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Incentives and the US Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule

Last year the US Department of Labor announced its Fiduciary Conflict of Interest Rule, which was supported by President Obama, then delayed but not repealed by President Trump. Coming into full effect next January, the rule covers compensation – including gifts or trips – to those providing financial advice on retirement planning. The incentives industry is directly affected. From Meetings & Conventions…

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Making Metrics Matter: The Key Questions

Positive event trajectory, positive event perception, relationship growth, and experience satisfaction. Rather than bombarding delegates with too many feedback questions, these are the meaningful reactions to benchmark. Lisette Sheehan and Lyndsay Merbach, measurement experts at the Sparks agency and 2017 PCMA Education Conference speakers, discuss the metrics that matter to planners in improving their events. From PCMA Convene…

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Securing Collaboration: the Right Approach

The Manchester Arena bombing on May 22nd has highlighted the extreme challenges venue operators face in keeping visitors safe at events. Perhaps the changing threat landscape now demands closer collaboration between venues, events… and their respective communities. Geoff Donaghy is President of AIPC (the International Association of Convention Centres) and CEO of ICC Sydney. From tw tagungswirtschaft…

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Brand USA: MPI and the Power of Travel Coalition Reaction

More on the fight for Brand USA! MPI President and CEO Paul van Deventer has attacked the proposed cutting of its federal funding. He points out that meetings contribute 15% of the overall US travel and tourism dividend. Also campaigning on the grounds of economic contribution, Katie O’Neill of the Power of Travel Coalition. From Meetpie.com…

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Brand USA: US Travel Association Video Message

The fight for Brand USA continues. A loud voice of opposition to the proposed cut to the organisation’s federal funding, US Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow, has made a video calling for a rethink and encouraging Congress to keep funding in place. Congress has the final say, and has previously supported Brand USA. From Meetings & Conventions…

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Brand USA: The Fight Begins

How does President Trump’s proposed withdrawal of funding for Brand USA – the Obama-created organisation which promotes the US as a welcoming destination for visitors – square with his commitment to putting American jobs first? Two key president CEOs – the US Travel Association’s Roger Dow and PCMA’s Deborah Sexton – lead the meetings industry call to arms. By David McMillin at PCMA…

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The Textbooks of Bad Brand Management Get Another Airline Chapter

The Iceberg prefers to cover travel news directly impacting the meetings industry. But like the story of United Airlines before it, British Airways and its IT outage – which grounded flights around the world and caused chaos at Heathrow and Gatwick airports – is in truth a cautionary tale of crisis and brand mismanagement for all to hear. From editor’s blog at Meetpie.com…

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Manchester: A Light That Never Goes Out

The horrific suicide bombing at a concert in Manchester Arena was the deadliest terror attack in the UK for almost twelve years. In weeks to come it will pose tough questions for venue operators and the rest of the industry. But the days immediately following the outrage were for reflection and solidarity. Photo: Tomasz Kozlowski. From editor’s blog at Meetpie.com…

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IMEX 2017: Final Day, Final Thoughts

IMEX is now over for another year. The last day may be like Sunday at the Glastonbury Festival – perhaps with slightly less mud – but in amongst the networking frenzy and preparations for a return to reality, take a quiet moment to appreciate IMEX’s spiritual home… the German city of Frankfurt. From the editor’s blog at Meetpie.com…

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The Impact of Changing MedTech Regulation on Conferences

US medical conferences are currently braced for impact as a result of changes to the rules under which European medical technology suppliers operate. Not only may delegate numbers be badly hit, the medtech companies themselves may also be less willing to attend and exhibit at events when they can no longer sponsor delegations. From PCMA Convene…

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EU Referendum Take 2

With the UK Prime Minister Theresa May just having called an early general election, a viral BBC interview highlights the electoral fatigue Britain is now feeling after the outcome of its Brexit ballot. But perhaps Brits – including the UK meetings industry – should consider the June poll a second referendum on EU membership… and vote accordingly. From the editor’s blog at Meetpie.com…

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United Airlines: Supporting Passenger Rights

Another view on the United Airlines Flight 3411 debacle tackles the story from a US passenger rights – rather than reputation management – perspective. The Business Travel Coalition’s Kevin Mitchell argues that the legal protections available to passengers need strengthening. He advocates supporting the Airline Passenger Bill of Rights sponsored by Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal. From Meetings & Conventions…

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United Airlines: While My Guitar Gently Weeps

As lawyers now tuck into the meal United Airlines just made of what should have been an instant and profuse apology, the sorry story of Flight 3411 already merits its own chapter in textbooks of bad brand management. But the carrier has history here: a musical tragedy that became a hit YouTube video. From Martin Lewis at Meetpie.com…

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Why Meetings Industry ROI Measurement is Futile

Here are some controversial thoughts about that alluring and elusive butterfly… return on investment. No sooner do we get really near to it than it flutters away out of reach. So is it time for to rethink calculating the ROI of meetings and events… or would that indeed give much of the industry butterflies? From SoolNua’s Pádraic Gilligan at Padraicino…

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Face-to-Face Meetings: Five Reasons We Need Them

To celebrate Global Meetings Industry Day 2017, INCON has collected five views from its partners around the world on why organising face-to-face meetings is as popular and successful as clearly it is. ORTRA’s Galit Shimshoni, DEKON Group’s Michael Kern, MCI’s Robin Lokerman, Arinex’s Roslyn McLeod and AIM Group International’s Patrizia Semprebene Buongiorno all contribute. An INCON Expert Guide…  

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Learning Rethought

Death to death by PowerPoint! These days learning needs to become engaging and experiential. So absolutely critical to knowledge transfer moving forward are… making content available online, using technology to encourage interaction, establishing networks, adjusting venue configurations and making it emotional. Some further thoughts on future trends from German Convention Bureau Managing Director Matthias Schultze…

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