John Folks
Chair-Elect
Minding Your Business, Inc.
Term: 2008

John Folks is President & Principal of Minding Your Business, Inc. (MYB), a strategic meetings & event agency headquartered in Chicago, with offices in New York and Portland, OR. An active member of our industry for 25 years and a PCMA member since 1989, Folks' career began in the hotel business, working on property for several Sheraton hotels, and then in sales for the Westin Hotel, Copley Place, eventually being promoted to hotel Director of Sales. In 1990 he moved to Chicago to take a national account role with Hilton's Worldwide Sales Office, and was promoted to Managing Director of the Central Region.

Folks started MYB with partner Max Suzenaar in 1993, and eventually joined the agency full-time in 1999. Supported by a team of 30 full-time professionals, MYB provides meeting management, marketing, measurement and event production services to associations and Fortune 500 companies, for both domestic and international programs.

In 2000, the principals of MYB launched a second company, In the Loop-Chicago, a Chicago-based destination management company, which they sold in 2008.

Folks currently serves as PCMA Chair-elect, as well as a Trustee of the PCMA Foundation. He is the recipient of PCMA's Outstanding Service to a Chapter award, and has served in leadership roles on a variety of committees and task forces, including the Standards & Recommended Practices Committee that led to the formation of APEX, Annual Meeting Program Committee, and chaired the Task Force on Third Party Issues, which produced a white paper published in Convene. He has also held a variety of leadership roles with the Greater Midwest Chapter, including President.

His support of PCMA has also been as a speaker and facilitator for many annual meeting sessions and chapter programs on topics such as leadership, entrepreneurship, unions, technology, and industry trends.

His favorite color is chartreuse (not really) but it is the color of his favorite drink, a margarita, which he most enjoys at a few fantastic Mexican dives around Chicago.