Behind the Scenes

Letter from the Editor

To the Point

Letter from the President

PCMA Today

PCMA Today

Post Con

Mid-Atlantic Nursery Trade Show and Modern Language Association Convention

Managing People

Many managers groan when they think about motivating their people. It's part art, part science, and takes experience to achieve a style that works for you.

Follow Up

Convene on Site and Industry Update

People & Processes

With a prediction of IT expenditure belt tightening, you may need to make the case for greater technology investment

Speaker Savvy

Resources make a valuable addition to events. When managed appropriately, attendees, presenters, and organizations benefit.

Leading Learning

Meeting professionals are the consummate multitaskers, but what is sacrificed as a result?

Innovative Meetings

According to last year’s AttendTrend report, researched and produced by Jacobs Jenner & Kent and Frost Miller Group, almost half of event professionals say VIPs are the most difficult type of attendees to recruit to their events, higher than any other category. Here’s a case study of how one meeting continues to attract a growing number of top executives each year.

Core CoMPetencies

Over the past four-and-a-half years, I have enjoyed writing the Core CoMPetencies column — reviewing each of the 29 meeting management topics/functions that are tested on the CMP exam. I hope that it has been informational, educational, and has helped some readers to achieve the CMP designation.

Working Smarter

Many organizations are updating their Web sites, with the explosion of the Web 2.0 tools and other cool services abounding on the Internet. Yet all the cool tools in the world are useless if there isn’t relevant content for us to find and utilize.

Mindful Medical Meetings

Health care meeting professionals have to plan their events with knowledge of PhRMA codes, working closely with sponsors, and with the ultimate end user — the patient, not the attendee — in mind.

When Healthcare Conventions Go Global

The results of the HCEA Health Care Convention Globalization Report indicate that more international attendees are coming to U.S. medical conventions. Here are some of the challenges and opportunities that come with that growth.

An Environmental Scan

From global competition to managing costs to interpreting legislation, health care conventions have been forced to face a sea of issues inside and outside of the exhibit hall. Convene asked Eric Allen, executive director of the Healthcare Convention and Exhibitors Association (HCEA) to help association planners navigate the choppy waters.

Third Time's a Charm

HIMSS’ Third Virtual Conference & Expo Builds Attendance and Profitability

How Adults Learn, Now

A meeting planner never wants to skip over information needed to create the learning environment that is essential to a successful attendee experience.

Leading By Example

Meet the 70-year-old Canadian who has become the public face of AIDS advocacy, taking up for the poor and nameless across the vast continent of Africa.

Green Meetings

For almost two decades, the Green Restaurant Association has been working to create an environmentally sustainable restaurant industry. Now it is setting its sights on the convention industry.

The Art of Woo

Selling Your Ideas to the Entire Organization, One Person at A Time

Soundview

Speed Reviews of New And Noteworthy Books for Business Executives

City Files

At-a-Glance Profiles of Cities Welcoming Groups

Las Vegas

Las Vegas continues to burn brighter, bigger, and offer more one-of-a-kind meeting options. Over the next five years, more than $40 billion in new resort construction projects will add tens of thousands of new hotel rooms and five million square feet of meeting space to an existing 9.7 million. Turn the page to learn what’s new and what’s in the works for The Entertainment Capital of the World.

Point/Counterpoint

Not everyone who questions the premise behind Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” is a quack or is the front man for a gas or oil conglomerate. On the other hand, are these people just deluding themselves?