… more
Jun 21, 2024
A bevy of CVBs, venues and other event-related organizations have been expanding leadership and teams as they position themselves for growth via new business opportunities. Sphere Entertainment Live entertainment and media company Sphere Entertainment Co. announced a key promotion and a new executive hire. Jennifer Koester has been elevated from president of business operations to president and COO of Sphere, a next-generation entertainment medium in Las Vegas. In her expanded role, she will continue working with executive leadership and across the broader Sphere team to grow the business… more
Jun 20, 2024
Google’s annual developer conference, dubbed Google I/O (or just “I/O”), took place for two days beginning on May 14. The first day, its long-awaited, buzzed-about “keynote day,” is touted as being one of the tech industry’s biggest events of the year. It’s when Google unveils what it’s working on, plus new products and features, as well as what it’s focusing on in the future.  Similar to years past, I/O 2024 took place for a small live audience from the Shoreline Amphitheater just down the road from its Mountain View, Calif., headquarters, with the lion’s share of attendees tuning in via… more
Jun 18, 2024
Did you know that, on average, about one out of seven of your attendees at a given event has a disability of some type? With 35 million adults in America dealing with a disability, planners must engage attendees ahead of time to understand the limitations they have, and then account for those limitations as they plan the event experience. That was the message from Stephen Cutchins, senior manager–accessibility at meeting-technology company Cvent. To get planners to better understand and plan for the challenges that some attendees face, he delivered a varied menu of advice in a recent… more
wellness
Jun 17, 2024
Reaching $480 billion, the U.S. wellness market is growing at 5 to 10% per year, according to research by global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company. In fact, 82% of U.S. consumers consider wellness a priority in their everyday lives. As wellness trends up on the consumer side, how can business events incorporate healthy activities and food and beverage into their packed conference, networking and trade show schedules? To find out, more than 120 industry professionals — including meeting planners, press and Caesars Entertainment staff — gathered at the inaugural Global… more
Jun 14, 2024
With the global business events industry facing increasing pressure to move in a more sustainable direction, three event industry associations teamed up to offer clear and actionable guidance to help exhibiting companies and exhibit builders reduce their environmental impacts and promote responsible practices.  Big picture: In May, the Experiential Designers and Producers Association (EDPA), the Exhibition Services & Contractors Association (ESCA) and the Events Industry Council (EIC) released the EDPA, ESCA, and EIC Sustainability Guidance for Exhibition Stand Construction, which is… more
Partner Voices
  MGM Resorts is renowned for its exceptional service and diverse venue options across Las Vegas, Detroit, Springfield, National Harbor, Biloxi, and Atlantic City, providing flexible spaces for meetings of any size. Beyond these offerings, MGM Resorts distinguishes itself through a strong commitment to social responsibility and sustainability, making it an ideal choice for your next meeting.  At the core of MGM Resorts' company values is its platform, "Focused on What Matters," dedicated to meeting customer needs while advancing socially responsible practices. This commitment is evident more