In the US, Suggestion is made to offer Socially Responsible (CSR) projects as incentives to sales teams instead of Incentive trips to exotic places, because these kind of incentive trips are putting the whole meetings industry under pressure. Serious Legal restrictions are imposed on Bail-out money receiving companies and some other organisations impose similar restrictions voluntary, for perception’s sake. When a 55.000 participant conference in Las Vegas is cancelled, it really badly hurts our industry and the local economy. And we currently talk about hundreds or thousands of meetings and conferences being cancelled in the US ...

An alternative incentive is a good idea, but so are “alternative” meetings, with a new paradigm. Meetings with more learning and networking elements like we are dissecting and testing today at Meet Different.

Since 2003 I’m campaigning for freedom of trade and fair competition in our industry.
Some magazines have published editorials, articles and even dedicated covers to the practice that is threatening our industry: the tying of exclusive suppliers by venues. In other words: You want to have your conference here? You will work with who we say!

Let’s not be naïve: the practice is still amongst us. It is barely discussed in the meetings industry: is it taboo?

A great new magazine is coming.

 

With intentions to transform the meetings industry, MPI and the MPI foundation have formed a creative alliance with the Masie Center & Learning Consortium, which boasts a worldwide membership of more than 1000 “learning leaders” from corporations such as Wal-Mart, Home depot, Target, American Express and 3M. “As more companies embrace the strategic role meetings play in achieving their business goals, an even greater emphasis will be placed on how to conduct a more productive meeting by employing new technologies,, re-examining the overall structure of meetings and enhanced knowledge and training for meeting professionals,” said Bruce MacMillan, MPI president and CEO.