TO THE
POINT
Deborah Sexton

President & CEO deborah.sexton@pcma.org

P H O T O B Y M I C H A E L A B R A M S O N

Survey Says We’ll be looking closely at Convening Leaders 2016 post-event surveys to see what attendees had to say about their experience. It’s an important piece of our annual-meeting process — as it is for most events.

But survey data is only as good as the survey itself. Find out how to make yours better in this month’s CMP Series, “The Trouble With Evals,” on p. 59.

As soon as Jan. 1 hits, we shift our minds to what may lie ahead in this brand-new year — which makes it an ideal time for PCMA’s Convening Leaders. It’s the best way for the meetings-industry community to start things off on the right foot, as we focus on what we can bring to the table, connect face-to-face with our colleagues, and get inspired.

Convening Leaders 2016 has just come to an end as I write this, but I hope the event is more of a beginning for our attendees as they move forward on their professional journeys.

When we decided to bring our program to Vancouver, we knew the location would be an inspiring one. It certainly did not disappoint. Just walking past the huge windows in the Vancouver Convention Centre — taking in the surrounding water and mountain vistas — we couldn’t help but be reminded of the tremendous possibilities out there for ourselves, our meetings, and our industry.

Since that potential can only be fully realized when we are at our best, we also added a focus on health and wellbeing through education sessions, a wellness center, and special events — one, so our attendees could be in the best shape to learn and grow; and two, so they could see how to offer similar opportunities to their attendees. And of course, events like morning yoga classes and a fun run also created opportunities to get to know fellow attendees — an added bonus.

The education component of our
meeting started off strong, with Arne
Sorenson, president and CEO of Mar-
riott International, as our Opening
General Session speaker. He spoke
candidly on the disruptors facing the
hospitality industry today and how he
envisions the hotel of the future. We
also gave everyone a peek at Marriott
and PCMA’s collaborative, ground-
breaking research project: “The Future
of Meetings and Events.”
We closed the meeting on a high note
with Amy Purdy, who despite losing
her legs, kidneys, and spleen to menin-
gococcal meningitis at age 19 has
gone on to a career as a model, actress,
champion Paralympic snowboarder,
and finalist on TV’s “Dancing With the
Stars.” Listening to her was an inspira-
tion. Sure, there are obstacles in our
path, but are they roadblocks or step-
pingstones to something better?

In between, we experimented
with space and sound in our Learning
Lounge. Our Women@Work workshop
sold out, and our Corporate Meetings
HQ and Medical Meetings HQ were a hit.
While not every initiative might
have been a home run, we’re already
evaluating this year’s event and talking
about how to improve next year. (We’ve
captured some highlights of our time in
Vancouver for you, beginning on p. 14.)
Thank you to our incredible Van-
couver hosts, our production partners,
speakers, strategic partners, and every
single person who joined us there.
Thanks also to those who took part in
our hybrid event, Convening Leaders
Live, and to Meetings + Conventions
Calgary for making it complimentary
for all. We look forward to continuing
the momentum in the year ahead! .
Inspiration for the Year Ahead