March 06, 2006
A number of hotels are converting existing meeting space into ancillary conference centers and competing with traditional centers on their own turf, as buyers, accustomed to centers' promotion of the importance of a dedicated environment and packaged, per-attendee pricing, begin to demand similar services from hotels.
March 06, 2006
Many hotel and resort properties are investing in golf amenities, hoping to lure more corporate meeting business. Corporate groups have become a major source of revenue for golf resorts, especially in midweek, non-peak periods, hoteliers said.
March 06, 2006
Procurement, consolidation and collaboration are the key drivers for change in corporate meeting management, according to a panel of senior executives at Meetings Professional International's Professional Education Conference, held in January in Charlotte, N.C.
March 06, 2006
A number of technology providers, including Ambassadors, Certain Software, Concur Technologies and Passkey have launched new or updated meetings management products this year, hoping to capitalize on the growing adoption of online registration, attendee management and sourcing tools.
March 06, 2006
The groups and meetings committee of the National Business Travel Association last month released its fifth research paper in its "Framework for Success: Strategic Meetings Management Programs" project. The paper advises meeting managers on the use of technology in their programs. Technology is the centerpiece in the meetings management puzzle analogy put forth by the committee, and facilitates the other management points of approval, registration, sourcing and negotiation, planning, purchasing and data reporting. The paper also details eight key selection criteria points when choosing a meetings technology product: build vs. buy; compatibility with internal IT security standards; fit with existing technology systems; scalability and deployment flexibility; branding flexibility; user experience and customer service; financial viability of the technology provider and comprehensive functionality and scope. "The members of the NBTA groups and meetings committee continue to hear from colleagues throughout the industry what a useful resource the Framework for Success series has been. We are pleased to continue meeting that need with this latest paper on meetings management technology," said committee co-chair Joni Miyashiro, travel manager for Amgen Inc., in an association release.
March 06, 2006
Corporate meeting buyers, faced with the prospect of spending excessive amounts of time finding hotel space in major cities at a time when occupancy continues to soar and paying record-high rates, are moving more events to secondary and tertiary locations. Though rates in those cities are skyrocketing as well, they offer buyers at least some relief during the height or a powerful hotel seller's market.
March 06, 2006
Many discounts on group air tickets are drying up, said meeting buyers in an exclusive Meetings Monitor survey. After a year of fare reforms, restructuring and continued pressure of high oil prices, buyers said they are relying on their company's transient deals to protect them from rising air costs.
March 06, 2006
A mandated corporate meetings policy that controls contract signing authority and appropriates earned planner points into company coffers has saved 15 percent of meetings spending for the Marshall, Minn.-based Schwan Food Co. This year, with a meetings technology tool in place, the company's meeting manager aims to further consolidate data and drive savings.
January 23, 2006
New York's cruise lines have returned to the radar of meeting planners as the industry reports rising bookings and stable prices for corporate events.
January 23, 2006
The overwhelming majority of U.S. companies do not offer travel as an incentive reward, according to the Society of Incentive & Travel Executives, and the reason is a lack of credible data that can show senior management and procurement departments a return for their investment. Pursuing ROI is a "disservice" to the incentive industry, according to a research paper the association launched last year on the "myths" of meetings measurement.