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The GSAE Emerging Professionals SIG is at it again! Check out their latest brain-child, as they are the driving force and vision for our Summer Luncheon. A special thank you to Molly Whobrey, EP SIG Chair, for all her hard work to create such a fresh event!

Remix Your Creative Process - A DJ’s Take on Trying New Approaches
What can you learn from a DJ's creative process from strategy to execution? In this one-hour talk and workshop become familiar with a DJ's creative process and learn how to sell the product of your creative endeavors. Grasp how to course-correct by identifying and reading your audience's signals like a great DJ reads a dance floor. 

About our speaker:
Alexis Charpentier (aka Lexis) is a "record digger,” DJ, TED speaker, and the founder of the Music is My Sanctuary website and collective, one of the most trusted voices in the independent music community. He is also the creator of the worldwide 24 Hours of Vinyl event series. You may watch his TED Talk here.

Cost:
GSAE Members - $39 Early Bird ($49 after July 6) 
Guests - $49 Early Bird ($59 after July 6)

Schedule:
11:30 am - Networking Reception
12 pm - Luncheon & Keynote

Thank you to our sponsor:	Thank you to our host:
Coral Hospitality (including Brasstown Valley; Lake Blackshear Resort; Amicalola Falls and Unicoi State Parks)	Atlanta Marriott Buckhead Hotel & Conference Center

 

GSAE is a CAE Approved Provider
As a CAE Approved Provider educational program related to the CAE exam content outline, this luncheon program may be applied for 1 credit toward your CAE application or renewal of professional development requirements.

The 2018-2019 Leadership Academy class will feature the most up-to-date curriculum and a Capstone project to synthesize all you will learn. It’s going to be a tremendous experience worth up to 56 CAE hours to sit for the exam or to renew. The class will begin with a kick-off retreat October 25-26, 2018 followed by eight day-long classes from December-June. Additional details may be found here. Application deadline is September 1, 2018 - apply today.

There is no bigger thanks from our association exec attendees than scheduling your OWN meeting at the Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort! Huge thanks to our spectacular hosts: We all enjoyed getting to know the excellent staff of the host property onsite after months of planning and prep.

The Augusta Convention & Visitors Bureau (ACVB) recently announced Bennish Brown as their new President and Chief Executive Officer. Brown has spent 18 years as a tourism professional, serving 12 years as the Executive Director of the Rock Hill/York County Convention & Visitors Bureau in Rock Hill, South Carolina, before relocating to Tacoma, Washington where he has served as President and CEO of Travel Tacoma Pierce County since 2012. Brown was recently elected to the Destinations International Board of Directors. Welcome to Georgia, Bennish!

Congratulations to Matthew Gambill, Executive Director, Georgia Association for Career & Technical Education, on his recent election victory. The voters of Bartow County have spoken and he will be representing State House District 15.

 

• Patrice Williams - Meeting Planner, Association Strategy Group, LLC
• Arianna Afshari - Chief Executive Officer, ALN Solutions
• John Steffes - Association Sales Manager, Sonesta Gwinnett Place Atlanta

Sarah Sain, GSAE's long-time editor of connections magazine and our annual membership directory, was recently promoted to Director of Content at Naylor Association Solutions. We are happy to report that she'll still continue to serve as our editor. Congratulations, Sarah!

 

Sue Hammock, Trade Show Sales Executive, is delighted to announce the completion of a $2.225 million renovation project at the Atlanta Convention Center at AmericasMart. Renovations and improvements include new, state-of-the-art escalators from street level and from the Westin Peachtree Plaza; lighting upgrades to "Daylight” LED bulbs (over 7,000) significantly reducing our energy consumption; thousands of square feet of new carpet tiles; meeting room upgrades include a new architectural ceiling and full-length, all-glass modular entry doors.

Marcy Anderson, CMP, National Sales Manager, is excited to share the news of Shepard's new eventVOICE - a voice-driven assistant designed specifically for events to enhance attendee experience, improve exhibitor engagement, and help organizers work smarter. This first-of-its-kind tool, is a template-based operating platform that boasts ease of set-up, personalized notifications, and a responsive artificial intelligence database - giving a broader range of event organizers the ability to respond to the demand for voice-first search customer experience. 

Mary Statkewicz, CMP, Sales Manager, Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism, is delighted to announce the new Lodge at Gulf State park, a Hilton Hotel, will open at the end of 2018. The property offers 40,000 square feet of flexible indoor and outdoor event space along with several outdoor gathering and reception areas. They offer various team building, volunteer and social responsibility opportunities for your conference.

In addition to our Summer Luncheon, mark your calendars and plan to join us for upcoming events, including the T.E.A. Group Luncheon on June 21, GSAE Meetings SIG social on June 21, ASAE Annual Meeting & Tradeshow (including the Southern SAE reception), August 18-21, webinars and more. More SIG dates will be added soon! Save the dates for some specialized programming coming this fall: October 17, Small Staff SIG Summit, and November 14, GSAE’s first Tech Showcase.

The summer CAE Study Group (beginning in July and running into first half of September) is forming now. We must have at least four members to hold the session. $79 - GSAE or other SAE members.

Complete the Meetings & Purchasing Survey for a chance to win either a UGA Football Suite for two (not Tech, not Auburn) OR Broadway at The Classic Center OR an Athens Wine Weekend event. Drawing will be held during the July 11 GSAE Luncheon. Thank you - Athens Convention & Visitors Bureau, The Classic Center and Hyatt Place Athens. Fill it out today (about 13 minutes of your life for some pretty good odds). Big thanks to the GSAE Supplier Council for helping staff create a useful tool for all our folks.

Live webinars are worth 1 CAE hour. Did you know? More than 94 CAE-qualifying recorded webinars are available 24/7 on our GSAE website. 

• June 20 - Using Social Media to Educate and Engage Members
• July 11 - 10 Commandments of AMS Transitions

ASAE Annual Meeting is where association professionals go to get focused. Join 5,000 of your colleagues from across the country for three full days of powerful networking, thought-provoking education sessions and innovative business solutions. August 18-21, 2018 in Chicago, IL.

WorkXO was founded by Maddie Grant and Jamie Nodder (past Annual Meeting speakers) along with HR expert Charlie Judy in order to build the Workplace Genome, a culture assessment program. Since inception, the WorkXO platform has been integrated with QuestionPro's survey technology. Jamie and Maddie's focus at Human Workplaces will continue to be on the custom culture consulting and digital strategy they are known for.

ASAE is still waiting for a response from the Treasury Department after delivering a sign-on letter last month from close to 200 tax-exempt organizations concerned about a provision in the new tax law that taxes transportation and parking benefits provided by many employers. The fringe benefits provision removes a deduction for employer-provided benefits such as transportation, parking and on-premises athletic facilities.

A new blog post from MemberClicks about demonstrating member value with your online directory and a new podcast from Association Adviser on non-dues revenue, plus lots more from Doug Eadie's site.