Meetings Beat - 2005-09-19

MPI Pushes To Show Corp. Planners' Value
Meeting Professionals International on Sept. 8 announced the launch of an educational program on strategic meetings management focused on developing skills and templates for meeting professionals to show strategic value to their companies. The Platinum Series program, launched in cooperation with American Express, is based on the second white paper released by MPI's Global Corporate Circle of Excellence, "Demonstrating Professional Value Through the Development of a Meetings Management Program." Marsha Flanagan, vice president of professional development for MPI, said the program would provide guidance rather than answers. "Attendees will not be able to sit in this session and walk away with all the answers. Instead, it will provide them direction on how to find the answers, but will require work on their own. This is important education that provides tangible relevance of the importance that meetings, and the meeting professional, play to senior stakeholders," Flanagan said in an association release. The GCCOE expects to release a third white paper, about uniting planners and suppliers through collaborative business processes, by the end of the month. The association also recently published a salary survey of 1,139 member meeting planners in the U.S. and Canada. Corporate planners with three to five years of experience reported an average base salary of $42,373, while those with 10 years of experience reported an average base salary of $50,714. Male respondents had an average base salary of $73,833, compared with $57,394 for female respondents.


Lufthansa Augments U.S. Group Sales Support
Lufthansa German Airlines on Sept. 12 announced that due to "consistent growth" within its group sales business it has signed an exclusive agreement with Objectix Inc. for sales to U.S. and Canadian travel agencies and travel-related organizations. Customers can obtain group quotes and check confirmed group reservations via the Objectix Web site, according to a Lufthansa release. Objectix will serve as an extension of the in-house group sales team at Lufthansa and provide quotations, confirmations, seat assignments and ticketing. "Objectix will help us to better meet the growing needs of our group sales customers while providing incremental revenue for Lufthansa," said Mathias Friess, the airline's director of passenger sales for North America. Lufthansa has 19 North American gateways.


EMCVenues Offers Onsite Meeting Services
Conference center sales and marking firm EMCVenues last month introduced onsite support for meetings booked directly through the company's global sales team with a minimum of 75 room nights at any of 350 affiliated properties. The service is included in the complete meeting package price, according to a company release. "Some onsite responsibilities may include pre-conference meetings with venue staff, attendee registration, daily bill review, post-trip evaluation and billing reconciliation, according to the release. A range of pre-meeting services has been offered to customers, including coordinating ticket and travel arrangements, meeting content and speaker support. These items are additional services and may be priced separately or as a package, according to the release.

Universal Orlando Launches Single Mtgs. Brand
Universal Orlando Resort this month announced the launch of a new brand aimed at the meetings industry: Universal Orlando Resort Meetings & Events. The brand is aimed to combine the resort's facilities and services into one-stop shopping for meeting planners, according to a company release. Facilities include three Loews Hotels with meeting facilities and technology, two theme parks and 250,000 square feet of destinationwide meeting space. The resort also offered two new amenity packages under the brand. One new offering is a golf package that includes the services of a dedicated golf event director to arrange on-site registration, food and beverage and awards. "We've had great success in addressing the needs of the meetings and events industry in the past, but felt it was time to truly encompass our unique abilities under one brand," said Vince LaRuffa, vice president of resort sales and marketing for the resort, in the company release.
~Corrie Dosh