Dec 05, 2019
You may have never heard of Soundings Connect, but it’s a group you’ll want to get familiar with — and maybe even join. Founded in San Diego in 2018, it’s a network of 200 (and growing!) freelance meeting and event professionals, all of whom have experience in the fields of trade show management, meeting planning, event marketing and more.
The goal of the organization is to strategically match companies in need of these services with professionals whose skill sets and talents line up with their objectives. “We focus on both hard and soft skills to ensure the right fit,” says Tracy Judge,… more
Nov 15, 2019
Gratefulness is the topic for the next #Expochat, coming up on Wednesday, Nov 20 at 1:00 p.m. Sponsored by Corporate Event News’ sister publication, TSNN, #Expochat is an hour-long Twitter-based conversation covering top-of-mind topics related to the trade show industry (including exhibitors as well as show organizers and suppliers) which is held most Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m. ET.
#Expochat is alternately moderated by seven industry thought leaders, including Stephanie Selesnick of International Trade Information, Michael Doane with CadmiumCD, Elizabeth Johnson with glee Content Marketing,… more
Nov 12, 2019
For all the talk of living a healthy lifestyle these days, from working out in hotel gyms to eating better while on the road, sleep is an essential part of the wellness equation that often gets neglected.
There are many studies that show how vital sleep can be to your overall health. Getting enough sleep bolsters your physical and mental wellbeing, helps your brain function properly and improves learning and problem solving. Being sleep deprived has been shown to increase your risk for many serious health conditions, including heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes,… more
Nov 01, 2019
Following an insightful session on leadership at IMEX, I was surprised to see a woman in a white doctor’s coat enter the room. “Everyone, stand up!” she said. Oh, great, I thought to myself — is this going to be one of those awkward, “go introduce yourself to someone new” activities? It turned out to be something much more fun.
Sarah Routman, founder of the company Laugh Healthy and a self-proclaimed “laugh doctor,” proceeded to lead our group in a new-to-me kind of exercise: laughter yoga. We practiced forced laughter, pretended to toss an imaginary laughing emoji up in the air, focused on… more
Oct 25, 2019
You’ve been working on this event for months — years, maybe — and your anxiety is through the roof as it approaches. You know that you can’t control every aspect of your event, and something, however minor, is bound to go wrong.
Stress and anxiety manifest in many different ways, such as sweating, a racing heart, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, irritability, insomnia … the list goes on. But when you anticipate what’s to come and approach your event with a sense of calm, feeling collected and in control, you’ll prepare yourself to better handle any situation that comes your way.
In a… more
Oct 23, 2019
We’re all born curious – we came into the world with innate fascination and a desire to explore and experiment. As we get older and our lives are more structured, our creative self often takes a back seat to other life priorities.
As marketing professionals, we strive to be innovative, but the creative process is often mired in organizational layers. This reality is reflected in the views of many CEOs, who in a recent survey called out key barriers to creativity and innovation: no time to think, competing definitions of innovation and creativity, high risk aversion, no/low consumer insight… more
Oct 21, 2019
I first met Connie Luc when one of my former interns referred her for an internship in the Sybase events department, back in 2005. I hired her for the summer, and she was one of the most organized people I’ve ever had the pleasure to work with. As it turns out, that internship helped her decide that she wanted to pursue a career in events.
Luc was only in the Bay Area for school (she attended U.C. Berkeley), and didn’t stay long before moving back down to Los Angeles, where she quickly found employment at City National Bank. She had interned there for three summers and they were eager to… more
Oct 04, 2019
For anyone following along with the saga of the first-ever Haute Dokimazo Secret Family Reunion, big news: you no longer need to have attended a Haute Dokimazo event in order to qualify to attend SFR!
The event, which will take place Nov. 2-7, is an immersive learning experience for business, marketing and event professionals. It’s limited to just 80 people, and more than half the slots are already taken.
On Nov. 2, registrants will meet at the TWA Hotel at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York, with a suitcase and passport in hand. The first activity on the agenda is the big “reveal” party… more
Sep 26, 2019
The results are in — SPIN:Senior Planners Industry Network has announced the 2019 recipients of the SPIN:40 Over 40 awards. This initiative was created in 2017 to recognize and honor senior meeting planners who are industry role models, influencers, innovators and pioneers.
This year, despite the 40 Over 40 moniker, the association has chosen to honor just 28 individuals.
“This is an evolving process and we changed some of our criteria, focusing more on giving back, innovation and accomplishments,” explained Tracey Smith, SPIN’s Executive Director. “While we had many candidates, the ones… more
Sep 13, 2019
Ricky Kalmon isn’t your everyday motivational speaker. A mindset expert, celebrity hypnotist and motivational speaker by trade, Kalmon works to engage and inspire event groups through his customized entertainment and keynote program that blends hypnosis with high-energy mindset coaching. We sat down with Kalmon to find out how a positive mental attitude can not only help us become healthier, happier and less stressed, but also more successful in our personal and professional lives.
How did you get into hypnotism?
I grew up in the entertainment business and was a child magician. I went to a… more
Partner Voices
Just when it seems like Las Vegas can’t get any bigger, brighter or more exciting for groups, MGM Resorts raises the bar again. The company continues to invest and innovate across its portfolio of Las Vegas resorts, with new attractions and upgraded experiences for attendees of all interests.
Remodeled Guest Rooms
MGM Grand is the largest single hotel in the world with over 5,000 guest rooms and an 850,000-square-foot conference center. It is home to the newly remodeled MGM Grand Studio Tower—700 reimagined guest rooms with a fun mid-century vibe. Nearby, the iconic New York-New York Las more