I am honored to be this year's Chairwoman of the CMP Governance Commission. Our mission is to ensure that the CMP program is a reflection of the meetings industry, is relevant to all event professionals and that the policies are consistent with certification program best practices.  

2016 is clipping along at a fast pace and so is the events industry. In 2020, we will start to see the next generation in the workforce, the iGeneration, and believe it or not some of them will hold the CMP designation! Twenty years ago, I received my CMP and it was a completely different experience, studying for and taking the exam. The content of the exam continues to change as our industry changes. The governing body of knowledge for the CMP draws from CMP International Standards. It is reviewed and refreshed to ensure it represents the knowledge and skills of event professionals today. 

As a holder of the CMP, I want to ask you what you think the future of the CMP is and what skills and qualities does it need to represent in the year 2020? How should employers be viewing those who hold the CMP? How should the CMP be perceived outside of our industry in the year 2020?  

As the next generation enters the workforce and our industry, what will they be valuing in a certification? Fifteen years ago, I started the first event management degree in the United States. Today, I am so pleased that we have more and more event management degrees in the market. Having a more educated workforce in event management propels our industry forward faster. Our industry is changing from the old saying of "I fell into it" to a profession of choice. How does the CMP fit into those entering our profession with a degree in event management?  

I ask you to join me in this conversation and share your opinions with me. You can find me on LinkedIn, Twitter @jsperstad, or good old email, jsperstad@madisoncollege.edu. While I don't know what the future holds, I do know that what the CMP needs to be is what it is today, the designation that represents our industry's best practitioners who have proven their knowledge and skills that remain competitive in a dynamic marketplace. I will be asking the CMP Governance Commission these questions and ask you to share your thoughts and opinions with me as you too represent the CMP community and can help us shape the future. 

I look forward to hearing from you and thank you for elevating our profession by challenging yourself in obtaining the CMP.  

Peace.  











Janet
2016 Chair, CMP Governance Commission

 

CIC, alongside Social Tables and the Meetings Mean Business Coalition (MMBC), recently announced Fuse 2016, a joint educational roadshow that will bring planners and properties together to reinvent the way business is done before their events and meetings begin.
 
Social Tables, CIC and MMBC are organizing Fuse to facilitate a discussion about how meeting planners and properties can work together to make meetings better, long before the first attendee arrives. Fuse is not only an educational roadshow for planners and properties, it's an opportunity for innovation and industry growth.
 
Thanks to the different strengths each organization brings to the table; the Convention Industry Council representing CMPs and the planner community, Meetings Mean Business Coalition representing industry leaders and the economic impact of meetings, and Social Tables representing a platform to bring planners and properties together; they have the unique ability to stimulate conversations between their constituencies. 
 
"The two common themes in industry education right now are attendee experiences, and what occurs during events or meetings," says Social Tables CEO Dan Berger. "There's no discussion about how properties and planners can support each other in the planning process; how do they achieve business objectives together? Fuse will provide a foundation for how this process can be improved."
 
"The definition of the word 'Fuse' is 'to join or blend to form a single entity,' which is what collaboration in the hospitality industry yields: a joint partnership by planners and properties that achieve shared business objectives," says Karen Kotowski, chief executive officer for The Convention Industry Council. 
 
The five-city roadshow, sponsored by Loews Hotels, PSAV and American Furniture Rentals (AFR) will kickoff in Washington, D.C, then travel to Los Angeles, Orlando, Dallas and Chicago. Each stop will feature a separate "Road to CMP Breakfast Club" for those interested in the program, followed by a robust, breakout schedule and a debate-style keynote. Loews Hotels, widely recognized for its innovation and leadership in the travel industry, is the headlining hotel sponsor. "We are excited to support the launch of this important series," says Alisha White, Loews Hotels Global Sales Executive Director in Washington, D.C. "Loews Hotels is committed to creating an authentic experience for our guests. We're eager to support the Convention Industry Council and its partners in exploring opportunities to heighten the attendee experience before a conference begins."
 
Every aspect of the schedule has been carefully curated to be CE-eligible as part of the CMP Preferred Provider Program, including breakouts on delivering world-class business cases for meetings, research-backed insight on achieving effective site inspections, creating an appealing and functional learning environment and how to overcome connectivity barriers. 
 
"Our industry is all about creating personal connections, driving positive business results and building strong communities. Fuse will do just that within the meetings industry by bringing planners and property owners together face-to-face to foster personal connections that yield positive business objectives and build a stronger hospitality community," says Nan Marchand Beauvois, manager of the Meetings Mean Business Coalition Coalition. 
 
This roadshow is open to all planners and property professionals. Certified Meeting Professionals (CMPs) will receive a discount for attending. To register and view the dates the event will be in your area, please click here. 

 

 

By Roger Simons, CMP, Group Sustainability Manager, MCI Group

The IMEX-GMIC Green Awards for sustainability are the most sophisticated and widely respected awards our industry has to offer and the good news is that there are a lot of benefits for the winners. 

But what do awards of this type bring to my business? I hear you ask. The merits are myriad – it's actually the best way to stand out from the crowd of competitors. It's a sure-fire way to get recognition for your business, your monumental efforts and your clients too.

Winning an award from IMEX-GMIC brings real credibility to your sustainability program and puts you in a league of elite winners from the top venues, meetings and MICE companies of the world.

Here are four great reasons to apply for the IMEX-GMIC Green Awards:

1. Free PR & External Validation
Advertising can be expensive, even the social media companies are now getting shrewder and charging more and more to get your message out to the masses. Winning an award brings you free publicity and brings you instant news to share with the world and your own employees. Receiving third-party validation from the IMEX Group and the Green Meeting Industry Council equally brings you instant credibility and separates your business from the greenwashers.

2. Sales Tool
Award winners attract sales. Think of those movies with the list of ratings and Oscars won on the front cover. Consumers are naturally attracted to companies and products that have been recognized. Don't underestimate the usefulness of having a raft of awards to your name when talking with existing or new customers.

3. Talent Retention
The MICE industry is all about people, without it we cease to exist. Every modern employee wants to work for a company that cares for the environment and society as much as its profit. Attract new employees with your award and motivate those already in house. After all, who doesn't want to work for a winning company?

4. Corporate Values
If your company is looking to be a leader in anything, winning an award can bring recognition to that corporate value. If you are integrating sustainability into your business, winning an award can reinforce that focus. Having an external validation of your leadership in any space is valuable and rewards all the hard efforts of the team that have been developing this focus. It also illustrates that when you say you are a leader in sustainability, you really are.


The IMEX-GMIC Green Awards are jointly run with GMIC (Green Meeting Industry Council). They have been developed to recognize organizations within the meetings and incentive travel industry that are making an effort to minimize their environmental and social impacts.

There are four award categories. Apply by clicking the links below

Commitment to the Community
Green Meeting Award Small (less than 200 attendees)
Green Meeting Award Large (200+ attendees)
Green Supplier

 

 

From TSNN News

The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) announced the selection of Aaron Bludworth, CEO of Fern, as the incoming Chairman of the Board along with the new slate of officers and board members during its meeting held Dec. 1 in Baltimore, Md.

"In 2016, CEIR will focus on continued improvement and delivery of data and research that has been so important to the promotion and improvement of the exhibition industry. The completion of our redesigned website will help enhance our users' experience and offer more functional search capabilities in order to better access research of interest," said CEIR President and CEO Brian Casey, CEM.

He added, "CEIR will also focus on further improving our already best in class senior level Predict Conference which is scheduled to be held in Washington, D.C. at the Reagan Center on Sept. 14-15. I am looking forward to working with such a strong leadership group in furthering CEIR's overall mission."

Additionally, CEIR welcomed three new members to the board of directors, among them:

• Chris Meyer, CEM, CMP, vice president of Global Business Sales, Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority

Congratulations, Chris!  Click here for a complete list of 2016 CEIR Board of Directors

 

 

The Convention Industry Council’s CMP Preferred Provider Program launched in February 2015. Since the launch, we have added more than 100 Preferred Providers who offer quality continuing education for candidates and CMPs. 

CMP Preferred Providers are organizations that have formally registered with CIC and are committed to providing education that aligns with one of the 10 domains included in the CMP International Standards (CMP-IS) or CMP-HC Standards. The CMP- IS domains are: Strategic Planning, Project Management, Risk Management, Financial Management, Human Resources, Stakeholder Management, Meeting or Event Design, Site Management, Marketing and Professionalism. The CMP-HC Standards are:  Planning, Implementation, Evaluation.

Preferred Provider education makes it easy to find and complete the educational requirements of the CMP program and have your attendance recorded in your portal record.

Claiming CE Hours

As part of the Preferred Provider Program, sponsoring organizations agree to upload the attendance roster of each of their pre-reviewed events. This usually is completed within two weeks after the event. If the email the attendee has provided to the Preferred Provider matches the email in their CIC account, their attendance will be recorded in portal record.

After the roster is uploaded, attendees will receive notification from CIC that their attendance has been uploaded into their online profile. Once this email is received, attendees simply need to claim their CE hours. To claim CE hours, attendees log onto their portal account, scroll to the Add/Edit Continuing Education section and find the event. To edit the number of hours attended at the event, click edit and then add the number of hours attended for the entire event and click submit. 

Attendees do not report each session attended when claiming hours for a Preferred Provider Event. It’s easy! Find event, click edit, enter hours and submit.  

If the email address does not match the attendee’s portal account email address, the attendee will need to self-report their attendance by session and upload supporting documentation – proof of attendance and course description. The attendee can also reach out to the Preferred Provider and ask if they can update their email address so that it matches their portal account and ask the Provider to upload the updated email address.

You can find a listing of educational opportunities on our website.

 

Melinda Epperson, PhD, CMP, recently earned her Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from the University of New Orleans during commencement on Friday, Dec. 18, 2015.

Helene Lippe, CMP, HMCC, is now a Meeting & Project Manager at Impaq International. She was previously a Group Sales and Services Manager with the Hampton Convention & Visitor Bureau. 

Laura Lundrigan, CMP, is now Project Account Manager at Ashfield Meetings & Events, responsible for managing client accounts as well as a team of 10 people. She previously worked the company’s as Project Manager and received this promotion after only two years at the company.  

Antwone Stigall, CMP, is now Manager of Events and Public Engagement at New Memphis Institute. He was promoted from his previous position as Program & Events Coordinator.

Make an awesome career move? Let us help you celebrate! Send the details of your latest career triumph to cmptoday@conventionindustry.org. And while you're at it, be sure to log into www.conventionindustry.org and update your official CMP record.